Day 48 – Hong Kong, Day 2

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and is situated on its south east coast. It consists of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the new territories and is home to some 7.5 million people, with a total land area of 430 square miles. Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated jurisdiction in the world, with 18,300 people per square mile. By contrast, Guernsey has 2,250 people per square mile, making it the 15th most populated jurisdiction in the world, and the UK is 48th with a paltry 740 people per square mile!

The Qing dynasty ceded the territory to the British empire after losing the first opium war in 1842. Kowloon was added to the colony in 1860 and in 1898 Britain leased the new territories for 99 years. During World War II, Hong Kong was occupied by Japan from 1941 until 1945 before the British resumed control in August 1945.

Once the lease of the new territories was approaching its end date, uncertainty prevailed about the future of the colony and, in 1984, the British and the Chinese governments signed the Sino-British joint declaration in which Britain agreed to hand the colony back to China in 1997. In return, China guaranteed to maintain Hong Kong’s economic and political systems for a further 50 years. The lead up to the handover saw mass emigration from Hong Kong as residents feared the erosion of their civil rights once Hong Kong was handed back to China.

Hong Kong is one of the world’s most important financial centres and commercial ports. It is the world’s 37th largest economy, its stock exchange is the fifth largest in the world and its container port is the seventh busiest in the world. As the economy liberalised in mainland China in the early 21st century, Hong Kong’s shipping sector faced intense competition from other Chinese ports. In 1997 50% of China’s trade was routed through Hong Kong but this had dropped to 13% by 2015. Hong Kong has the most expensive housing market in the world and is the 14th most popular tourist destination in the world.

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This morning we were up bright and early and, armed with plenty of plasters, were ready to continue exploring this incredible city. This time we took the Cunard shuttle bus to Tsim Sha Tsui, an upmarket commercial area on the waterfront in Kowloon. As we spent yesterday on the island, we decided to spend today in Kowloon. We therefore walked up Nathan Street (Hong Kong‘s equivalent of Oxford Street, it would seem). We then ventured as far as Mong Kok where we failed to locate the goldfish market but we did find the flower market and numerous other markets. We then took a cab back to Tsim Sha Tsui and spent a couple of hours, including a very pleasant lunch, in the upmarket K11 Musea complex on the waterfront, overlooking the harbour. After this, as we had walked another 4 1/2 miles and Bridge had an appointment with the ship’s doctor at 4 pm, we decided to call it a day.

Update on Bridge’s fish bite! 🐟 😬

As it is two weeks since Bridge got attacked by a trigger fish in the Maldives, and the wound is very far from healing up, and in fact a worrying spreading red patch has appeared around it, we decided to consult the ship’s doctor. The doctor took one look at it and declared that it was infected and that cellulitis had set in. He has prescribed a course of antibiotics and also put some debriding gel in the wound and Bridge has to see him again in 48 hours.