Today I spent four hours walking around the older parts of Sheung Wan, Central, and Soho, finishing in the Ling Heung tea house. A nice treat. I notice more and more the beggars, the young people with profound disabilities, the young with Downs Syndrome who are being led around by brother or sister, and the men and women in their forties who have suffered a stroke; they walk delicately with walking stick, with one side of the face and body melting to the ground in a sad smile.
You also notice the inappropriate English proudly out front across the breasts or chest. Not quite Chinglish. But nearly.
Hand up my hand
Room up my room;
ARMY: Fingercroxx;
10 finger girl;
Nothing lose, nothing gain;
Sunshine happy day;
Smile happy day.
And the mature women wearing the bright pink Disney Ariel t-shirt. Shanghai is now asking all people not to wear pyjamas while outside on the street.
In the older part of Hong Kong Central -- Sheung Wan, Central and Soho -- the older markets will be gone in a few years. Old tea shops, shops selling stamps carved in stone, locksmiths, metallurgy shops, fresh wrapped hairy crab. And fruit and vegetables, with small restaurants offering meals of every style. Wonderful and fragrant. There are a good number of growing artist's venues in the Soho area. Very chic, with wine and cheese shops too. Imagine enjoying a runny Pont l'Avec with a fragrant white from Saint Emilion in Central, Hong Kong. Globalisation at its best.
Two images today. The two German students are enjoying a look at the fresh vegetables in the street market in Sheung Wan. And the second: sui mei, har gau, fresh shrimp with a quail egg, and pork liver. And strong cups of pu'er hong cha. At the Ling Heung tea house in Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong, this is an extraordinary way to finish the historical walk of older central Hong Kong.
No comments:
Post a Comment