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Marathon in Hong Kong

Once a British colony, Hong Kong is today one of Asia's popular tourist destination. Also recognized as the continent's financial hub it holds numerous places of interest for visitors to experience. The shopping arcades, both bargain and designer, delectable Cantonese cuisine and the entertainment options draw travellers to this territory.

Attractions in Hong Kong can be viewed according to their area. The Hong Kong main land houses sightseeing sites such as the Peak. This panoramic experience affords stunning views of the city skyline. Shopping and a sky terrace for relaxing are highlights of this attraction. Reaching the Peak is through the designated Tram which is operated via steel cables.

The Kowloon area is home to many markets, parks, gardens and heritage sites. The New Territories region in Hong Kong houses a must-see attraction heralded by both local and foreign visitors that of the giant size replica of Noah's Ark. Not simply just an Ark, this structure also holds a Resort where families can experience other activities and facilities.

Sport in Hong Kong plays an important cultural bridge meshing eastern and western traditions. While football acts the nation's primary sport, rowing and cricket have also gained popularity. The proactive outlook towards sport adopted by both the people and the Government, have propelled different sporting events into the limelight.

A signature sporting event not to be missed on the Hong Kong calendar is the Marathon. Also known as the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon, this yearly event first began in 1997 with over 1000 participants. Today over 30,000 participants including foreign competitors arrive in Hong Kong to participate in this prestigious event. Set over a ten kilometer run the event is further divided into three categories of full and half marathons. Each of these races are also allotted separate finishing times. Cash prizes and certificates are distributed to all competitors who complete the race.

Hong Kong offers that best in hotel accommodation. A luxury hotel in Hong Kong synonymous with style and classic design is The Langham Hong Kong. Located in the central district of Kowloon, the hotel's charming interiors and outstanding facilities captivate its guests who remain loyal followers. Dine in style at a Hong Kong restaurant offering a myriad of delicacies both foreign and local at the hotel.

Adventures in a Chinese Junk - Duk Ling Ride Hong Kong

Enjoy 360 degree views of Hong Kong's famous skyline with the wind softly ruffling your hair. Moving at an easy pace in the tranquil waters of Hong Kong Island, it is best enjoyed on a on a sunny day, where you can view the multi hued sun setting or the extraordinary spectacle of the light show that Hong Kong is popular for. At night, sip on a chilled champagne or a favorite cocktail. Cruise off Lamma Island, Lei Yu Mun or Po Toi and sample a traditional Chinese sea food dinner. All this is possible aboard the Duk Ling, an authentic Chinese vessel, carefully restored to its original condition. Currently plying the water of Hong Kong bay, it offers the only opportunity of sailing in a Chinese vessel used by fisher folk 150 years ago. The experience of sailing in an authentic piece of Hong Kong's history is a very powerful and unique experience. Sailing past many of Hong Kong's iconic buildings with the red sails of the boat in the foreground and Victoria Peak in the background indeed makes a very pretty picture and offers many photo opportunities.

As it is one of a kind experience, the Duk Ling is hired by corporate and commercial entities and individuals on tailor made, even themed packages suited to their needs in terms of destinations, routes and catering. The Duk Ling can be also hired as a wedding venue and has been featured in several movies.

Used by the Hong Kong Tourist Board as a cultural symbol, the Duk Ling sails from the Kowloon public pier, Tsim Sha Sui and from the Central Pier 9 on short journeys on Thursday afternoons and Saturday mornings, noon and afternoons. Cruises on the vessel can last for two and a half to four hours. Although the boat is not luxurious and the boat trips are often short, it offers relaxing moments away from the frenetic pace of Hong Kong and Kowloon. The only sounds that can be heard out on the water are the voices of other passengers, the wind, the waves and the ambient sounds of the harbour.

As one of the recent awardees of the Travelers Choice, Top Twenty Five Hotels in Hong Kong by Trip Advisor, the Langham Hong Kong exudes a European style elegance and offers amenities and service befitting a top level luxury hotel in Hong Kong. As one of the leading luxury Hong Kong hotels, the Langham pays meticulous attention to ensuring that its accommodation is impeccable. Its ambience is of quiet sophistication, its cuisine outstanding and facilities modern and up to date. Its central location places it close to all the main commercial, cultural and entertainment areas of Hong Kong and Kowloon.

Travel Hong Kong: 12 Must See Places

Hong Kong features a diverse mixture of characters as a result of long British occupation and a great Chinese influence. As a state of China, Hong Kong provides a good introduction to who ever wants to know more about China without entering the mainland plus a venue for more attractions with western culture and Asian spirit.

1. Hong Kong Museum of Art - Located at 10 Salisbury Rd Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, the Hong Kong Museum of Art is open to anyone who wants to take a glimpse of Hong Kong's culture and history through its large collection of over 14,000 items ranging from calligraphy, paintings, Hong Kong treasure, art objects, antiques, and lithographs. The museum is open from 10:00am-6:00pm daily except Thursday (public holidays not included).

2. Hong Kong Disneyland - The newly open and the first ever Disneyland in Asia offers total fun and excitement for the whole family. The park is divided into four major attractions: Tomorrowland, Adventureland, Fantasyland, and Main Street, USA.

3. Victoria Peak - Soaring 1810 feet above sea level, the Victoria Peak is premier destination for tourists who want to take a birds eye view of downtown Hong Kong, Kowloon, and Victoria Harbour. Go another step higher and take a 10-minute hike to the actual Victoria Peak.

4. Lantau Island - Travel Hong Kong and take a cruise around the waters of Lantau Island and watch pink dolphins that only live in this waters.

5. Ocean Park - Travel Hong Kong and visit Ocean Park. This is one Hong Kong attractions where you and your kids will have a great fun. The park is one big oceanarium containing Lowlands Gardens where pandas live, goldfish pagoda and butterfly house are located, Marine Land where atoll reef and shark aquariums are found, and Headlands amusement park where you can go and take a ride with cable cars and roller coasters.

6. Water World - Travel Hong Kong with kids would never be so much fun without taking a plunge on Water World. Enjoy wave pools, play area, and water slides.

7. Middle Kingdom - A miniature China that houses Chinese shrines, street scenes, temples, and palaces only at Middle Kingdom.

8. The Central district - If you travel to Hong Kong because you love to shop, you better go to the central Hong Kong district where big shopping malls and several Western designer and signature boutiques are located.

9. Lamma Island - If you want to see a different Hong Kong, try Lamma Island. It hosts several outdoor activities such as swimming and hiking. And if you love to taste fresh Hong Kong seafood in great dining ambiance, Lamma Island is still the preferred place to go.

10. Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery (Sha Tin) - Located at New Territories, the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery features Buddha in different poses and colors.

11. Hong Kong Space Museum - See what's in store for you in the future at Hong Kong Space Museum. The complex offers hundreds of displays ranging from telecommunications, robotics, energy, computers, and physics with hands on experience that will keep you interested.

12. Wet Market - In Hong Kong, everything is fresh. And when they say fresh, they mean it. If you happen to travel Hong Kong to visit a friend or someone you know, come along when they go to wet market where the freshest among freshest seafood are for sale.

Living in Hong Kong Apartments

With more than 250 islands, Hong Kong is the special administrative region of China. Earlier a British colony, Hong Kong became a part of China in 1997, under a special agreement. Hong Kong has now become one of the prominent economies of the region.

Since an ex-British colony, a strong westernized influence is prevalent in Hong Kong's culture. Al though, the majority of population of the city is the Chinese, the area does have a significant contingent of other nationals including Americans, Australians, British, Canadians, Japanese, and Koreans, as Hong Kong offers a great stop for Western business firms who want to crack the local market. Further, the liberal tax system has attracted many Expats to fill employment options in the region. Hence, it is no wonder why property market is booming in Hong Kong.

Among the accommodation options available in Hong Kong, perhaps the most sough after one is apartments. An apartment in Hong Kong is a self contained residential unit, which is mostly a part of a large building or property. For many reasons, both expatriates and natives choose to live in Hong Kong apartments. Perhaps the most important reasons are convenience and lifestyle it renders.

Another prime reason to choose apartments as dwelling place is that it allows to live in an environment of sophistication and luxury. When it comes to expatriates, these apartments provide them a feeling of living in their home country, thereby enabling them to lead a smoother life in the region. Additionally, living in Hong Kong apartments avoids the problems with the language barrier. Above all, a foreigner who wishes to own an apartment in Hong Kong need not have to comply with any specific legal requirement.

Based on your requirements, you can choose from a continuum of superb apartments, from garden and furnished apartments to self contained and serviced apartments. There are also apartments that are specially designed for students, such as, student apartments.

Mostly, this type of apartment comes complete with superb facilities including excellent accommodation, high speed internet access, and uninterrupted power as well as water supply. Further, many of these apartments are located within the easy reach of top academic institutions in Hong Kong. All of this provides a great atmosphere in order to promote your academic success. For those seeking luxury, then one of the best choices would be stunning serviced apartments coupled with extensive recreational as well as sporting facilities. Usually, these apartments range from 1000 to 5000 sq ft.

Different types of apartments in Hong Kong are further categorized into duplex apartments, studio apartments, and townhouses. Duplex apartments are mostly situated on the bottom floor, and range from small building with two to five apartments to large property with more than 50 or 60 apartments. A studio apartment is an accommodation facility with a large living area, apart from a kitchen and bath area. In townhouses, a family will get more space as well as a comfortable feel. One of the specialties of townhouses is that mostly they are located in rows.

Likewise, depending upon the members of the family, apartments types include apartments with one bedroom - which come with built-in wardrobes, luxury bathrooms, and fully equipped kitchen; two-bedroom apartments, which in most cases garage unit will be included in the price; and three-bedroom apartment, which is much spacious and inclusive of high end comforts such as kitchen, lounge, laundry, and a marvelous terrace.

One of the prime advantages of living in Hong Kong apartments is that it enables you to live amid diverse community. Another advantage is that you will be always surrounded by a large number of neighbors and friends. If you acquire apartments on rental or lease basis, then some of the apartments charge rent, which is sometimes inclusive of electricity, local telephone service, cable TV hook up, and trash disposal. Another great benefit of owning an apartment in Hong Kong is that it serves as an excellent long term investment.

For example, according to certain recent records, a luxury three-bedroom apartment in Hong Kong cost about $9000 per month to rent. Benefits of living in apartments also include low maintenance cost. Many of the people living in Hong Kong are engaged in high powered jobs, which make them difficult to maintain a single detached home. But, living in an apartment allows you to avoid lengthy commutes and eliminate high maintenance charges.

Owning or renting an apartment in Hong Kong is no longer a chaotic process. A plethora of real estate companies and construction companies are there in order to help finding your dream apartment. However, the prices of apartments in Hong Kong are exceptionally high.

Top Universities in Hong Kong Take International Education

Hong Kong, formerly a Crown Colony on the seashore of southerly China, is one of the top commercial places on the planet Earth. Since its homecoming to the wings of China in the year 1997 after above 150 years of British governance, the urban center has consolidated its stance further in the sphere of commerce and education. Apart from Macau, Hong Kong is another special area of the People's Republic of China from administration viewpoint. It features financial and political structures that are pretty unrelated to those existing in mainland China. Outside scholars usually give preference to study in Hong Kong since it presents them twofold benefits of exploiting enormous job prospects in the island as well as the People's Republic of China. Another advantage of studying here lies in its liberal tax system.

Talking about the other advantages of this leading trade center, there is the presence of plenty of scholarships that are offered to overseas students each year. Various scholarships in Hong Kong include college financial aids, grants from the government, engineering and graduate student scholarships, doctorate scholarships and loans. All these global financial helps are awarded by taking into account the educational ability and monetary needs of a scholar. The names of the top universities in Hong Kong consist of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, University of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong Baptist University.

Founded in 1963, the Chinese University of Hong Kong was the foremost establishment in the island to launch a student exchange proposal. The educational institution is currently the ultimate preference of outside pupils who seek to study in Hong Kong. Since it has entered into tie-ups with above 200 foreign institutes under its exchange programs, approximately 600 scholars get an opportunity to travel overseas for further world-class studies. The university accepts above 800 pupils from these outside institutions reciprocally as well. Rated among the first 50 universities of the world, it strains to accomplish the goal of mixing tradition with modernity and uniting China with the western countries.

The University of Hong Kong has constantly been placed in the group of top 25 universities of the planet by a renowned UK magazine. Formed in the 1910, the establishment has surpassed numerous reputable USA universities in a big way. It is globally acclaimed as the eventual education hub. It keeps harnessing its capabilities with ground-breaking systematic studies and teaching techniques that bring up multifarious alumni with superb leadership powers.

The listing of top universities in Hong Kong gets completed with the reference of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Delivering one of the most desired international MBA programmes, the educational institution has above 9,500 registered scholars who take hold of highly compensated jobs even before the finish of their courses. In numerous instances, the mean remuneration per annum is in excess of $100,000. Flaunting an extensive campus of 140 acres, the institution is situated in the middle of beautiful landscapes of the downtown and sea.