Ap Lei Chau

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Ap Lei Chau

Ap Lei Chau (Pinyin

Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most commonly used Romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu is the Chinese Language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"....
: Yalizhou), or Aberdeen Island, is an island

Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong

Hong Kong comprises the Kowloon peninsula and 236 islands, the largest being Lantau Island and the second largest being Hong Kong Island. Ap Lei Chau is the most densely populated island in the world....
of Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located in Southern China in East Asia, bordering the province of Guangdong to the north and facing the South China Sea to the east, west and south....
, located south-west of Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong in the southern part of Hong Kong. It has a population of 1,268,112 and its population density is 15,915/km?, as of 2006....
, next to Aberdeen Harbour and Aberdeen Channel

Aberdeen Channel

Aberdeen Channel is a channel between Ap Lei Chau and Nam Long Shan on the Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. With two bays, Po Chong Wan and Tai Shue Wan, major portion of the channel is transformed into Aberdeen South Typhoon Shelter....
, with an area of 1.32 km². Administratively, it is part of Southern District

Southern District, Hong Kong

The Southern District is one of the Districts of Hong Kong of Hong Kong, China. It is located in the southern part of Hong Kong Island. It had a population of 290,240 in 2001....
. Ap Lei Chau is the most densely populated island in the world.

p dating from the Ming Dynasty

Ming Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty , or Empire of the Great Ming , was the ruling Dynasties in Chinese history of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty....
shows the island. On this map is marked the village of Heung Kong Tsuen, lit. Hong Kong Village(??? ).

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History

A map dating from the Ming Dynasty

Ming Dynasty

Typhoon shelter

A typhoon shelter is a shelter for fishing boats during typhoons. These facilities are often found in Hong Kong....
, and was a fishing village before the First Opium War

First Opium War

The First Opium War or the First Anglo-Chinese War was fought between the East India Company and the Qing Dynasty of China from 1839 to 1842 with the aim of forcing China to allow free trade, particularly in opium....
. As a consequence of the Treaty of Nanking

Treaty of Nanking

The Treaty of Nanking or Treaty of Nanjing, signed 29 August 1842, was the Unequal Treaties which marked the end of the First Opium War between the British Empire and Qing Dynasty Empires of 1839-42....
, it was ceded to the British together with Hong Kong Island in 1841. Since then, little attention had been placed on this small island.

In 1968, the government started to build a power station on the island to provide electricity for the whole of Hong Kong Island. In 1980, a bridge

Ap Lei Chau Bridge

Ap Lei Chau Bridge is a highway bridge in Hong Kong connecting the island of Ap Lei Chau and Aberdeen, Hong Kong of the Hong Kong Island acrossing the ....
was constructed to connect the island to the Hong Kong Island and brought momentum for rapid economic development. Public housing estates were built to accommodate people who suffered in a fire in the Aberdeen shelter.

In 1989, the power station was relocated to Lamma Island

Lamma Island

Lamma Island , also known as Pok Liu Chau or simply Pok Liu , is the third largest island in Hong Kong and part of the Islands District, Hong Kong....
. The old power station was then demolished and the site was re-developed into the South Horizons

South Horizons

Land reclamation

Land reclamation is either of two distinct practices. One involves creating new land from sea- or riverbeds, the other refers to restoring an area to a more natural state ....
.

Geography and demographics

Ap Lei Chau was named after the shape of the island, which looks like the tongue of a duck. Ap means duck, Lei means tongue, and Chau means island. The northern part has the highest population, while the southern part of the island is less densely populated.

The highest hill on the island is Yuk Kwai Shan (aka Mount Johnston).

It comprises four main residential estate

Housing estate

A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance....
s — Lei Tung Estate, Ap Lei Chau Main Street, Ap Lei Chau Estate and South Horizons

South Horizons

South Horizons is a residential area on the island of Ap Lei Chau, in Hong Kong. It consists of 34 blocks, ranging in height from 25 to 42 storeys, constructed from 1991-1995....
, each of which comprises several highrise towers. There is an industrial estate on the southern tip of the island.

The population of Ap Lei Chau is 86,782, and its area is 1.30 km², giving it a population density of 66,755 people / km², making it the most densely populated island in the world.

Ap Lei Chau also lends its name to the Ap Lei Chau geologic formation

Geologic formation

A formation or geological formation is the fundamental unit of lithostratigraphy. A formation consists of a certain number of rock stratum that have a comparable lithology, sedimentary facies or other similar properties....
, which covers most of southern Hong Kong Island.

Place to visit

The Hung Shing

Hung Shing

Hung Shing , also known as Hung Shing Ye and Tai Wong , was a government official in the Tang Dynasty named Hung Hei serving Pun Yue in present-day Guangdong, China....
Temple located on the Main Street is a notable site, dating back to 1900 and is one of the oldest of its kind. The temple is a Grade I historic building

List of Grade I historic buildings in Hong Kong

Grade I historic buildings in Hong Kong are those selected as those "outstanding merits of which every effort should be made to preserve if possible"....
.

The site of the temple is nearly opposite the site of the former Aberdeen police station. Clearly chosen for its feng shui

Feng shui

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese system of aesthetics believed to utilize the Laws of both heaven and Earth to help one improve life by receiving positive Qi....
, the superior dragons were seen as being protection from the 'threat of the tiger's jaw' from the police station. Although the police station is now gone, the dragons are still seen as enduring feng shui guards.

Transportation

The connection between Ap Lei Chau and Hong Kong Island is by Ap Lei Chau Bridge

Ap Lei Chau Bridge

Ap Lei Chau Bridge is a highway bridge in Hong Kong connecting the island of Ap Lei Chau and Aberdeen, Hong Kong of the Hong Kong Island acrossing the ....
with four lanes. It opened in 1983 with only two lanes and was widened to four in 1994.

Bus

Buses in Hong Kong

Bus services have History of Bus transport in Hong Kong in Hong Kong. In 2005, five companies operate franchised public bus services. There are also a variety of non-franchised public buses services, including feeder bus services to railway stations operated by the railway companies, and residents' services for residential estates ....
is the main form of transport for the residents in Ap Lei Chau. There are five bus termini in total on the island:

Ap Lei Chau Estate
Ap Lei Chau Depot (Main Street, Ap Lei Chau)
Ap Lei Chau Industrial Estate
Lei Tung Estate
South Horizons
South Horizons

South Horizons is a residential area on the island of Ap Lei Chau, in Hong Kong. It consists of 34 blocks, ranging in height from 25 to 42 storeys, constructed from 1991-1995....

Minibuses

Public light bus

A Public light bus is a common Public transport mode of transport in Hong Kong. It mainly serves the area that Buses in Hong Kong cannot reach as efficiently....
and taxi

Taxicabs of Hong Kong

Taxicabs of Hong Kong provide a taxicab system. Most taxis are independently owned and operated, but some are owned by taxi companies, and the drivers are employees....
s are also available. There is a regular sanpan service running between Ap Lei Chau Main Street and Aberdeen. (Service hours: 6am-12am)

There are plans for the Mass Transit Railway Corp. Ltd. (MTR

MTR

MTR, or Mass Transit Railway, is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. The MTR first began service in 1979 and officially merged with the Kowloon Canton Railway on 2 December 2007, still bearing the same name in English....
) to extend the planned South Island Line

South Island Line

The South Island Line is a proposed line of the Hong Kong MTR rapid transit. Construction to the southern end of Hong Kong Island, which is at present not serviced by any rail transport, has been approved by the Executive Council of Hong Kong....
to Ap Lei Chau. There will be two stations in the island, one "Lei Tung" for Lei Tung Estates and one "South Horizons" serving Marina Square, a mini mall with a food market, and South Horizons, a private estates covering the western edge of the island.

Ap Lei Chau

History

Geography and demographics

Place to visit

Transportation

See also