Hong Kong on a shoestring!

Hong Kong has supported human life since at least the Stone Age. Until the British claimed it, the area was a neglected corner of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) empire inhabited by farmers, fishermen and pirates. The British took control of Hong Kong in 1841 following the Opium Wars. European trade with China had been taking place since the 16th century, but as European demand for tea and silk grew, the balance of trade became more and more unfavourable to Europeans, who were expected to pay in silver. In 1773, the British unloaded 70,000kg (155,000lb) of Bengal opium, and the Chinese taste for the 'foreign mud' grew exponentially. Alarmed at the drain of silver from the country and the increasing number of addicts, the emperor banned the drug trade.

The Europeans, with the help of corrupt Chinese officials, managed to keep the trade in opium going until 1839 when the emperor again issued orders to stamp it out. British traders were forced to hand over their supplies of raw opium, which was then publicly burned.

The British sent an expeditionary force to China to exact reprisals, secure favourable trade arrangements and obtain use of some islands as a British base. The force blockaded Canton (now called Guangzhou) and a number of other ports, ultimately threatening Beijing. The British pressured the Chinese into ceding Hong Kong Island to them in perpetuity. Both sides ultimately repudiated the agreement, but Commodore Gordon Bremmer led a contingent of naval men ashore on 26 January 1841 and claimed the island for Britain.

A series of conflicts followed, with the British backed by French, Russian and American interests. A combined British and French force invaded China in 1859, forcing the Chinese to agree to the Convention of Peking, which ceded the Kowloon Peninsula and nearby Stonecutters Island to the British. In 1898, the British also gained a 99-year lease on the New Territories, which they felt essential to protect their interests on Hong Kong Island.

Modern History

In the early 20th century Hong Kong began a gradual shift away from trade to manufacturing. This move was hastened by the civil war in China during the 1920s and by the Japanese invasion in the 1930s, when Chinese capitalists fled to the safer confines of the colony. When the US embargo on Chinese goods during the Korean War threatened to strangle the colony, it was forced to increase its manufacturing capacity and develop service industries, such as banking and insurance. Hong Kong's existence was threatened again when the Communists came to power in China in 1949 and during the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. Although the Chinese could have re-taken Hong Kong with ease, a precarious peace prevailed.

In December 1984, the British agreed to hand over the entire colony when the lease on the New Territories ran out in 1997, rather than hang on to a truncated colony consisting of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. The agreement theoretically allows Hong Kong to retain its pre-1997 social, economic and legal systems for at least 50 years after 1997. As the handover approached, controversies raged over the building of Hong Kong's expensive new airport and the amount of democracy the Chinese were willing to accept.

Recent History

Hong Kong suffered fallout from Asia's economic crises in the late 90s. In the years since, it has picked up fast and one of the world's great cities is booming once again. China's official policy with regard to Hong Kong is 'one country, two systems', and the common view is that as long as Hong Kong continues to make money (and little noise) its autonomy is assured. But a number of crucial interventions by Chinese authorities in Hong Kong's affairs have made it evident that there is not quite as much autonomy going on as the slogan suggests. Nevertheless, the European Commission has described Hong Kong as one of the freest societies in Asia.

In 2007 Sir Donald Tsang stood again for election as chief executive, and was elected with ease - the first not to stand unopposed. His contestant, prodemocracy activist Alan Leong, came a distant second, but at least there was a vote.

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Koreamaa ootamatused liiluses ning meile käru keeranud Finnair sai karistuse selle näol, et meie nägime maailma natukene rohkem kui nemad oleksid tahtnud lubada. Ühesõnaga kindlustus maksab persse läinud pileti kinni, ning meie saime tagasilennates käia läbi nii Hong Kongist kui ka Londonist. Reisimuljed laienevad. Astusime just maha Hong Kongi kesklinnast lennujaama tulevalt ekspressrongilt ning ootame 13 tunnist lendu tagasi kaunisse Euroopasse.

8 tundi, mille Aasia Pärliks nimetatud linnas veetsime veenis täielikult selles, et tegemist on maailma ühe lahedaima linnaga. Tokyos ei ole käinud, räägivad et see on veel vingem. Singapuris ja Souklis olen räppinyud. Nendest paneb HK ikka täiega üle, mööda, ümber ja eemale. Hong Kong on megacity, mis tundub aga kui troopiline puhkuse linn segatuna megaliitikumidest ostu ja pidukeskustega millesl elab kogu maailma rahvastik. Mulle tuli esimesena HK linnas kolades, silmates meeletult suuri maju, nende vahel looklevaid mitmekihilisi jalgteid ning autovoore, kahekordseid tramme ja busse ning kõiksuguseid metroolisi, güberpungi isa William Gibsoni raamatud "Idoru" ja "All Tommorrows Parties". Nendes raamatutes toimuv tegevus oleks justku nendelt tänavatelt maha kirjutatud, tehnika, elukiirus, värvilisus, multireaalsused ning tõeline inimpaabeli virrvarr.

HK on imeliselt soe ja õdus linn, palju rohelust. Kuna HK koosneb mitmest osas - Hong Kong Islandist, mis nagu nimigi ütleb on saar, New Territory nimelisest paigast, Kowlooni (tähendab Hiina keeles "9 draakonit") nimelisest mandrinukast ja tervest hunnikust saarekestest. HK saare ja mandri vahel lokleb mõnus veeriba, mis on mõlemast poolest täis hiiglaslikke pilvelõhkujaid, muutes selle linna skailainingu maailama kaunimaks. Veeriba on täis pidevalt kuskile poole teel olevaid laevu ning praame, mis inimesi umbes 5 krooni eest 1000 eri suunda viivad. Kasutasime seda võimalust ja nautsime vaadet merelt. Kowloonil on kohe rannas Olümpiatõrviku ja rõngaste koht. Poleks midagi olulist, kui sealt ei hakkaks omamoodi Staaride Avenüü nime kandev promenaad, kus igal hiinasuuremal näitlejal on oma täht jakäejäljed - Chakie Chan, Jet Li, Bruce Lee ja Chun Yun Fat. Uhke värk.

Võtab Starbuckist kiire venti kohvikruusi, ning luristad seda kolades mööda saare poolset promenaadi, kena roheline kant. Linnas on palju parke, templeid ning Soho, Laternarajoon ning sada muud mõnusat olemis kohta. Igal pool maailmas saab odavalt süüa, magada ja keppi. See on sada protsenti kindel. Erand ei ole ka HK. Leidub muidugi sushi või hiinakaid, milles hinnad algavad 1000 kroonist suutäis, kuid mõnusa kõhutäie saab ka 60 krooniga.

HK inimesed on chillid, liiguvad suunitletult kuid mitte hullates, pigem vaikselt. Teevad siin seal juttu kellegagi tänavalt ning naudivad elu. Kui jamaks kisub, taanduvad mõnda tuhandetest poodidest ja boutiqidest või lendavad kõrtsi jooki tegema. UK omanduses olemine on tulnud meeletult kasuks, kuna arhidektuur on linnas kaunis, vana kohtub uuega ning uus futga. HK on ka maailma pikim eskalaator ning kahekohalised trammid.

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