Many of us who have been watching TVB dramas for years would have heard of the Wishing Tree (許願樹) as it was an oft-used location for shoots before the authorities banned people from throwing oranges on its branches. It’s a short mini-bus ride away from Tai Wo so I decided to head there to have a look at this tree that’s famous among locals.


Take mini bus No. 25K from Tai Wo. The bus stop to get on is not too far from Fu Shin Street. The trip costs HKD5.10. Tell the bus driver that you want to go to Wishing Tree so he’ll know when to let you alight. The tree is in Lam Tsuem (林村) and you’ll see it on your right side of the road as the mini bus passes it.


The Wishing Tree is now supported by many wooden beams because it’s now very weak due to years of people burning incense below it. Its leaves’ pores are probably choked from smoke! Its branches are also weak from the weight of oranges that people hurled onto it over the years. So now the tree is only a display piece.


To make a wish, buy one of these papers for HKD10, write your wish on it and hang it on this board. You have to hang it below the column which corresponds to your Chinese zodiac sign.


There’s also the Tin Hau temple nearby where you can offer some prayers.


About 15 metres away from the real wishing tree is this fake one. You can buy fake oranges to tie to your wish that you’ve written on paper and throw it up onto the tree. I thought throwing would be easy, but it didn’t seem so when this girl on the right (in black) tried it about 7-8 times. She did get it up eventually.


After having a look at the tree, go to one of the stalls nearby to have some dessert soup (糖水). I had this very refreshing lily bulb with snow fungus and egg soup.
The Wishing Tree is nothing exciting but I thought it’d be nice to have a look since I saw it so often in the TVB dramas I watched when growing up. Am glad I’ve seen it, so now it’s one more item checked off my to-do list in Hong Kong before I leave in August.