This article is classified "Real"
Bangkok has two Net Cafes, Singapore has at least four, Taipei also has at least four, and Hong Kong has none. Well, sort of. There used to be a place here (The Cyber Cafe Club) which was open only on Saturdays and claimed to allow travelers to telnet for free, but the building is now boarded up and covered with For Sale signs. There is also a Net Mongolian Restaurant (Kublai's on Luang Road in Wanchai), but that's supposed to be more "eat Mongolian food and use the Net while you wait" than "use the Net and eat if you want to". There's rumored to even be a Net Hairdresser, but no Cafes. The Future Cafe should change that when it opens in July 1996. They saved my life (I'm still trying to arrange to meet my net.friend in Taiwan) by letting me use the computers for three hours for free even though they're not open for business yet. The site is large and full of yet more Windows 95 machines, and if their post-launch hospitality is as good as pre-launch, it should have a lot going for it. Oh, currently the machines are all set up in a mixture of Cantonese and English, but they said that would be sorted out when they open. The Cafe is located at Shop 70, B/F, Home World, Whampoa Garden, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, Tel. 23560438, Fax 24982155. They also have a Web page at http://www.future.com.hk/. Unfortunately they are some distance from the nearest MTR station, so the easiest way to get there is to take the Star Ferry to Hung Hom from Central. Then follow the Whampoa signs and pass the Whampoa ship (a very odd structure, a shopping mall and cinema disguised as a cruise liner -- in the middle of a built-up area). Turn right and follow the signs to Home World (or the "Internet Zone" if they're still up). In Home World take the escalator to the basement and turn right. From there you'll have to find your own way through the warren of computer stores. Hung Hom seems to be a very Chinese part of town, but most signs are in English as well as Cantonese.