Walking Tour: Kowloon Tong

This week our walking tour takes us through an area that I had never explored before. Susan Blumberg-Kason requested a tour of Kowloon Tong, where she used to live. Susan is writing a memoir about her time in Hong Kong and China in the 90's, and her blog features some great pictures of HK through the years. Like most areas in Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong has many sides, and I've only started to discover it. You'll just have to come back again for more Hong Kong walking tours of this area.

Start out by taking the MTR to Kowloon Tong. I chose exit F.

You'll see a big educational services building when you emerge into the sunlight.

Turn left.

This is Kent Road, which seems to be a quiet and exclusive residential street.

You'll pass a lot of gates and walls.

Across the street on the right I saw a school.

On the left I saw more gates and walls.

As I continued up the quiet street, I saw this cute nursery school on the right...

...and this formidable international school on the left.

The buildings are shorter here than in the rest of Hong Kong.

They are well-protected.

I saw some odd things on this street.

And a security guard or two saw me too.

I reached Cornwall Street and noticed the entrance to Beacon Hill Road, but I turned right.

The walls lining Cornwall have a series of reliefs decorating their surfaces.

On the other side of the surprisingly wide street I saw more residences...

....but the buildings were more interesting on my side of the road.

There were a few works in progress.

Does anyone know what this building is?

I turned right at the corner of Cornwall and Devon, which sounds like a place in England.

Here I saw a familiar sight...

Mormon churches look the same no matter where you are in the world.

I walked down Devon and was struck by how open and spacious it was.

It was very quiet, except for the occasional security guard.

I found a motorcycle parking lot...

...and a graduate school.

I crossed the road and took the left fork.

I found benches that wouldn't have been out of place in the suburban US...

...and the largest tree I've seen in HK outside of the Botanical Gardens. Turn left here.

In a city full of apartments, Kowloon Tong boasts a number of expensive houses.

I continued along the road beneath the barbed wire.

Take a minute to look up into the hills.

I found another fun kindergarten.

And this is where I reached Waterloo Road, to continue with the British place names.

Turn right and walk beside the highway.

Occasionally you will catch a glimpse between the walled residences and schools.

If you want a stately home in Kowloon Tong, you could stop here.

I kept going as the clouds gathered over Waterloo Road.

At this point I started to wish for air-conditioning.

Turn right at the big school in the direction of City University.

I saw another beautiful house. This one has been turned into a photography studio.

You could go back into the MTR now...

...or you could walk a few steps further to see a few more stately homes.

We've now made a big loop and this is the educational services building we saw earlier.

Walk in the direction of City University of HK, though I think that will be the subject of another tour.

Walk past another MTR entrance and turn left.

Take the covered walkway over the train tracks.

You'll be approaching Festival Walk, a glamorous and expensive shopping mall.

Step inside to enjoy the air-conditioning. You'll be able to get to the MTR from here.

If it isn't too hot you can visit the little park to your right before you go...

...and maybe even have a snack and a cold drink by the pond.

Thank you for discovering a little piece of Kowloon Tong with me. Next week I will show you around a busy and interesting place that I know well: Central Station.