Hong Kong could remind you of urban landscapes from cyberpunk novels or movies. With all its concrete block buildings and mirrored office towers, all bursting from a skyline of a billion neon signs. It's eclectic, fast paced, stylish and modern. But even so, there are plenty of places to find peace, quiet, zen in a city park, temple or monastery.

Firstable, you can't make a trip here without a visit to the Man Mo Temple. Known for its coils of incense hanging from the ceiling, it makes for an interesting photo opportunity - even though there are signs stating clearly "No Photos Allowed Inside".

The two gods Man Tai and Mo Tai were patronized by students seeking success in their studies or civil services. Man Mo Temple is not really impressive but it's greatly significant in the community.  Under the management of the Tung Wa group, it subsidizes recurring expenses in the community. Using the surplus from the Man Mo Temple and 12 other temples in the Hong Kong district, it offers a wide range of medical, educational and community services around all the city.

Soho (a district in Hong Kong Island) used to be a run down old style apartment block, but in recent years it has had a facelift turning into a trendy eateries. It boasts the world's longest escalator. At 800 meters, it makes the hillside neighbourhood steps a non-issue for visitors and residents alike. The escalators go up all day from 10am to midnight, but are switched to the down positions for the morning rush hour. It takes 20 minutes to ride it to the top, but you can hop on hop off at any time. As there are openings for every street. The district is one of the most exciting, full of ethnic restaurants featuring Spanish, Italian, Australian, etc... Nice bars and markets selling fruits and various trinkets.

Then, you can explore the shops and traditional Chinese markets around Queen's road, located just nearby. And especially the sale of dried products for which here quantity and variety might surprise a few, compared to others countries of Southeast Asia. 

You can find everything from lizards, mushrooms, starfish, shark fins, turtles, hippocampus... Many fish and sea products. Be aware if you're pretty sensitive to smells, mixtures of scents of dried fish could get you down! The question that everyone may arise: but what can they do with these products? Do they eat them like that? Do they make powder? Is it to put in tea or soups? Is it to bring in bottles of alcohol? I was too...taken by the show for daring to learn more.

Hong Kong people love the country parks, with their hiking paths, barbecues pits, "fresh" air. And you can take a bus to most of them, buy the supplies you need for your barbecue when you get there. Or go on a hike. Anyway, it's pleasant to walk and enjoy these open spaces, which are not crowded and very peaceful. And a ride on Lantau island with the discovery of the temple of Buddha is a must. Despite the various shops that can distort the spirituality of this place, it nevertheless retains its charm and all its appeal.

And to leave the heights of this place, what better than using the funicular to return to sea level and embrace the life of the urban jungle again.

Finally, and not the least, the best way to conquer Hong Kong's most famous mountain is via the Peak Tram. Reach the tram by first taking the MTR to Central and then follow the signposts up to Garden Road and the Peak Tram terminus. Despite the death-defying angle and if you can handle the lines, it is worth going up and have a bird's eye view of Hong Kong at 552 meters above the harbour. This is HK's biggest tourist attraction each year, and not without reason.

At night, Paris may be known as the city of lights, but Hong Kong has got it beat when it comes to beams of illumination setting the harbour ablaze. Having the world's largest continuous light show every night at 8:00. HK's skyline is ignited with lasers, neon lights, halogen lamps and every other sort of bulb that can illuminate the city. Then, at night, make your way down to the HK Cultural centre of Kowloon. The light show itself is not an impressive piece of theatre, but to see the buildings light up in different colours and patterns is worth the pause in your evening events.

Hong Kong is expensive, not as much as our west European capitals, but this will not prevent you from going in search of good deals. In  fact, some would say that all there is to do in HK is shop, eat, shop, eat. It's true there is a lot of shopping, with all the stores along Nathan Road, the many malls and numerous street markets: the Ladies Market (fake brand-label goods), Temple street market (goods from all over Asia - great for souvenirs), Stanley Market (everything from luggage to cheap clothes), the Flower Market, the Goldfish Market (a whole street lined with shops sellings small fish in plastic bags), the Bird Market (exotic birds, delicate wood cages and local men relaxing), and the Jade Market (beware of fakes).

But to say that there is nothing else to do would be simplistic. Hong Kong is a city where East meets West. My trip turned out to be too short to grab the habits and customs prevailing there. Neverthless, this city gives off a character and atmosphere of its own and that makes its reputation across the world.

Located in southern China, Hong Kong, a really impressive mega-city, known worldwide for its skyscrapers, was a British colony from 1842 until the handover to China in 1997 where she became a "Special Administrative Region". A city which combines the skyscrapers, buildings in ruins, the 5-star hotels, luxury cars, fashion shops, popular markets and international banking headquarters. Hong Kong, with its 7 million inhabitants and an area of 1092 km² is divided into 4 main areas: Kowloon, Hong Kong Island (7% of the total area), the New Territories (officially over 230 islands, 91% of the area) and the Outlying islands.

At first sight, and despite its huge crushing buildings, the crowd and the moist heat (there reigns a subtropical weather, so if you don't want to turn your holidays into a sweaty mess, don't come here in summer time but rather during Autumn or Spring), I like Hong Kong very much. There is such a diversity of nationalities (Chinese, Filipino, English...), languages (Cantonese, Mandarin, English...) and cuisines (Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Continental...) In the shops and restaurants, people are smiling and helpful. This is particularly significant compared to France!

Thus, there is the Hong Kong Island in the south which is home to large multinationals, which bustles with activity and where stands Victoria Peek, the place where you can see the whole city in height.

The Central District is also home to Lan Kwai Fong with his bars and trendy restaurants, the Pacific Place shopping mall, one of the most famous shopping centers like Sogo, the huge Japanese shopping center on 10 floors which is also located there. Added to this, the tower of the bank Hong Kong and Shanghai (HSBC) and the Bank of China where you can access the top floor and enjoy a unique view.

Then comes the Kowloon peninsula (south of the New Territories). It's finally my favorite corner in this city and where was located my hotel. This area of the city remains the most authentic, perhaps. Going up high in the Tsim Sha Tsui district, on Nathan Road, the road to buildings filled with neon signs that overlap and overlap. It's a pretty amazing thing to see.

  

Surprising too, bamboo scaffolding installed before certain fronts!

On the edge of the broad avenues, where they drive on the left, shops and restaurants are kings. But, when you look up, you can see the hundreds, the thousands of windows with their old air conditioners used to bring a bit of air in these tiny apartments where piled up much of the population.

And there, in the heart of Kowloon or Hong Kong Island, stand completely unexpectedly beautiful parks. Nature and tranquility that contrasts with the nearby city, but that adds even more richness and charm to this city.