'Heritage Fiesta' offers history lesson on Hong Kong
Eleven heritage sites open their doors along three routes in Central, Kowloon and Tai O
If you've had enough of trailing around shopping malls this Christmas, perhaps it might be time for a history lesson.
Eleven heritage sites across the city have opened their doors to the public as part of "Heritage Fiesta 2012".
Jointly organised for a second time by the Commissioner for Heritage's Office, under the Development Bureau, and the Antiquities and Monuments Office, the sites are grouped along three routes in Central and Sheung Wan, Kowloon and Tai O.
Among the highlights are the Jao Tsung-I Academy in Lai Chi Kok, which houses a collection of the sinologist's Chinese paintings and calligraphy.
Man Mo Temple in Sheung Wan is also on the trail, a popular heritage site that has already had 33,000 visitors in the first two weeks of December.
"An unexpected number of visitors have already come to the sites for this year's fiesta - we're very glad to see that," said a spokeswoman for the Development Bureau.
More than 62,700 visitors have visited the 11 sites so far and the department urged the public to grab the chance to see them in the last seven days of the fiesta.
"We hope more members of the public visit our heritage sites - and we want to encourage them to treat this activity in the same way they would treat going out for dinner or seeing a movie," said the spokeswoman.
The organisers are also running a competition. For a chance to win one of 100 heritage-themed stamp products featuring six historic buildings and sponsored by Hongkong Post, visitors should collect stamps from eight of the sites and submit a written entry outlining how the city's heritage sites could be best promoted.
Entries close on January 31.
