Hong Kong Park
Even though I used to live in Hong Kong, this park is a new one for me, which is surprising given its close to the zoological and botanical gardens, which I have visited in the past. See you learn something new every day, more on that later 😃
So, I now know where I was heading, and after some Google time, I had a plan for getting there via Admiralty MTR Station and the Queensway Plaza exit. Given that the park contained a walk-through aviary, it was time to blow the dust off the long camera lens and following the breakfast fuel up, it was off to the MTR.
Getting out of the MTR, that's where the pain started. There was a loud crash, my glasses vanished from my face, and several people looked at me. My DSLR, complete with the Nikon 200-500 lens attached, was on the concrete.
My heart almost stopped, with my smart watch telling me my heart rate was 138, just imagining the cost of getting this fixed. Before panic set in, I picked it up and examined the damage. Maybe I dodged a very large/expensive bullet; it looked like the hood took the brunt of it.
This is a prime example of why I always have the hood attached, and no, not in the reverse/storage position, it's basically the Nikon crumple zone. Getting a new hood is not cheap, but way cheaper than a new front element.
Thankfully, the hood was the only real damage to the lens. Phew!! And no damage at all to my glasses, double Phew!!!!
As for the cause, well, the strap did not break; one of the rings that the strap connects to the body failed, which is interesting as they are both titanium, but one could not take the weight and stretched until failure. New rings added to the shopping list.
Yes, it took a while to calm down after that shock, but eventually I carried on to the park via the Queensway Plaza and Pacific Place shopping centres. Talking of carrying, the camera with the 200-500 lens attached is heavy, but at least it has a tripod mount, which makes a fairly good handle.
Heading into the park, the first thing I see is the fountain plaza, which triggered a memory. I think I may have visited the park in the past, best guess something in the order of 30 years ago. Which explains the lack of memory, er, well, that's my excuse anyway. 🤔
This does bring up something interesting, where I can show some historical photos taken in the early 90s compared to some taken today. Just be aware that the 90s era photos are scanned prints, so are of mixed quality. And yes, that is after some quality Photoshop time.
Now, while I cannot remember exactly when the above was taken, other than it was in 1992, which, after some digging, seems to be not long after the park was opened in 1991.
That was 1992, now, for today, from a slightly different angle, it shows few differences, other than some very much expected plant growth; the only real difference is the graphics on the fountain centre column. At the moment, this is the only 1992 photo I can find, so expect more when I get home and have access to the full archive.
Moving on past the fountain plaza and into the park proper. Time to answer the question of why I am spending this much time in this park, what's the attraction?
For me, and given my interest in nature photography, the primary attractions are the conservatory, the walk-through aviary and the butterflies.
Yes, I said butterflies, which is another new one on me, after a local friend suggested I take a good long lens when I visited the park, as by a small pond close to the entrance is a hot spot for photographing butterflies.
Check out the greenery on the right side, all those dark shapes are actually butterflies, and as I got closer, I could see more and more. From personal experience of the Butterfly Park in Malaysia when you get close, they fly away, and even when not flying, rarely stay still long enough for any good photography.
Interesting, as I got closer this time, very few flew off, and even those that did just jumped to another flower. Then came the movement, well, a butterfly on a flower that did not move at all, it let me get multiple shots like this.
This was taken hand-holding my Nikon D850, with a 200-500mm lens attached, with ISO 1600. Other than being cropped, the only thing done to this shot is noise removal. More proof, if any was needed, that that lens is stunning and the higher ISO on the D850 is just as impressive.
Yes, I did take a few other shots, which are be available in the butterfly section of my photo gallery.
Ok, while I could have easily stayed where I was and spent hours sooting butterflies, but there were other things to see, with the walk through Aviary, which is actually called the Edward Youde Aviary, being at the top of the list.
As I mentioned earlier, I have visited this sort of place in both Singapore and Malaysia, both of which were stunning, but way bigger. So heading in through the turnstiles and out the other side of the air-locked entrance.
Yes, just like the others I have visited, walkways with free-flying birds, all just on a smaller scale. One thing that's very much different is just about all the other visitors are photographers, with most carrying lenses like my 200-500mm.
And yes, I did talk cameras with several of them, it seems this aviary is a meeting place for photography enthusiasts.
Anyhow, time for the birds. The first one I spotted was a very, very familiar one, a Rainbow Lorikeet, yes, really, these are wild back home in Sydney.
A while back, I was hand-feeding one of these birds with birdseed on a friend's balcony.
I travel all the way from Sydney to Hong Kong, and what's the first bird I see, a reminder of home. Oh well, it could be worse, could have been one of those very noisy Sulpha Crested Cockatoos.
Ok, maybe those noise makers are not here, but there are some in Hong Kong. On a previous trip, I came across one at Stanley Market.
Enough of the reminders of home, on to the rest of the birds. There were many flying around, and yes, I took many photos; these are some of the better ones.
It was a good experience, the birds seemed to be well looked after with plenty of food, and no sign of any issues. I will go back when the day is not so grey, as when the sun is out, the photography will be better.
Moving on to the conservatory, which is where the next historical photo came into play. It was taken in 1992 from the Vantage Point tower in Hong Kong Park.
As mentioned above, this was taken from the Vantage Point, a 30m tower in the park. At this time, I do not have a recent photo to compare with; my bad knees will not like its 105 steps. Never know, I may do it anyway. Expect updates.
Anyhow, the Conservatory in the above photo is at the lower right side, it's actually called Forsgate Conservatory and contains three areas, one for displays, one for dry plants and the final one for humid plants.
This display is interesting, reminds me of one I saw in the flower dome at the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, then comes the sheep, which look like colourful versions of Shaun the Sheep. Kids visiting the conservatory will love this display.
Well, what did I expect from the dry plant area, a rain forest 😀
Seriously, the display of succulents is good, well laid out, and again reminds me of the Gardens by the Bay flower dome in Singapore, just on a much smaller scale.
More of the same, and again, just like the Gardens by the Bay, with sculptures to break up things and add points of interest. To me, I actually prefer this smaller layout to the larger one in Singapore.
Moving on to the Humid Plant area. And no, I am not expecting a rainforest, for that, go to Singapore, the Gardens by the Bay has one.
Ok, I did hear the waterfall before I made it through the entrance, but it was still nice to see, and it was scaled just right for the environment.
The whole conservatory, which, yes, I have compared to the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, just on a much smaller scale. And just like the domes in Singapore, it's a peaceful place to visit and linger to de-stress.
Heading out of the conservatory.
This artificial pond, with the high-rise in the background, serves to amplify my thoughts that the whole park is an island of peace in the middle of the concrete jungle.
Before moving on, I heard what sounded like frogs croaking, and given I had a long lens on the camera, I spent the time looking closely to find the source of the croaks.
Yes, it took a while, but eventually I found this little guy, which, according to Google image search, is actually a Gnther's frog. Ok, time to come clean, this shot has had some serious Photoshop time, to remove the flare from the water, crop and increase the colour saturation.
The sky, which had been looking ominous all day, was getting darker, with rain very much expected, so I decided to make the hard decision and call it a day, but first, let's look at the artificial waterfall.
Now that's impressive, and yes, to continue the comparison with the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, they have one also, but to me, this one is more impressive, and yes, you can walk behind it.
Nice view, with the flowing water and high-rise in the background, and yet another reason why the whole park is like an island of calm in an ocean of concrete.
Final Thoughts top
As for my final thoughts on the park, well, as a surprise to no one, I really enjoyed my visit, and will visit again the next time I am in Hong Kong, and recommend it to all visitors. There is something for just about everyone, from the birds, butterflies, etc., to even a kids' playground.