The latest Gwulo video explores this view from the 1930s. We start off by concentrating on the buildings facing us along Connaught Road - what was there in the 1930s, and how they've changed since.

There are a few asides, as usual, including a look at why this Star Ferry was so different…

… and what happened to Statue Square during WW2.

Then we take a look at a few of the buildings in mid-levels that caught my eye, and that helped narrow down the possible dates the photo was taken.

Here's the video with the full story. (If the video player isn't shown below, please click here to watch it on Youtube.)

Correction: At 17:25 where I say "Queen's Buildings" twice, we're actually looking at Queen's Gardens.

Index to the video, and links to pages on Gwulo with more information about the topics mentioned:

If you have an old diary or other historic document you want to share online, you know that typing up a text copy can be very time-consuming. Free AI tools may be able to help.

I recently tried using AI to extract the text from several old documents, and I’m impressed with the results. The image below shows a handwritten page from Mr A N Braudé’s wartime diary, and the text version that the AI created.

The AI only got six letters wrong out of the whole page, so even including the time it took me to correct the mistakes it was still much faster than typing up the page manually.

I’ve recorded a short video that shows how to use AI to extract text from a variety of documents, including newspaper clippings, printed pages, and handwritten notes. I also cover some of the problems I encountered, and give suggested workarounds. Click here to watch the video on YouTube.

Or if you’d like to try it straight away on one of your documents, follow these steps:

Join me to explore three historical photos of Hong Kong purchased on eBay. Sold as a 1902 collection, I’ll use key landmarks and clues to accurately date the photos, before diving into the photos’ details.

(If you don’t see the video shown above, please click here to watch it on Youtube)

Maps and historical records will help us identify key locations such as the Hong Kong Hotel, Prince's Building, and the Royal Naval Hospital. We'll also explore the bustling harbour with its junks and Royal Navy ships, and learn about the development of areas like Wanchai and Tsim Sha Tsui.

Here are the photos we'll investigate: