Central District, Hong Kong

Organic market takes place in Central - Star ferry terminal building once a week. It's interesting place to see and watch how things are sold there: mostly vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, some fish and oils. These are certified organic and it seems that it is popular to buy such foods there - good thing - as they're quite many buyers.
I bought myself delicious tea seed oil and took it home with me. Would love to try those mushrooms there as they looked nice.

Market is open on Sundays between 11 00 to 17 00.

Man Mo Temple is a little, blink-and-you'll-miss-it establishment tucked away amongst the concrete jungle in the Sheung Wan District. This temple was built to honour the God of Literature and the God of War (yes, interesting combo). The temple is unique in that coils of incense are hung from the ceiling which makes for quite an unusual sight. Watch for falling ash!

Also, there are two relatively famous and accurate fortune-tellers here who seem to have a large following amongst Asian celebrities stationed at the entrance to the temple, so check them out if you are so inclined!

Nearest MTR station is Sheung Wan (take Exit A2). You'll have to walk an additional 10 minutes from there.

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This area is bustling withi activity night and day. There is a very large shopping mall with many levels. There are cheap eateries at the below street-level level, or more upmarket restaurants on the upper floors.

There are plenty of clothing and electrical stores. You can seriously spend a whole day there if you're a spendthrift! :)

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One of the city's few "green lungs", the Zoological and Botanical Gardens were founded in 1864 and opened to the public in 1871, and are now managed by the municipal authorities. They lie near the centre of Victoria, not far from the Peak Tram lower station.

The Botanical Garden covers an area of 5.4 hectares/13 acres and offers an excellent overview of tropical and subtropical flora, with over 1,000 species of trees, shrubs and plants (fig-trees, palms, rubber trees, conifers and a great variety of flowers). Labels give information about their place of origin, habitat and characteristics. A bronze statue of King George VI was erected in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of British colonial rule over Hong Kong (1841-1941).

Adjoining the Botanical Garden is the Zoological Garden, established after the Second World War, which has one of the largest collections of birds (some 250 species, including a number of endangered species), together with monkeys, jaguars, pumas, cranes, flamingos and various smaller species. An important responsibility of the Zoo is the breeding of animals in captivity in order to ensure the survival of endangered species. Its successes in this field have given it an international reputation.

Open: Daily from 6am-10pm. Admission is free.

St John's Cathedral is the main Anglican cathedral in Hong Kong and is the head church for Hong Kong Island and the seat of the islands Archbishop. The cathedral is the oldest surviving Western ecclesiastical building in Hong Kong, and the oldest Anglican church in the Far East, with its construction completed in 1849.

Open: 7.15am-6.30pm Mon, Tue, Fri & Sat; 9.30am-5.15pm Wed, 8.30am-1.15pm Thu and 8am-6.30pm Sun.

Hollywood Road was the first street in Hong Kong. Shortly after the British arrived here in 1841, a substantial Chinese residential and commercial district known as Tai Ping Shan sprang up in the area and quickly became the centre of the Chinese community. In those days, foreign merchants and sailors would put up the antiques and artefacts they had "collected" from China for sale here on their way back to Europe. This is how Hollywood Road began its role as an antique market.

Soho is located in the Mid-levels district and is a steep hilly area of narrow streets which are best accessed via the Mid-levels Escalators. The area was only called Soho from the mid-1990s and some want the name changed as it associates the area as being one of disrepute with red-light connotations. The area, in fact, is the main entertainment zone of the Central district with countless bars, cafes, restaurants, nightclubs, art galleries and antique stores gathered around the streets of Staunton Street, Elgin Street and Caine Road. It's good to visit the area at different times of day to witness the life that goes on here and the entertainment on display.

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The Mid-Levels escalators run between Des Voeux Road in Central with Conduit Road in the district known as the Mid-levels and are the longest series of outdoor covered escalators in the world, running for 800 meters. It was opened in October 1994 in order to cut down excessive traffic that was building up due to the steepness and narrow streets in the area. There are a total of 20 separate escalators with streets that bi-sect the system running all over the district of Soho, which is a very fashionable district with many bars, cafe and restaurants. The escalators are free of charge and run downhill between 6am and 10am and uphill from 10:30am to midnight and, of course, are great fun!