Like all areas in the monsoon belt, Hong Kong experiences mild winters and hot, humid summers. A stay in Hong Kong can be very active. Hiking and camping are popular activities, as is cycling as a means of sightseeing. Swimming, snorkelling and boating are popular in the summer months to escape the humidity and heat.

English is an important trade language and is encouraged in schools and business circles. A basic knowledge of English should be enough for you to make yourself understood.

Take a few weeks and pack in the sights, events, festivals, sports and food. You'll be exhausted, but, Hong Kong is worth every minute.

Hong Kong is split into four main regions: Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, New Territories, and the outlying islands. Kowloon and New Territories is situated on the southern coast of mainland China, whereas the other two regions consist of islands off the coast.

If you want to experience the buzz of one of the economic powerhouses of Asia, then head to Central, the CBD of Hong Kong, in the north of Hong Kong Island. A popular excursion is to take the Peak Tram to Victoria Peak at night. There's a magnificent view of all the lights of this incredible city. During the day you can wander through some excellent parks. Try the Hong Kong Park, slap bang in the middle of Central. It contains a restaurant, the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre, an aviary, a greenhouse, pools, and an amphitheatre. If this impresses you, you should also head along to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens, built in the last century. There are many endangered species of flora and fauna here to study. Perhaps what the park is best known for, however, are the hundreds of people who practice Tai Chi in the mornings.

If you are looking for good places to eat or party, the place to be seen is Lan Kwai Fong. This trendy alleyway houses plenty of young and happening nightspots and eating venues.

Speaking of night life, there are certain areas to go if you are interested in an active nightlife. The Wan Chai district, just east of Central, offers a wide range of night-time pursuits, from discos to bars, restaurants to theatres. During the day things aren't quite so wild, but there are plenty of cultural centres to visit. Try the Museum of Chinese Historical Relics in the Causeway Centre, Harbour Road, containing some wonderful archaeological goodies dug up over the centuries. Also on Harbour Road is the Hong Kong Arts Centre, which offers a nice taste of local and Asian art forms.

A good place to shop is the Western Market, in the Western district (next to Central). This is a wonderful, open-air street market. You can buy cheap fabrics, gifts for the folks back home, and some local food from the food centre. If you are in the mood for some religious heritage, pop over to where Ladder Street meets Hollywood Street. This is the location of Hong Kong's oldest temple, the Man Mo Temple, dedicated to the gods of war and literature. You can shop on Hollywood Road, too. This is a famous area for antique porcelain, paintings and furniture.

Of course, you might not enjoy being in such a thriving metropolis, and prefer the open areas in the south. If you end up in Stanley, you could enjoy yourself for a few hours on the beach. Just beware of the tourist traps which have sprung up here. Check out the market and enjoy yourself in any of the numerous pubs.

Between Stanley and Aberdeen are some more good beaches. This really is the seaside kind of area. Aberdeen itself is quite famous. Half of the people live on floating houses. You too can experience the wonder of floating buildings by going to one of the floating restaurants. In keeping with the theme, there are some great seafood ones to choose from.

Nearby is Ocean Park, the biggest marine park in the world. You can spend an entire day here easily. Packed with fun rides and exciting information trails, cable-car rides and plenty of marine life, the park is an excellent substitute for those addicted to Disneyland. Next door is the Middle Kingdom, an information centre that gives an interesting historical account of China's history by means of palace, street, and temple replicas, thereby transporting you back into scenes from the past. And, next to this, is Water World (open in summer) where you can let the kids tire themselves on the water rides.

If you want to find the best beaches on Hong Kong Island, go to Shek O and Big Wave Beach.

It is best to avoid Tsimshatsui. You won't really find any great deals in any of the shops. The bars promise all sorts of forbidden fruit at low cost to the visitor. However, this is only an appearance, and the client is soon hit for a huge cover charge.

You can head down to Harbour City, which is home to the Star Ferry service, which can take you on trips to any other port in Hong Kong for a cheap price. It also houses galleries, and plenty of shops. In fact, Harbour City is the biggest shopping centre in Asia. So, if you aren't looking for great bargains and prefer cheap thrills, it's a place to go for a cuppa or a few photographs. If you want to know what that big place next to Harbour City is, it's China Hong Kong City, yet another shopping complex monstrosity.

For some art appreciation, head over to the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and the Hong Kong Museum of Art. The cultural centre offers a huge, hi-tech concert hall, theatres, studies, galleries, bars and shops.

Another interesting stop is the Space Museum, right next to the Cultural Centre. If you get in here, make sure you get into the planetarium (one of the biggest worldwide) for a show.

There's a very touristy fun-fair park on Nathan Road called Kowloon Park, but it houses the Hong Kong Museum of History which is worth a visit. It has many artefacts of historical relevance dating back to prehistoric times.

 The Bird Market on Hong Lok Street, in the Mongkok district, featuring hundreds of caged birds, is pretty bizarre. It's located on Hong Lok Street. The whole Monkok district is filled with open-air markets.

An fun way to spend a few hours (although it is a bit commercial) is a visit to the Sung Dynasty Village. The object of the village is to show visitors traditional Chinese life a millennium ago. Everyone has to get dressed up in special period garb and then watch a variety of events, like martial arts demonstrations, a traditional wedding, and the like. If you enjoy dress-up, then you will enjoy this.

If you head east along the coast towards Junk Bay, you will come to a village where Kowloon and Hong Kong Island try to meet. This is Lei Yue Mun, a small village popular for its seafood. Here you can go to the town market, choose what seafood you desire and then pop into one of the restaurants and they'll cook it up for you as you want it.

Make sure you go to the Sai Kung Peninsula. There is plenty to do here in this unspoilt area. There are plenty of hiking trails interspersed with camping sites for those who wish to sleep under the stars of an Asian sky. Of course, it doesn't have to be all that energetic. For those who prefer lapping up the sun, the peninsula is the perfect place for swimming, sunbathing, and many different water sports. If you are into boating, pop into Hebe Haven, where anyone who's anyone docks their yacht.

A famous bird sanctuary is the Mai Po Marsh, which is great for bird fanatics. The Tai Po Kau forest is a particularly important place for tree huggers, because Hong Kong basically doesn't have any forests left after its colonial history. Between Britain, France and Japan, Hong Kong was stripped of its natural forests. So, this is really the only forest of note in the entire country. It is also a good spot for bird watchers. Other places of interest for the nature enthusiasts include the Plover Cove Reservoir, good for hiking and cycling; and the Maclehose Trail, a 100km (62 miles) hike right across New Territories. Then, for those who enjoy a good climb and a good view, hike up Tai Mo Shan, 957m (3,139ft) above sea level. Sure, it isn't Everest or Kilimanjaro, but it's the highest peak in Hong Kong.

The best place to pick up maps and information on the peninsula is Pak Tam Chung, a small town in the east of this region. Go to the Sai Kung Country Parks Visitor Centre, and just ask for whatever takes your fancy.

If you go to Tolo Harbour you can get onto a boat which hops between villages all along the coast. This is a far nicer than doing the trip by bus.

If you are missing the lavish lifestyle of the jet-setter, you can stop in at Clearwater Bay. It has some great beaches, nice scenery, but it is geared for up-market tourism. You can improve your golf handicap, whack around some tennis balls, lounge around with a dry martini in a Jacuzzi, wine and dine and sleep late.

If you are into the cultural aspects of Hong Kong, New Territories has plenty to offer. For example, there is Ching Chung Koon. This is the Temple of Green Pines, of the Taoist religion, and it houses some excellent Chinese works of art and Imperial artefacts from the palace in Beijing. Don't forgo a visit to the walled village of Kam Tin. This is a very old village for Hong Kong, dating back to the 17th century. The wall bears testimony to its feudal heritage when the locals (of the Tang Clan) had to fight off all sorts of unvirtuous undesirables who wanted their money, property, houses and souls.

For a really impressive view, make your way to the northern parts of New Territories and visit the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery, inaptly named because it has 12,800, not 10,000 Buddhas, placed along its walls. Rub every tummy there for good luck.

Cheung Chau is very popular with visitors who wish to see traditional fishing boats and industry. Another attraction to the island is that rents are cheap, and as a result many westerners now live there. You will find some wonderful, secluded beaches on Cheung Chau, especially in the south. On the southern tip of the island is a cave where the pirate Cheung Po Tsai eluded the authorities during his career. The Pak Tai Temple, built in 1783, is also worth a visit.

Next there is Lamma, the second largest of Hong Kong's outlying islands and the closest to Hong Kong itself. The island is great during the week, but on the weekends it is overrun. Head along to Yung Shue Wan, the largest settlement on the island. This has an interesting market where you can pick up all sorts of goodies, like dried fish, incense, and even some weird traditional Chinese herbal medicines. The town is also good for a meal, especially seafood. The main beaches on Lamma are Lo So Shing and Hung Shing Ye. If you are looking for relatively remote, scenic beaches, Lo So Shing is a good bet, as are the beaches at Shek Pai Wan and Sham Wan. The only drawback for these last two beaches is safety, for they have no lifeguards. For a good view of the island, climb up Mount Stenhouse (353m/1,157ft). In April or May every year the bay near Yung Shue Wan is filled with Chinese Junks for the Tin Hau Festival.

The island of Lantau is another popular destination in the outlying islands. It is large (twice the size of Hong Kong Island) yet only has a population of 30,000, making it relatively uninhabited. This is an excellent island if you are into hiking through the hills and along coastal walks, and swimming in secluded beaches without having to fight for a patch of sand to sit on. You will most likely arrive in Silvermine Bay, the main harbour. From there you can catch a bus to the Tung Chung Valley. This farming valley has plenty of Buddhists shrines and temples. You can also see the Tung Chung Fort, dating back to the early 1800s. In the western part of Lantau there is a plateau called Ngong Ping, half a kilometre above sea level, home to the Po Lin Monastery. This is very popular because it has the largest outdoors Buddha statue in the world. Made of bronze, the statue is 24m (78ft) high. From the monastery you can head up Lantau Peak (934m/3,063ft) for the best views on the island. This you should do early in the morning. The monastery is well geared for tourism and offers accommodation for the night. The nearby town of Tai O is also worth the visit, especially for those interested in Chinese architecture. This old town was once an important salt-panning settlement, and many of its buildings are built on stilts over the river.

Lantau also has some good beaches for walking, sunning and swimming. The longest beach on the island is Cheung Sha Wan, but only go there during the week, otherwise you'll think you're in Central after a sandstorm. Discovery Bay is a maximum development area for the wealthy and stands out in stark contrast to the rest of this very picturesque island.

There are many small islands to visit. One of interest is the tiny island of Peng Chau. This is easily reached and has remained traditionally Chinese, complete with narrow, twisting alleyways ans streets. It has open-air markets and is home to the Tin Hau Temple, built in 1762. Before a bite of lunch on the shore, amble up Finger Hill. This is only 95m (312ft) high, so you have no excuse. At the top you can see the entire island, so it's worth it.

Time

Tourist Offices

The HKTA offers a couple of hotlines which you can call for information.

General Information:
Tel. 852-8017177 on Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 18:00 and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 09:00 to 17:00

Shopping Information:
Tel. 852-8017278 on Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 17:00 and on Saturdays from 09:00 to 12:45

Visas & Passports

Always remember to carry some form of identification with you when in Hong Kong. A drivers licence or student card will suffice.

Customs

• 200 cigarettes/50 cigars/250 g tobacco
• 1 lt wine/spirits
• 60 ml perfume

You may not bring in any live animals without specific prior arrangements and permission, or non-prescribed drugs without a medical certificate. Firearms may be brought into the country, but must be left with airport officials until your departure.

Money

There are no restrictions on bringing currency into or taking currency out of Hong Kong.

Business Hours

Peak Seasons

Post & Telecommunications

Hong Kong has a great telecommunications network. Local calls are free from private phones, although they'll sting you for a dollar for such calls from a public phone. If you want to call overseas, get to an International Direct Dial (IDD) phone, which can take coins or a phonecard. The phonecards can be picked up from a Hong Kong Telcom office or from various shops. They come in denominations of HKD50, 100, or 200.You can find the IDD phones in certain shops, on the street, or in hotels. Emergency calls are free (999), as is the Directory Assistance line (1081). For International Dialing Assistance, call 013. The code for Hong Kong is 852.

Electricity

Disabled Travellers

Budget Travel

History

Originally a group of fishing islands and shelter for opium smugglers, it became scrutinised by the British Empire in the 1800s once it realised the profits involved in the drug trade. The British Empire then pursued a policy of trading opium with the Far East in general and China in particular. Until then opium in China was a substance of no real significance, taken by those with the money and the desire, and ignored by the others. This was quickly changed by the British, however, who provided large quantities of the drug throughout the region. China was, understandably, concerned by this new wave of drug dependency, and decided to ban the import of opium and close its ports to British trading.

Local British authorities had much to say on this matter, for opium was their chief export, and profits paid for expensive silk and tea from China. In the end the empire tired of verbal negotiation and blew the Chinese navy out of the water with two of its state-of-the-art gunboats in what is known as the First Opium War. China, extremely subdued after these two ships destroyed 29 vessels from its own fleet, decided it was prudent to reach some amicable agreement with Britain. Chinese ports were again opened to British traders and their opium, as well as signing over the island of Hong Kong, in 1842.

As is the way of empires, however, Britain was unhappy with its lot and waited anxiously for an excuse to extend its trading rights. When China arrested the crew of the Arrow in 1856 for smuggling, Britain and France teamed up and began the Second Opium War, once again annihilating the Chinese forces with colonial aplomb. In 1858, China signed the Treaty of Tientsin. Foolishly China reneged on the treaty, and in 1860 Britain and France once again attacked China. They occupied Beijing and burned the Summer Palace. China eagerly ratified the Treaty of Tientsin thereafter. It also awarded Stonecutters Island and the Kowloon Peninsula, part of the China itself, to Britain. In 1898, China agreed to lease the New Territories to Britain for 99 years.

Relations between China and Britain were strained for the next 39 years. Hong Kong attracted political exiles and refugees from China, and with increased Chinese nationalism, China forbade British ships from using any mainland ports from 1927. Surprisingly, Britain showed restraint by not sending in its navy, most likely because it was trying to recover from the post-war recession. In 1937 China was bullied around by Japan in the Sino-Japanese War, and quickly made new diplomatic approaches to Britain, still a world superpower. With closer diplomatic relations between China and Britain, the latter was once again permitted to use China's ports in return for military supplies. Britain also stepped up its military defenses on Hong Kong, although these were overrun by Japan in 1941.

After Japan's surrender in 1945, Britain re-occupied Hong Kong. In 1949, after the Chinese civil war, Hong Kong became the begrudging host to hundreds of thousands of Chinese exiles and refugees. The United States appeared on the international political scene and banned trade with Communist China. Hong Kong, an international trade hub, suffered as a result, and was forced to turn inwards to find its own economic salvation.

With plenty of cheap labour from China, and an intelligent tax system, Hong Kong quickly attracted plenty of foreign investment and rapidly strengthened its economy. Despite communist civil unrest in 1967, Hong Kong became one of the most prosperous countries in Asia.

In 1984, Britain agreed to sign Hong Kong over to China on 1 July 1997. This is the end of the 99-year lease for the New Territories. Britain decided to sign over the rest of Hong Kong as well, however, as if it, too, had been granted only for 99 years. The agreement includes the provision that Hong Kong be allowed to maintain its free-market economy for 50 years after 1997.

Although many Hong Kong residents seem doubtful that this agreement will be honoured, China has much to gain by keeping Hong Kong the way it is. It is an economically viable region that can only bolster the economy of China. If China had wanted to turn Hong Kong into another communist province, it would most likely have done so by now.

Economy

Population

Government

Local government activities are controlled by the Urban and Regional councils. In July of 1997, however, a new government will come into being. Political analysts are interested to see what the arrangement will be.

Language

Religion

Food & Drink

One of the best ways to taste all sorts of interesting foods is to try the Dim Sum, little knickknacks served in baskets. You just choose want you want from a trolley and tuck in.

If you are worried about using chopsticks, don't fret. Most places have knives and forks for those unfamiliar with the local utensils.

In terms of drink, beer is very popular in Hong Kong, and they know how to brew it, too. In terms of non-alcoholic drinks, the likely choice is Cha, or green tea. This either comes free with meals in most restaurants, or at a negligible price.

One thing you will really enjoy, if you happen to be in Hong Kong at the time, is the Hong Kong Food Festival in March. During this period Hong Kong descends into an orgy of international and local food, drink, and revelry.

Entertainment

For those of more discerning taste, there are plenty of cinemas which screen English movies. What is showing where and when can be determined by opening one of the newspapers. You can also go to the Hong Kong Tourist Association and enquire about cultural goings-on, theatre and music.

Sport

For those who prefer water sports, head to the southern beaches of Hong Kong Island. The best beaches, of course, are those on the outlying islands and in New Territories. The beaches of Kowloon and northern Hong Kong Island are not recommended. Windsurfers are in for a treat. September to December is the time of the monsoon winds, which are steady and powerful.

Shopping

The best buy is clothing. This comes really cheap, especially at the street markets which have an atmosphere all of their own. Remember, if you shop in a place that reminds you of the USA then expect prices similar to those in the USA. Shop in the streets and alleys, and you have a greater chance of picking up those wonderful little things you could never think of normally, and for a good price to boot.

Shows & Festivals

• January/February: Fringe Festival (A performing arts festival, influenced by the Edinburgh Fringe, concentrating on experimental art forms)
• February March: Hong Kong Arts Festival (A more mainstream performing arts festival)
• March: Hong Kong Food Festival (Very popular. Try all weird and wonderful local dishes, as well as non-local and western specialities. Good party.)
• March/April: Hong Kong International Film Festival
• October/November: Festival of Asian Arts (Festival of Asian performing art)
• November: Christie's and Sotheby's Auctions (World renowned auctions of oriental goods)
• November: Art Asia (Festival of Asian antiques, paintings, carpentryand jewellery.)

Parks & Reserves

Anyway, in a nutshell, if you want to see the unspoilt parts of Hong Kong, you best bet is to get out of the city. Here are some places you might want to consider:

• Mai Po Marshes - particularly good for its bird life
• Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve - hug an ancient tree

Of course, there are plenty of other places to go. If you are interested in Marine Life, you will enjoy Ocean Park, one of the world's largest marine parks. Then there is the Hong Kong Herbarium with over 2,500 species of indigenous herbs and the same again in Asian herbs. It helps to be professionally involved in plants if you want to visit the herbarium. And if the kids are giving you a hard time, you can shut them up with a view of some of Hong Kong's extremely rare wildlife specimens at the Zoological and Botanical Gardens.

Climate

Spring average

23°C (72°F) Humidity 82%

Summer average

28°C (82°F) Humidity 90%

Autumn average

23°C (72°F) Humidity 72%

Winter average

17°C (62°F) Humidity 72%

Flora and Fauna

Health

Water can be drunk from the tap without any worries about stomach bugs.

Safety

There are some natural hazards to look out for too, such as typhoons. These are not storms in a teacup; they are serious natural hazards in which you do not want to be caught. Keep in touch with the weather reports and if you hear of one approaching, buy a good book and ride it out.

Post-handover anticlimax, chicken flu scare and a strong Hong Kong dollar have all contributed to tourists staying away from Hong Kong in their droves. Robin McKelvie takes a look at what’s being done to bring back the hordes and why it’s a great time to visit the “City of Life”.

“A year on the feeling is pretty good. We’re getting over the expected post-handover slump, and are in a good position to retain our role as the transport and tourist hub of Asia,” soothes Douglas Gaultier, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourist Association. As he speaks from his office on Hong Kong Island, though, half empty planes are landing in the background at Kai Tak airport.

There may have been no post-handover Chinese clampdown, but tourists are staying away, with hotels struggling to fill rooms, surplus goods on shop shelves and flights left unsold. The net result is that there has never been a cheaper time to head east and experience life in a destination that has lost none of its charm.

Ironically Hong Kong’s greatest problems have come not from Beijing, but from the economy as the Asian economic crisis, which exploded across the region last October, has had a seismic impact on tourism, the main service industry, which employs 12 per cent of the local workforce and generates eight per cent of GDP. Amy Chan, Hong Kong Tourist Association’s Executive Director, blames reduced tourist numbers on “external factors over which Hong Kong has little control.”

This is a veiled reference to the regional economic crisis, as well as the post-handover sense of anticlimax, the recent chicken flu scare and the strong Hong Kong dollar, all of which have combined to keep tourists away. Overall tourist numbers were down 11 per cent in 1997 to 10.4m, after a decade of spectacular growth, which was only punctuated by the dark year of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, and even then Hong Kong only experienced a two per cent drop in visitors.

Even the perennially popular Hong Kong Rugby Sevens in March failed to stem the decline. Usually it is impossible to get a ticket locally unless you have corporate contacts or rugby connections. This year not only was the first round of tickets not the sell-out it has been in previous years, but tickets were available on the day; an unprecedented situation that reflected the lack of supporters coming from overseas.

The tourist statistics make painful reading for businesses and initial assurances from the Hong Kong Tourist Association that the slump was only a temporary post-handover glitch now sound hollow as tourist numbers have stubbornly refused to rise. This has led to serious downsizing. The national flag carrier, Cathay Pacific, which has long been one of Hong Kong’s great success stories, was forced to axe 770 staff in January, with a further 70 losses in March.

Duty Free Shoppers, a massive privately owned network of tourist shops, has been caught up in the depression along with many other retailers and has recently been forced to sack more than 200 staff. In many shops now — even top department stores — it is perfectly acceptable to bargain for a better price, safe in the knowledge that the retailer is desperate for your custom. Airfares too have been slashed to previously unthinkable levels, with the standard £800 return fares slipping down to around £350 return, and short break packages available, including accommodation and transfers, for as little as £300.

Faced with this crisis the Hong Kong Tourist Association has launched a slick new HK$173m (£14m) promotional campaign that aims to rejuvenate the Asian markets initially, but also the European and North American, areas. The theme of the campaign is, “We Are Hong Kong: City of Life,” a less complacent theme than 1995’s “Wonders Never Cease”. Normally Hong Kong campaigns take around a year to plan and put into action, but this one was bashed together in only five months.

Visitors can look forward to short term benefits from the campaign with improvements at Stanley Market, the traditional cheap tourist shopping enclave — as well as themed dining areas in the Mid-Level and Kowloon City areas. In the longer term there are plans to stage a 2001 World Expo in Hong Kong — though the HKTA are still waiting on the go ahead from the new government — and there are also moves to build a film theme park and stage a number of, as yet unspecified, “international events”.

The tourism campaign recognises that Hong Kong has never been a destination stuffed full of “the kind of world class tourist attractions that cities like London and Paris take for granted”. The focus is on the bustling 24-hour mayhem of the Asian equivalent of Manhattan and this is one aspect of city life that has certainly not changed. This mixture of intense Asian chaos and the organised social system, which is the legacy of British rule, lends the city a unique feel. Hong Kong may have lost its political billing as the city where East meets West, but the infectious multicultural buzz still vibrates through the streets a year after control of Hong Kong returned eastwards.

Although not a great city of attractions, there is a lot more to cover than the average three-day tourist scramble around the shops allows. Away from the urban chaos of Kowloon and the air conditioned malls of Central. There are other places to escape and relax.

The “Peak” is one. It still offers the finest city panorama and is worth two visits: one during the day when you can see right over the territory, and then again at night when some of the world’s tallest and most impressive skyscrapers illuminate the harbour in a technicolor battle for attention.

Hong Kong has changed in the last year-and-a-half, but for the traveller the changes are positive, generated by a failing economy that is desperate to attract tourist dollars. It may be a long time before Hong Kong’s new Chek Lap Kok airport is packed with tourists and the result is that there has never been a better, and of course, cheaper time to visit the destination that still likes to pride itself on being the “City of life”.

Hong Kong is a spectacular stop over not only for the shop alcoholics, but also the culture buffs. It is one of the most dramatic modern cities in Asia, with its sky scrapers rising up out of a tiny area that was a barren island 156 years ago.

On June 30 this year Hong Kong was handed back to the Chinese. The only fireworks during the change over period were the ones over the harbour signalling that Hong Kong had become a Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of China under a unique arrangement referred to as “one country, two systems”. It will allow the capitalist lifestyle to remain unchanged for the next 50 years.

The world looked on, scrutinising every word that came from officials in Beijing, not trusting that the Chinese would keep their word and uphold the 1984 Sino-British joint declaration. Contrary to their negative expectations, the Hong Kong change over did not turn into another Tiananmen Square when the Chinese troops marched in on July 1. The hand over was remarkably civil and within days it was back to business as usual.

In Hong Kong a few months after the change over I wondered what sort of effects the Communist Chinese were having on a city that makes obscene amounts of money. Picking up the Star Ferry which travels between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon for an afternoon of bargain hunting I noticed there were a lot less expats around and finding my way from one area to the next now required a smattering of Chinese. Not being very tonal I tried my best, but often found myself shocking people by asking for a brothel instead of a toilet. Kowloon, a shoppers paradise, turned out to be even cheaper than before. One shop keeper explained that goods are now openly crossing the border and flooding the markets, bringing the prices down on everything particularly camera equipment. Even in the once fixed price shops haggling is now possible.

After I couldn’t move for shopping bags I went to a hawkers food market, a perfect place to experience local food and the ambience of Hong Kong. My meal was similar to the one being eaten by a Chinese man on the opposite table, but almost twice the price. I wondered as I argued the point whether this is what China meant by “one country, two systems”. I decided to chill out by taking an evening boat trip through one of the world’s most beautiful harbours and admired the neon lights that give the city a fairy land feel. As I photographed the high rise buildings disappearing into the clouds I realised many of the English neon signs were now in Chinese.

Over the next couple of days I discovered that it didn’t matter whether it was buying railway tickets or just going to the cinema, there are now two different systems in place and nowhere was this more clear than on my day trip to Guangzhou (Canton) on mainland China.

The hovercraft to Guangzhou leaves several times a day from Tai Kok Tsui pier in Kowloon. It takes around three hours, as opposed to the eight or nine hour ferries. Both need to be booked well in advance from the Hong Kong and Amity Ferry Company, 1st floor, Central Harbour Services pier, Kowloon.

The office offers a range of tours around China and a detailed map of Guangzhou. This is essential as it is a large sprawling city, made more difficult to explore due to everything being written in Chinese characters.

In Guangzhou it is not a bad idea to take a local guide, as they earn their money several times over, getting you round the citys major tourist attractions in the most efficient order. They cost around £10 for the day if you have booked in advance with the China National Tourism Administration in Hong Kong.

The most interesting places in this huge sprawling town is Guangxiao Si Temple, the oldest temple in Guangzhou, Six Bunyan Temple, Yuexiu Park, Dr Sun Yatsen Memorial Hall, Qingping animal market and the Daxin Ivory Arts and Crafts factory.

The animal market is not for the queasy as it openly sells skinned dogs, cats and other wild life. China is still full of large groups of people riding bicycles, people having their hair cut and beards shaved on street corners and markets selling live ducks — their feet tied together to stop them wandering off into the road. Everywhere people crowded around news boards to be kept informed of the latest events of the day.

Once in town I headed for Guangxiao Si Temple, which was inaugurated in 1151. Here many famous monks from India and China continue to actively practice Buddhism in their saffron robes.

One handed me a lit piece of incense and I placed it in front of the temple and watched others do the same, sending their prayers to the Gods. It was a strange contrast to the busy streets and the hard Chinese way of life.

I continued by bicycle to the Yuexiu Park, stopping at little shops along the way to see the interesting and unusual wares. These varied from sandalwood fans, ivory carved landscapes, jade jewellery and stalls selling exotic fruits.

At one booth an old man read my palm and muttered something rather unpleasant under his breath. My guide assured me it was good news, but untranslatable.
Young Chinese students looked quizzically at me, as if I’d just landed from Mars. Their clothes were so drab and uniform in comparison with mine and one girl smiled as she touched my flowery dress.

Stopping at one of their many tea houses to eat fried dough twists and noodles with my fingers, because I was unable to master the fine art of chop stick eating, I was quickly handed a spoon. With no time to try out any other sizzling delicacies, my whistle-stop tour was brought to a close at Yuexi park, where I watched the sun set from one of its seven hills. I just had time to see the statue of the five rams depicted on all the maps and postcards, before heading off to Canton railway station and back to Hong Kong. As I sank into my train seat, clutching my Chinese bought return ticket to Hong Kong, I laughed as a group of business men complained about the price of their tickets. To succeed in China you have to learn how to play the “one country, two systems” game.