Hi, my name is Ray. I'm originally from Ashford, Kent but am currently working as an economist in ...
Hi, my name is Ray. I'm originally from Ashford, Kent but am currently working as an economist in Malaysia. I enjoy travelling, good food,non-league soocer and Formula 1 motor-racing and love writing about these passions. Hope you enjoy reading my ...
Member since:21.06.2000
Reviews:581
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Over the last 20 years or so I have visited Hong Kong five times and believe it or not I still cannot make up my mind whether it is like entering paradise or hell. Equally I have to admit I hate the place during the day when it seems so grey and the people are just like like ants scampering around whilst loving it at night when it seems to me to be visually one of the most colourful and exciting spots on earth.
On the plus side this Asian dynamo,once called " A Barren Rock",is ever adaptable and pragmatic. Witness,eg, its smooth transition from British colony to its SAR identity. Then last year Hong Kong managed to attract some 10.7 million tourists who spent an estimated HK$1.53 billion- so it really must have a lot going for it.
It has some of the finest and most luxurious hotels in the world,wonderful places like the Grand Old Lady,the Peninsular, The Shangri-La, the J.W. Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Mandarin and the huge 1,103 room hotel at the sparkling airport , the Regal Airport Hotel. The airport itself is marvellous and can now handle 45 million passengers a year and the underground system is superb.Then it really is one of the finest places on earth to eat out in. The Chinese food is probably the best in the world,other Asian cuisines such as Thai,Korean, Japanese ,Mongolian, Indian and Indonesian are readily available and if you want Western food, Hong Kong will not disappoint you.
The urban nightlife is unbelievable with bars,glitzy night clubs,casinos, you name it Hong Kong has got it ! The frenetic energy can be thoroughly exhilirating particularly if you have just come from some country backwater. Movies are readily available and this place can show you 3,000 years of Chinese history and culture. It is certainly never dull.
On the negative side, the frenetic pace of life can get very wearing after a few days. Hong Kong has some of the worst pollution in the Asia Pacific region and despite having luxury hotels,many tourists will find the room rates to be very high. You will not easily find a decent hotel room formuch less than US$125 per night.Indeed some international rankings put Hong Kong as having the third highest cost of living in Asia after Tokyo and Osaka and it is generally more expensive than the likes of New York.There are traffic jams and many of my Asian friends reckon that the Hong Kong people are the rudest in Asia. Money talks in the Asian dynamo.
So you can see why I am really not sure whether I love Hong Kong or hate it. Perhaps you had better pay it a visit and decide for yourself. The one thing I can assure you-you will not be bored !
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Hotel - 308 Des Voeux Road West, Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 73 - 75 Chatham Road South, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Hong Kong - 4 Stars, 3 Stars - 308, 205 Rooms
Hiya! I m actually from HK. I have been studying over UK for nearly 7 years. I have been home nearly twice a year. I totally argee with you that the pollution is unbearable and people can be rude sometimes, but then isn't that like that for every big city? E.g. New york with the higest crime rate? But still it is a nice place! And believe, there is a lot of nice people in HK. Wait till you meet me! :)
jameshale 31.01.2001 10:37
Being a sad civil engineer i would love to go for the buildings, i am very impressed by the HSB building. good opinion. thankyou.
ashford 20.01.2001 11:22
Thanks kitty. The volume of betting on the lottery and horse racing is enormous and,as you know, there is almost certainly quite a lot of gambling that may technically not be legal. Many Chinese will play mahjong and a few bets will take place
Ray
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Advantages: Clean, easy to travel around, exotic enough to be interesting, whilst being Western enough to be comfortable Disadvantages: Very humid in Summer
sam15 15.08.2002 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Hong Kong
Advantages: All foreign countries have tha advantage of being different to your hoome. If you are like me, this bad review will make you want to go there and experience it for yourself. Just take my advice and dont prioritise it. Disadvantages: Dirty, expensive, unfriendly atm, busy, smoggy, ther are better places to backpack.
MadProffessor 03.04.2001 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Hong Kong
Advantages: All foreign countries have tha advantage of being different to your hoome. If you are like me, this bad review will make you want to go there and experience it for yourself. Just take my advice and dont prioritise it. Disadvantages: Dirty, expensive, unfriendly atm, busy, smoggy, ther are better places to backpack.
MadProffessor 03.04.2001 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Hong Kong
Nov 22nd, 2000
very helpful by (86%):
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somewhat helpful by (10%):
