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World > Asia > Hong Kong
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Hong Kong Attraction
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Chi Lin Buddhist Nunnery |
Just one subway stop away from Wong Tai Sin is the Chi Lin Buddhist
Nunnery, founded in the 1930s to provide religious, cultural,
educational, and elderly care services to the Hong Kong community.
Reconstructed in the 1990s in the style of Tang dynasty monastic
architecture (A.D. 618-907), the nunnery is a successful union of
ancient building techniques and modern technology.
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Hong Kong Disneyland |
Opened in 2005 on Lantau Island, just a 10-minute ride from the
airport, this Disney venture was Asia's second (the first was Tokyo
Disneyland). Recreating many of the exact features of the original
Disneyland in California but on a smaller scale, the 126-hectare
(311-acre) theme park contains the usual four Disney themed lands --
namely, Main Street U.S.A., Fantasyland, Adventureland, and
Tomorrowland -- along with such classic rides and attractions as
Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, Tarzan's Treehouse,
and the Jungle River Cruise, as well as high-caliber performances
and shows, parades, and an evening fireworks extravaganza. Unique to
the park is the world's only Fantasy Gardens, where Disney
characters hang out to meet their fans. Note that admission is
higher during peak times, including weekends, public holidays,
summer school vacation.
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Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre |
This museum highlighting historic preservation efforts throughout
Hong Kong is itself located in an historic renovated building,
former barracks in Hong Kong Park built in 1910 and used to
accommodate British troops until 1967. Models, photographs, and
signboards outline the history of both Western and Chinese
architectural sites that have been renovated and put to new use,
like Tsang Tai Uk, a walled village in the New Territories that is
now a museum.
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Hong Kong Museum of History |
the museum introduces Hong Kong's ethnic groups and their
traditional means of livelihood, customs, and beliefs. These include
fishermen who lived their entire lives on boats, the Five Great
Clans who settled in what is now the New Territories and built
walled communities, the Hoklo (who worked the territories' salt
fields), and the Hakka, primarily rice farmers. You can peer inside
a fishing junk, see what Kowloon Walled City looked like before it
became a park, see the backstage of a Chinese opera, read about the
arrival of European traders and the Opium Wars, study a map showing
land reclamation since the 1840s, see how Hong Kong changed under
Japanese occupation during World War II, and view a model of a
family's flat in a public housing estate. Ten small movie theaters
are spread throughout the museum depicting everything from Hong
Kong's beginnings and the Opium Wars to its movie industry, though
showings in English are limited.
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Ocean Park |
If you're a kid or a kid at heart, you'll love Ocean Park, a
combination marine park and amusement center. Situated along a
dramatic rocky coastline on the island's southern shore, the park is
divided into two areas: a "lowland" and a "headland," connected by
cable car (and, in 2012 -- after a massive redevelopment that will
double the number of its attractions -- an underground funicular).
Because of the wide range of attractions, Ocean Park is interesting
for children and adults alike. Facilities are first class, and Ocean
Park is Asia's first accredited member of the American Zoo and
Aquarium Association.
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Man Mo Temple |
Hong Kong Island's oldest and most important temple (Taoist) was
built in the 1840s as one of the new colony's first
traditional-style temples.
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Hong Kong Museum of Art |
museum's vast collection of Chinese antiquities and fine art --
shown on a rotating basis -- that make this one of my top picks in
Hong Kong. Feast your eyes on ceramics, bronzes, jade, cloisonné,
lacquerware, bamboo carvings, and textiles, as well as paintings,
wall hangings, scrolls, and calligraphy dating from the 16th century
to the present. The works are arranged in five permanent galleries
on three floors of exhibit space, plus two galleries devoted to
changing exhibits.
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Wong Tai Sin |
Located six subway stops northeast of Yau Ma Tei in the far north
end of Kowloon, Wong Tai Sin is Hong Kong's most popular Taoist
temple and attracts worshippers of all three traditional Chinese
religions: Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Although the temple
itself is less than 100 years old, it adheres to traditional Chinese
architectural principles with its red pillars, two-tiered golden
roof, blue friezes, yellow latticework, and multicolored carvings.
Its construction also displays the six elements dictated by
geomancy, namely bronze (the pavilion), metal (the archives hall),
wood, water (a fountain), fire (Yue Heung Shrine, dedicated to the
Buddha of Lighting Lamp), and earth (an earthen wall). The very
popular temple attracts those seeking information about their
fortunes -- from advice about business or horse racing to
determining which day is most auspicious for a wedding.
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Hong Kong Travel Information
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