Hong Kong and Macau_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 14th Edition) - Andrew Stone [4]
Google Maps, Hong Kong (maps.google.com.hk) Fast-loading maps with geo-tagged listings.
HK Clubbing (www.hkclubbing.com)
Hong Kong Journal (www.hkjournal.org) Insightful, in-depth features on the city.
Hong Kong Leisure and Cultural Services Department (www.lcsd.gov.hk)
Hong Kong Observatory (www.weather.gov.hk)
Hong Kong Tourism Board (www.discoverhongkong.com)
Hong Kong Yellow Pages (www.yp.com.hk)
South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com.hk)
Time Out Hong Kong (www.timeout.com.hk) Authoritative cultural and entertainment listings.
Return to beginning of chapter
(UN)SUSTAINABLE HONG KONG
Oh dear. You’re in the wrong city in the wrong country. Conspicuous consumption is the main pastime in Hong Kong’s malls, which along with everything else are powered by the dirtiest fuel of all (coal). Hong Kong’s token wind turbines merely underline its non-efforts in sustainable energy generation. Let’s face it, even though it has great wilderness areas (see Click here) Hong Kong isn’t exactly a model ecocity and the options to use sustainable services are very limited.
Energy-efficient systems, such as geothermal and air source heat pumps and renewable generation through solar power, are barely gaining traction and buildings could be a lot greener.
Perhaps the only environmental upside to console yourself with is that a highly concentrated city like Hong Kong (and it most certainly is that) is sensationally energy efficient compared to cities with suburban sprawl and therefore higher vehicle use.
* * *
ADVANCE PLANNING
Three weeks before you go, check out some key Hong Kong websites and get to know what’s going on – both in the headlines and after hours – by reading the local online media (Click here), as well as local blogs (above). Check to see if your visit coincides with any major holidays or festivals (Click here). Make sure your passport and other documents are in order.
One week before you go, book tickets for any major concerts or shows that might interest you at places such as the Hong Kong Cultural Centre ( Click here) or the Fringe Studio & Theatre (Click here). Book a table at Lung King Heen (Click here). Remember to book the cat sitter.
The day before you go, reconfirm your flight, check Hong Kong websites for any last-minute changes, weather updates (especially in the typhoon season; see Click here) or cancellations at entertainment venues, and buy some Hong Kong dollars.
* * *
Hong Kong’s efforts to offer recycling facilities are improving, but slowly. One of the few things you can do to help make a difference when eating out is to order only nonendangered species of fish, and from sustainable fisheries, by consulting the Hong Kong World Wide Fund for Nature Fish Identification Guide (www.wwf.org.hk/eng/conservation). The downside is that having long since exhausted its own inshore fish stocks, much of the fish consumed in Hong Kong is jetted in from other Asian fish markets.
Return to beginning of chapter
BACKGROUND
* * *
HISTORY
EARLY INHABITANTS
THE FIVE GREAT CLANS
AN IMPERIAL OUTPOST
ARRIVAL OF THE OUTER BARBARIANS
OPIUM & WAR
BRITISH HONG KONG
GROWING PAINS
A SLEEPY BACKWATER
THE ROAD TO BOOMTOWN
A SOCIETY IN TRANSITION
THE 1997 QUESTION
ONE COUNTRY, TWO SYSTEMS
TIANANMEN & ITS AFTERMATH
DEMOCRACY & THE LAST GOVERNOR
HONG KONG POST-1997
THE CLAMOUR FOR DEMOCRACY
A ‘CHINESE’ CITY?
ARTS
CINEMA
ART
MUSIC
THEATRE
LITERATURE
ARCHITECTURE
TRADITIONAL CHINESE & COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE
ECONOMY
ENVIRONMENT & PLANNING
THE LAND
GREEN HONG KONG
POLLUTION
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
MEDIA
FASHION
TIMELINE
* * *
HISTORY
The name Hong Kong came from the Cantonese hèung-gáwng (‘fragrant harbour’ or ‘incense harbour’), which was inspired by the scent of sandalwood incense piled at what is now Aberdeen, on the western edge of the island. In the very long scale of history, Hong Kong as we know it today has existed for a mere blink of an eye. But there was a lot going on in the region before that wintry