Against a backdrop of gradually increasing chaos in Hong Kong, tall pale blonde Julia sets sail on serene waters.
Julia is an enigma: daughter of Queensland landed aristocracy, destined for the world of ballet.
Loud-mouthed Lee is straight from the bars and brothels of Kowloon. The two women cement their unlikely friendship making "art movies" and visiting warships at anchor in neutral Hong Kong.
They party hard and sleep with everyone from movie Stars to Naval officers, to Filipino playboys and Russian emigre talent scouts.
They ignore the turmoil around them, the Cultural Revolution in China, the war in Vietnam, but gradually the riots, murders, destructive landslides and typhoons intrude into and encompass the lives of themselves and their men.
Against all odds, they find love.
And experience great loss.