Cheek-by-Jowl

When the British colonial rule was at its heyday, Hong Kong was an important member of the Empire.  The most important wherefore for the why is that Hong Kong is located cheek by jowl with communist China, whom the Americans tried to, and still does, encircle.  With such an advantage of close proximity, Hong Kong was engineered to become the Far East commanding post to spy China in the many years to come.  The guess of removal of Britain's spying facilities from Hong Kong before the Union Jack was lowered in 1997 was so widely circulated that it almost became a known secret.  Granted, there will probably be no definitive evidence to prove the mystery.

Out of the need to rule, the British colonists had undoubtedly laid the foundation for Hong Kong to become a great, and certainly rich, city.  As Lord Patten, the last governor of Hong Kong, pointed out in his book "East and West", the British had in its many colonies been "installing democracy [not really until the last few years, mark that], training civil servants, policemen adn soldiers [British soilders were always stationed in Hong Kong which were assisted by the Gurkhas and other paramilitary corps], establishing indepedent courts, entrenching civil liberties."

In the case of Hong Kong, there was one more achievement, and an unmistakable one, which outshone the rest on the list of colonies: it was and still is a rich city.  The robust economy had fueled up and in returned been fueled by speculative activities on the property market.  Today, this trend is carrying on with the influx of captials from the emerging riches in Mainland China on a daily basis.

Lots of postcard show the scenery view of Hong Kong from the Peak Tower, which is the distinctively wok-shaped building in the background.  Here we have a view looking back up to it, showing you how densely built this territory actually is.

The property market opportunists have played a major part in this cheek-by-jowl setting, you bet.