In the 1950s and 1960s Wan Chai was known throughout east Asia as a thriving red-light district, catering in particular to the needs of US soldiers on leave from Korea and Vietnam. Hong Kong’s most famous fictional character, Suzy Wong, a prostitute from Richard Mason’s novel The WorId of Suzy Wong, resided and worked here. Nowadays, however, the soldiers have gone and Wan Chai has lost most of its raunchy air. Nevertheless, the restaurants and bars, Chinese shops and wet markets are still certainly worth a visit, but as there aren’t any real sights to see, it’s probably most interesting to come in the evening. In the far west of the area, just north of Gloucester Road on the corner of Fenwick Street and Harbour Road, is the Hong Kong Arts Centre (ten minutes’ walk from Wan Chai MTR), which is worth dropping in on for its art galleries, films and other cultural events. You can pick up a free copy of the monthly magazine Artslink here, which has a detailed diary and reviews of what’s happening on the art scene in Hong Kong. There are also two good cafes here, both with harbour views.
Immediately to the east of the Arts Centre stands a vast new set of gleaming modern buildings that have changed the face of Wan Chai beyond all recognition. The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on the seafront at l Harbour Road is probably the biggest and best of its kind in Asia and was designed to resemble a soaring hawk. When there are no events going on, you can visit the centre’s extraordinary interior, which includes the hall where the official handover ceremonies took place. The centre’s extension (the part with the curving roof) was originally designed to be completed for the annual meet- ing ofthe World Bank and International Monetary Fund, in September 1997, but the opening date was brought forward to accommodate the handover ceremonies in June 1997. Note that there is a daily flag-raising and -lowering ceremony on Golden Bauhinia Square opposite, at 8am and 6pm respectively.
Two upmarket hotels,the Grand Hyatt and the Renaissance Harbour View, are part of the same complex.Immediately inland,across Harbour Road, soars one of the (currently) tallest edifices in Hong Kong, the 78-storey Central Plaza, the golden, glowing cladding of which is visible from far away to the north in Kowloon and which changes colour every fifteen minutes from 6am to 6pm; Catch the lift to the (free) public viewing area oil the forty-sixth floor for splendid 360 degree views over the city. You call reach Central Plaza and the Exhibition Centre by walking along raised walkways from Wan Chai MTR station exit A, or from the ferry terminal immediately in front.
In contrast to these hi-tech marvels near the seafront, inland Wan Chai is a solidly functional area packed with residential highrises and shopping streets with just a 
scattering of curiosities. On 129 Queen’s Road East, south ofthe tramlines on Johnston P, oad, is the little Hung Shing Temple, built into a hillside and alwys open. This old brick building, smoke-blackened and hung with ancient draperies, was once a shrine by the sea; now, rather sadly, it has been marooned far inland by reclamation. There’s a tiny flower and bird market opposite the temple, on Tai Wong Road West. A couple of hundred metres cast of the Hung Sheng Temple, you’ll pass the quaint, whitewashed and unex pectedly ancient Wan Chai Post Office, built in 1912 and only closed finally in 1992. A short walk from here, along Stone Nullah Lane running south from Queen’s Road East, is the Pak Tai Temple, at 2 Lung On Street (daily 8am-6pm), where you can see craftsmen making fantastic little burial offering’s out of bamboo and coloured paper, including cars, houses and aeroplanes.
Related Information
