Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
tro.html
;10 Cotton Tree Dr, Admiralty; 10am-6pm Wed-Mon; Admiralty, exit C1)
At Hong Kong park's northernmost tip is the Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware. Built in
1846 as the home of the commander of the British forces, it is the oldest colonial building in
Hong Kong still standing in its original spot. The museum, a branch of the Hong Kong Mu-
seum of Art, houses a collection of antique Chinese tea ware.
Peruse bowls, teaspoons, brewing trays, sniffing cups (used particularly for enjoying the
fragrance of the finest oolong from Taiwan) and, of course, teapots made of porcelain or
purple clay from Yixing. The ground-floor cafe is a great place to recharge over a pot of fine
tea.
The KS Lo Gallery, in a building southeast of the museum, contains rare Chinese ceram-
ics and stone seals collected by the gallery's eponymous benefactor.
ARCHITECTURE
LIPPO CENTRE
Though the HSBC building and the Hong Kong International Airport in Chep Lap Kok
(1998) - both by English architect Norman Foster, in late modern high-tech style - may be
Hong Kong's best-known modern architecture, there are quite a number of fine modernist
buildings in the territory designed by old masters. The Lippo Centre, which resembles ko-
alas hugging a tree, is a pair of office towers built in 1987 by American Paul Rudolph.
PARK
TAMAR PARK
This harbour-front park on the site of the New Central Government Offices () is an inviting
sprawl of verdant lawns where you can soak up the rays while watching the ships go by. It's
part of a 4km promenade along the northern shoreline of Hong Kong Island, from Central
Piers, outside the IFC Mall, past Wan Chai, all the way to North Point. Concerts and other
cultural activities are sometimes held here.
The HMS
Tamar
was a British naval vessel moored in Victoria Harbour that served as the
operational headquarters of the Royal Navy until 1946. The New Central Government Of-
fices comprise the headquarters of the HKSAR government, the legislature and the Chief
Executive's Office.
