Hong Kong

Those who have ventured to the southern tip of Hong Kong Island, to Stanley to be precise, would concur with this hackneyed saying: the journey matters more than the destination.

Much of Stanley is rather forgettable – the open market is strictly for souvenir hunters, the Tin Hau Temple is not exactly “colourful” and Murray House, while deserving commendation for its painstaking restoration, is now overwhelmed with the trappings of consumerism.

Etched in your mind though are the fleeting scenes en route to Stanley – of undisturbed sandy strips, of glistening waters and of hilly islets – courtesy of a rather cliff-hanging bus ride.

The other modes of transport connecting this convenient city are tamer but the vistas, no less arresting. In fact, the perennial favourite Star Ferry crossing the (shrinking) Victoria Harbour, the colonial trams rattling through dense Hennessey Road, and the outdoor escalator sliding up and down the prestigious Mid-levels district have become destinations in their own right.

And very often, it is on one of these ride-to-nowhere-in-mind journeys that we spot a familiar blue building in Wan Chai or a grand 1970s Chinese mansion in Central – places that become destinations on our unending itinerary.

05 PING SHAN, NEW TERRITORIES__ As the starting point of the Ping Shan Heritage Trail, the truncated Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda stands rather incongruently next to a dusty parking lot and several sombre-looking apartment blocks. Surely there’s a more dignified way to honour the hexagonal monument that can be traced back to over 600 years ago.

One cannot help but wonder if the other ancient structures lining the trail are in a similar sorry state. It turns out that these historical buildings are concealed in a messy maze of apartment buildings that have sprouted throughout the Ping Shan district over the decades. This perhaps explains the sweet relief heaved when one chances upon the Tang Ancestral Hall.

Arguably the pride of the residents, this ancestral hall is impressive not only in size but also in its history, having been built about 700 years ago. Neighbouring Yu Kiu Ancestral Hall, equally commanding, was constructed in the 16 th century and used as a teaching hall for children from the Ping Shan villages.

Smaller but prettier is the Kun Ting Study Hall, its floral motifs a refreshing departure from the rather austere designs of the two ancestral halls. As its name implies, it was where the promising youth of the Ping Shan clan prepared for the Imperial Civil Service examinations in Qing dynasty China.

Today, the numerous halls are kept spick and span by the elderly residents and security guards, who delight without fail at the sporadic appearances of local teenagers on school excursions.

04 FLAGSTAFF HOUSE MUSEUM OF TEAWARE__ Truth be told, the Flagstaff House leaves a more lasting impression on a return visit. First-time visitors are probably unmoved by the building’s understated exterior which belies its stellar “record”.

Built in 1846, the Flagstaff House was the residence of the Commander of the British forces and is the oldest colonial building in Hong Kong still occupying its original spot.

Then again, the allure of the Flagstaff House has to be discovered indoors – shiny chandeliers hang from the ceiling, illuminating the balustrades adorning the stairs and the classy door knobs while a fireplace takes centre stage in one of the rooms, all providing a sophisticated contrast to the Oriental artworks on display.

With some dating to the Qing dynasty and others more contemporary, the dainty tea pots and sets are moulded from porcelain to pewter and spring to life in the forms of dragons, swallows, lotuses, melon seeds and petite Chinese maidens.

03 TSIM SHA TSUI PROMENDAE __ Glitzy Hong Kong Island may have lured star architects like I M Pei and Norman Foster (think the bamboo-inspired Bank of China and the fortified HSBC Bank respectively) to its side of the Victoria Harbour, but Kowloon is not faring too shabby either. The Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade is in fact a charming showcase of Hong Kong’s whimsical architecture, thanks to the triumvirate of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Space Museum and the Kowloon Railway Clock Tower.

While the egg-shaped Space Museum probably looks more futuristic in its formative years, it is nonetheless a quirky crowd-pleaser in this age of steel and glass monoliths. More vintage is the Kowloon Railway Clock Tower which started ticking in 1921 as part of the Kowloon-Canton Railway Terminus. The train station had long shifted to east Tsim Sha Tsui and the brick clock tower now stands forlornly as a classic counterpoise to the long-suffering Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

Incessantly – and unfairly – ridiculed as a toilet-tiled skiing slope or skateboarding ramp, the curvaceous Cultural Centre at night actually radiates glamour of a retrospective kind. Built in 1988 and hostess to the territory’s annual film awards and festival, it is a sentimental ode to an era when Hong Kong was truly the Hollywood of the East.

02 WAN CHAI __ Hollywood Road may have shed much of its old world charm and gone upmarket with its stretch of art galleries and antiques shops; at least there is still Wan Chai, the former red light district better known as the world of the fictitious Suzy Wong.

Sure, the district recalls many other parts of Hong Kong, lined with shopping malls, offices and sardine-packed housing apartments but it retains a strong local flavour. The Tai Yuen Street Market is perpetually crowded with locals (and foreign domestic helpers) shopping for vegetables, clothes and counterfeit branded undergarments, despite the blazing sun.

Wan Chai too has its share of preserved landmarks – the Bauhaus-styled market, the Chinese-styled colonial Wan Chai Post Office (now occupied by the Environment Resource Centre) and the impossible-to-miss Blue House. A community medical centre before the Second World War, the latter later functioned as the martial arts studio of Lam Sai Wing, student of kung fu master Wong Fei Hung. Today the patchy blue building serves as a repository of neighbourhood’s collective memories, as the Wan Chai Livelihood Museum.

The most striking image of Wan Chai takes place however when night falls, with the Hung Shing Temple attracting a middle-age devotee standing at its closed entrance and mouthing fervent prayers.

01 THE PEAK__ Hong Kong ’s legendary summit needs little introduction but warrants some justification. In the day and from the viewing deck of the Terry Farrel-designed Peak Tower, the city’s supposedly breathtaking skyline is marred by insipid-looking private apartments that have deforested much of the once verdant surroundings.

On a more serious note, the city’s stubborn smog means that clear visibility is just as rare as the production of a quality Hong Kong film nowadays. Case in point: one’s eyes have to be squinted just to sift out the silhouettes of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and Space Museum across the harbour.

(In hindsight, the inimitable Peak Tram, which transports passengers 373 metres up to the submit at an unbelievable 45-degree tilt, may have also unwittingly led to a dizzying sense of over-anticipation.)

Disappointment drops a few notches as the sun enters into a slumber, as offices and homes ignite the light bulbs. A million fireflies seem to have swarmed upon the city. Somehow, Hong Kong’s luminosity has dimmed a little, tinted with hues of melancholy and yearnings for those good old days.

The Peak | Hop on the Peak Tram (from the Peak Tram Terminus near the Hong Kong Park) or bus 15 from the Central Bus Terminus.

Wan Chai | The old market and post office of Wan Chai are located at Queen’s Road East while the Blue House’s address is the nearby 72 Stone Nullah Lane. The nearest MTR Station is of course, Wan Chai.

Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade | Surprise, surprise… The nearest station is the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR Station.

Flagstaff House Museum of Teaware | The museum is located in the Hong Kong Park and the nearest MTR Station (Exit C1) is Admiralty.

Ping Shan, New Territories | The easiest way to get to Ping Shan is to take the West Rail Line and alight at Tin Shui Wai Station. The Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda is virtually at the station’s doorstep.