Signal Hill Garden — Attraction in Hong Kong

Blackhead Point (Chinese: 黑頭山; literally: "black head hill"), also known as Tai Pau Mai (大包米) indigenously, or by the names Tsim Sha Tsui Point and Signal Hill (訊號山), was a cape before any land reclamation took place in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It remains a small hill near the coast.The Signal Hill Tower (訊號塔) was built in the Edwardian style in 1907 at the top of the hill.Originally three-storey building, the tower stood at 12.8 metres (42 feet) tall, with a red brick facade. Another storey was added to the structure in 1927 for clearer view of the tower from incoming vessels, this heightened it to 18.9 m (62 ft). The windows of the added storey features round windows whereas the original floors have square windows. Prior to the addition,the roof of the building was flat. A dome-shaped roof painted light green was built in replacement. There was a 5.5 m long mast which used to contain the time ball atop the building.

The purpose of the tower was to house a time ball apparatus of the Hong Kong Observatory previously located in the nearby Marine Police Headquarters Compound.The apparatus operated in the building from January 1908 to June 1933, dropping once daily from 1908 to 1920, and twice a day from 1920 to 1933. The dropping of the time ball ceased on 30 June 1933 as the building itself was in disrepair, short of staff, and the method used to check the marine chronometers had become obsolete, in comparison with radio-telegraphy and telephony. The Urban Council restored the tower in the 1970s.

The building was designated a Grade II historic building in 1981 and was upgraded to a Grade I historic building on December 18, 2009. On 23 October 2015 the tower was also...

Open hour on weekdays 9 to 11 am and 4 to 6 pm. This signal tower (訊號塔) was built in 1907 at Signal Hill, also known as Blackhead Hill (黑頭山) or Tai Pau Mei (大包米), to house a time-ball apparatus previously located in the nearby Marine Police Headquarters. From 1908 to 1920, the time ball dropped once daily except Sundays and government holidays. Precisely at 1 pm every day, a large hollow copper ball suspended on the top of the Tower was released and dropped to the foot of the mast to enable sailors to check the chronometers of the ships.

During World War II, the Tower was used as a temporary ammunition store and was gradually abandoned. By 1958, the War Department surrendered its claim to Signal Hill. In 1980 Signal Hill opened as a...

I was told of a hidden garden somewhere in Tsim Sha Tsui which had a great view of the bay. Such an elusive garden had to be a fantasy as the bay area is heavily developed. After a brief search online, I found a small garden hidden away behind a playground.

With coordinates in mind I set out to Signal Hill. A brisk walk, a short hike and quickly I found myself Indeed in a small hid awat garden with a fantastic view of the bay.

The garden had lots of places to relax and sit, and a tower to enter to see more of the bay.

A hidden gem tucked away in...