Hong Kong Week-A Must-Stop at Nan Lian Garden and Wong Tai Sin Temple
Our concierge at the W was also exceptional, booking tickets for the cable car to Big Buddha well in advance (I’ll discuss tomorrow) and introducing us to the wonderful classical Chinese garden called Nan Lian. We headed down from the W into the mall, where we caught the subway to the Diamond Hill stop. The subway in Hong Kong is so easy to use and so well run. Simply purchase an Octopus Card for HKD$150 and then use your entire trip, adding money when needed. When you leave, bring the card back to the subway for a HKD$50 reimbursement. Once in Diamond Hill, it was a 5-minute stroll to Nan Lian, a serene oasis in the city, where small pathways led past bonsai trees rocks, koi ponds, bridges, pagodas, and waterfalls, finally entering a large Buddhist temple. There were many international school groups there the sunny day we visited, including children speaking French and English. It’s a very relaxing walk through nature when you’ve had too much of the city center. One subway stop away from Nan Lian is the most popular Buddhist temple in all of Hong Kong, Wong Tai Sin. As soon as we left the subway station, we saw the large crowd gathered at the temple to light incense and say prayers for good wishes for the year prior to the Chinese New Year. We ended with a taxi ride to the original Tim Ho Wan in Kowloon, known as one of the best places in Hong Kong for dim sum. We were the only tourists inside and we watched as people washed their plates with hot tea before being served. The barbecue pork buns were the best I’ve ever had, crispy yet spicy pork in a fluffy light bun. I also liked the bill, about $15 USD for 3 people.
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If you love Christmas lights, then you’ll be dazzled by Gardens Aglow held at the 
Yesterday, United Airlines issued a waiver to change all flights for free to St. Thomas, St. Martin, and Providenciales, Turks & Caicos through December 31, 2017. Word is starting to trickle in from the islands and it’s not good. Most resorts on St. Barts, St. Martin, and St. John have structural damage. Anguilla, St. Thomas, the British Virgin Islands, Turks & Caicos, and Cuba were also hit hard. 
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Those of you who have followed my travel writing career know that I return to Maine’s North Woods as often as possible. All it takes is a 4-hour drive from Boston and I’m lost in a land of seemingly endless forest filled with mile-high mountains, immense lakes and too many ponds to count. The large swath of wilderness feels like a chunk of Alaska remarkably placed in our congested Northeast. I have paddled down the Allagash River, my tent almost trampled by moose in heat; white water rafted down the Class V rapid known as Cribworks on the Penboscot River; watched as a bear swam across remote Chesuncook Lake; relaxed under a waterfall on that signature canyon hike along the 100-Mile Wilderness Trail, Gulf Hagas; and mountain biked with Lisa last summer to all four newly built huts on the spectacular Maine Huts & Trails circuit. It has led to some of my favorite articles like this one for