Hong Kong Island: Wan Chai & the Northeast - Hong Kong - page 241

Crowded and cosmopolitan, dead Hong Kong is no different from the breathing city. Tomb-
stones jostle for space at this Christian cemetery (c 1845) located on Wong Nai Chung Rd
alongside the Jewish, Hindu, Parsee and Muslim Cemeteries, and St Michael's Catholic Ce-
metery. Burial plots date to the mid-1800s and include colonialists, tycoons and silver
screen divas.
After exiting the MTR, follow Russell St, turn left into Wong Nai Chung Rd, and walk
south for 15 minutes. The entrances of the cemeteries are scattered close to each other, op-
posite the public entrance of the Happy Valley Racecourse.

LANDMARK

LOVER'S ROCK
( GOOGLE MAP ;off Bowen Rd, Wan Chai; green minibus 24A)
Lover's Rock or Destiny's Rock (Yan Yuen Sek) is a, well, phallus-shaped, boulder on a
bluff at the end of a track above Bowen Rd. It's a favourite pilgrimage site for women with
relationship or fertility problems. It's busy during the Maidens' Festival , held on the sev-
enth day of the seventh moon (mid-August).
The easiest way to reach here is to take green minibus 24A from the Admiralty bus sta-
tion. Get off at the terminus (Shiu Fai Tce) and walk up the path behind the housing com-
plex.

MUSEUM

POLICE MUSEUM
( GOOGLE MAP ; 2849 7019; www.police.gov.hk/hkp-home/english/museum ;27 Coombe Rd, The
Peak; 2-5pm Tue, 9am-5pm Wed-Sun; 15)
Fans of Hong Kong crime thrillers should make a trip to this museum in pretty Wan Chai
Gap. The protagonist in this former police station is the Hong Kong police force, formed in
1844, but the real star is the Triads (ie Hong Kong Mafia). The eye-opening Triad Societies
Gallery uncovers the rituals they follow. Equally intriguing is the well-supplied Narcotics
Gallery . If taking the bus, alight at the stop between Stubbs Rd and Peak Rd.

BUILDING

HONG KONG CONVENTION & EXHIBITION CENTRE
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 2582 8888; www.hkcec.com.hk ;1 Expo Dr, Wan Chai; 18)
Due north of the Wan Chai MTR station, the massive Convention & Exhibition Centre,
which was built in 1988 and extended onto an artificial island in the harbour for the official
ceremony of the return of sovereignty to China in 1997, has been compared with a bird's
wing, a banana leaf and a lotus petal. It's a leading venue for large trade fairs, exhibitions
and conventions.