Hong Kong Harmony: Where East Meets West, City Meets Nature

“Life in Hong Kong transcends cultural and culinary borders, such that nothing is truly foreign and nothing doesn’t belong.” – Peter Jon Lindberg

Having explored over fifty countries and numerous cities within them, I can attest that Hong Kong is among the top when it comes to vibrant urban life. It left me wonton for more (groan).

The very landscape of the city is immersive. With over 9,000 skyscrapers that layer into the tall mountains looming behind, it’s a three dimensional experience to explore the streets. Raised pedestrian walkways interconnect the buildings throughout the downtown area, like a futuristic spiderweb for moving people.

The buildings themselves are mostly modern, but occasionally you stumble upon a traditional pagoda tucked within. The contrast between the pagodas – ornately painted wooden structures often with flying eaves – and the towering steel and glass skyscrapers epitomizes the blend of traits that makes the city so engaging.

A City for People

Hong Kong feels like it was designed for people, unlike many other cities where the car reigns supreme. The streets are mostly narrow and nearly void of cars. Only around 32% of residents own a car in part because it costs thousands of dollars a month for parking fees alone. The only cars on the road are cabs, and posh Lamborghinis, Porsches and the like.

A perhaps unexpected result of this is that the city is quiet. You can actually hear birds singing clearly when you step outside. It’s unnecessary to own a car in Hong Kong anyways because everything is either within walking distance or easily reached by the extensive public transportation network.

Nature at Your Doorstep

Another aspect to the city landscape we enjoyed was the access to the jungly mountains that adjoin the city. The hill slopes steeply upward from the sea and morphs from high rises into thriving nature. I can’t think of another major city I’ve been to where within a 15 minute walk from downtown I can find a trail with miles of nature ahead. Every morning (very early morning thanks to jet lag) we put on the tennies to stomp uphill to join the expansive trail network. And were rewarded with amazing views of the city below.

However, you don’t need to go into the mountains to experience greenery. There are also small parks dotted throughout the city where ancient Banyan trees have been preserved. The Banyan tree can live for centuries and grow branches extending out beyond belief. The largest Banyan tree in the world covers an area of 3 acres! Hong Kongers consider the Banyan to have excellent feng shui and to symbolize the holy and auspicious.

Being in their presence had that effect on me. One day while traversing the city on an “urban hike”, we came across a grove of Banyans. Surrounded by their enormity – not just up, but out even more so – instilled me with a sense of respect and awe for this incredible tree.

Food Bonanza in Hong Kong

We found the most energizing aspect to the city to be its food scene. Perhaps better described as food fervor. Hong Kong has a high density of restaurants – you’re always within throwing distance of at least three eateries. Most of them are small, fitting only 5-10 tables and crammed full with people. The tables are considered more communal and we often shared one with others.

The eating experience itself is far different from that in the US or in Europe especially. In Europe, a dinner typically lasts 2 hours (minimum) and the ethic is that the table is yours for the night. Not so in Hong Kong. Here the ethos is “slurp noodles and go”. Since there are so many people in Hong Kong, throughput is the name of the game.

Each restaurant typically has a speciality, such as dim sum, wonton noodles, or dumplings as only a few examples of dozens. There are lots of opinions and food blogs about which places have the best this or that. So we joined the crowd and sought out some of the local hotspots. We absolutely loved the food and reveled in the variety and flavors.

Teas Please

We also really enjoyed trying the teas. First, there is the beloved milk tea, which I quickly became addicted to. It’s incredibly smooth and sweet due to the repeated filtering of the tea through a sackcloth bag and the use of condensed milk. There are also small speciality tea shops that have traditional herbal teas such as 24 flowers or snake needle grass. These old recipes are said to help with various afflictions such as sore eyes or bad breath. The teas we tried were strong and thick – not at all like the mild tea I am used to in the West.

Kowloon Evening Excursion

One night we took the metro out to Kowloon – a part of the city separated from the main island. The name may sound familiar due to it’s once notorious enclave Kowloon Walled City; a mostly lawless and extremely densely populated housing development that has since been torn down. Definitely look into this if it’s new for you, it’s fascinating!

The vibe in Kowloon felt different; a bit more rough around the edges than the more orderly downtown. Yet still in a very safe and inviting way. Neon signs illuminated the streets and tons and tons of families and friends were out just walking around or eating. The district is full of outdoor markets and after some friendly negotiation we ended up buying a pair of dragon chopsticks to take home. We figured out we like eating with chopsticks because it helps us slow down! At least until we up our skills.

Changes are Afoot

I’m grateful to have been able to visit Hong Kong now because it seems like things are shifting there. The 50 year agreement with the Chinese government for Hong Kong to maintain self-government over internal matters is set to expire in 2047. And there are already changes taking place that reveal China’s intentions.

In 2020 China introduced the national security law, which allows them to extradite offenders to China – to include critics or dissidents of the regime – under the guise of security. Protests followed and tellingly, the government enforced restrictions and curtailed the freedom of speech people used to exercise. There is an exodus of people (and investment) from Hong Kong in response to the increasing Chinese involvement and in anticipation of what’s to come.

The world will see how things unfold soon enough. I for one am rooting for Hong Kong to maintain it’s culture and independence and hope to visit again one day.

This blog is part of a three-part series on our trip to Asia where we travelled for a few weeks with Jeff’s dad, Greg; we also visited Ho Chi Minh and Singapore!