After passing the Sky Ladder Rock and climbing upwards for about 500 metres, we arrived at the second landmark of this journey, the Fool Tower. The origins of the Fool Tower (Silly Men’s Pagoda) and its five founding elders: the ruins of the pagoda are located on the mid-section slope of the Lion’s Tail on Lion Rock in Sha Tin District. The tower stood about 15 feet high and was built by several elderly gentlemen who called themselves “silly men”—Chan Sap-kan, Lai Shui-pui, Tsang Wai-shue, Chan Po-sing, and Liu Chi-choo—who carried the sand and rocks up the mountain on their own backs. The pagoda body was divided into several tiers inscribed with couplets and calligraphic titles. The second tier of the tower was inscribed with the couplet: “Two mountains embrace the sea where carp swim; a single pagoda pierces the sky to rouse the sleeping lion.” This beautifully and concisely captures the essence of the harbor, Lei Yue Mun, the Fool Tower, and the peaks of Hong Kong and Kowloon led by Victoria Peak and Lion Rock. In 1964, a typhoon snapped the pagoda in half, sending the upper portion rolling down the hillside, and today it takes an experienced guide to catch a glimpse of its original form. If you want to see what it originally looked like, you don’t necessarily need to visit the site; you can check out this Facebook page instead: (https://www.facebook.com/tsewaii/posts/2669884376631463/)
