Hong Kong Skyline ~ Panoramic
November 13 2001

There are very few cities in the world that show as well as Hong Kong across the harbor from Kowloon. Then if you think that the lens puts on 15 pounds and you see what a looker she is!

Hong Kong convention centre
November 13 2001

Designed to resemble a bird taking off in flight, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition centre sits on a chunk of reclaimed land on the island overlooking Victoria harbor. This building was the site of the June 30 1997 handover ceremony that returned Hong Kong and the New Territories to China. If only the symbol of the bird taking flight had carried over to Hong Kong's economy following the handover (or "The Chinese take-away" as I've heard it called).

Double Decker bus blur
November 11 2001

We arrived in Hong Kong from Guangzhou by boat and by the time we cleared customs it was dark. We took the underground rail system to the Causeway Bay area of the city and stepped out into daylight - or at least enough electricity to make it seem like daylight. We haven't seen that kind of energy willfully wasted since leaving the Western world. The same energy seems infused in everything here and the jolt one receives upon arriving in this great city is substantial.

From Victoria Peak ~ Panoramic
November 12 2001

Victoria Peak on Hong Kong Island boasts some of the most expensive real estate in the world. It is mostly old money and Chinese magnates that pay out the multi-millions for this million dollar view of the Central district and Tsimshatsui on Kowloon across the harbor. The odd thing was that walking through the neighborhoods, the only way to tell anyone of means lived inside were the expensive cars parked outside. That old English understatement means many houses look like nondescript breezeblock clunkers. The Chinese will change all that in time though. No one is better at over-the-op conspicuois consumption than the nelwy minted Chinese millionaires.Except maybe the oiled Arabs. Or maybe Texans, or maybe any sterotype...

Neon Hong Kong
various dates

A collection of just some of the thousands of neon signs that successfully caught my eye while walking Kong Kong

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"In Hong Kong they bang a gong..
November 19 2001

...and fire a noon day gun" Mentioned in the famous Noel Coward poem about Mad Dogs and Englishmen, the Noon Day gun's blast at twelve has become a traditional time signal in Hong Kong.

Pig's head, hold the skull
November 12 2001

Just the lastest disturbing presentation of a dead pig.

Rentals ~ Mid - Levels
November 18 2001

So what will it cost you to live in one of the hippest cities in the wworld? Well, If the prices are too heady on the peak (abode of the'old' money), you can always decide to rent a place in the Yuppie enclave of the Mid-Levels where the new money resides. For an idea of what you can expect to pay to rub shoulders with the Ferrari driving Armani wearing 30 something jet set, divide the asking price by about 7.6 to get US dollars.

Pop Culture 1601
November 18 2001

Backstage at a puppet show in the impressive HK museum.

Pop culture 2001
November 18 2001

Temple St. market. The question is not whether these T-shirts show bad taste, but which of the rogues in this gallery has the shortest shelf life as a desirable T-shirt image. Mao and Che have proven durability but who will last longer, Eminem or Osama?

Urban Tai-chi
November 12 2001

In this age of DNA mapping, the Atkin's diet , human cloning and the Ab Master, it is nice to see traditions of exercise and fresh air practiced in the artificial heart of a city that seems to embrace the latest fad even more than most.

Hong Kong underground ~ Panoramic
November 17 2001

Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of little things that reminded me of London while I was in Hong Kong. Among these was the MTR underground rail system that even had an English accented recording reminding passengers to "Mind the Gap."

The Golden Rule ~ Near Stanley
November 18 2001

On our last full day in Hong Kong we were presented with this visual summation of the overarching ethos of this city - make money, spend it conspicuously and when you have earned a spot on a beautiful beach with a sensational view of the sun setting into the ocean behind your yacht, don't go soft and waste time looking at it. You could be reading about how to make more money.

Leaving on a jet plane ~ Chek Lap Kok
November 19 2001

1 country down, 18 to go. Waiting for Vietnam Airlines flight 791 to Hanoi to consign China to the past.