Hong Kong, Part III - Misty Mountain Hop

Before I went to Hong Kong, I had seen images like this one, with a spectacular and sweeping view of Victoria Harbour, Kowloon, and the impressive skyline of Hong Kong Island.

So, on the first full day I was in Hong Kong, I ascended The Peak, as it's called - the mountain behind the skyline on Hong Kong Island that is as much a part of the world image of Hong Kong as is the skyline and the harbor. I started climbing at about 3 in the afternoon, hoping to be at the top early enough to have a great diurnal view of the city, but yet not have to hang around at the top for terribly long to see the skyline from above at night. However, due to weather, it didn't work out exactly as I had hoped.



I was aware that there was a train that went to the top of The Peak. However, as I like to just walk around and get a feel as I go when I go to a new city instead of using maps, I didn't find the tram until I was 3/4 of the way up. It was quite a steep climb on a drizzly afternoon, so it wasn't easy, but it was beautiful, and I'm quite pleased I did it this way. The trail up the side of the mountain offers many great views, and it's quite pleasant to walk through the jungle after the hyper-capitalist environment of the city.

I met this guy on the trail up.

The railway, which I finally found 3/4 of the way up The Peak. This is how well prepared and smart travelers get up the mountain, but not me! Ha ha! But, as I said, I don't regret making the climb.

One of several small cascades on the side of The Peak.

After a serene walk through the jungle, this is what greeted me at the top - shopping malls! Ugh! Guess I shouldn't have been surprised - this is Hong Kong, the capitalist paradise, after all.

The Peak Tower - six floors of shopping, with a great view. Kind of looks like something out of Star Wars.

A view of some buildings and the harbor. Also, you can see a bit of the jungle on the mountain.

A large cargo ship coming into Victoria Harbour, and some trees.

The other side of Hong Kong Island. A lot of people don't realize just how much green space there is in Hong Kong.

The top of IFC #2, Hong Kong's tallest building, sticking above the clouds as if it were Everest.

Another view of the Harbor.

The skyline, with a Chinese Lion in the foreground, at a Chinese Pavilion on top of the mountain.

This was the best and clearest view of the city I had the whole time I was at the top. I was hoping it would stay like this until after nightfall.

However, the clouds started to roll in...

And by sunset, that same view looked like this. Bummer. No night view of the skyline.

An excellent law that I wish existed in Bangkok.

Another lion, more buildings, and more clouds.

This was the fog on the trail when I started to walk down the mountain.

And then the mist was pretty thick. So, I decided to give up and take the train down, since it was dark, wet, and slippery. Bummer. So it goes.

Hong Kong, Part II - The skyline of Hong Kong Island, Victoria Harbour, and some thoughts on Spiderman

So one of the very last movies that I watched in Bangkok before leaving was Spiderman III, which was an entertaining film, especially on the Imax. One thought that crossed my mind when I watched this film was about how Spiderman, as a superhero, could only use his superpower effectively in very few places in the world. He would really not be a terribly effective nor interesting crime fighter/rescuer if he was in, say, Grand Forks, North Dakota, now would he? Even in cities like Minneapolis or San Francisco, which have skyscrapers, but in only a pretty limited area, his crime fighting territory would be pretty small. Perhaps he'd be able to be effective in a few natural areas, such as the Grand Canyon or the Redwood Forest, but in general, it would be a pretty lame movie based anywhere other than Manhattan, Chicago, Singapore, and a few other cities.
However, if Spiderman were in Hong Kong, his superpowers would be quite useful. Hong Kong may have the world's most impressive skyline, rivaling even Manhattan or Chicago, and with an impressive foreground with Victoria Harbor and a spectacular background with the mountains of Hong Kong Island (the topic of my next posting.)

So, here are some pictures of Hong Kong's skyline, with a few pics of Victoria Harbour and a couple of other random shots mixed in.


Not too hard to imagine Spiderman swinging through here, is it?

The view of Hong Kong Island (right) and Kowloon (left), as seen from a ferry in Victoria Harbour.

A banner (not sure what it says,) with the Hong Kong Skyline behind it.

Not sure what this Kowloon building is supposed to be, but it kind of looks like a very large toy from the Transformers or Gobots line. Hmm...


A cable car in Hong Kong. San Francisco and Hong Kong have more in common than I ever realized.

Some of the cranes in Victoria Harbour. Victoria Harbour, which is the body of water between Kowloon, Hong Kong Island, and Aberdeen. It is one of three natural deep-water harbors in the world - the others are Rio De Janeiro, and, drum roll please... San Francisco! Huh. I was in two of those three cities within a 14 hour span. Anyway, for this reason, Victoria Harbour is one of the world's busiest, and Hong Kong is an important shipping center.

Eastern part of the skyline.


A view of the skyline from the Kowloon waterfront, on a rainy, foggy, cloudy day.

This is the site where The UK and China held the ceremony on July 1, 1997, formally returning Hong Kong to Chinese control. An important site for the history of de-colonization. In the Background is the Hong Kong convention center.

The flag of Hong Kong in the foreground, with Hong Kong's tallest building (at the moment - one is now under construction that will be taller,) International Financial Center Tower #2.

A very old looking tugboat in Victoria Harbour, while I was on a ferry. Ferries are still an important mode of transportation in Hong Kong, especially connecting Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong also has an extensive subway and a very nice bus system, with British-styled double-decker buses. And, as you saw above, there are cable cars, too.

Quintessential Hong Kong - the old Chinese Junk ship in front of the ultra-modern skyline.

The Junk, up close.


IFC Tower #2, with a coast guard boat in front of it.

More of the skyline on a foggy, rainy day.

The red and white lighted building is the world headquarters of the Hong Kong - Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC,) one of the largest banks in the world - it's even big in parts of the US. Not sure what the other building is.

Probably the coolest building on the skyline, the Bank of China Tower, at night.

The Bank of China tower, in the daytime.

The skyline from Kowloon at night. I accidentally left my flash on for this picture. Looks kind of strange, doesn't it? Not sure what that red haze is all about.

Hong Kong puts on a skyline light show every night, the world's largest laser-light show, according to Guinness.

More night views from Kowloon.

Ferry and the light show.

More light show.