Banyan Tree in Wan Chai, Hong Kong
This part of town is a concrete jungle, everything is demolished after a few years and rebuilt. To find this abandoned school in the middle of the city with a Banyan Tree taking over the remains, was a surprise.
Place you live: Hong Kong
Place your photo was taken: Wan Chai
Can you sum up Hong Kong? A hectic and loud city with lots of hidden gems and oddness, if you know where to look.
Preoccupation: Freedom
A perfect day in Hong Kong? Spending a day hiking in the mountains or on a junk boat.
A perfect meal in Hong Kong? Cheap WanTan Meen for 15 HK$ ($1.93 USD) on Wellington Street.
What is the best thing about your spot? Spookyness, Desolation, Nature
What is the worst? Mosquitoes
A little known fact about where you live? It’s actually quite green
Where is your favorite place in the world? I’m still looking
If someone was visiting, what must they do?
Champagne Court – Kimberly Road – Hong Kong people are obsessed with technology. It’s always the latest phone or camera. But there is a little shopping mall in Kowloon with about 10 shops specializing in analogue cameras. It’s called Champagne Court, but the name sounds much more glamorous than it really is. I bought my Nikon film camera there. Do your research before buying though!
Hidden Agenda – Kwung Tong – Hidden Agenda is a so called live-house like they have lots of in Taiwan. Because the rents in the normal evening spots are so ridiculously high, this place is located in an old factory building in Kwung Tong. Nowadays not much is being produced in HK anymore so a lot of these buildings are vacant. Bands playing there are local or international, beer is cheap and the vibe is cheerful and very different from the polished look of most bars in HK.
Central Mosque – Central – This mosque was rebuilt in 1915 and it’s right next to the escalator. It’s a strange little oasis in between all the high rises of SoHo. Really surreal.
XXX – Sheung Wan – Maybe the only club in HK that almost feels like Berlin
Tai Tam Reservoir – When we were teenagers we sometimes went to the Tai Tam reservoir and jumped off the bridges there. Now there is a nice hiking trail and the area is just beautiful!
Club71 – Central – It used to be called Club64 and was in Lan Kwai Fong, because of high rent they moved to a little alley off Hollywood Road. My favourite bar in HK.
Mido Cafe – Yau Ma Tei – Time travel to the 70s and hang out at this place, drink Milk Tea and eat a pineapple bun! The food is nothing special, but you will feel like an extra in a Wong Kar Wai movie.
The Alleys – Most streets in Hong Kong have back alleys, little alleys that run parallel to the main street. These are usually where the noodle shops wash their dishes, or where people go for a cigarette break. Sometimes they are dirty and disgusting, but somehow they are like a slower version of the main arteries of the city – here are some photos.