Hong Kong: Sheer Vertical Forest

(Note: This was shot on a Sunday morning in late April 2010 from 28th floor of Hotel Jen, 508 Queen's Road West,
Western District).

Dear reader, I confess to a momentary pang of terror when I was invited recently into an East-West Center journalism fellowship that included four days in Hong Kong. What provoked this fear was the crowded Asian density of it all: New York City times 20 in terms of sheer vertical forest. I am not acclimated day in and out to such heights and crowds. I live in a medium-sized California metro of mid-rise dwellings and single-family detached houses. I had visions of claustrophobia attacks inside crowded urban scenes like this:



I arrived at Hong Kong International Airport at midnight, however, and saw the immense skyline first at night. It was such a lovely arrival, floating by freeway past the giant port facilities and through varying landscapes of lighted residential towers. Surprisingly, after getting oriented the first day by peering out from the roof of the hotel, it was a stunningly easy city to trek. I walked and walked for hours that Sunday, seeing the shops, farmers markets and restaurants on the ground floors of these endless 20- to 40-story buildings. Even the senior citizens' homes have your grandparents living on the 38th floor in endless buildings like this below. I have to say: I do not envision this as ideal retirement.




Yet strolling the city revealed lots of small green pocket parks and nice design touches as this below - street planters filled in this instance with pink Vincas - to help break up its endless asphalt and concrete:





I admit to arriving in Hong Kong a bit clueless about actual standout buildings, most of them banks. I have been trying to identify this building below with the ball on top, so far without luck. Anyone know? I am also trying to identify the building across Kowloon Bay - and will resume efforts when I get this posted.



The International Finance Center is one of those standouts, along with the Bank of China and Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Corp. (HSBC). You can see the IFC in the distance up this street.





I sure did enjoy design trekking that city. It would take days and weeks to see all the high points. I didn't see the skyline from the Star Ferry. Nor did I see the skyline spectacularly lit up at night. We spent most of our time at the University of Hong Kong attending a three-day conference. I'd like to come back.

Lastly, here are two short street-scene video from the bus (downhill from UHK back to the central city).