for around 15 you can enjoy 50 minutes replica louis

 Exploring the beauty and the bustle of sophisticated Hong Kong

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Sitting in a battered old armchair aaa replica designer handbags in a dated therapy area, a heated lavender scented pillow around my neck, and my feet plunged in a barrel of warm soapy water, it's hard to believe I'm in the heart of the thriving metropolis that is Hong Kong.

As I listen to the piped bird music and sip a rose replica louis vuitton bags from china petal tea, the masseuse sets to work Designer Louis Vuitton Replica Handbags on my tired tootsies.

I may only be 15 floors up Century Square, an unremarkable skyscraper in the heart of the financial district and a stone's throw from designer shops including Prada, Armani and Louis Vuitton, but up here in Gao's, away from the buzz of traffic, crowds and money makers, I could be a million miles away in some backwater of rural China.

Foot massage places like Gao's have become a haven for stressed out businessmen and women both on Hong Kong island and in Kowloon, across Victoria Harbour. For around 15 you can enjoy 50 minutes replica louis vuitton handbags of rest and relaxation, although some customers never switch off, texting furiously throughout the pampering.

And, indeed, it is hard to switch off in "Asia's World City", as the Hong Kong Tourism Board calls Fake Louis Vuitton Replica Bags it, situated on the south eastern coast of China and covering an area of 425 square miles comprising Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, which includes 262 outlying islands.

Little has changed since I visited the island before the British handed it back to the Chinese in 1997.

There's a new airport which is, frankly, much less worrying for passengers than the old one, where the plane had to fly between mile high blocks of flats to find the runway.

Cathay Pacific has also launched a new premium economy class on its Hong Kong route with more leg room, so you can get there in comfort, too.

There are certainly more skyscrapers than I recall, but with a population of seven million, space remains at a premium and the only way is up.

The beauty and bustle of Hong Kong

While locals say there can be no further reclamation of high quality designer replica handbags wholesale the harbour to enable more building to take place after all, the many cruise ships which deposit the spending tourists need room to dock in Hong Kong you can really never say never.

Some things remain the same: the Star Ferry is still transporting passengers from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon, but more luxurious junks (ancient Chinese sailing vessels) are offering trips to see the Symphony of Lights, the nightly light show involving more than 40 buildings on either side of the harbour. The Chinese government hasn't quashed the entrepreneurial spirit which remains in Hong Kong, designated a Special Administrative Region of China. It's visible everywhere, from the market traders in Mong Kok and Stanley selling fake designer handbags and "cashmere" scarves, Perfect Quality Louis Vuitton Replica to the myriad gourmet restaurants and chi chi shops which seem to increase on a weekly basis.

Dai pai dongs (Chinese street cafs serving cheap food including noodles, tofu and fried rice) live happily alongside trendy eateries and bars in the Hollywood Road, while Michelin starred cosmopolitan restaurants compete with private dining rooms run by Chinese families who grow their own food organically on small farms in the New Territories.

There is a constant feeling of optimism, that nothing is impossible and from a customer service point of view that's certainly true, judging by the terrific standards I experience in the Mandarin Oriental, the jewel in the crown of Hong Kong Island's top class hotels, which has just celebrated its 50th anniversary.

It's not just the hotel's supreme elegance and three Michelin starred restaurants which set it apart from the rest, it's that quiet efficiency and meticulous attention to detail. Even my makeshift bookmark is replaced with a Mandarin Oriental equivalent in a well thumbed novel I leave by my bedside.

John Chan, the Captain's Bar manager at the hotel since 1974, reflects: replica louis vuitton "Not much has changed since 1997. More mainland Chinese people come over here. They are surprised by Hong Kong's sophistication. In China they haven't got the restaurant, bar and shopping culture in such a compact area."

While new constantly replaces old, some of Hong Kong's heritage remains, including temples, Buddhist monasteries and other religious edifices.

On Lantau Island to the west, I feel a surreal sense of peace on catching the cable car 5.7km 1:1 replica handbags (3.5 miles) to see Big Buddha, at 112ft tall the largest seated outdoor bronze Buddha in the world.

high quality designer replica handbags wholesale There are fishermen in the water below me hauling in their catches and then I see the statue, rising above the trees in the hills above Ngong Ping. The statue, located near Po Lin Monastery, symbolises the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and religion.

While the hustle and bustle of Hong cheap louis vuitton bags from china uk Kong will inevitably increase, there will always be places to balance your yin and yang and I can already feel a return visit to Gao's on the cards.