Wan Chai District

This article is about the administrative district. For the area, see Wan Chai.
Wan Chai
灣仔區
District
Wan Chai District

Day view of Causeway Bay in the Wan Chai District

Official emblem

Location of Wan Chai District
灣仔區 within Hong Kong
Coordinates: 22°16′47″N 114°10′18″E / 22.27968°N 114.17168°E / 22.27968; 114.17168Coordinates: 22°16′47″N 114°10′18″E / 22.27968°N 114.17168°E / 22.27968; 114.17168
Country Hong Kong
Constituencies 11
Government
 • District Officer Mr. William Yuen, JP (DAB)
 • District Council Chairman Ng Kam-chun
Area
 • Total 10.2 km2 (3.9 sq mi)
Population (2011[1])
 • Total 152,608
 • Density 15,000/km2 (39,000/sq mi)
Time zone Hong Kong Time (UTC+8)
Website Wan Chai District Council
Wan Chai District
Traditional Chinese 灣仔區
Simplified Chinese 湾仔区
Literal meaning Little Bay District

Wan Chai District (Chinese: 灣仔區, literally "Cove District") is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The district is located at the north shore of Hong Kong Island with a population of 167,146 in 2001. The district has the second most educated residents with the highest income, the second lowest population and the third oldest residents, and is also the only district without the presence of public housing estates. It is a relatively affluent district, with one in five persons having liquid assets of more than HKD 1 million.[2]

Geography

Wan Chai in 1960s

The area colloquially known as Wan Chai is often referred to the area surrounding Tonnochy Road and the Wan Chai Station of the MTR, which is located between Admiralty on the west and Causeway Bay on the east. Wan Chai North, where major buildings such as the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and Central Plaza are located, refers to the area north of Gloucester Road, reclaimed from the sea after the 1970s.

The broader administrative "Wan Chai District" includes the areas of Wan Chai, Wan Chai North, Causeway Bay, Happy Valley, Jardine's Lookout, Stubbs Road, Wong Nai Chung Gap and Tai Hang.

History

Hennessy Road

The ceremony of the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China was performed in the then new wing of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai North.

In May 2009, 300 guests and staff members at the Metropark Hotel Wanchai in Wan Chai were quarantined, suspected of being infected or in contact with the H1N1 virus during the 2009 swine flu outbreak. A 25-year-old Mexican man who had stayed at the hotel was later found to have the viral infection. He had travelled to Hong Kong from Mexico via Shanghai.[3][4]

Politics

Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and high-rise buildings in Wan Chai District

The district council of Wan Chai has 11 elected and 2 appointed members.

Diversity

Flag Rising Ceremony at Golden Bauhinia Square

Today Wan Chai is sometimes described as the heart of the city, representing the epitome of the Hong Kong lifestyle: there is a well-established arts centre, the large exhibition and conference complexes, luxury apartments, five-star and non-five-star hotels, shopping malls, metropolitan office towers and a large government building cluster – along with a multitude of home decoration shops, bars and Mahjong centres filled with gamblers. Wan Chai District houses a mosque, as well as cemeteries for several different faiths. Five minutes away from the noisy polluted streets is Bowen Drive, one of the more popular places for jogging. Top lawmakers, movie stars, and government officials can be seen jogging there.

Entertainment and shopping

The numerous bars and strip joints in the red-light district part of Wan Chai are popular with tourists and visiting US sailors, who arrive on Fenwick Pier. Fenwick Pier was once the location of the only McDonald's that served alcohol in Hong Kong, but it was closed in 2004 and replaced by an up-market restaurant. Johnston Road and Queen's Road East are the two major streets in the area. Export clothing shops line the streets of Johnston and Luard Road and offer some of the best value in Hong Kong. Queen's Road East has many stores selling Chinese style wooden furniture whilst Spring Garden Lane and Tai Wo Street are also lined with stalls selling for vegetables, fruit and household items. Tai Yuen Street is famous for shops and stalls selling various kinds of toys.

Hotels

Hotels in Wan Chai District include:

Notable places

Next to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre is the "Golden Bauhinia Square". There is a huge sculpture of a bauhinia, which is the representative flower of Hong Kong, in the square. This is a popular tourist spot in Hong Kong for mainland visitors and also the location of the flag-raising ceremony which occurs daily and in a special form on Chinese National Day and other occasions.

Notable skyscrapers include:

The Old Wanchai Post Office is a declared monument. There is also a Police Museum near the junction of Stubbs Road and Peak Road.

The Stubbs Road Lookout is a viewing point of the Victoria Harbour. The famous Lovers' Stone is located on Bowen Road, which is also a nice place for scenery.

Demographics

According to a household survey by the Census and Statistics Department, the median household income is the highest of Hong Kong.

Cross-Harbour Transportation

The first tunnel that crosses Victoria Harbour, the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, links the former Kellett Island, now part of Wan Chai, with Hung Hom in Kowloon.

The Star Ferry operates a ferry route from Wan Chai Pier near Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre to Tsim Sha Tsui.

Appearances in fiction

See also

References

  1. ↑ "2011 Population Census: Summary Results" (in English and Chinese). Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong Government. 2011. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ Cheng, Jonathan; Ye, Juliet; Stein, Peter, "Hong Kong Orders Quarantine of Hotel", The Wall Street Journal, 2 May 2009
  4. ↑ Dasgupta, Saibal, "Swine flu scare: China puts 460 in isolation", The Times of India, 3 May 2009.
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