vip in the city

Goodbye, Hong Kong

Before I check out, the view from my hotel room on the 25th floor:

And from Pok Fu Lam, where the Europeans first discovered Hong Kong Island:

I’ll be back.

There are no comments just yet

Hong Kong: Market Journal

Title shoutout to B, without whom this site would not be possible.

After Sunday dimsum brunch in Tai Po (about an hour out of Central Hong Kong), E., M. and S. took me on a tour of Hong Kong’s specialty markets. Despite the opressive heat and humidity, crowds abound.

At the Electronics Market, located in the older section of Hong Kong, in Kowloon. E. noted that the surrounding buildings were “more than forty years old!”, which apparently makes them ancient by Hong Kong standards.:

From there, it was a quick taxi ride to “Flower Market Street” — not the same as Fa Yuen (Flower Garden) Street, which is known for its sneaker stores. M. and S. seemed very amused by my error. Funny American cousin!

Flowers, in general, are a lot less expensive than in NYC and and the variety is astounding. If I weren’t flying out tomorrow, I would bring some back for the hotel room. Here, a lotus flower:

And bunches of flowers, wrapped in newspaper:

Orchids, too, including many varieties not available in the United States.

Nearby we visited “Bird Market” street. The din of chirping and squawking was such that I could hear we were in the proximity well before spying a single feather:

The parrots, by the way, speak Chinese, naturally. “Nay ho mah!”:

Also came upon a wedding photo shoot taking place among the birdcage stands. A little strange, but very glamorous!

More markets. Here an overhead shot of last night’s “Ladies Street”, taken from the pedestrian walk above.:

At the tropical fish market. This one is a large, highly prized red dragon fish — US$2500.00(!). For the more budget-minded, the store also carries golden dragon fish for about US$150.00: similar, but paler and white/golden in color. Due to their aggressive fighting nature, each fish was kept in its own tank. At the front of the store was a smaller tank full of squirming hairless baby mice for sale… as dragon fish food. Eeek.:

These fish are dyed assorted, lurid colors… which seems just wrong somehow.:

At every turn, street food. Roasted meats, fish balls, squid, sausage…

Stuffed intestines…

Puddings, with red bean, wrapped in lotus leaf:

…and Hong Kong cakes!:

Yum.

There are no comments just yet

Hong Kong night markets

Hong Kong’s Mong Kok — translated as “flourishing or busy corner” — is an area famous for its night markets where tourists and locals descend to buy a dizzying array of goods including lower-end electronics, fresh produce, clothing, toys, snacks, CDs, DVDs, knock-off designer bags, quasi-antiques, local crafts, and what can politely be referred to as “marital aids.” Lining the streets are a seemingly incongruous assortment of open air food stalls and fortune tellers.

To give a sense of the variety, here are some shots from earlier tonight, taken with my brand new Canon PowerShot. Aforementioned marital aids not included.

Produce stand:

Mangosteen:

Temple Street Market:

Semi-precious stone dealers:

Buddhas:

“Dragon beard candy” vendor:

Mao statues:

There's 1 comment so far