Golden Bauhinia Square (and HKCEC)

The bauhinia is the emblem of Hong Kong. The Forever Blooming Bauhinia Sculpture that gives the Expo Promenade the commonly used name, Golden Bauhinia Square, was a gift from the Central Government to mark the 1997 Handover — an occasion that held tremendous significance for the world’s largest nation and that stands out as a landmark event in 20th century history.

Today the site is hugely popular with Chinese visitors who come to take photos of the Reunification Monument, which bears inscriptions of the calligraphy of President Jiang Zemin who represented China at the Handover Ceremony and to enjoy the pomp and symbolism of the daily Flag-raising Ceremony with beautiful Victoria Harbour as a backdrop.

(Image source: www.discoverhongkong.com)

Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC)

With its vast curtain of glass and 40,000-square-metre aluminum roof sculpted to echo a seabird soaring in flight, the striking Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre is a major landmark on the Hong Kong Island skyline. Known worldwide as HKCEC, this harbour front expansion used top-down construction techniques to meet a challenge of limited land supply; its highly innovative methods winning many industry accolades.

While Jackie Chan fans may remember the building as the setting for the dramatic grand finale of New Police Story, it was also the backdrop for a spectacle of far more significance — the Handover Ceremony on June 30th, 1997. This is when the former British Crown Colony was returned to the People's Republic of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region was established.

Internationally, the HKCEC is known as a world-class convention and exhibition center and was voted Best Convention and Exhibition Centre in Asia for the ninth time by industry awards in 2012.

Address: 1 Expo Drive, Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island

Tel: 00852-25828888

Website: www.hkcec.com

Transportation: MTR Wan Chai Station Exit A5, walk along the footbridge of O’Brien Road, pass through Immigration Tower and Central Plaza to Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.