Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A new era
On 1 July 1997 the British Crown Colony of Hong Kong reverted to Chinese sovereignty as
a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. Today Hong Kong re-
mains a capitalist enclave with its laws and rights intact, and China has promised that Hong
Kong will continue in this fashion for at least 50 years. Beijing's declared policy of main-
taining Hong Kong's prosperity and stability makes sense. Hong Kong has long been Ch-
ina's handiest window on the West, and the city is unrivalled in its commercial know-how
and managerial expertise. Around the time of the transition there was much speculation
about how things would change. But, in fact, once news of the handover vanished from the
front pages, the people of Hong Kong returned to their usual topics of conversation: the eco-
nomy and the price of housing.
There have been changes, of course, many of them due to economic progress, new con-
struction and other factors that influence cities all over the world. And there's not a great
deal of Britain left. Establishments are no longer preceded by the world 'Royal', Queen El-
izabeth has vanished from the coinage, and the Union flag has been replaced by that of Ch-
ina and the new Hong Kong flag with its bauhinia flower. You're far more likely to hear
Mandarin on Hong Kong's streets than English now. Meanshile, it has become much easier
for mainlanders to get travel permits to the SAR, and with the increasing affluence of many
across the border there has been a surge in the number of Chinese tourists, who now make
up the biggest group by nationality - 40.7 million visited in 2013. And in terms of expats,
there are now more Americans working in Hong Kong than Brits.
Fragrant Harbour
Hong Kong's name is derived from the Cantonese phrase for 'Fragrant Harbour'
-
Heung Gong
. The evocative name probably derives from the trade in locally-
grown incense wood, which once thrived in what is now Aberdeen. Another the-
ory ascribes the name to the bauhinia, an aromatic flower which is native to the
region and is now the logo of the Hong Kong administration.
People and customs
With a population of over seven million and a total area of just over 1,100 sq km (425 sq
miles), housing is one of Hong Kong's perennial nightmares. To alleviate the problem, the
government has become the city's major landlord with the construction of massive residen-
tial blocks. Though they have every modern facility, new flats average an internal floor area
per person of only around 11 sq m (120 sq ft). Whole cities have been created in the New
Territories, although the unimaginative architecture of these towns has been criticised.
