You are my Sunshine, My only Sunshine

Yesterday I decided to go to San Tin Farm. This involved a bit of a trek as San Tin is up near the border with China, in fact it's practically in Shenzhen.

To get there I took the west rail to Yuen Long, then the 76K bus to Shek Wu Wai. The bus was the hard bit as it isn't very frequent. I had to wait half an hour for one. The bus journey took around fifteen to twenty minutes.

Yuen Long MTR.

When I arrived at Shek Wu Wai, there were quite a few people heading to the farm. I had chosen to go on a weekday as it gets very busy here at weekends. I hate crowds, but I like it when a few people are going to the same place as me though, as I can follow them and it's easier to find the way. From the bus stop you have to cross the road, go down a slope, go through a tunnel and then take a path along the side of a river. The way is actually marked with little sunflower signs. At one point I seemed to be the one leading everyone else. It's about a ten minute walk. I stopped frequently to photograph the surroundings. On one side everything is rural, lots of farmhouses and cultivated land. Of course being Hong Kong, on the other side, there's a huge metal fence hiding a construction site. I didn't photograph that.

Along the River.

Along the River.

Bridge across the River.

Clouds reflected in the river.

At the entrance to the farm you must pay $50 to go inside. You are given a little packet of sunflower seeds as proof of payment, rather than a ticket. The sunflowers blossom around June and July. I saw fields in all stages of development: unopened flowers, ripe flowers, dead flowers. I guess they want to stretch out the season as long as possible as they'll make a lot of money from the people coming here to take photographs, especially at the weekends. The farm does grow other flowers, too though, and these are ready in different months of the year.

Entrance to the farm.

During my visit the best sunflower fields were close to the entrance. You must put your bags in a black box at the top of each slope before entering the field, so you don't bump or damage the flowers and you are not allowed to touch them. I went in the main field twice. When I arrived the sky was turning black, when I was leaving I was blessed with blue skies. I don't normally do selfies, but everyone seems to come here to take photos of themselves with flowers, so I just did the same. The flowers were really beautiful.

Sunflower selfie.

Close up with blue skies.

Close up with blue skies.

Groups of flowers.

Groups of flowers.

Fields of Flowers.

Fields of Flowers.

Fields of Flowers.

Fields of Flowers.

Later I found fields of a different kind of sunflower with a paler centre.

Paler Flowers. Spot the one that's growing in the wrong place.

Paler Flowers.

Stages of Life : Young Flowers.

Stages of Life: Ripe Flowers.

Stages of Life: Dead Flowers.

Sunflower selfie.

When I had had my fill of sunflowers, I headed across a decorated bridge towards a large pond filled with waterlilies and lily pads. I took lots of photos of these, too. One side of the pond was lined with colourful umbrellas. These were one of many props placed around the farm for taking photos with.

Decorated Bridge.

Decorated Bridge.

Ponds filled with waterlilies.

The edge is lined with umbrellas.

Close-up of Waterlily.

Close-up of Waterlily.

Close-up of Waterlily.

View across pond from far side.

View across pond from far side.

Umbrella Selfie.

Umbrella Feature.

Umbrella Feature.

Other props provided to take photos with were a couple of windmills. The fields around these were pretty bare during my visit, but I have seen photos of these surrounded with flowers. I guess it all depends when you visit.

Windmill.

Windmill.

Windmill plus one of the towers of Shenzhen in the background.

As if that wasn't enough features to take photographs with there were also several flower tunnels dotted around the farm.

White Flower Tunnel.

Selfie with white flower tunnel.

Selfie with red flowers at end of white flower tunnel.

Red flowers at end of white flower tunnel.

Sunflower Tunnel Selfie.

Selfie with purple flower tunnel.

Close-up of purple flower tunnel.

There were plenty of other photographic props scattered around such as: I love you signs, swings with night sky backgrounds, Cinderella carriages, bright pink British phone boxes and post boxes, garden gnomes. When you think about it, this farm is certainly catering for people's non-stop selfie needs.

Garden Gnomes.

Garden Gnomes.

I love you signs.

I love you signs.

Love Hearts.

Night skies and swing.

Night sky swing selfie.

Cinderella's Carriage.

Pink phone boxes and post boxes.

In addition to all the sunflowers there were a couple of fields of lovely blue flowers, not sure what they were.

Fields of blue flowers.

Fields of blue flowers.

All the gimmicks aside, the farm and its surroundings were truly lovely.

Scenery around farm.

Reflected Clouds.

Flowering tree and pond.

Selfie with flowering tree, I was getting carried away.

Papaya Fruit.

Beautiful red zinnia flower.

There is a little shop on the farm where you can buy cold drinks, sunflower plants and other souvenirs. I bought a sunflower hair tier. I got a bit of a shock browsing the shelves though when I suddenly came across a sleeping cat. Not sure how much he cost.

Shop.

Sleeping cat.

When I arrived at the bus stop to go home, a very friendly local told me I could get to Yuen Long MTR fast by red minibus. He was very helpful. I got back to Yuen Long very quickly without the long wait for the bus. To use red minibuses you must pay cash though; they don't accept octopus. The fare was $8. I had enjoyed my day of sunshine.