Things to Know about Hong Kong 

Hong Kong was a British Crown Colony on the coast of southern China, leased by China to Britain in 1842 and returned in 1997. The area now known as Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) is one of the world's leading commercial centers. Hong Kong is a free port, a bustling trade center, and a shipping and banking emporium- one of the greatest trading and transshipment centers in East Asia.

History: 

In January 1841, as a result of the defeat of the Ching Dynasty of China in the First Opium War, Hong Kong became a British colony, under the Convention of Chuen Pi. After the defeat of China in the Second Opium War, the Kowloon Peninsula was ceded to Britain in 1860. In 1898, the New Territories — a rural area north of Boundary Street in Kowloon district — were leased to Britain for 99 years.

In 1984, the Chinese and British Governments signed the Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong, giving Hong Kong back to China effective 1 July 1997. Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the Peoples Republic of China. Under the slogan "One Country, Two Systems", Hong Kong remains a capitalist economy without various restrictions that apply in mainland China such as news censorship and foreign exchange controls.

In accordance with the Joint Declaration, a Basic Law was enacted to serve in effect as a constitution for the Hong Kong SAR. In theory, Hong Kong enjoys "a high degree of autonomy" in most matters except foreign and defense affairs.

Spoken Language:

Cantonese is the language spoken by 95% of the people in Hong Kong. Though Hong Kong is a former British colony, the degree of English proficiency is limited among non-professionals in those districts where more locals visit than tourists. However, others including most taxi drivers, street vendors, salespeople etc. are fluent enough for sufficient communication, especially at tourist destinations such as hotels and certain restaurants. English is fluently spoken among the business community.

Most locals are not fluent in Mandarin, but can comprehend it to a certain degree. Mandarin proficiency is increasing, especially after the reunification with the mainland.

All official signs are bilingual, in both Chinese (Traditional) and English. Most shops and restaurants also have English signage, though don't expect this from the more local or obscure establishments.
 

Currency: 

The Hong Kong dollar is the official currency. The official exchange rate is fixed at 7.80 HKD to 1 USD, although bank rates may fluctuate slightly. Issued by three banks (HSBC [a.k.a. Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation], Standard Chartered Bank and Bank of China) and with different versions in which the style varies a lot, these multi-coloured, and increasing in size, banknotes come in denominations of:

• $10, green or purple (The purple note is issued by the government)
• $20, dark blue or light blue (old or new)
• $50, purple or green (old or new)
• $100, red
• $500, brown
• $1000, gold

Some shops do not accept $1000 notes due to counterfeiting concerns.

The coins come in units of:

• $10, in bronze/silver, circular
• $5, in silver, circular, thicker
• $2, in silver, wavey-circular
• $1, in silver, circular, thinner
• 50c, in bronze, circular, larger
• 20c, in bronze, wavey-circular
• 10c, in bronze, circular, smaller

varying in a descending size (except $10 coin)

One from other places may be surprised of the variety of different versions of banknotes issued by different note-issuing banks. You may want to have a quick look of it here (not including the new banknotes). 

Climate & Weather:

Hong Kong can be a little chilly in the winter (10 degrees) and hot and humid in the summer. The best times of year to visit are thus late spring (March-April), when the average temperature is around 25°C and autumn between September and November. Typhoons usually occur between June and September and sometimes can bring a halt to local business activities for a day or less. The weather in winter is unstable, ranging from 12 to 22°C.

Typhoons normally occur during the months of May to November, and are particularly prevalent during September. Whenever a typhoon approaches within 800km of Hong Kong, typhoon warning signal 1 is issued. Signal 3 is issued as the storm approaches. When the storm is expected to hit, signal 8 is issued. At this point, most of business activities shuts down, including shops, restaurants and the transport system. However, some entertainment facilities such as cinemas may still open for business. Signal 9 and 10 may be issued depending on the intensity of the storm.

Taxis may still available when signal 8 or above is issued, but then they are under no obligation to service passengers as insurance cover is no longer effective under such circumstances. It is quite possible to negotiate a fare with the driver, typically up to twice the meter fare.

Rainstorms also have their own warning system. In increasing order of severity, the levels are amber, red and black.

Hong Kong Observatory

Roads:

Signage on the roads in Hong Kong is typically different from most other cities. Zebra lines indicate crossing areas for pedestrians and traffic comes from the right. To stay safe, visit the Transport Department's Road Users' Code for complete details.

Crossing roads by foot should also be exercised with great care. Local traffic in Hong Kong generally moves fast once the signal turns green. To help both the visually impaired and even people who are not, an audible aid is played at every intersection. Rapid bells indicate "Walk"; Intermittent bells (10 sets of 3 bells) indicate "Do Not Start to Cross"; and Slow bells indicate "Do Not Walk".

Districts:

Hong Kong is divided into a number of distinctly different districts.

• Hong Kong Island was the site of the original British settlement. The Northern part of the Island is densely populated. Because of the scarcity of land supply, you'll find most of Hong Kong's skyscrapers and the famous skyline along the northern coastline. The main business and nightlife districts, in addition to the government offices, can be found here. The southern part of the Island has more leisure facilities, with beautiful beaches and luxury residential complexes.

• Kowloon is the peninsula jutting down towards Hong Kong Island. It is the most populous area in Hong Kong, at one time the most densely populated place in the world.

• The New Territories, named by the British officials when leased from the Chinese government in 1898, are Hong Kong's residential hinterland.

• The Outlying Islands are the 234 other islands in the territory ranging from Lantau (twice the size of Hong Kong Island) to rocks poking out of the sea. Situated on Lantau is Discovery Bay a resort type residential area and home to approximately 40000 inhabitants, many of them expats or middle class locals.

Miscellaneous:

Location: Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China

Map references: Southeast Asia

Area - comparative: six times the size of Washington, DC

Terrain: hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north

Natural hazards: occasional typhoons

Environment - current issues: air and water pollution from rapid urbanization

Geography - note: more than 200 islands

Population: 6,898,686 (July 2005 est.)

Ethnic groups: Chinese 95%, other 5%

Religions: eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%

Languages: Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official

Flag description: red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center