Pak Tam Au – Ham Tin, Sai Kung

I love the sun. I love the heat. Give me 32*C any day…. I actually enjoy taking in a breath of muggy hot air. But I’ll go out whatever the weather, and often especially because it’s raining, or windy. I love feeling all the elements – they make you feel so alive… and hot, torrential Hong Kong downpours? Oh my, how they can refresh your soul.

The thing is – especially in tropical climates – sometimes you also need to take safety into consideration… and on one rather wet Saturday morning in August B & I were unsure if this downpour was one that would be the ultimate cleanse we needed- or could turn into a flash flood having us clinging on to branches for our lives…

Thanks to modern technology (and B’s knowledge of how to use the weather apps…) we decided to go for it. The protests had been going on for two months. I was mentally, emotionally exhausted, and desperately sad. I needed an escape, and as always nature came to the rescue. We drove to Sai Kung, and walked from Pak Tam Au to Ham Tim beach and back. At one point the rains were so hard we hid in the public toilet checking the apps to see whether to go forward, back.. or stay put. We carried on and were rewarded with a delicious dai pai dong vegan lunch of singapore noodles, fried rice & Chinese greens 🌱

I of course dove into the water, and did some body surfing. We said hello to the cows, butterflies, dragonflies along the way – and I got very excited about the bright red crabs.. much to B’s amusement as I was focused on one I spotted first, not realising there were hundreds everywhere.

I needed that walk. The sun did come out eventually, but I’m so glad it held off. I needed the rain, the water, to get right into my soul and wash away everything, just for a few hours. Mother Nature, you are the most incredible.