The Many Street Markets of Hong Kong: Flowers, Birds, and Goldfish

Each commodity has its own designated street, where seemingly equivalent businesses are concentrated.

Dongguan

Those who are unfamiliar with China may focus their attention on Beijing and Shanghai but much of the economic action and most of the export oriented manufacturing has taken place in the southern coastal areas in the province of Guangdong. There are a number of very large cities that have experienced massive rural-to-urban migration and explosive economic development. Three of the most significant are Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Dongguan. Each one of these cities has well over 6 million residents. They are in close proximity to Hong Kong and are part of the Pearl River Delta region.

I visited Dongguan and toured a manufacturing facility that produces electrical mechanical systems. This is, by necessity, relatively clean manufacturing based on the need to maintain conditions that do not jeopardize the integrity of electrical and circuit board electronics. Over 95% of the workers are female.

More on labor conditions in a future post.

Misc.

Artists of the world unite! You have nothing to lose but your palette.



Is the red flag still flying? Long live the red flag.



Evolution?



Hotel artwork.



What you often see when you look skyward in Hong Kong?



Another mega shopping plaza -- Langham.



Urban patio bar.



Bamboo is the material used for all scaffolding in Hong Kong.



Another Aqua bar where the beer is cheaper.

Chungking Mansions

Today I made it to the infamous tenement block that is Chungking Mansions. Usually described as “dodgy”, “seedy”, and “sketchy”, and potentially dangerous, it turned out to be quite tame, but still fascinating. It is in the busy and bustling Tsim Sha Tsui section of HK; I must have walked right past it a number of times during previous trips.

It may be the single most densely multicultural spot in the world.

I like the term the anthropologist Gordon Mathews uses – a center of “low-end globalization” -- in his excellent paper on the facility’s transient population. [2008 “Chungking Mansions: A Center of ‘Low-End Globalization.’” Ethnology XLVI (2): 169-183.]

I was there for -- what else? -- food. There are some recommended Indian and African restaurants throughout the building…hidden in the strangest places on almost every floor. I visited the Taj Mahal Club for lamb vindaloo. It was excellent, and very cheap!

I did not bring my camera so check the photos and additional info about CM at the Wikipedia link above.

Urban Amenities: The MTR

I have always desired to live in a place that did not require an automobile and that afforded a pure pedestrian lifestyle and access to all life’s necessities by foot. Hong Kong clearly fits the bill.

This is made possible by the best public transportation system I have ever experienced. The Mass Transit Rail (MTR) system has so many qualities that distinguish it from mass transit and subway systems in the United States. First, one can purchase the Octopus card that can be used with the briefest scan at turnstiles to enter and exit MTR stations. The card can be recharged with additional value and is also accepted as a debit card at many stores in MTR stations and beyond. Once you have obtained your Octopus card you have a sense of security entering and exiting the system.

Second, stations are easy to find because there are signs everywhere directing you to the closest station. Once inside the station, transit maps and directions to subway platforms are also plentiful, strategically located, and well marked to make navigating and locating the correct subway very easy. At each platform a sign shows clearly where you are getting on, the direction you are going, and the stations you will pass.

Third, and this is where small things can make a huge difference, once you enter the subway car there is a lighted subway map showing where you are, the direction in which you are traveling (with an arrow), the next stop (blinking) and the connecting stations. This eliminates the common experience I have had numerous times when I get on a subway and am not sure if I am going in the right direction or where my final destination fits in the larger scheme of things.
Fourth, if all this weren’t enough, it is exceptionally fast and efficient. When you get off one subway car to transfer to another you typically simply have to walk across to the opposite track and there will either be a car waiting or, if you have to wait, the maximum wait time is 2 minutes. I have never waited more than 2 minutes for a connecting subway.

U.S. transportation planners could learn a lot from studying the MTR system.










Yes, the Octopus card can be "read" through your backpack.

Nightlife: Tsim Sha Tsui

Some people are interested in the nightlife in Hong Kong, and where one can go for libations. These are a few upscale joints Kowloon-side.

Cali Cali


The Eye Bar




The world famous Aqua Spirit which is part of the Aqua Restaurant Group.

The Peak

I decided to do one of the touristy things today.

Victoria's Peak is the mountain on Hong Kong island that looks down on all of Hong Kong and the harbor below. It is where the elite have traditionally resided as the temperatures tend to be cooler and the it affords a secure downward gaze on the Hong Kong masses. It is now also a very popular tourist attraction.

They have built a Peak Tram which takes you up the steep incline where you find, as is the case at every destination in Hong Kong, lots of shopping and also some very good food (and also a Burger King and, of all things, a Bubba Gump's?).

I have to admit -- the view is spectacular.

I was also able to find a great restaurant that was not part of the Peak Tram complex -- The Peak Lookout (thank you, Frommer's). If you happen to know anyone who likes a Pimm's Cup beverage, please let them know they serve it there by the pitcher!








Outdoor seating at The Peak Lookout restaurant.

The Great Ascent

Walking around Hong Kong can be a challenge with the steep inclines throughout. Some of the steepest are found on Hong Kong Island. To ease the strain, there are many outdoor escalators in numerous locations for your transport pleasure.

A very long series of connected escalators can be found in the Central/Mid-Levels area that is also home to many nice trendy upscale restaurants, bars, and shops.

My Hong Kong map claims it is the world's longest escalator.

Filipino Domestic Workers

Before I left for Hong Kong, Earl Traynham, former dean of the Coggin College of Business, told me about the gathering of Filipino domestic workers throughout Hong Kong on weekends. Last Sunday -- the common day off for these workers -- I was over on the Hong Kong Island side and observed large and small groups of Filipina women assembled almost anyplace that afforded protective shade from the blazing sun. It is estimated that there are well over 100,000 Filipino migrant workers in Hong Kong, largely concentrated in the service sector and creating distinct racialized (and in this case, sexualized) occupational groupings. They represent the largest non-Chinese community in Hong Kong. There are some excellent sociological studies of this phenomenon.