(ORDO NEWS) — Hong Kong is a huge city with over 7.4 million people. It has long been ranked first in terms of life expectancy, and is considered the leader in the number of skyscrapers.
It is about the architecture of this city that will be discussed in this article.
If you have been to Hong Kong, or at least seen pictures of the city, you may have noticed that there are large holes in the middle of some of the houses.
For example, the Repulse Bay residential complex, which was built in 1986 and today is a very popular place among the rich, has such a distinctive feature.
There is a legend that the “holes” in the buildings of Hong Kong were made so that dragons, which are highly respected in China, could fly through them. This is an interesting version, however,
Unusual architecture of Hong Kong
Consider this architectural phenomenon using the example of the Repulse Bay residential building mentioned just above. It was built in the 1980s for $38 million on the site of a hotel of the same name.
The huge structure has a living area of 88,733 square meters and a “hole” in the middle, which is 16 meters wide and 24 meters high.
The presence of a huge hole in the middle of the building may seem like a very strange decision.
Think for yourself – this empty space could be used for the construction of several dozen more living quarters. But the builders had at least two good reasons to leave the space in the middle empty.
House in Hong Kong with a passage for dragons
Look at the spot where the Repulse Bay house stands. Behind it are mountains, and in front is water. The people of Hong Kong respect ancient legends and are very superstitious.
It is believed that the spirits of ancient dragons live in these mountains – mythical creatures that have been symbols of power, wealth and wisdom since ancient times.
These spirits, like living beings, need access to water, and a huge building could block access to it. Therefore, the builders left a hole in it.
For us, such a serious belief in a legend may seem strange.
But in China, everything is strict with this – if there were no hole, people would think that by blocking access to water, they would anger the dragons and bring trouble.
Of course, there are people who do not believe in this legend, but the lack of a passage for dragons could still scare away many potential homebuyers in Repulse Bay.
The locals believe that a family of dragons lives in the mountains, and the dragon mother takes her children to the sea every morning to bathe in the cool blue waters.
In order not to anger the dragon family and bring bad luck to the house, there is a legend that the “hole” was arranged so that they could pass through the building, said Martyn Sawyer, director of a Hong Kong and Shanghai hotel chain.
However, belief in dragon spirits is not the only reason for holes in Hong Kong houses. In the mid-1980s, the active construction of residential buildings began in the city and the distance between them was minimal.
As a result of this, houses in Hong Kong began to resemble huge walls. Locals began to complain that they were blocking the view and interfering with natural ventilation.
Housing brought a very large income and they did not start building less – the problem was solved by making a hole in the middle of some buildings.
Why don’t skyscrapers fall in the wind?
In addition to this, openings in the middle of skyscrapers reduce the wind load. In the event that a hurricane occurs, these buildings will definitely survive and will not even stagger.
But in general, skyscrapers are already well protected from wind and falls. At the bottom of each high-rise building there is a hexagonal cement base on which all structures of the building rest.
Also, some skyscrapers are equipped with an inertial damper – a multi-ton ball suspended on the top floor, which reduces the frequency of vibrations during strong winds and earthquakes.
Read more about why skyscrapers do not fall, we talked about in this material.
Also in Hong Kong is one of the longest bridges in the world – it connects the city with the districts of Zhuhai and Macau. The length of this bridge is 55 kilometers and it consists of six lanes for cars.
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