• November 30, 2013
• 0
• by Midnight

Rooftopping in Hong Kong: Above the City

My first night in Hong Kong turned out as well as it could have, as detailed in a previous post, but the next couple of days required a little more effort and a lot more walking. It’s hard to call anytime spent exploring in Hong Kong wasted, it is any rooftopper’s dream (simply search Hong Kong rooftopping, or Hong Kong urban exploration), if not by the multitude of hidden secrets and spots waiting to be discovered, then by the sheer number of buildings to reach, ranking #1 in the world for cities with the most high-rise buildings. That being said, I do think it’s worth noting that many of the “mansions”, or rather high-rise apartments, almost always had a locked entrance with a guard that tended to check your ID or key if you looked out of place. Nonetheless, there’s a seemingly endless supply of possibilities, and an implied promise that no matter, you’re bound to end up at a view that makes it all worth it.

As the last of my nights in Hong Kong approached, I ended up finding the view I was looking for.

I headed to an area I had actually seen from the other side of the bay in Kowloon, near Tsim Sha Tsui, and later decided to give it a try. After a couple failures, I ended up where I needed to be, in a stairwell near a door that would lead to the roof. There’s always a moment of truth, of perfect clarity, associated with rooftopping that takes place when you turn the handle and find out if the all the stairs climbed, cameras dodged, and floors scoured will lead to what you came looking for.

This time I turned the handle and felt a cool rush of air swarm around me as I was greeted by the night sky amid the ever-present city lights.

You can never be sure what to expect on any night out, and that’s part of what can drive you to keep searching, keep trying, to keep spending your time essentially. You can call it chasing a view, those more passionate may call it chasing a dream. At this point, for myself, I’ll simply call it chasing a feeling. The photo above was my attempt; to recreate what it was like to feel on top of the world, if just for a moment.

With that my night came to a satisfying end; slept better than I had in a long time. For me, this post punctuates Hong Kong rooftopping, an amazing view no matter where you look. More than that, Hong Kong is an intriguing city, with value far beyond it’s spectacular views. I’d encourage anyone to go if they got the chance.