{"id":3353,"date":"2016-04-09T22:06:26","date_gmt":"2016-04-09T14:06:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.com\/?p=3353"},"modified":"2016-04-09T22:09:48","modified_gmt":"2016-04-09T14:09:48","slug":"h-for-hiking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/?p=3353","title":{"rendered":"H for Hiking"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Po<\/a>

Po Toi Island, Hong Kong, 9 April 2016 \u2013 Ancient rock carvings; Palm Rock; View from the top; Local flora; Tin Hau temple<\/p><\/div>\n

“What has hiking given you?”<\/em><\/p>\n

I was asked this question by a fellow hiker some time last year. I can’t remember who it was that asked but hiking has been a huge part of my life ever since I moved to Hong Kong in 2009. So here’s a list of what I think hiking has given me.<\/p>\n

1. Friends<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most of the people I know in Hong Kong outside of work I got to know through hiking. I remember I went hiking the very first weekend that I arrived in Hong Kong in August 2009. I googled and found the Hong Kong Hiking Meetup group and found it a great platform to meet new people who shared a love for the outdoors. I’m still active with the group and have varying degrees of friendships with the people I have met through hiking. Some are mere acquaintances\u00a0while others have become good friends whom I have many shared memories with.<\/p>\n

2. Appreciation of the mountains<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before I moved to Hong Kong, I was never a hills and mountains person. In fact, I had never even hiked before. I was a beach person, preferring the lapping of waves on the skin and the feel of grainy sand under the feet. I still love the water, but can now appreciate the tranquility and beauty of the hills. It’s so soothing to the soul to be in the mountains.<\/p>\n

3. Deeper understanding of myself and my own abilities<\/strong><\/p>\n

Training for races and climbing to the top of mountains can be a matter of will, commitment and perseverance. The biggest challenge I have set for myself was training and completing the 100k Trailwalker. I’ve learnt to dig deep into myself when the time \u2013 whether hiking or not \u2013 calls for it.<\/p>\n

4. A refuge from the crowds<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hiking has offered a much needed refuge from the crowds of Hong Kong in the urban areas. Believe it or not, 60% of Hong Kong \u2013 so far \u2013 is actually countryside. That may change soon as property developments slowly encroach into designated country park areas. But hopefully not.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“What has hiking given you?” I was asked this question by a fellow hiker some time last year. I can’t remember who it was that asked but hiking has been a huge part of my life ever since I moved … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books-literature-writings"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3353","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3353"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3487,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3353\/revisions\/3487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dimsumdolly.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}