During the two-day opening, visitors may pass by the ballroom, drawing room and dining room where the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and its Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa usually hold important official functions, such as banquets in honor of visiting heads of state, and honors and awards presentation ceremonies.

There is a photo display in the ballroom, produced with the assistance of the Antiquities and Monuments Office of Hong Kong, showing old pictures of the Government House and photographs of dignitaries received by the government since 1997.

Altogether, the Government House will be open to the public six times this year.

The Government House, a declared monument under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance, was formerly official residence and office of 25 of Hong Kong's 28 Governors during the British rule before China resumed exercise of sovereignty over this place in 1997.

The construction of the Hong Kong Government House started in 1851 and was completed four years later.

(Xinhua News Agency May 4, 2003)