Hong Kong, vibrant and colourful, with sleek skyscrapers, verdant hills and a pulsating night life, is a dynamic city of commerce. I love going there, which is convenient because I go often. In fact, I’m a “frequent visitor”, which is more convenient: I whisk through Immigration bypassing a serpentine queue every time… whether I arrive by day or night, on a weekday or weekend, during school or holidays. The enormous airport – with myriads of shops, lounges and restaurants – handles 48 million passengers annually. That’s about 90 passengers a minute.
It’s easy to doze off on the half-hour drive to the city on a silky-smooth highway and miss the scenic hills of Lantau Island, the bridge to Kowloon and the tunnel to Hong Kong. The two-stop train journey takes 24 minutes but is equally soporific.
(Arriving at Kai Tak Airport ten years ago used to be more stimulating: descending into mountains with jagged peaks; flying almost in between buildings with clothes fluttering on balconies; catching a glimpse of a short runway; and screeching to halt a few feet before the ocean.)
I usually stay in Pacific Place, in the heart of the city, yet close to sanctuaries of tranquillity, like the Hong Kong Park – with small lakes and quiet pathways among flowers – and Bowen Road on the adjoining hill, with a panoramic view of the city below.
It’s easy to doze off on the half-hour drive to the city on a silky-smooth highway and miss the scenic hills of Lantau Island, the bridge to Kowloon and the tunnel to Hong Kong. The two-stop train journey takes 24 minutes but is equally soporific.
(Arriving at Kai Tak Airport ten years ago used to be more stimulating: descending into mountains with jagged peaks; flying almost in between buildings with clothes fluttering on balconies; catching a glimpse of a short runway; and screeching to halt a few feet before the ocean.)
I usually stay in Pacific Place, in the heart of the city, yet close to sanctuaries of tranquillity, like the Hong Kong Park – with small lakes and quiet pathways among flowers – and Bowen Road on the adjoining hill, with a panoramic view of the city below.
I like going for a run on Bowen Road but dislike having to climb the hill first. I thought I was saving time by running up the hill till an athletic Chinese, effortlessly overtaking me, asked, “Why don’t you save time by running?”
