Guest fountainhall Posted July 5, 2012 Posted July 5, 2012 Anyone planning a trip to Hong Kong should look at this series of articles in a special Hong Kong section of today’s Guardian. It has just about everything you’ll need, from guides to budget hotels and restaurants, the 10 best day-trips, the fantastic panoramic views from the Ozone Bar on the 118th floor of the Ritz Carlton Hotel building, how to take a beginner’s class in Tai Chi (conducted in English) – even directions to get to Tai Long Wan, a gorgeous remote beach in the north east part of the territory which is as good as any in Thailand. http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/series/hong-kong-city-guide Quote
MrBill Posted March 18, 2013 Posted March 18, 2013 Anyone planning a trip to Hong Kong should look at this series of articles in a special Hong Kong section of today’s Guardian. It has just about everything you’ll need, from guides to budget hotels and restaurants, the 10 best day-trips, the fantastic panoramic views from the Ozone Bar on the 118th floor of the Ritz Carlton Hotel building, how to take a beginner’s class in Tai Chi (conducted in English) – even directions to get to Tai Long Wan, a gorgeous remote beach in the north east part of the territory which is as good as any in Thailand. http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/series/hong-kong-city-guide This was a great resource. I've been trying to decide if I should visit HKG & TPE this year or tokyo. One thing I don't understand is the connection between HKG and ShenZhen. I read that it was a "special economic zone" and get that it means there are different "rules" but I question the place. I was surfing around gayhk.com and came across a bunch of links for saunas and "clubs" some in HKG and some in ShenZhen. All are in Chinese and difficult to translate, but it looks like some of these clubs in ShenZhen are not shy about advertising boys as young as 15 y/o as "masseurs." I was disappointed to say the least. Surely that can't be the age of consent in China is it? I thought Pattaya got an undeservedly bad rep for a few club owners hiring underage boys... but this is too much even if it is only legitimate massage they do, but I doubt that's the case based on the pics. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted March 19, 2013 Posted March 19, 2013 I've been in HKG for the last few days. If you have not been, you definitely should make a trip. It's a crazy place, but I love it - as do most people. I spent 20 years of my life living here and still love coming back. I'll be returning mid-May for a few days, and also for 4 days in TPE and 5 in Tokyo. Three of the best cities in the word for me! If you'd like any specific advice, do let me know. Shenzen is not part of Hong Kong. It is across the border in China and so you need a visa to get there. But it is literally only a stone's throw away. You can easily see Shenzen's skyscrapers from Hong Kong, and vice versa. And getting there is easy as there is a regular train to the border. Once there, you go through Immigration and just walk across. It was the first Special Economic Zone set up by Deng Xiao Ping and has mushroomed from a fishing village of around 30,000 to a city of over 15 million in little more than 30 years (Hong Kong is half that size). Hong Kong has quite a lot of gay saunas which are perfectly legal. I am not so sure of the situation in Shenzen, but there certainly aren't the same sort of active gay saunas as in HKG or Thailand. Whenever I have been to any sauna in China, everyone is extremely discreet. Certainly you'll never find 15 year old boys in any sauna. I am not sure what the legal age is in China, but it is certainly way above 15. Whilst there is no prohibition against gay sex in China - please note it's always at your own risk. Payment for sex, though, definitely IS illegal. Since Shenzen is one of the wealthiest parts of he China, lots of guys from the countryside flock there (if they can get the required permits) and then try and make cash from tourists. I've heard of gangs who will be on the look out for gay men. So be careful. There is enough sex in Hong Kong, so I would only go to Shenzen for shopping - there is one big store near the station which only has fake goods!! Utopia-asia has a section on Shenzen - http://www.utopia-asia.com/chinshen.htm Quote
MrBill Posted March 19, 2013 Posted March 19, 2013 I've been in HKG for the last few days. If you have not been, you definitely should make a trip. It's a crazy place, but I love it - as do most people. I spent 20 years of my life living here and still love coming back. I'll be returning mid-May for a few days, and also for 4 days in TPE and 5 in Tokyo. Three of the best cities in the word for me! If you'd like any specific advice, do let me know... Since Shenzen is one of the wealthiest parts of he China, lots of guys from the countryside flock there (if they can get the required permits) and then try and make cash from tourists. I've heard of gangs who will be on the look out for gay men. So be careful. There is enough sex in Hong Kong, so I would only go to Shenzen for shopping - there is one big store near the station which only has fake goods!! Thanks for the clarification and offer for advice. I have a friend who hails from India and whenever he goes home for a visit he always stops for a few days in HKG and always said I should visit. Personally I have no interest in ShenZShen. If I did mainline China I'd opt for Beijing and Shanghai I think. Since I did 2 weeks in Thailand again last Nov. I probably can only afford 7-9 days this year as I get no paid vacation time. I figured I might be able to do split between TPE and HKG or Tokyo. The more I discover, the more TPE/HKG sounds like a better option for traveling alone, if for no other reason, language seemds to be less of a barrier than in Japan. I don't ewant to end up like the Duggers! Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted March 20, 2013 Posted March 20, 2013 For language, Hong Kong is certainly easier for a first-time tourist than Taipei as many more people speak English. Hong Kong is also more compact and I think getting around is easier. The subway is great and the bus routes are posted in both English and Chinese. In Taipei, the underground lines cover most of the city, but if you need a taxi make sure you have the address written in Chinese characters. You might want to check an earlier thread for more detail - http://www.gaythailand.com/forums/topic/7695-hong-kong-and-taipei-short-trips/ I’m sorry you’ll have to go back and forth between two boards to get the info on both cities, but clicking on the links should take you directly to the relevant pages. If you should be able to move your trip forward a couple of weeks, the Taipei Gay Parade will be held on Saturday 26 October. This is an amazing event. Last year, it was estimated that 60,000+ turned up. You may already have seen the reports from the last couple of years I posted below – http://www.gaythailand.com/forums/topic/7404-2011-taipei-gay-parade-a-blog/ http://www.gaythailand.com/forums/topic/8083-taipei-gay-pride-parade-2012/ Quote
MrBill Posted March 23, 2013 Posted March 23, 2013 For language, Hong Kong is certainly easier for a first-time tourist than Taipei as many more people speak English. Hong Kong is also more compact and I think getting around is easier. The subway is great and the bus routes are posted in both English and Chinese. In Taipei, the underground lines cover most of the city, but if you need a taxi make sure you have the address written in Chinese characters. I had previously visited the sites you listed. They were what initially peaked my interest in the area.I see a lot of Taiwan guys on Cam4 but they either don't speak English or prefer not to interact with Westerners. HKG looks amazing and more manageable for first-time Western visitors traveling alone (but hjopefully not ending up that way). Thanks again for the info. Quote
fedssocr Posted March 24, 2013 Posted March 24, 2013 I was actually kind of disappointed by HK. Might have been the crappy weather, but people there looked unhappy. And so much smoking! Just walking down the street I felt like I was getting lung cancer. OK, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. Maybe people are under too much stress there or something. I did like the HK History museum and the science museum next door which were good rainy day places to see. I enjoyed Taiwan more. I have also seen the same gayhk.com website. I think all of the questionable places advertising there are in Shenzhen. The massage places in HKG seem to all be more above board. I had a nice massage at a place in HKG. The escorts listed on that website are pretty much all only in Chinese. Lots of gorgeous guys though. My massage experience in Taipei was much less interactive. Which was a bit disappointing. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted March 24, 2013 Posted March 24, 2013 I agree that lousy weather will dampen any first visit to Hong Kong, if only because you cannot see the physical beauty of the place. But unless you go during the three winter months when you are all but guaranteed no rain, you have to prepare for good and bad weather. The key to any visit to a place like Hong Kong, I believe, is planning in advance. Decide what you want to see, where you wish to visit, whether you want to visit bars and/or saunas, and then make a detailed list along with directions as to how to get there. Getting around Hong Kong is mostly easy. But a lot of its streets are narrow and one way. Get caught in a taxi in a one-way system during the rush hour when it's raining and . . . well, it's like Bangkok! Quote
