Its a vertical thing

The best way to describe the architecture in Hong Kong is to say this: The longer you look at it, the better it becomes. Hong Kong has so many wonderful buildings, the tend to get lost among one another, with only a few standing out bold (or high) enough to make you notice them. In fact they are building the worlds soon to be 3rd tallest building in the world, but it won't even make a dent on the skyline because its across the harbor in Kowloon. More so than any other city on earth, this is an architecture lover's dream.

We were lucky enough to take a ferry out of the city by daylight, only to return by night when the buildings were all the more stunning. During the day the buildings blend together, almost like Chinese people pushing in line to be viewed first. In daylight the tallest ones, IFC2 and the Bank of China building, stand out, but for the most part they all resemble one another, housing the millions of people who live there, or housing their offices. Then at night, the contrast between average and stupendous is set off, and the skyline reveals its true colors.

The buildings of the city work like a team, or perhaps a dance company to create such a stunning skyline. There are the superstars, the buildings stretching taller, with more lights and more elaborate edifices. There are the primadonnas, nothing special except for the intense neon signs affixed to their roof, drawing your eye and proclaiming the buildings existence. But what makes the skyline, like any skyline, are the role-players, the buildings who create the bulk and mass of structure, shortening the space between water and clouds.

New York's skyline might be more impressive for sheer bulk, and Shanghai's has more tall buildings, but as a unit, for both modernity, fullness and sheer beauty, I'm beginning to think Hong Kong has stolen my heart. While I can post a few simple pictures, it simply cannot do justice to the feeling of sailing past these buildings at night on a boat in one of the worlds busiest harbors.