Hong Kong is one the most complex cities I’ve ever experienced. I had expectations of a sprawling city completely covering the island that I knew Hong Kong was situated on. Once more my preconceived ideas were shattered by reality.

The first indication that my ideas were misguided were when we got out of the airport and were surrounded by beautiful green mountains. The double decker bus ride into the area where we had booked our hostel was no less stunning. The landscapes of Hong Kong are obviously similar to the inspiration for the antique Chinese paintings we have often run across, where the mountains, rivers and coasts are always much larger than the houses, people and boats that mix seamlessly into the backdrop. Hong Kong, even with it’s enormous buildings and huge population still seems to be harmoniously set into nature.