From the people who brought you Palazzo in Fo Tan (Sino Land and the MTR) comes another hilariously overblown marketing campaign for Lake Silver in Ma On Shan. The TV adverts have Palazzo-style opera-lite music and computer graphics, and on Wednesday the SCMP came adorned in a glossy full colour advertising wraparound that even referenced their earlier development. There's also a fancy website.
You won't be surprised to learn that it has an idyllic setting with "spectacular waterfront views of Sai Kung, Pat Sin Leng, Tolo Harbour and Ma On Shan coastal mountain ranges." Wow, all of that from the window of one apartment? Excellent…
What's not to like? It's on the MTR and it's in the countryside. Fantastic. The picture shows the development surrounded by green stuff. But wait – could that be Symphony Bay next door? Could that be the Lee On estate in the other direction? And could it be that other developers plan to build on adjacent sites? Maybe Henderson Land will be building something equally magificent right next to Lake Silver? I rather think they will.
Check it out on Google Maps (no I can't figure out how to get text to wrap round):
As for the rail connection, well this is actually the Ma On Shan line that runs to Tai Wai (where it connects to East Rail), one of the new lines built by the KCR before it was swallowed whole by the MTRC (once described as a property developer than happens to run some trains). The newspaper advert claims that it will take 17 minutes to get from Tai Wai to Admiralty on the new Sha Tin – Central link. Well, maybe, one day. What they are careful not to explain is how long it will take to get from Lake Silver to Tai Wai. More than 17 minutes, I fear. 
The other striking feature of this development is that it seems to include a very substantial lake and/or swimming pool. Hence the name, I suppose. I’ll be fascinated to see the finished development to see if it bears any resemblance to the marketing material. Property developers don't lie, do they?
Ordinary Gweilo 
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