Hong Kong Accelerate
Posted on February 7th, 2012
A stunning time-lapse video by Spot On Idea (a production company in Hong Kong). Sometimes I have to pinch myself that I actually live here.
A stunning time-lapse video by Spot On Idea (a production company in Hong Kong). Sometimes I have to pinch myself that I actually live here.
In the second part of our photo walk around the area surrounding Lok Fu MTR station in Kowloon, we pay a visit to the little known walled village of Nga Chin Wai (衙前圍村) – the last of its kind in Hong Kong. Although once in near to the harbour, the village has long since become land locked after the construction of the former Kai Tak airport.
If it were not for some intriguing local history, the area around Lok Fu (樂富) MTR station would be a pretty unremarkable as for the most part it’s made up of generic public housing estates. Part of the district was home to the infamous Kowloon Walled City (九龍城寨), which is today Kowloon Walled City Park. The former Kai Tak International Airport was also located in the district and the area is still in a state of transition.
A couple of weekends ago I attended DETOUR 2011, Hong Kong’s annual design, culture, and arts festival which was held at the former Police Married Quarters (PMQ / 前荷李活道已婚警察宿舍) on Hollywood Road in Sheung Wan. This year focused on the theme of “USELESS”, highlighting the impacts of irresponsible consumerism through a mix of exhibitions, performances, and forums.
Since moving to Hong Kong at the beginning of 2011 I’ve been slowly building a bigger picture of this multifaceted metropolis and the people who live here – it’s been a fascinating year and undoubtably one of the best. In the first since 2010′s instalment of this series here are some more Hong Kong Moments – from dusk till dusk.
Located on the western edge of Hong Kong Island, Pok Fu Lam Village (薄扶林村) is one of the oldest villages in Hong Kong, dating back to as far back as the 1600s. It is said to be one of the last fully functioning villages in the heart of the urban metropolis and I paid a visit last weekend, camera in hand…
According to a local legend in Hong Kong, in 1880 the small fishing village of Tai Hang (大坑) was devastated by a powerful typhoon. Around the same time, a large serpent entered the village and was killed by some of the residents. Shortly afterwards, plague and cholera broke out, leading to the deaths of many villagers.
Living in Hong Kong you quickly discover there’s a large divide, both physical and social, between Hong Kong island and the Kowloon peninsula. While the island has all the trappings and excesses of absolute wealth (largely generated by the financial sector) the story is often very different in much of Kowloon.
When film director Mamoru Oshii was looking for a model of the city of the future for his seminal 1995 animated film adaptation of Ghost in the Shell (based on the manga by Masamune Shirow), he turned to the cityscape of Hong Kong for his inspiration.
Ankle deep in stagnant water the rancid air magnified the sense of claustrophobia I felt as me and 5 other Indian-Jones wannabes trudged through the 70-year-old tunnels the Japanese Imperial Navy forced locals to dig during WWII (1941-45) on Lamma Island (南丫島) in Hong Kong.