Shop till you drop at HK's newest malls

Hong Kong is all about shopping, dining and sightseeing. Unless your hotel is in the New Territories, you are bound to be surrounded by shopping opportunities everywhere you go.

Two new malls are adding to the retail therapy experience in Hong Kong: 1881 Heritage and K11.

Few shopping malls are grander than 1881 Heritage, which is located in Kowloon. It occupies what was the Marine Police Headquarters from 1884 to 1996.

The building is one of the four oldest surviving government buildings in Hong Kong. Following a full-scale renovation, the Main Building, Stable Block, Time Ball Tower, Old Kowloon Fire Station and Fire Station Accommodation Block, have been transformed into a 12,077-square-meter, high-end shopping center, with luxury boutique hotel, Hullett House, thrown into the mix.

The main tenants are jewelers and watch dealers, with only two fashion retailers among them - Vivienne Tam and Shanghai Tang. Bling comes in many forms and the finest are here: Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef & Arpels, Paspaley Pearls, Emperor Jewels and Freywille.

Breguet, Tudor, Rolex, IWC and Vacheron Constantin offer some of the best timepieces money can buy. Bags and leather goods are represented by Dunhill, Lancel, Montblanc and Kwanpen.

As Hullet House Hotel dominates the compound, you can have an edifying meal or cocktails from the hotel's verandah before or after shopping. The Parlour is the hotel's glamorous and lavishly appointed chinoiserie lounge for snacking.

Once you've done the round here, walk or take a taxi to K11, the world's first art mall. The owner of the place is a major art enthusiast and treats his shopping center as a gigantic gallery.

K11 has a permanent collection of works by young artists on display and offers an ongoing, ever-evolving calendar of exhibitions, art demonstrations, installations and live performances.

Designed with an urban jungle concept in mind, K11 boasts vertical greens, urban farms, green roof and enough plants to live up to its concept of "Art, People and Nature".

Inside, you cannot escape the much-touted K11 Kollection, a motley selection of 13 artworks picked by K11 owner, Adrian Cheng. Worth $3.2 million, these art pieces include an 8.5-meter steel tree, seats sculpted as clouds or seed pods, acrylic fruits that dangle from the ceiling and a mural of birds.

Unlike 1881 Heritage, K11 offers merchandise that's affordable enough to pay with cash. Once you have had your fill of shopping, go to Pier 2 and take a relaxing 25-minute ferry ride or a bus to Ma Wan island, where Noah's Ark, a theme park, exhibition center and hotel, is located.

The first sighting of Noah's Ark can be quite stunning as the place, shaped like a ship, appears to be stranded on dry land below the impressive Tsing Ma Bridge.

Set over four floors, the ark's interior retells the story of Noah and the Flood using high technology. The interactive multimedia presentations are bound to be a hit with children and adults as well.

Ever thought of attending your own funeral? Experience the Coffin Journey, which allows you to get a feel of what it's like to be inside a coffin.

Just as bizarre and unnerving is the 2-Head Castle, a mini-aquaria filled with freaks of nature. You may find yourself spending a full hour gazing in morbid fascination at the animals here, including two-headed tortoises, a fish with one eye located on its forehead, conjoined twin fish, a snake-neck turtle, even a tortoise with one head at each end!

Asia News Network

(China Daily 01/27/2011 page19)