Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens
Colonial-era botanical garden and zoo open since eighteen sixty-four, with a layered WWII history.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens traces what happened to a bronze statue of colonial governor Sir Arthur Kennedy, unveiled here in 1887 and still on its plinth when the Japanese army occupied Hong Kong after the Christmas Day surrender of 1941. You'll hear how the occupiers renamed the gardens Taisho Park, built a military shrine among the palms, and set about erasing British symbols one by one. Through it all, the birds and mammals in the collection carried on largely undisturbed. Stand at the old plinth on Albany Road to follow the story.
This audio guide was created using AI.
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