A Short Stroll Through Hong Kong Park

Hong Kong is a city known for crowded housing, skyscrapers, and just all around big city life. And it's true that the city is packed with people. The Kowloon area in particular doesn't have many breaks between buildings that aren't streets. But downtown Hong Kong is right up against a mountain, so it doesn't take long before someone headed away from the water starts going uphill.

I'm sure the hills had at least some impact on the rate of early development on this side of town, and possibly accounted for the more ready availability of public and private parks.

 Hong Kong Park is only about 25 years old, opening in 1991. It's located on the site of a garrison, and some historic buildings remain. I didn't have a lot of time set aside for the park, so I didn't search out the old architecture, nor did I get a good look at the entire park.

 The park is located on the side of the mountain, and I started at its lower end where visitors can see a nice artificial lake.

 It's highly possible the structure at the back of the pond is historic. But I don't know. There is a restaurant back there, somewhere. On the hill behind it is an conservatory that serves as a botanical garden. Entrance to the conservatory is free; pictures of the plants follow:

 The building is split into dry desert plant and wet tropical plant environments.

 Nearby, Olympic Square is an outdoor auditorium of sorts that can host smaller concerts and shows.

 During my visit, it was being used by a couple women for exercise.

Further up the hill is a tai chi garden with some memorial busts; again this area is a bit more complex than I was able to explore, but it does have a number of courtyards.

 Next to the tai chi garden is a vantage point. A total of 105 steps will take you up the 30 meters to the top, from which you can see the entire park and downtown. The picture at the top of this post was taken from the top.

I spent around an hour here, but even then I don't feel like I got a good idea of all it has to offer. It's a peaceful, adult-centered park, There is a children's playground, too. I'll definitely have to go back to the park again if and when I am able to return to Hong Kong.

The park itself is open 6:00-23:00, with facilities having shorter hours. The conservatory and aviary are open 9:00-17:00, while the restaurant is open 11:00-22:30. You can visit the park's website here.