Happy Valley Racecourse, Hong Kong. Photo by Emma Levine 2008
|
Happy Valley Racecourse
|
When:
|
Sep 2008 - Apr 2009; Wed only (annual)
|
|
Where:
|
Happy Valley Racecourse
|
Gambling is a Hong Kong obsession, but even novices will love the races at world-famous Happy Valley Racecourse. Held every Wednesday from 6.30pm, the best views of the floodlit track and surrounding tower blocks are from the grandstand's eighth floor.
The season runs from September to June and the sport provides the only legal form of gambling outside of the local lottery. Those not at the course will use one of the 124 state-of-the-art off-course betting centres, scattered throughout the territory.
Happy Valley racecourse stands upon what was once a malarial marshland. It first held a horse race in 1846 and its popularity is such that even during the Japanese occupation of the island, the races continued unabated.
|