Hong Kong

Visited: August 1999

Duration of visit: 4 days

Capital city: The city of Victoria

Population: 6.7 million (1999)

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

• Visiting Hong Kong after its recent incorporation into China.
• Limited space is optimized and used to its full potential.
• The Big Buddha enthroned on a lotus.

Hong Kong and mainland China were part of the Asian Big Tour from Australia, through Southeast Asia to India. During this 15-months long trip I visited most of the countries in the region and spent 4 days in Hong Kong, before crossing the border to Shenzhen.

In this article I describe my travelling experience in Hong Kong: one country – two systems, tiny hotel and Big Buddha statue.

More articles about my China adventures are available here:

Two years prior to my arrival, Hong Kong had officially been integrated into China, leading me to perceive it as part of China. Although there had been a significant English presence and influence over the years, I soon observed that, largely due to its predominantly Asian population and general habits, Hong Kong appeared to be less English in character.

While Hong Kong has been officially integrated into China since July 1997, its status remains distinct from that of other Chinese provinces (as of 1999). “One country – two systems!“ is a slogan that signifies the arrangement through which the former British colony has aligned itself with the communist authority.

The Beijing government interprets this slogan in a way that maximizes its own benefits. The democratically elected government was replaced overnight, while the official border still separates the two countries and international airport taxes are paid for flights from China to Hong Kong.

With 1,070 km² of territory and a population of 7 million, Hong Kong was one of the smallest and most populous countries in Asia.

As many as 98% of the population, despite the recent English ownership of the islands, is of Chinese nationality.

The high level of development of Hong Kong can be attributed to the low tax rate and the extremely developed service sector (banking, telecommunications, insurance, logistics, tourism), which employs over 75% of the population.

I arrived at the new Hong Kong International Airport a year after its inauguration in 1998. It was the most modern and advanced airport at that time: spacious, efficient, well designed. The arrival was at 10:00pm, so I decided to sleep over on a rather comfortable bench.

Air condition was too strong, the atmosphere was quiet, plenty of space, chairs and benches available. The night passed by quickly and with tranquility. I was thrilled, because I usually don’t sleep well if not in a completely horizontal position.

After breakfast, I took a public transport to the area of Kowloon where, among all skyscrapers I selected one of the cheapest apartments.

There was no luxury on the 13^th floor; extremely small room was optimized as much as it can be: the bed measured 170 centimeters, however TV and A/C were working flawlessly. Tiny bathroom in the room offered hot shower, sink and a toilet bowl. Compact, clean, practical, for two of us. The price was only 14.00US$. A bargain in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is divided into four main areas: Kowloon, Hong Kong Island, New Territories and other archipelagos. Kowloon, dotted with shops, bars, hotels, restaurants, neon lights and nightlife, is a major gathering place for tourists. It is an ideal place to buy state-of-the-art electronic devices at a price several times lower than in Europe, clothes by famous fashion designers or cherish a view of skyscrapers that flourish across the bay on the island of Hong Kong.

A ride by double-decker bus or antique tram among modern buildings, lunch at a luxury restaurant and shopping, are the main activities for visitors in Hong Kong. I liked the atmosphere of Kowloon. I expected more people to speak English, but in reality, there were many shops where only Mandarin was understood.

High on a hill of Lantau island a large statue of Buddha made of bronze was raised in 1993 – the Big Buddha. It symbolizes the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and faith. Tian Tan, as it is known, was the first grand Buddha statue that I visited in China, enthroned on a lotus on top of a three-platform altar.

Lotus has special significance in Buddhism – a symbol of purity. The statue is 34 meters tall, weighs over 250 metric tons, and is surrounded by six smaller bronze statues Bodhisattvas – Buddhist deities which are venerated for helping mortals reach enlightenment.