The Lan Kwai Fong district located in central Hong Kong between Sheung Wan and Causeway Bay has long been established as the trendiest night time hangout for the young and successful. Formerly a flower market it is equally renowned for its upmarket international restaurants and discos. One can wander the cobbled streets partaking of liquid and culinary delights knowing that something equally exciting and different awaits next door.

Shopping in Hong Kong is a thrilling experience. Antique shops, arts and crafts emporiums, numerous markets or the glitzy department stores of Hollywood Road and Cat Street all offer their own unique merchandise. In the tangled maze of the markets, fortune-tellers, hairdressers, jade merchants, songbird and porcelain vendors all vie for attention. Dried fish and poultry hang forlornly, octopi and squid are displayed in squelchy tangles of grey and white.

Electrical items, wicker chairs and baskets are a tumble of diverse temptations, alongside more than thirty varieties of ginseng and other Chinese herbs displayed in glass jars.
But there is more to Heung Keung (Fragrant Harbour) than just shopping. Museums, historic sites, art galleries, pagodas, Chinese operas, discos, sports, nightclubs, exotic food - Hong Kong has it all. By the year 2005 Hong Kong will also boast a huge, state of the art Disney Theme Park.

Victoria Peak is a great place to commence sightseeing. The Peak Tram, which has shuttled passengers up the near vertical climb since 1888, still exudes an air of Victorian solidity and elegance. From the 1,000-foot summit one can gaze out over a mass of skyscrapers to Kowloon, Lantau Island and the New Territories, which together with the Outlying Islands make up Hong Kong,

Lantau's small neighbour Cheung Chau has around 20,000 residents, many of whom are part of thriving fishing communities. Once a shadowy haunt for smugglers and pirates, the island is now home to a vibrant society of artists, filmmakers, musicians and writers. Some excellent beaches are to be found along the southern coast. Peng Chau Island is much quieter with a number of excellent porcelain factories, few motor vehicles and narrow, twisting streets where superb restaurants are the main attraction. Lamma Island is Hong Kong's third largest and home to the spectacular Dragon Boat Race.

The New Territories is a region of extraordinary beauty. In the Sai Kung district a number of hiking trails take the visitor through magnificent scenery. The Tai Long Wan district further to the east unveils a surprising landscape of pristine beauty and a rugged, unspoilt coastline.

Hong Kong is the gateway to Mainland China and Macau. It is also home to some of the best entertainment, shopping, hotels and restaurants anywhere in the world. Just about every tourist brochure one picks up nowadays trumpets old hackneyed phrases such as "A place like no other!" But those who are fortunate enough to visit the 'City of Life' will find that here these words possess an intrinsic truth.

Rick Smee is a freelance writer.