Welcome To Paradise – Chinese Crime Style!
I love travel. I love to see unique places. THIS IS SUCH A PLACE. Here is how this legendary city was described:
“It was one of the greatest unplanned wonders of the 20th century — a city of no taxes and no laws. A 6.9 acre cesspool of crime, trafficking, and unlicensed doctors that was once the most densely populated place on earth.”
Your Kowloon Dentist Will See You Now!
Yes, that is a Dentist’s office!
Welcome to Kowloon Walled City, an island of ill-repute just outside Hong Kong! It was a slice of criminal heaven that came to be after World War II, when the British and China were slicing up Hong Kong…but this area was overlooked, and became a crime-infested, mobster-controlled mecca!
Kowloon had a population of 33,000 squeezed into the tiny lot – in fact, the city was 119 times denser at its peak than present-day New York City! Just look at this aerial shot!

The world’s most crowded city – how could it have been built to pack everyone in like sardines?
Here’s what it looked like inside:
I mean, that’s incredible!
I discovered this incredible city thanks to Writer William O’ Connell – who had a fascinating article in the Daily Beast a few years ago, remembering Kowloon’s sordid past – it’s a terrific piece that still exists here:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/06/26/the-lost-chinese-city-police-feared-to-enter.html
He tells the incredible story of Kowloon Walled City – and what a story it is!
“The Lego-like city was built over decades, as residents simply stacked rooms one on top of another. The end result “looked formidable,” Girard tells Tech Insider, “but who knows?”
That’s right: “Lego-like” apartments simply stacked one on top of another. This comes from Tech Insider, which also has a great memoir of the city – with tons of great photos like this:
This incredible city was a den of crime – a city SO packed with buildings that the daytime looked like THIS:
Canadian Photographer Greg Girard took these photos in the late 80’s and they are all in the Tech Insider report.
You can click here for more pics and stories!
http://www.techinsider.io/the-surreal-mania-of-chinas-kowloon-walled-city-2015-8
I love these iconic photos of a city now lost to time…as the article in The Daily Beast points out, the city was torn down in 1994 and replaced by new buildings and a park:
Kowloon may be lost forever, but there are plenty of other stories about China – for example, we have all read stories about how crowded the country is…here is an example:
A Great “Packed” Wall!
Based on when you go, the Great Wall of China is a traffic jam! Read more here:
The Chinese also love to build amazing things, like this glass bridge:
But you know happens to glass – it cracks! click here to see the cracks that formed in this bridge!
Even with public transportation, a very packed China is always crowded:
Click here to see the most amazing subway crowding of all time!
All of this said, I still really want to visit this country and explore their food, culture, and crowds!
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Categories: China, Exotic Travel, Memoirs, Real Estate, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir











What a ‘city’. The dentist looks a bit creepy. Really interesting, John.
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When I’m in the UK it feels totally overcrowded, China would be totally overwhelming for me. Our wide empty spaces is one of the reasons we haven’t left South Africa.
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wow, that seems surreal! I’d like to visit but not live there, or go to the dentist there.
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HA! Yes, I’m not sure that was a proper Dentist, but it does show how people adapt to their surroundings!
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I’m right
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Wow, it looks better now than it did then.
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Wow, this looks a bit like a dystopian film
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Indeed! Cool to see pictures, probably not as fun to walk through it!
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I agree
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I remember some of them.
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I really enjoyed your article and amazing photos:)
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It’s like something from Blade Runner, and I can’t imagine living there. But really interesting!
Best wishes, Pete.
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Of course it wasn’t safe to enter, and you are right Pete, right out of Blade Runner indeed!
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