The area’s official name is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, one of two SARs of the People’s Republic of China. The name ‘Hong Kong’ means Fragrant Harbour.
It is situated on the south-eastern coast of China at the mouth of the Pearl River facing the South China Sea. Covering an area of 1,104 square kilometres (425 square miles), the territory is made up of Hong Kong Island, the Kowloon Peninsula and the New Territories.
It is one of the most densely-populated areas in the world with more than seven million people squeezed into its confines, of which 95 per cent are Chinese.
Formerly a British colony, Hong Kong’s sovereignty was transferred to China in 1997 to end 156 years of British rule.
The climate in July will be hot, humid and sunny, with occasional showers and thunderstorms. The temperature can exceed 31°C.
Copyright 2013 The Arsenal Football Club plc. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source 28 Mar 2012
