There's long been a love affair between Hongkongers and the Land of the Rising Sun.
In no place is that clearer than in the Japanese-language classrooms of the University of Hong Kong's School of Professional and Continuing Education (HKU SPACE).
'It's very popular,' said Tan Tack-ki, associate head of the Centre for Language Studies at HKU SPACE. 'We have more than 3,300 students enrolling each year to learn Japanese with us.'
Japanese has been on the curriculum since 1968 and the school's seven-year programme takes students from beginner to advanced level, and encompasses everything from conversation to calligraphy to flower arranging.
Mr Tan said most students were in their 20s and 30s, and that the gender ratio was a 60:40 split between women and men.
'Many students are here for self-improvement purposes. After Putonghua, Japanese is seen as the most important second Asian language by many people,' said Mr Tan, pointing to the fact that Japan is Hong Kong's third-largest trading partner after the mainland and the United States.
'I believe the interest will continue because the interest in Japanese culture, in their TV dramas, movies and travelling to the country is on the rise,' he said. 'The number of visitors from Hong Kong to Japan is in the hundreds of thousands each year. Instead of joining tours, people increasingly like to explore the country on their own. Before going, they like to equip themselves with some Japanese. On top of that, for work purposes, Japanese is a popular language to learn.'