kopia lustrzana https://github.com/thinkst/zippy
92 wiersze
5.6 KiB
Plaintext
92 wiersze
5.6 KiB
Plaintext
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Hong Kong and
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Its People
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Exciting, mysterious, glamorous — these words have described
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Hong Kong for at least a century. With its vibrant atmosphere and
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night-and-day activity it is an intoxicating place. Hong Kong is
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crowded — it has one of the world’s greatest population densities. But
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it is also efficient, with one of the best transportation systems
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anywhere, and for such a crowded place, quiet — you don’t hear voices
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raised in anger, motorists sitting on their horns, or loud boomboxes.
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Shopping never ends — there’s always another inviting spot just down
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the street. You’ll find Hong Kong easy to get around, the people
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helpful, English spoken everywhere, and food that lives up to its
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reputation.
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On 1 July, 1997 the British Crown Colony of Hong Kong
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reverted to Chinese sovereignty as a Special Administrative Region of
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the People’s Republic of China. Today Hong Kong remains a capitalist
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enclave with its laws and rights intact, and China has promised that
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Hong Kong will continue in this fashion for at least 50 years.
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Beijing’s announced policy of maintaining Hong Kong’s prosperity and
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stability makes sense. Hong Kong has long been China’s handiest window
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on the West, and the city is unrivaled in its commercial know-how and
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managerial expertise. Around the time of the transition there was much
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speculation about how things would change. But in fact, once news of
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the handover vanished from the front pages, the people of Hong Kong
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returned to their usual topics of conversation: the economy and the
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price of housing.
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The impression of the visitor today will be that very little
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has changed. Establishments are no longer called “Royal,” Queen
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Elizabeth has vanished from the coinage, and the Union Jack has been
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replaced by the flag of China and the new Hong Kong flag with its
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bauhinia flower. But in fact, there have been changes, many of them due
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to economic progress, new construction, and other factors that
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influence cities all over the world.
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Others are more subtle. British social customs are still
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evident in the kind of polite service you get in hotels and in the long
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lines of people waiting for buses at rush hour. The British population
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has decreased; today there are as many American and Australian ex-pats
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as there are British.
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With a population of nearly eight million and a total area
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of just over 1,095 square km (423 square miles), housing is one of Hong
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Kong’s perennial nightmares. To alleviate the problem, the government
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has become the city’s major landlord with the construction of massive
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apartment blocks that, though they have every modern facility, average
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only 9 square m (100 square ft) in size. Whole cities have been created
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in the New Territories, although the unimaginative architecture of
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these towns has been criticized.
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Of Hong Kong’s population, 98 percent are Chinese. The
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majority are Cantonese, born in Hong Kong, or from South China, but
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there are immigrants from all over China. The Chinese people have been
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described as hardworking and pragmatic, attitudes that have contributed
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to Hong Kong’s success. There are many stories of refugees who arrived
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with nothing in their pockets, set up a small sidewalk stall, worked
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diligently until they had their own store, and then expanded it into a
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modest chain.
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Old customs are still followed: Fate and luck are taken very
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seriously, and astrologers and fortune-tellers do a steady business.
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Before a skyscraper can be built, a feng shui (see page 68)
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investigation must take place to ensure that the site and the building
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will promote health, harmony, and prosperity. You’ll also notice that
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gambling is a passion, whether it be cards, mah-jong, the lottery, or
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the horses. Hong Kong has two major racetracks as well as an intensive
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off-track betting system, and on weekends the ferries to Macau are
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crowded with people on their way to the casinos.
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Sightseeing in Hong Kong starts at sea level with the
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enthralling water traffic — a mix of freighters, ferries, tugs, junks,
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and yachts. Views of the city and the harbor are panoramic. From
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Victoria Peak, Hong Kong’s highest point, or from skyscrapers and
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hotels, they are especially exciting at night when the lights are
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on.
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The business and financial center and the signature soaring
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architecture are on Hong Kong Island. Across Victoria Harbor, connected
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by ferry and the MTR rail line, is the Kowloon peninsula with its
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hotels, nightlife, and almost non-stop shopping. Beyond, in the New
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Territories, are a mixture of high-rise suburban towns, ancient sites
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and walled villages, country parks, and farms with ducks and fish
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ponds. Hong Kong’s other, less developed islands, Lantau, Lamma, and
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Cheung Chau, provide getaways. You can also take a ferry to Macau to
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find an entirely different kind of city, a unique blend of Chinese and
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Iberian culture.
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It’s anyone’s guess what may happen in the future, but for
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now Hong Kong bristles with energy and ambition, and for the visitor,
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this beautiful city with its contrasts and variety is an exhilarating
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experience.
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