Hong Kong is an iconic skyline. Forefronted by the glitzy Victoria Harbour and homing skyscrapers galore, this is a chock-a-block city known for its gleaming edifices, fancy shopping malls and chaotic vibrancy. But look beyond the fact that Hong Kong boasts the highest concentration of dizzying tower blocks in the world, and you’ll find a different side to this enigmatic destination. Because beyond the urban jungle lies an actual jungle, a sumptuous backdrop of oxygenating undulations that make up three quarters of the island’s topography – the man-made spectacles may draw the crowds, but it’s Mother Natures’ work that keep them coming back.
With its storied background as a former British colony and current status as a Special Administrative Region of China, in Hong Kong east really does meet west. The mishmash of Chinese and British influences can be found across the city’s myriad attractions. High-end European boutiques and Michelin-star restaurants lie within steps of their more traditional counterparts of night markets and mouth watering Chinese cuisine. And, its large expat population is indicative of how Hong Kong isn’t just a sought-after holiday spot, but one of the world’s most liveable cities too. You may want to share that fact with your family and friends – just in case you decide not to come home.
And then there’s the food. Home to some of the best street food in Asia, Hong Kong will be sure to win your heart. If your go-to weekend takeaway is a Chinese, you’re obviously in the right place. But even if it’s not, Hong Kong’s varied culinary scene will be sure to tickle those taste buds – think everything from curry fish balls to portuguese style egg tarts. But it’s trying your way through the various freshly steamed dim sum offerings that is practically mandatory and there’s no better place to do so than at a dai pai dong – a.k.a. any one of the city’s many open-air food stalls. Oh, and maybe get some chopstick practise in before your trip, you don’t want to be that guy.
Get out of the frenetic dai pai dongs, knock-off markets, glitzy malls and showy harbour of the mega city that never sleeps however, and you’ll come across a whole host of land that time forgot. Secret, white-sand bays, floating fishing villages and traditional taoist temples make up the lesser-known side of one of the world’s busiest financial hubs. But in a destination of contrasts and contradictions, one thing’s for sure: Hong Kong will enthrall.