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More Photos of South America
South America
Bolivia - More Photos of South America
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- Written by: Richard_McKie
- Parent Category: Travel
- Category: South America
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Following our Japan trip in May 2017 we all returned to Hong Kong, after which Craig and Sonia headed home and Wendy and I headed to Shenzhen in China.
I have mentioned both these locations as a result of previous travels. They form what is effectively a single conurbation divided by the Hong Kong/Mainland border and this line also divides the population economically and in terms of population density.
These days there is a great deal of two way traffic between the two. It's very easy if one has the appropriate passes; and just a little less so for foreign tourists like us. Australians don't need a visa to Hong Kong but do need one to go into China unless flying through and stopping at certain locations for less than 72 hours. Getting a visa requires a visit to the Chinese consulate at home or sitting around in a reception room on the Hong Kong side of the border, for about an hour in a ticket-queue, waiting for a (less expensive) temporary visa to be issued.
With documents in hand it's no more difficult than walking from one metro platform to the next, a five minute walk, interrupted in this case by queues at the immigration desks. Both metros are world class and very similar, with the metro on the Chinese side a little more modern. It's also considerably less expensive. From here you can also take a very fast train to Guangzhou (see our recent visit there on this website) and from there to other major cities in China.
| This article was written in 2012 and already some of the changes noted have changed. For example, in the decade that followed, 'same sex' marriage became legal. And sadly, several of those friends and relations I've mentioned, including my brother, died. No doubt, in another decade, there will be yet more change. |
Elsewhere on this site, in the article Cars, Radios, TV and other Pastimes, I've talked about aspects of my childhood in semi-rural Thornleigh on the outskirts of Sydney, Australia. I've mentioned various aspects of school and things we did as kids.
A great many things have changed. I’ve already described how the population grew exponentially. Motor vehicles finally replaced the horse in everyday life. We moved from imperial measurements and currency to decimal currency and metric measures. The nation gained its self-confidence particularly in the arts and culture. I’ve talked about the later war in Vietnam and Australia embracing of Asia in place of Europe.
Here are some more reminiscences about that world that has gone forever.
Back in April 2007 I was in Washington DC and wandered into a bookshop for a coffee. On display was Stephen Kinzer's National Best Seller: Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq. So I bought it to read, before bed and on the plane.
It is a heavily researched and work; very well described by the New York Times as: "A detailed passionate and convincing book... with the pace and grip of a good thriller." And like a good thriller it was hard to put down. I can recommend it.