HONG KONG - a magnificent city

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It is a territory of about 1070 sq. km. located at the trading crossroads of Asia. Hong Kong is one of the world's leading economies, a major manufacturing and international financial centre, the world's busiest container port and the main gateway to mainland China. Hong Kong is famous for its many magnificent structures. These include the Bank of China building, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building, the Central Plaza tower and the Tsing-Ma bridge. Hong Kong is also an ideal place for shopping and sight-seeing.

The climate in December is pleasant and dry, with an average temperature of 15 to 18ºC. Visas are not required for citizens of most countries entering Hong Kong as visitors. However, participants are advised to consult their travel agents or the nearest Chinese Embassy for current formalities.

Hong Kong currently has a population of about seven million of which 98 percent are of Chinese origin. Cantonese, a southern dialect of the Chinese language is the commonly spoken language whereas English is the working language of business, finance and tertiary education.