I'm often asked by friends overseas if the air pollution in Hong Kong is really that bad. My answer is it depends on whether you're talking about a good day or a bad day.
Good day:
Bad day:
These pictures are from November of last year and were taken with the same camera, from the same position, at the same time of day but about a week apart. I've noticed that the pollution seems to be much reduced in the last few months, roughly coinciding with the global economic meltdown. Hong Kong is just south of China's Pearl River Delta, a very industrialized region that uses a lot of coal. I suspect the slowdown in factory production may be the cause.
To qualify as “open source” under the Open Source Definition, software must give users the ability to re-distribute (either at no cost or for a fee), grant a right of integrity of the author, meet certain non-discrimination requirements, and permit use of the software for any purpose. An annotated list of the Open Source criteria can be found 
on Earth, with an estimated 130,000 people per
square kilometer. 
sweet soy sauce, curry fish balls, chou dofu
(aka stinky tofu), barbecued pork buns, and dumplings filled with
anything you could imagine (and some things you'd probably rather not
know about). When I was young (and reckless), I often ate at such
places. 
was literally approached in the street by a wiry old man
who whispered in Cantonese accented English, “You want DVD?” 
other applications. Today Octopus Cards can be
used on virtually any of Hong Kong's public transportation systems,
from buses to trams to ferries. They are accepted at certain grocery
stores, department stores, drug stores, fast food restaurants, and
convenience stores. You can use an Octopus Card to pay for parking
(both at a parking meter and in a lot), use a pay phone, or buy
snacks from vending machines. Octopus Cards are also used for
identification at certain residential buildings (like my apartment), sports complexes, and Hong Kong schools (where they are sometimes
used to take attendance, much to the chagrin of local students no doubt).
An Octopus Card costs $150 HKD or about $20 USD. $50 HKD of this amount is a refundable deposit and the other $100 HKD is credited to the card. There are a few ways to add more funds. You can do it yourself at a self-service kiosk located in any MTR station in Hong Kong. You can also have your Octopus Card linked to your credit card so that it automatically gets topped up when low. If you want the human touch, you can add funds at an MTR customer service desk or at certain grocery stores and convenience stores. 
for identity purposes or link it to your credit card, your movements and purchases could
theoretically be tracked and monitored. London uses a smart card
system similar to Octopus called “Oyster”, with one key difference being that Oyster can only be used to pay transit fees and not for other purposes. Police have apparently used
Oyster data for 
I can still clearly remember, during my first visit, the excitement of watching the glittering canyons of buildings emerge from the darkness of the South China Seas as we approached Kai Tak Airport at night. (Kai Tak is gone now but certainly not forgotten, least of all by the pilots who had to make occasionally 
Pollution aside, I think the name ``Fragrant Harbour``
still fits. It is somehow evocative of Hong Kong's mystery and traditions. It is a place where dragons creep down from the mountains at night to
drink (more on this later), where massive typhoons ("台风") sweep in from
the Northwest Pacific every summer, where the harmonious balance of
spiritual energy ("风水" or "Feng Shui`) is a critical part of both life
AND business. 