What Makes Hong Kong So Special

In the my previous posts, I always emphasized Hong Kong is an "international city" or a "British colony", it is because I do believe these are simply what make Hong Kong so special.



We have buildings of both Chinese and Western style;




Apart from the spectacular skyscrapers, you will also love the gorgeous scenery in the countryside areas of Hong Kong;

Owing to the impact of British governing and our free trading port, Hong Kong has become a city with mixed culture and economy where you can see international elements and bustling of international people anytime, anywhere.

Although Hong Kong is a small city in terms of land size, it contains EVERYTHING you need.

You may think it is a bit crowded - that's just one of the characteristics of Hong Kong.

People walk faster, eat faster, work faster. Time matters most. It is exactly our way of life.


Don't worry about being sick of the busy busy city, just take a ferry across Victoria Harbor, or simply visit the beautiful countryside or islands, you will still be embraced by nature and breathing the fresh air which you are used to.

If I were a tourist, I would say the transportation network and food are the most impressive parts of Hong Kong. After reading all my posts, plan a trip(ask me for details anytime), then you will see if you agree with me.

A Brief Introduction of HK History

The main thing you have to know is Hong Kong was a British colony, then in the following posts, you will see how the economy, culture, buildings, names and languages have been influenced by this.

12th century – Hong Kong was a sparsely populated area dominated by the Five Clans – Hau, Tang, Liu, Man and Pang.

1840 – The First Opium War broke out. The war was caused by the Chinese seizing an estimated half tonne of British imported opium and burning it.

1841 – The Chinese signed a peace treaty ceding the island of Hong Kong to Britain.

1843 – Hong Kong’s first governor, Sir Henry Pottinger was dispatched to take charge of the twenty or so villages on the island and conduct British trade.

1850 – The population of Hong Kong stood at 32,000.

1856 – The second Opium War broke out.

1860 – The Chinese found themselves on the losing side again and were forced to cede the Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter’s Island to the British.

1898 – Britain forced more concessions from the failing Qing Dynasty, gaining a 99-year lease of the New Territories. This lease would end in 1997.

1900 – The city’s population reached 260,000, this number continued to grow thanks to war and conflict in China proper.

1950 – The population of Hong Kong reached 2.3 million.

1950’s – Many refugees provided the labour for Hong Kong’s rapidly expanding manufacturing industry.

1980 – The population of Hong Kong reached 5 million.

1984 – Margaret Thatcher announced that the whole of Hong Kong would be handed back to China at midnight on June 30th 1997.

1997 – The Hong Kong Handover took place. Prince Charles and Tony Blair led the British party, while China was represented by Premier Jiang Zemin.

2008 – The Hong Kong population reached 7 million.


When you come to Hong Kong, you will be amazed by how densely it is populated - 7 million of people packed in such a small area!

The Weather of HK

We have pretty mild weather in Hong Kong, instead of 4 distinct seasons.

As you can see from the graph, it gets a bit hot in summer and becomes cooler during winter.

There are no tornados or significant earthquakes in Hong Kong, thanks to its geographical location.

The only destructive thing is typhoon, and it only occurs once in a time during summer.


So, if you wanna come to Hong Kong in summer, I suggest that you bring only summer clothes, of course.

But if you are going to travel to Hong Kong during winter, it might depend on where you come from, you know, like Canada, or Finland and so on, I would say you just need to wear what you normally wear in summer or fall.


Oh ya, it sometimes rains in Hong Kong, especially during summer, bringing an umbrella with you would be a wise choice too.

Geographical facts of Hong Kong

Hong Kong, officially called the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is located China's south coast. The 1104 sq. km land area can be primarily divided into 3 areas: Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Territories.

Hong Kong's terrain is hilly to mountainous with steep slopes, less than only 25% of the landmass is developed, and about 40% of the remaining land area is reserved as country parks and nature reserves. Most of the territory's urban development exists on Kowloon, Hong Kong Island and in scattered settlements throughout the New Territories.

As you can see from the above map, Hong Kong's long, irregular and curvaceous coastline also affords the territory with many bays, rivers and beaches, and that is why Hong Kong people can enjoy fresh and cheap seafood.





If you have to point out Hong Kong on a world map, it will be a tiny little point that you can hardly see!

Nevertheless, this small piece of land has everything you need, including countless world's most outstanding infrastructures, services, as well as spectacular views and monuments.