Celebrating Mid Autumn Festival in Hong Kong

Mid Autumn festival is one of the most important festivals on the Chinese calendar. It occurs on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. In western terms, this date usually lies at the end of September or early October and is the day the moon is closest to the earth.

Mid Autumn festival is a legendary fairytale, modern day moon appreciation, eating mooncakes and an opportunity for children to play with candle lit lanterns.

A legendary tragic love story of one's lover who is eternally trapped on the moon has turned moon worship into eastern version of thanks giving.

Traditional mid autumn festival candle lit lanterns are in a shape of rabbit or starfruit. These days, you will find lanterns in all shapes and sizes. Lanterns shaped as airplanes, helicopters, cartoon characters are popular. For the young ones, battery operated lanterns with tacky music are also available.

A mid autumn kid's gift basket might include lantern, binoculars for moon viewing accompanied by an astrology set. On the eve of mid autumn festival, you will find a sea of children with candle lit lanterns at Victoria Park.

Mooncake filled with lotus seed paste and a hard egg yolk in the middle is a must try during the festival. There is an abundance of mooncakes available on the market including icy mooncake, ice cream mooncake, chocolate mooncake, as well as low fat and sugar free options. Popular mooncake brands in Hong Kong include Shangri-la, Kee Wah and Peninsula Hotel. In particular Peninsula Hotel's Spring Moon limited edition mooncakes are popular with scalpers who resell them at two to three times its retail value.

In Hong Kong, it has become one of the most important corporate gifting seasons and has become bigger than Christmas and Chinese New Year. It is an opportunity for businesses to say thank you for their client's business in the past year. A classic mid autumn corporate gift would include a fruit basket accompanied by a box of mooncakes. The classic fruit basket should include a variety of colourful tropical fruit including pomelo, dragon's fruit, kiwi, mangos, pears, grapes, grapefruit, naval oranges and Fuji apples.

Mid Autumn festival is a great time to visit Hong Kong to experience local traditions and folklore. If you are having business dealings in Asia, you should consider sending a traditional mid autumn basket to show your appreciation. Remember gifting is an important part of business culture in Asia.

Article Source: Jason_Curie

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The Top Ten Things to See and Do in Hong Kong

Known as Asia's world city, Hong Kong offers visitors the opportunity to experience a vibrant cultural experience in a unique "fusion-environment" where "east-meets-west". Boasting the vitality of a modern city and the history of traditional society, Hong Kong is among one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world today.

Situated on the south eastern seaboard of China, the populous city of Hong Kong covers an area in excess of 1,104 square kilometres and is made up of a number of islands, including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, which consists of more than 260 outlying islands. Typically, spring, autumn and winter are the perfect times to visit this magnificent city, mostly because the weather is fairly calm. During the summer, you will normally encounter the occasional thunderstorm and temperatures will often exceed 31 degrees centigrade.

There is simply so much to see and do in this bustling metropolis, from the bustling waterfront to visiting Hong Kong Disneyland and experiencing the brand new Grizzly Gulch and Mystic Point areas. It was quite a tough job choosing our personal top ten things to see and do, so here are just ten of the exciting and possibly unique things you can experience within the city.

The Peak

The city is home to one of the world's most famous skylines. The Peak Tram takes guests 373 metres up the mountain to the summit Victoria Peak - the highest point on Hong Kong Island that offers viewers a stunning vantage over the city below.

Po Lin Monastery / Giant Buddha

Po Lin is the large Buddhist monastery that is located on Lantau island and I home to the famous Giant Buddha, which is the world's largest seated bronze statue at 34 metres in height.

Dim Sum

Literally translated as "to touch the heart", Dim Sum is one of the primary staples of a locals diet. The little parcels are steamed in bamboo baskets, come in more than 1,000 varieties and are usually eaten along with large quantities of tea.

A Symphony of Lights

Already named as the "World's largest permanent light and sound show" by Guinness World Records, the spectacular Symphony of Lights occurs every day of the year and includes more than forty skyscrapers on both sides of the majestic Victoria Harbour. A Symphony of Lights was created for free public enjoyment.

Street Markets

The famous street markets clearly illustrate the culture of living within the city and provides a fascinating tourist spot to explore and to be immersed in the local atmosphere.

Hong Kong Style Café

Throughout this vibrant city, you'll come across a number of affordable cafés and restaurants offering all the local culinary delights of the region in addition to providing an immerse cultural experience.

Wong Tai Sin Temple

Wong Tai Sin is one of the most popular temples in the city and I one of the only locations where the three main religions of China (Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism) are practiced.

Star Ferry

The Star Ferry is one of the cheapest and most enjoyable of ways to cross Victoria harbour. Operating since 1888, the ferries depart at regular interviews and are particularly popular in the evenings due to the Symphony of Lights show.

Ding Ding Tram

Along with the Star Ferry, the tram is one of the city's most loved institutions. Narrow double-decker trams wind their way along 16 kilometres worth of track on the northern coast of Hong Kong Island and provide a unique method to travel around the great city.

Outlying Islands

The 260 plus Outlying Islands are one of the city's best kept secrets. Each island offers discerning traveller unique cultural and natural landscapes to explore, all of which are within an hour of the city's teeming downtown.

Read more of our destination guides at http://www.TheLuxuryCruiseCompany.com

Article Source: Scott_Y_Anderson

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Head to the New Territories - Hong Kong's Less-Travelled District

Hong Kong is one of the most cosmopolitan cities on the planet, so it should be of little surprise that it is a popular destination for those going on round the world trips. However, to get a sense of the real Hong Kong and catch a glimpse of traditional China, head to the New Territories region.

While this is one of the largest parts of the city, it is somewhere that many holidaymakers do not tend to visit.
Yet that isn't to say it is not worth your time. Indeed, there is a whole wealth of amazing attractions for you to discover, including Ching Chung Koon, a beautiful complex that consists of several manicured gardens, fish ponds, pavilions and pagodas. Each spring, a bonsai show takes place here where hundreds of artistically shaped trees are displayed to the public.

It is also well worth following the Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail during your time in Hong Kong. By walking along this route, you'll pass through an area that is known by the locals as 'mountain of the leaping dragon'. On your way you will come across ancient buildings and historic villages, with a temple devoted to goddess of the sea Tin Hau and the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall just two of the highlights of your excursion.

During your time in the area you are likely to see local women wearing wide-brimmed hats that feature a distinctive black fringe. These people are part of the Hakka - a historic clan of farmers who constructed walls around their homes between the 14th to 17th centuries to protect themselves from bandits.

Visit the New Territories today and you'll be able to see evidence of these fascinating properties in what is bound to be a highlight of your time in the city.

Among the other attractions you ought to take in while visiting the region are the 19th century Tai Fu Tai stately home, the City Art Square and the Tsing Ma Bridge - which is the world's longest span suspension bridge to carry both rail and road traffic.

Should you have worked up an appetite from all that exploring and sightseeing, visit one of the restaurants on the waterfront of Sai Kung to sample freshly caught seafood.

Incorporate a visit to the region on a holiday to Hong Kong and you can be sure of having a memorable trip that you will remember fondly for a lifetime!

Have you always dreamed of going on a holiday to Hong Kong? Come to Flight Centre Round The World Experts, with us you can book round the world trips that stop off at the bustling Chinese city where you will be able to explore the fascinating New Territories district.

Article Source: Dipika_Patel