17/10/07 - Tsing Ma Bridge and Tai O (Big Shelter)

We crossed the Tsing Ma Bridge (the world’s longest road and rail suspension bridge) to visit Lantau Island, stopping en route to use Number 3 ‘Happy Room’.  Yes, all public conveniences in Hong Kong are graded.  Number 3 was impressive and I’d love to see the two that beat it to the top position.

I was saddened, though, by our visit to the village of Tao O.  Once a thriving fishing community and famous for its salt production, its fortunes have declined sharply over recent years.  Plenty of tourist coaches pull up there, but only for a short time to take photographs. 

With only 1800 inhabitants left, many of the flats in the concrete department blocks built to replace the stilt houses are empty and the primary and secondary schools are due to close soon.  A local man told me that the only hope for regeneration lies with the building of a bridge over to Macau, but this is a highly controversial scheme that may never come about. 

Over fishing has depleted the stocks, but dried fish are still a speciality.  The smell was overpowering on the day we visited and we didn’t feel moved to buy dried fish bladders or any of the other weird and wonderful products on offer from the little stalls in the main street.  I homed in on some clothes hanging on a line between two of them, but they turned out to be someone’s laundry.

The people of Tao O are mostly Taoist and the oldest temple dates from 1699.  As with the Buddhist Po Lin Monastery (see below), tourists are allowed to visit and take photographs.