A Walk on Li Yuen, Pottinger Street and SoHo, Central

In a city of disparity, the pigments and potency of the Hong Kong street market continue to flourish even in Central, the financial district.

Li Yuen Street East and West, colloquially pegged "Ali - Ali " ( Alley - Alley ) among Filipinos, are in contrast to high-end upscale iconic Louis Vuitton Showroom, Armani, the Flagship store of Coach, Cartier to name a few.

These streets, also called "Lanes of Central" are an organised chaos of clothing and accessory items, many of which have an offbeat oriental piquancy. This cramped passageway is jam-packed with peddlers bartering cheaply made goods from ready-to-wear to factory outlets, tailored garments, leather and silk. Simply put, the universe of the Chinese Bazaar refuses to yield from the world's swankiest modern brands.

On the cobbled steep steps of Pottinger Street are market stalls selling witches hats, pink wigs, feather boas, masks and other party costume essentials. You could also find accessories such as ribbons, watch bands, hair ties and buttons. I just came to find out that the granite stone slabs were unevenly paved deliberately to facilitate ease of walking and allow rainwater to flow down from either side.

Imperceptibly different and a clammy stroll away are the streets of SoHo and Hollywood Road. Whenever I am in this area, it never fails to amaze me. It has an appealing mix of creative shops, Craft Stores, Antique shops, Art Galleries and hip restaurants serving international cuisine from Lebanese, Mexican, Italian and East West Fusion.  

Indeed, nestled among stunning skyscrapers and modern towers of steel in Central Hong Kong are market streets - busy all day long and into the night, in the heart of Central.

Here were some of the photos that I took then. 

Tamar Park, Admiralty - HDR and Long Exposure

Old Wan Chai Post Office and The Blue House

Wan Chai, with her literal meaning "tiny bay", has an interesting heritage. It is home to many fine historic buildings from different periods.

One of my favourite routes when visiting Wan Chai on a weekend afternoon is Exiting from Exit A3 that leads me to Johnston Road. I then turn right and walk past the Southern Playground until I am in front of The Pawn. 

I cross the street past the noisy Bird Shop until I reach the Queen's Road and see the Hung Shing Temple. I turn left and walk past the old Wan Chai Post Office, Sicis Showroom at Queens' Cube and then towards the Stone Nullah Road to see the Blue House.

First Stop at The Pawn - the name of the bar and restaurant  in the pre-war Chinese tenement offers a clue to the type of business that was previously run there.

Second Stop - Hung Shing Temple

Third Stop - Old Wan Chai Post Office

Fourth Stop : The Blue House is a four-storey Lingnan-style house built in the 1920s with has a mixture of Chinese and Western Architectural features.

It is, by no means, special from a traditional point of view. The building itself is neither glamorous nor grand. Instead, its value lies in its relative rarity. Building of similar designs have been demolished, and for this reason the Blue House remains one of the very few of its kind.

The 80 plus year old house is an example of the historic “shophouse” archetype that more or less is disappearing in Hong Kong island.

You’d think the most obvious reason the Blue House is unique is its eye-popping color. But its bright facade is an accident; the blue finish was added relatively recently. 

If you look closely, one part of the building retains the original gray walls. Here’s the story: In the 1990s, when the government carried out maintenance, officials used vivid blue paint left over from some Water Supplies Department work to repaint the exterior. However, one section of the Blue House was still under private ownership, and so that wall wasn’t painted. 

The Blue House with its Tong Lau balcony type.

Nowadays most people think that the color adds liveliness to the neighborhood—but at the time kaifongs actually were against the idea because the color reminded them of funerals and had an unlucky association.

Chinese Masks on display. This is inside the Wan Chai Livelihood Museum, where visitors can visit the Blue House’s typical living quarters.

I met my daughter later to go shopping for shoes. We head to Palladium Shop at Hennessy Road where they were having a big sale for old stocks.

We passed by the Wan Chai Market on the way to the Palladium Shop. Colourful Chinese Silk Dresses on display.

On our way home - the Wan Chai MTR Station.

My daughter wearing the shoes that was on sale at Palladium. It is made of dark blue distressed leather with pink edging.

"Let my soul smile through my heart; and my heart smile through my eyes; that I may scatter rich smiles in sad hearts..."

The walk route that I took in Wan Chai starting from Exit A3 Wan Chair MTR and ending at Cinta J Restaurant for a quick dinner.