9 Best Sights in Hong Kong, China

No one knows exactly when Hong Kong Island's oldest temple was built—but the consensus is sometime between 1847 and 1862. The temple is dedicated to the Taoist gods of literature and of war: Man, who wears green, and Mo, dressed in red. The temple bell, cast in Canton in 1847, and the drum next to it are sounded to attract the gods' attention when a prayer is being offered.

Set inside a heritage building, the peaceful rooms of this museum and gallery are filled with a small but excellent collection of Chinese antiquities. On view are ceramics and bronzes, some dating from 3,000 BC, as well as paintings, lacquerware, and carvings in jade, stone, and wood. Some superb ancient pieces include ritual vessels, decorative mirrors, and painted pottery. The museum has the world's largest collection of Nestorian crosses, dating from the Mongol Period (1280–1368). There are usually two or three well-curated temporary exhibitions on view; contemporary artists who work in traditional mediums are often featured. The collection is spread between the T.T. Tsui Building, where there is a Tea Gallery, and the Fung Ping Shan Building, which you access via a first-floor footbridge. The museum is a bit out of the way—20 minutes from Central via Buses 3B, 23, 40, 40M, or 103, or a five-minute uphill walk from Sheung Wan MTR—but it's a must for the true Chinese art lover.

Hong Kong's best antiques shops and classical-art galleries are on this street, named for the holly trees that once grew here. The western end of this historic street has sprouted dozens of small, independent art galleries that serve complimentary wine to browsers. On nearby Upper Lascar Row, a flea market commonly known as Cat Street, vendors sell curios, porcelain, and not-very-old trinkets masquerading as artifacts. They might not be authentic, but they do make for great souvenirs and less expensive gifts.

You can find out all about medical breakthroughs at this private museum, which is housed in an Edwardian-style building at the top of Ladder Street. The 11 exhibition galleries cover 10,000 square feet, and present information on both western and Chinese medical practices.

A sign here marks where Captain Charles Elliott stepped ashore in 1841 to claim Hong Kong for the British empire. This was once the waterfront, but aggressive reclamation has left the spot several blocks inland. At the top of the street stands Hollywood Centre, home to a number of shops and galleries and the non-profit contemporary art space Asia Art Archive.

The maze of streets west of Man Mo Temple is known as Tai Ping Shan (the Chinese name for Victoria Peak, which towers above it). It's a sleepy area that's filled with small local shops, local design outposts, and cozy cafés. One of the city's oldest residential districts, it has undergone major gentrification in recent years.

It's worth a trip out to the western end of the Mid-Levels to see these imposing Edwardian-era buildings. The institution opened in 1912 with the Faculty of Medicine, which had been known as the Hong Kong College of Medicine since 1887. Today the exteriors of University Hall, the Hung Hing Ying Building, and the Tang Chi Ngong Building are on the government's Declared Monument List.

The Sheung Wan district's iconic market, a hulking Edwardian-era brick structure, is a good place to get your bearings. Built in 1906, it functioned as a produce market for 83 years. Today it's a shopping center selling trinkets and fabrics—the architecture is what's worth the visit. Nearby you'll find herbal medicine on Ko Shing Street and Queen's Road West, dried seafood on Wing Lok Street and Des Voeux Road West, and ginseng and bird's nest on Bonham Strand West.

Just minutes away from Man Mo Temple, Wing Lee Street is one of the city's last thoroughfares where every building features 1950s-era "tong lau" architecture. In 2010, the tenement buildings on this tucked-away street were saved from being demolished following a series of protests from preservationists.