Wednesday, 19 May 2010

Hong Kong: Aristotle meets Confucius

I have to come to Hong Kong's defence from time to time, even from aspersions cast by old mates and rellies: "it's only high rises and money-making", they say.   Those of us who've lived here for some time know it's much more than that, including that "high-rise" contumely.... there are places here where you can look to the horizon, and see only serrated mountains to the sunset -- in NE Hong Kong's Dai Long Wan near Sai Kung, for example.  There are books on Hong Kong walks, and some cracking trails to roam.
I've also written about Hong Kong's charity here, its being the smartest place in the world (!) here and tax (yes, of course, tax is an attraction), here.
Po Chun waxes eloquent here on another side of Hong Kong I find stimulating: that it's the best mix of East and West in Asia, indeed the best mix in the anywhere: the world's largest Chinatown....  The foreigners here are sinified and the Chinese westernised.  And each accepts and gets along with the other: indeed a "unique fusion of Confucius and Aristotle", as Po Chun says..
I couldn't find the article online, so here it is scanned in. Click on image to read the article; it should be big enough.