Hong Kong’s famous tourist destination The Peak is usually on the bucket list for those on Ontrack’s Hong Kong International Tour, but homes on the famous landmark continue to lead the way in Hong Kong’s incredible real estate market. Nestled high above Hong Kong’s famous harbour The Peak attracts seven million tourists a year and a cable car ride delivers spectacular views of the city and its waterfront. But it’s the road up to the famous landmark which is the Hamptons of Hong Kong with only the very wealthy able to buy there. Back in Hong Kong's colonial days, laws were put in place to make sure that only Europeans were allowed to own property on the Peak. Those laws are long gone, and today anyone who can afford to do so can live there. It's just that very few people can. Hong Kong’s The Business Times reports one house last year sold for AUS$161 million, or $28,700 per square foot, while another sold for AUS $251 million. Pollock Path, a cul-de-sac on the way to The Peak was named the most expensive street in the world a few years ago. No 5 Pollock Path is one of the few remaining original houses on the Peak but half a century ago, this house was not luxurious in any sense of the word. When Charles and Rosamond Brown bought it in the 1960s, it was a wreck, the garden overgrown and the windows ajar, exposing the interior to damage from the elements. The Browns had so little money back then that they painted it themselves. More than five decades later, Rosamond Brown, now a widow, sold the house in 2017 for AUS$574 million, including tax, according to The South China Morning Post. Ontrack’s Hunter Valley Horse and Wine Tour will be markedly different this year with the sad news that Arrowfield Stud’s champion stallion Redoute’s Choice has died this morning.
The rising 23 year-old son of Danehill and Shantha’s Choice was humanely euthanised after suffering a traumatic loss of mobility which could not be restored, despite intensive care by Arrowfield’s veterinary and stallion teams. “Arrowfield is always one of the most popular studs on the Ontrack tour each year and Redoute’s Choice was a must see for tour members during his magnificent career,” said Ontrack’s Managing Director Grant Morgan. “He was without peer at the height of his career and our tour members were gobsmacked by the horse when he was paraded during those glory years. “Not only was he a champion colt on the racetrack, he matured into a magnificent specimen of a thoroughbred at stud. “In recent years the horse battled health issues and he wasn’t on public display but he continued to serve mares and get high class winners. “He sired 34 individual Group One winners and now his daughters are continuing his legacy and this season Redoute’s Choice mares have left Group One winners Arcadia Queen, Extra Brut and Amphitrite this season. “None of his recent colts have been better than The Autumn Sun and the 2019 Ontrack Hunter Valley tour might just be watching the start of this colt’s career at Arrowfield in October,” said Grant Morgan. Announcing today’s sad news, Arrowfield’s John Messara said: “Redoute’s Choice is such a big part of all our lives, and right now it’s hard to imagine Arrowfield without him. “He has given us so much, Arrowfield has been built on his back and he’s allowed all of us and many, many other people to fulfil our dreams and ambitions. “I thank Muzaffar Yaseen for allowing us to buy into Redoute’s Choice almost two decades ago. Our partnership has always been amicable and it has achieved all that we could hope for, and more. “I’m grateful to all my team, past and present, who are part of his story, especially those who have cared for and worked with Redoute’s Choice every day and have ensured that he’s had the long and wonderful life he deserved. There are many tears being shed at Arrowfield today.\ “I also thank everyone who helped us launch his stud career, his shareholders, and those who bred to him, and bought, raced, trained and rode his progeny. He has blessed us all.” Nigella Lawson and Ontrack Thoroughbreds have one thing in common. We both love Waiheke Island. The English foodie was in NZ recently to launch her new stage show An Evening With Nigella Lawson and her first port of call was beautiful Waiheke Island, an easy boat ride from downtown Auckland. The island is the famous foodie’s favourite Kiwi haunt and she posted a picture on social media of what looked like a blissful afternoon drinking sauvignon blanc on a deck overlooking Oneroa's dazzling blue harbour. Ontrack’s annual New Zealand Horse and Wine Tour also makes Waiheke Island one of the first ports of call spending the second day of the six day tour on the picturesque venue. “The day at Waiheke Island is always one of the highlights of New Zealand, and that’s on a trip with plenty of sensational scenery,” said Ontrack’s Grant Morgan. “The 30 minute ferry trip from Auckland to Waiheke is the perfect start to the day and we work in a scenic tour around the island, wine tasting at two stunning wineries and then lunch at the sensational Mudbrick Vineyard. “People on the tour usually can’t believe how beautiful Waiheke Island is and how close it is to downtown Auckland. “The cuisine at Mudbrick is sensational and dining there looking out over the spectacular Hauraki Gulf is a memorable experience and it comes as no surprise that a renowned foodie such as Nigella Lawson is a fan of the place,” said Grant Morgan. The 2019 Ontrack New Zealand Horse and Wine Tour runs from November 21-26. |
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