My trip to Hong Kong this year was my second time in the city. I’ve already done a lot of the obvious tourist destinations and as my best friend lives there, I wanted to get to know the place a little better. I took to picking an MTR station at random and just walking; guide book in my bag, a local SIM card in my phone and camera prepped. Stepping off at Wan Chai, I picked a direction to walk in, hoped for the best
, and here’s what I found:
Ship Street
There’s plenty of luxury shopping destinations in Hong Kong, but I never have the funds to indulge in that sort of retail therapy, especially when travelling for so long. Nearby Lee Tung Avenue itself is decked out in Chinese lanterns that could make you snap happy, but actually there’s some lovely little places on and just off Ship Street itself which are really beauts.
Pak Tai Temple
Something I love about Asia is how you inevitably stumble across a temple or shrine on pretty much every street. There are of course huge temples in Hong Kong such as Wong Tai Sin, which draw in enormous crowds, but the smaller ones like this one in Wan Chai still show intricate details and a welcome essence of calm away from the manic streets outside.
Queens Road East
One of the main roads through Wan Chai, this was my main route leading off to numerous other photographic streets, but there’s a good few opportunities for snaps here too. As in Singapore, Hong Kong’s streets are lined with high rise residential buildings that are painted in bright colours to make them look less imposing and gloomy. There’s also the adorable Old Wan Chai Post office which was built in 1912 and stands out from the modern flats it sits amongst.
Muji superstore
I very nearly lost my mind, and all my money, in this Muji store. I got a tip off from Lucy to hunt it out and their food section and cafe is full of weird and wonderful things as well as some awesome packaging. And I am SUCH a sucker for packaging. Full points to me for not buying all the things *pats self on back*.
Stone Nullah Lane
Sadly the famous Blue House on Stone Nullah Lane was under construction when I made my way there, but the street itself is lined with multi-coloured houses the whole way down. Unlike those in Singapore, these buildings are a bit grubby but in a drizzly Hong Kong afternoon, they go a good way to perking things up a bit.
