Hong Kong

By Dr Kent/Flickr

Hong Kong is a vibrant & exotic locale with a rich and varied history. Although it has become synonymous with shopping & stopovers, visitors soon discover that the former British colony offers so much more.

Something happens to people when they arrive in Hong Kong. All those previously lethargic sloths you shared the plane with become suddenly animated. As if activated by remote control, the easy-going crowd that lazily sauntered on to the plane decides to disembark in a desperate clamber. It is rush hour before you even clear customs. One of the first signs you will see is a huge banner proclaiming ‘ Relax. Train will arrive in three minutes.‘ Welcome to Hong Kong, city of life, and one of the most energetic places in the world.

Many Asian cities have developed along similar timescales, encountered the same waves of growth and bust, and tend to resemble one another. Hong Kong had a head start on the rest of the region, the former British colony booming as the only gateway to the vast, untapped resources of China. A motley crew of fishing junks and an assortment of paddy fields blossomed into one of the major cities of the Far East, in only a few generations. Today Hong Kong harbour bristles with sky-scrapingsuccess, and even with the economic wobbles since the 1997 handover the skyline changes noticeably every year. Hong Kong is tiny by international standards, a crowded jumbled city with layer upon layer of development and urban clutter, mostly squashed around that incredible harbour. In an effort to stop some of it falling in, land has been reclaimed. A core of land only a few square metres across may have office space, hotel rooms, a shopping plaza, a car park, and an underground railway line, all stacked on top of each other. Given its history as a trading outpost it is not surprising that the territory remains an international business centre, and you will see plenty of suits nipping back and fourth. But there is an optimistic spring in their steps, not the depressed plod you find elsewhere.

For tourists, Hong Kong is a major travel hub and it is a traditional jumping off spot for shopaholics. There can be few places with more ships per square metre than Hong Kong – they are absolutely everywhere. And everyone is at it. Where do Hong Kongers find room to stash it all in their compressed flats? For visitors, Tsim Sha Tsui is often the first port of call, but try diving into vibrant Causeway Bay for brand-named goods and shopping plazas. The malls of Central and Pacific Place in Admiralty are lined with fancy upmarket apparel. At the other end of the scale are the grungy street markets and bargains of counterfeit capital Mongkok. For arty types, the shops of Cat Street in Sheung Wan offer a treasure trove of quality Chinese antiques.

When it comes to restaurants little needs to be said – the dining is predictably excellent. Yet it can also be very cheap and whatever your budget the food is good. The Cantonese may be a tolerant bunch, but not when it comes to poor cuisine. Hotel restaurants are right up there, their menus bulging with world-class culinary indulgences. The hotels themselves are a reflection of Hong Kong – modern, compact, energetic and efficient – with service just a bit too rushed. Expect staff to be hurried and doing several things at once. Be warned that rooms in the territory tend to be half the size of those in other cities. Some can be comically small with not enough room to swing a spring roll, let alone a cat.

Hong Kong is a place that loses nothing with the seasons, but it can get uncomfortably humid in the summer months, and the monsoons between July and September can put a damper on things. September through April is the time to come although it can get a tad chilly in January and February.

The touristy circuit is fairly limited but it is best to submerge yourself in many enjoyable low-key diversions, all of which are close at hand. Museums are generally educational and presentable. Incense wafts through the temples that provide interesting pockets of culture among the modern progress. And then there is the pungent whiff of various unidentifiable shriveled roots and creatures in the traditional medicine shops and wet markets. Hong Kong is an intriguing place to absorb. There is just so much going on.