Hong Kong Activities
Non-sport things to do or see.
Promenade and Avenue of the Stars Re-opening.
Last night, while on the way to a Hong Kong Philharmonic performance, we stumbled into a new attraction next to the Cultural Center.
It’s a 10 minute water, light and music show and was truly amazing. One of the effects is to project messages and pictures on to a thin sheet of water so that the message moves and disappears as the water falls. The show we saw was at 7:30 PM. As far as I know the schedule has not been published.
The Cultural Center From Victoria Harbor
Date: July 9th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #7B
This is a continuation of Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #7A:visiting the outer islands.
I wish my wife, Pam, was writing today’s posting since she knows so much more than I do about the outer islands. She’s a hiker so she and her friends have explored many of the smaller inhabited and uninhabited islands.
Peng Chau Island Near the Ferry Terminal
Date: July 4th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #6
Bet!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If you haven’t been to the horse races in Hong Kong, you have missed something special. I particularly recommend the Happy Valley track on a Wednesday night.
The ponies run only two days a week in Hong Kong. On week-ends at the new track in Sha Tin - usually on Saturday, sometimes on Sunday or a holiday. The mid-week meeting is usually Wednesday evening at Happy Valley, where the first race was run in 1847.
Happy Valley Race Track
Date: June 28th, 2006 |
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Hong Kong’s Very Own World Cup - Shopping
The Hong Kong Tourism Board announced a two month Shopping Festival in an attempt to lure tourists who are not caught up in World Cup fever.
There has never been any doubt that Hong Kong people are World Class shoppers. I guess that now they will have some competition from tourists lured here by the opportunity to spend HK$300.00 in order to be eligible to win one of 113 prizes totally worth about HK$2.7 million.
Happy Shoppers Celebrating Maxing Out their Credit Cards!
Date: June 12th, 2006 |
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Hong Kong Versus Singapore - Sights and Activities
Number four in a series.
Museums
There are some fine museums in Singapore, especially the Asian Civilization Museum. The government is upgrading the museums so some are closed. Hong Kong, on the other hand has at least Six world-class museums, four of which are less than 10 years old. The Hong Kong Heritage Museum and the Museum of Hong Kong History are both “don’t miss” destinations if you are at all interested in museums. The Art Museum, the interactive Science Museum, the Coastal Defense Museum and the Space Museum are also worth spending time in. Except for the Heritage Museum and the Coastal defense Museum, the other four are within walking distance of one another. I’ll have to give Hong Kong the nod, here.
Cantonese Opera Exhibit, Hong Kong Heritage Museum
Date: June 6th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #8
Get In or On the Water
It’s easy, in the urban crush, to forget that Hong Kong was, at one time, almost completely made up of small fishing communities. The sea is very much a part of Hong Kong’s history and its present.
Two months ago I posted an item on Hong Kong’s beaches and how much cleaner they were than 20 years ago. I’ve also talked about riding the ferries to see how much of Hong Kong’s commercial life depends on the sea. I’ve mentioned how interesting it is to ride the water taxis in Aberdeen harbor to get a sense of how the thousands of boat people live.
Hong Kong Water Sports Center
Date: July 8th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #7A
Visit!!!!!!!!!!
“Visit what?” you ask. Well, not the usual tourist traps but rather the outlying islands, 221 of which are uninhabited and a number of which are barely inhabited.
I’ll start with the three most popular and then talk about the others in a subsequent posting.
Lantau
Lantau is the largest island in the territory and the most visited. It is the home of Chek Lap Kok Airport, Disneyland, Po Lin Monastery and its 110 foot high sitting Buddha, the soon to be opened Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car Ride, Tai O with it’s stilt housing and Discovery Bay, an expat dominated enclave. But don’t think it doesn’t have its secret places where you are unlikely to run into many other tourists.
Tai O Village on Lantau Island
Date: July 1st, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #4
Ride!!!!
“Ride what?” you ask. Let’s start with one of Hong Kong’s icons, the Star Ferry. For HK$2.30 (US$0.30) or free if you are over 60, you can ride the ferry back and forth across the harbor. As long as you don’t get off, you can make the trip as many times as you wish. You better do it soon, though. At the rate the government is filling in the Harbor, the Star Ferry may soon be a memory.
The Star Ferry
Date: June 19th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #2
Walk!!!!!!!
I am referring to two kinds of walking here: walking as in “hiking” or “trekking” and walking as in “strolling” or “wandering.” Both apply to Hong Kong.
Aberdeen Country Park on Hong Kong Island
Date: June 11th, 2006 |
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Dragon Boat Races
My ongoing comparison of Hong and Singapore will have to wait.
Yesterday Hong Kong celebrated the Tuen Ng Festival, which commemorates the death of a popular Chinese national hero, Qu Yuan, who drowned himself in the Mi Lo River over 2,000 years ago to protest against corrupt rulers. Legend has it that as townspeople attempted to rescue him, they beat drums to scare fish away and threw dumplings into the sea to keep the fish from eating Qu Yuan’s body.
Dragon Boat races are a major part of the festival. Participants train for months. Sitting two abreast, with a steersman at the back and a drummer at the front, the paddlers race to reach the finishing line, urged on by the pounding drum.
Date: May 31st, 2006 |
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