Saturday, May 14, 2011

Hong Kong Central Tour

Splendid skyscrapers in Central, Hong Kong


Having walked almost the whole of Hong Kong with my Dear in our recent trip, we were marveled by the great weather, scenery, people and food in Hong Kong.

However, there were still some light similarities between Hong Kong and our country, Singapore in the cityscape planning of the two countries.

I would just list down some of these light similarities between the two countries for sharing:

a) MTR of Hong Kong is akin to MRT of Singapore, it is just so easy to navigate your way in the two countries with this convenient mass rapid transport system. Both countries have their airports linked by the MTR (or MRT) too. Buses are similar too, except Hong Kong has electric trams on streets too!
b) Octopus Card = EZ link card (almost)
c) Star ferry akin to River cruise along Clarke Quay
d) The sea scenery at the Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui reminds me of our Marina Promenade at the Esplanade, though Hong Kong’s one is much grander.
e) Lan Kwai Fong is akin to Singapore’s Clarke Quay (bars and pubs)
f) Times Square is akin to Takashimaya Shopping Centre
g) Harbour City is akin to Vivocity
h) Wong Tai Sin temple is akin to Kuan Imm temple in Waterloo street
i) Similar sprawling airports and systems
j) Victoria Peak is akin to Mount Faber (sorry maybe an insult to Victoria Peak as we are comparing one tall mountain which easily dwarfs a small hill)
k) Central in Hong Kong is akin to Raffles Place here

On the whole, shopping culture and nightlife in Hong Kong are much more vibrant (3 times, I give) than in Singapore. Eating culture is slightly more fanatic and fascinating than in Singapore but Singapore offers more delectable palate as it has more diverse treats from the different races residing here. Singapore is no match to Hong Kong when it comes to good weather and mountains (3/4 of Hong Kong is covered with mountains).


Last but not least, I would like to stress that the similarities I provided above is not to bring up the debate on which country copies which country in terms of cityscape model. I believe it is just the generic cityscape that modern Asian economies adopt towards progress.

On the whole, I still enjoy living in Singapore as compared to Hong Kong, no matter how strong the sun’s rays try to kill us all, simply because of one thing: the air here is cleaner, there are more parks and greenies scattered around the city, the water is cleaner, less pollution, less cramped living in the residential districts; to sum up: Singapore is a more liveable city than Hong Kong! (of course, it is Asia’s No.1 in terms of liveabiltiy).