Let’s check out another College attraction—the Water Tower! Standing at 120 feet above ground next to the New Asia Amphitheatre, the New Asia Water Tower is one of the landmarks of the College. A Chinese herbal medicine garden as well as the statues of Confucius and Mr. Tang Chun I could be found near the foot of the tower.

Before the construction of any main buildings in the current Shatin campus, the Water Tower was already completed in 1972 (see figure 2). Designed by Dr. the Honorable Szeto Wai, then University Architect and member of the Executive Council and the Legislative Council, the Tower has a T-shape structure and a hollow center, with a stairway leading to the top. Although it shares a similar structure with its counterpart in United College, the top of the New Asia Water Tower comprises straight lines and rigid angles, an interesting contrast to the curvilinear design of the one in United College. Hence they were nicknamed “The Gentleman Tower” and “The Lady Tower” respectively.

More than just an attraction, the Water Tower used to serve practical purposes too. According to an article in the CUHK Newsletter in January 1992, because of CU’s elevated location, the water pressure supplied by the government was not sufficient to support the usage throughout the entire campus. A pump house in Chung Chi College along with two water towers and several underground water tanks were then built to tackle the problem. Water would first be pumped to the two towers by the pump house, then flowed back down to different water tanks for storage and usage. The top of the Tower offers panoramic views of the entire CU campus, but due to safety concerns, it is generally not open to the public. In celebration of the 65th and 70th Anniversaries in 2014 and 2019 respectively, the College has organized Water Tower Tours where participants could get a rare glimpse of the interiors of the Tower.

The top of the Tower offers panoramic views of the entire CU campus, but due to safety concerns, it is generally not open to the public. In celebration of the 65th and 70th Anniversaries in 2014 and 2019 respectively, the College has organized Water Tower Tours where participants could get a rare glimpse of the interiors of the Tower.

Every year during the College anniversary, a vertical banner with the College Motto “Cheng Ming” is hung from the top of the Tower. Doused in the evening spotlight, the College totem appears extra solemn and resplendent on this special occasion.