For hundreds of students in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, this year’s National Day was marked by an unforgettable, up-close encounter with the nation’s naval strength as they toured two advanced People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy vessels docked at the Ngong Shuen Chau Naval Base on Tuesday afternoon.

Many described the experience as a profound lesson in national pride and technological progress.

The tour was part of an open-day event for the training ship Qi Jiguang and the landing ship Yimengshan, which arrived in Hong Kong on Tuesday for a three-day stay. Earlier that morning, around 8 am, the two naval vessels entered Hong Kong waters escorted by ships from the HKSAR government and the PLA Hong Kong Garrison.

READ MORE: HK residents snap up tickets for PLA Navy ships

On the deck of the Qi Jiguang, more than 100 sailors formed the numerals “76” to commemorate the nation’s anniversary. They then used semaphore to signal “Secure Nation, Sweet Home” — repeating the message that crew had formed on the massive deck of the aircraft carrier Shandong during its visit in July.

Onshore, cheering residents waved at the sailors standing in formation.

A special preview of the vessels was arranged for the students on Tuesday, followed by a two-day open visit by the general public on Wednesday and Thursday before setting sail on Friday morning. A total of 11,000 tickets for the open visit, released in batches through the PLA Hong Kong Garrison’s official WeChat account, were quickly snapped up over the weekend.

After posing for photos with visiting students, Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin said that the warship visit provided a valuable learning experience. She noted the enthusiastic response to the event's registration and emphasized that the tour broadened students' horizons.

Boarding a PLA Navy ship for the first time, Wong Wai-hin, a high school student from CNEC Lau Wing Sang Secondary School in Eastern district of Hong Kong island, said the visit offered a rare opportunity for him to see the nation’s military prowess.

He praised his school’s decision to set aside an afternoon for students to learn about national defense despite a tight study schedule. “With all our tests, it’s normally impossible to see a navy vessel up close,” he said. “Seeing these massive ships for myself was mind-blowing.”

The home-built ships — named after significant figures and sites in Chinese history — serve as floating displays of modern technology and traditional spirit. The Qi Jiguang and the multi-role Yimengshan, with water displacements of 9,000 and 19,000 metric tons respectively, loomed large at the base. They are a point of national pride, embodying the nation’s rapidly growing defense prowess.

Their names pay tribute to pivotal chapters in Chinese history. Qi Jiguang was a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) general famed for defeating Japanese pirates, while the Yimengshan refers to the Yimeng Mountains in Shandong province, which served as a crucial base during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931–45).

Wang Mengli, from Tin Shui Wai Government Secondary School, said she responded deeply to the symbolism of the vessels. She noted that hosting the ships in Hong Kong as the motherland marks the 80th anniversary of its victory against Japanese aggression serves as a poignant act of remembrance — a reminder that this painful history must never be forgotten.

Brief interactions with the crew painted a picture of a disciplined, professional, and approachable force in the minds of the youngsters. Lau Tsz-kiu, a sixth grader from Chung Sing School sporting a national flag sticker on her left arm, said she was most struck by crew members standing motionless under the scorching sun. “I felt proud to talk to them in person as they serve our country,” she said, adding that she would now consider becoming an aviation researcher to contribute to the nation.

READ MORE: PLA Navy ships Qi Jiguang, Yimengshan enter HK waters

For Kelly Yao of SKH Kei Yan Primary School, the visit overturned her perception of the PLA as unapproachably serious. “They spoke to us in such a gentle tone,” she said.

Her admiration for their discipline first stemmed from watching the V-Day parade on TV, where soldiers marched across Tian’anmen Square “as if they were copy-pasted”. Experiencing a navy ship firsthand, Yao said, was “completely different from learning from textbooks and TV”.

The ships’ visit to Hong Kong is part of a scheduled far-sea training mission that will include port calls in Cambodia, Thailand, and Singapore, demonstrating China’s commitment to peaceful cooperation and maritime security.

Contact the writer at lilei@chinadailyhk.com