vi) Tram Ride Experience & Causeway Bay City
The tramway line was opened in 1904 and operates only on the northern side of Hong Kong Island. It is one of the oldest modes of public transport in Hong Kong. In 1904, Hong Kong Tramways had 26 tramcars, but today, after 100 years, it has the largest double-deck tram fleet in the world, counting more than 160 tramcars and carrying more than 200,000 passengers a day.
There are 6 tram routes, 120 tram stops and tramways run between Kennedy Town in the west and Shau Kei Wan in the east every day. Generally, the frequency on all routes depends on traffic conditions (usually 2-4 minutes). During the rush hours, the trams depart on average every 1.5 minutes. The interactive route map is available HERE.
Trams are not fast compare to other modes, especially the MTR, but they are the most economical mode of public transport in Hong Kong. In addition, they perform not only transportation functions, but also have become a popular sightseeing attraction. Trams are very comfortable for short distances or if you would like to explore the city. The destination point is shown on the front and the rear plates of a tram.
Operation Hours
From 6.00am until Midnight
Fares
Adult - HK$2.30
Child (aged 3 - 11) - HK$1.20
Senior (aged 65 or above) - HK$1.10
It was already 1pm and our stomach rumbled asking to be filled, so our next destination after Stanley was to go for lunch and pray at Islamic Muslim Centre, Ammar Mosque.
Direction to Ammar Mosque
1) Tram - Take tram from Peddar Street (27E), near MTR Central to Tonnochy Road Station (47E). Please note that "E" is referring to Eastbound. Refer map the tram go DOWN to East side of HK island. The West side of HK island is going UP.
It is common if u travel by your own to switch plan depends on your current situation and it happens to us too! Our initial itinerary basically was based on reference from others blog which sometimes might be differ with what you facing in real situation. Since HK central is the main point and centre of the HK island, most of the direction started from there. Our original plan also was to take the bus from Stanley and stop at Exchange Bus Terminal, Central. However, since we were coming from Causeway Bay, we went through the tram route and noticed that Tonnochy Road located in the middle route of Causeway Bay and Pedder Street, which means we will reach Tonnochy first before Pedder Street. So quickly we decided to get off from bus at Causeway Bay area and find nearer tram station here. There are few bus stops at Causeway Bay and we were uncertain where to stop, so once we we saw tram station nearby, we just alighted there. Luckily the tram stations are nearer with another. If you missed one station, u can just walk to the next. From the bus station, we walked a bit to nearer tram station, Percival Street (51E).
It is very important to understand the direction of the tram either to east/west bound. We actually made mistake by taking a tram at this station because as you can see in the photo of tram route above, it was going down to the opposite direction of Tonocchy Street. (Remember I told you, down is EAST and UP is WEST). Since we were from Causeway Bay (Down/East), we have to take the Westbound route to go up to HK Island. Luckily we noticed it quickly so we got off the tram at next station, Paterson Street (53E/48W). Lucky us too as Paterson Street Station caters for both routes; Eastbound on the right and Westbound on the left side of the station. So we just alighted from the Eastbound tram and waited for the Westbound tram on the left side. In case the station you alighted is not the exact route you wanted to take, you can just walk to the next station (correct route) as the distance from one station to another is quite near. And if the station available for 2 routes, just change the direction (means if U from left station, change to right and vice versa). Hope you won't get confused on the tram like me :D
Anyhow we managed to get in the correct tram, finally!
The entry to a tram is on the rear side, the exit is on the front side. Pay when you exit the tram.
View of Causeway Bay city. A bit about Causeway Bay, it is a heavily built-up area of Hong Kong, located on Hong Kong Island and covering parts of Wan Chai District. The rent in the shopping areas of Causeway Bay was ranked as the world's most expensive for the second year in a row, after overtaking New York's Fifth Avenue in 2012.
Causeway Bay is a true microcosm of Hong Kong’s shopping scene, with up-market fashion to be found in Lee Gardens One & Two, Hysan Place, Lee Theatre, Times Square and Fashion Walk, mid-price and luxury goods in SOGO and affordable youth fashion boutiques in the warren of shops here.
Finally after few stops about 10mins ride, we alighted at Tonnochy Road to Ammar Mosque.
vii) Islamic Muslim Centre, Ammar Mosque
So what so special about having a luncheon here?
Well it is a MUST try activity once you are in Hong Kong. The Islamic Centre is inside the Ammar Mosque (Masjid Ammar) and its located on the 5th floor. As there's only one lift serving the whole building it can get pretty busy when activities are underway. There's always the stairs to get your appetite going. The choices of food are quite ample.
Business hour
11.00am - 3pm
Direction
i) Tram to Tonnochy Road, Hennessy Road
ii) Cross the main road and go straight to the alley where a basketball court will be on your right hand side
iii) Continue to walk straight until your reach the stairs and go up the stairs
iv) At the end of the stairs, there will be a 7-Eleven across the road. You are on the right track. So cross the road and Masjid Ammar located just behind the 7-Eleven.
We reached there at 2pm. There 's a direction on the lift. Canteen at 5th Floor, ablution at level 1, male prayer room at 2nd level and woman prayer room at level 3.
The service is nothing to shout about. They barely speak English but with a bit of sign language, splatter of English here and there, one eventually get to order with the menu at hand.
Since we came here a bit late, the dining hall was quite empty. The taste of the food was nice and cheap. Quite bland actually but still having halal food is wonderful when you´re travelling ... irregardless the taste.
To sum it all, the fact that this place was located inside a mosque where prayer facilities were a no brainer and its guaranteed halal status is a welcome advantage for travelling muslims. Totally recommended!
Once re-filled, we went to 3rd floor for prayer and rest our exhausted feet a bit.
Alhamdullilah mission accomplished. Refreshed and ready to continue my tour. It's already 4pm, and the weather became chill a bit. It was perfect as the next attraction required lots of outdoor walking. Where was it?? Read my next post ok. Till then bye.
Trip to HK, Macau and Shenzhen Fast Link Here
Preparation
Day 0 – Departure to Hong Kong and First Night at Chungking Mansion
Day 1 – Star Ferry Ride from Kowloon to HK Island
Day 1 – HKCEC and Golden Bauhinia Square
Day 1 – Repulse Bay and Stanley Village
Day 1 – The Mid Level Escalator
Day 1 – The Peak Tram and Night at Victoria Peak (Sky Terrace 428)
Day 1 – End of Day 1
MACAU Day Trip
Day 2 – Journey to Macau by TurboJET Ferry
Day 2 – The Venetian, Macao
Day 2 – City Of Dreams and Hard Rock Hotel
Day 2 – The Galaxy Macau
Day 2 – Grand Lisboa and Senado Square
Day 2 – The Ruins of St. Paul’s
Day 2 – Macau back to Hong Kong
Shenzhen Day Trip
Day 3 – Starting Journey to Shenzhen, China from Hong Kong
Day 3 – Window of The World
Day 3 – Shopping at Shenzhen and back to Hong Kong
Hong Kong Trip Continues
Day 4 – Ngong Ping 360, Lantau Island
Day 4 – Aberdeen Floating Village and Jumbo Kingdom
Day 5 – Disneyland Part 1
Day 5 – Disneyland Part 2
Day 5 – Disneyland Part 3
Day 5 – Shopping at Ladies Market, Mongkok
Last Day – Avenue of Star
Last Day – HK Museums, 1881 Heritage and Back to Malaysia
Total Expenses
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