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Hong Kong Attractions and Things to See
Hong Kong sits on a piece
of land on the south coast of China, encompassed by the South
China Sea and the Pearl River Delta, famous for its huge skyline
and deep natural harbor, with a land mass of 426 square miles
and a population of 7 million, one of the most densely populated
cities on this earth. It had become a British Empire colony
after the First Opium War, and the colony had been confined to
the Hong Kong island, but would be expanded into the Kowloon
Peninsula and the New Territories in 1898, and occupied by the
Japanese during the Pacific War, only to be returned to the
British until 1997, when it would gain its sovereignty. It has
had archaeological studies done that state a human presence
lived here from 35,000 to 39,000 years ago, in the Chek Lap Kok
area and from the Sai Kung Peninsula from only 6,000 years ago.
Therefore, it has one of the longest histories and heritages in
the world, with the Three Fathoms Cove and Wong Tei Tung sites
being the earliest signs of human habitation in the Paleolithic
period, with many Neolithic relics from the Longshan culture in
northern China and eight petroglyphs found on surrounding
islands that date to the Shang dynasty in China.
It is said that East meets West here, showcasing the city's
cultural mix, although it has found a way to balance the modern
ways with the traditional practices of China. They still believe
in feng shui, causing all new construction to hire expert
consultants to explore the area to be built upon, so as to not
disturb or disrupt any ancient qi or energy. It is a world
financial center and global center for trade, calling itself a
center for entertainment, with a magnificent martial arts film
genre that has acquired a high level of popularity, beginning in
the late 1960s, and furthered by such legends as Bruce Lee,
Jackie Chan, Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Maggie Cheung and Jet
Li, with some great performances by Brandon Lee.
Its architecture is spectacular, with 7650 skyscrapers, with
more buildings about 35 m than any other city. But because of
the lack of space and constant need for higher and more spaces,
the city has very few older buildings that remain, and thus has
become more famous for its modern architecture than its
antiquities. It has a very advanced and modern transportation
network, with more than 11 million people traveling along its
public transport system each day.
As for the city's cuisine, it has become an eclectic mix of
Cantonese cuisine, Southeast Asia, the Western part of the
world, Japan and non-Cantonese speaking areas of China, because
it had been a colony of Great Britain, and an international
city. The variety and diversity is excellent, which is one of
the numerous reasons the city has been called the "gourmet
paradise" or the "world's food fairgrounds". There are roadside
stalls to outstanding upscale restaurants, with a unique fusion
of international gourmet delights that has created the city's
huge service based economy. Since the majority of residents are
Chinese (98%), Chinese cuisine is served at their homes, with
Cantonese influences and traditions cooked into every meal, with
rice being the main staple for most families. The city's houses
and therefore, its kitchen's are smaller than the average
because the city has such a significant rate of density, so that
most families shop for food each day, thus putting more fresh
ingredients on their plates or bowls, with dining out and take
out food more popular than most areas in the world because the
average work week here is 47 hours.
The main course of each meal is accompanied by a good helping of
rice or other carbohydrates, including noodles or mein. Here,
the citizens eat about five meals a day, with their dinners
usually including desserts, with snacks taken anytime between
the main meals. Quite a bit of the food has been influenced by
Canton, with many of the city's favorite dishes coming from that
area, like shark's fin, mooncakes, wife cake, abalone, poached
chicken, herbal tea, roast duck and dim sum. More westernized
dishes, like Hong Kong-style milk teas and egg tarts are
becoming favorites as well.








