Dr. Sun Yat-sen (孫中山), Father of Modern China, delivered a public speech at Hong Kong University in 1923. Began with a rhetorical question “Where and how did I get my revolutionary and modern ideas?” Sun’s answer was Hong Kong, the British colony where he came 30 years prior at the age of 17 and stayed for 9 years as a high school and medical student. During his time in the city, Sun was impressed by the architecture, urban order and public safety of Hong Kong, and the efficiency of the government. Whereas just 50 miles away in Heungshan (now Zhongshan), Sun’s home village in Qing China, government officials were highly corrupted and incompetent. His experience and knowledge obtained in Hong Kong had inspired Sun’s ideas of the Xinhai Revolution (辛亥革命) and strengthened his will to establish a modern China.
Sun Yat-sen spent most of his time in the core area of Victoria City, now the area of Central-Sheung Wan. In 1996, the Hong Kong Government began to promote a tourist route called Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail (孫中山史跡徑) to commemorate the famous visitor. 16 spots related to Sun were identified along the 2-hour historical walk in the Central-Western District. Nine local artists were commissioned to design unique plaques that can be seen as urban artworks. These spots include the locations where Sun attended schools, places he lived, venues he met with his political partners, and sites where his organizations engaged in revolutionary activities. In 2006, the Edwardian Classical Kom Tong Hall in the Mid-Levels was converted into Sun Yat-sen Museum. Not only does the museum provides another focal point in the city to learn about Sun’s story, it also offers the perfect reason to preserve the 1914 building. Kom Tong Hall was the former mansion of businessman Ho Kom-tong (何甘棠), the younger brother of Robert Ho Tung (何東), the richest man in Hong Kong at the turning of the century. Listed as a declared monument, Kom Tong Hall (甘棠第) was one of the first buildings in Hong Kong to use reinforced concrete structure and fitted with concealed electrical wiring. The historical architecture itself is well worth a visit. The story of Sun Yat-sen remind us that Hong Kong, as a melting pot between East and West, and the old and new, has been a source of inspirations and a window to the outside world for the Chinese community in the modern era.
For the convenience of tourists, a map of Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail can be found at the Central-Mid Levels Escalators. [Central-Mid Levels Escalators, Central, 2021] A mosaic mural on Bridges Street (必列者士街) depicts the portrait of Sun Yat-sen and a number of buildings related to his story. It was 1883 when Dr. Sun arrived in Hong Kong. He first went to Diocesan Boy’s School and then the Government Central School for education.[Bridges Street, Tai Ping Shan, 2020] Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 4: Original site of the American Congregational Mission Preaching Hall From 1884 to 1886, Sun stayed at American Congregational Mission Preaching Hall (now China Congregational Church) on Bridges Street, where he was baptized by Rev. C. R. Hager. The church has long been moved to another location on Bridge Street. Its original site was occupied by a Modernist market building known as Bridges Street Market. The Bauhaus style building has been recently converted into a museum of journalism known as Hong Kong News-Expo. [Junction of Shing Wong Street and Bridges Street, Tai Ping Shan, 2020] Across the street from Hong Kong News-Expo, an old tenement building on Shing Wong Street (城皇街) has erected a statue of Sun Yat-sen on the front facade and displayed his motto “Everyone in the world shares the same” (天下為公) [A tenement apartment at Shing Wong Street, Tai Ping Shan, 2020]Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 5: Original site of the Government Central School In 1860, Rev. Dr. James Legge proposed to combine the three Chinese schools of Victoria City (Tai Ping Shan, Central and Sheung Wan) into one public school. His proposal was accepted by the government and led to the opening of the Government Central School at Gough Street, whereSun attended secondary school. [Art installation to commemorate the former Government Central School, Gough Street, Central, 2020] tDr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 6: Yeung Yiu Kee, the Meeting Place of the “Four Great Outlaws” An eyecatching sculpture at Shin Hing Street (善慶街) marks the former shop location of Yeung Yiu Kee (楊耀記), meeting point of the four outlaws (Sun Yat-sen, Yau Lit, Chan Siu-pak and Yeung Hok-ling) [Art installation at the junction of Gough Street and Shin Hing Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]Accessible via Pak Tsz Lane (百子里)a hidden alleyway from Graham Street Market, Pak Tsz Lane Park is an easily missed attraction in the heart of Central. The park was built to commemorate Furen Literary Society (輔仁文社), one of the earliest revolutionary groups that contributed to the Xinhai Revolution (辛亥革命). [Entrance of Pak Tsz Lane at Gage Street, Central, 2014] Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 7: Site of Yeung Ku-wan’s Assassination Yeung Ku-wan (楊衢雲), founder of Furen Literary Society (輔仁文社), and later president of Revive China Society, was assassinated by Qing agents at his home and English tutoring school. Today, this is part of the memorial park Pak Tsz Lane Park (百子里公園). [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020] To tell the story of Furen Literary Society and the early revolutionists, historical accounts are incorporated graphically into the garden design. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]]Along the disable ramp, a vertical screen is doubled as a map diagram to describe an uprising battle in Weizhou in 1900. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]In 1901, Yeung Ku-wan was assassinated at the park’s location. Sun Yat-sen’s public letter urging for memorial donation to Yeung’s family is carved into a display screen in the park. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 8: Furen Literary Society (輔仁文社) Founded by Yeung Ku-wanin Hong Kong in 1892, three years prior to Sun’s founding of the Revive China Society in Honolulu, Furen Literary Society is often considered as the predecessor of Revive China Society.The guiding principles of Furen Literary Society were “open up the people’s minds” and “love your country with all your heart”. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]In 1895, the Furen Literary Society was merged into Revive China Society. Yeung Kui-wan and Sun Yat-sen became President and Secretary respectivelyof the society. “Cutting off the Queue (pigtail)” was a symbolic gesture in Yeung’s time for abandoning the backwardness of Qing China. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020] Apart from history buffs, locals love to linger at the memorial park to read newspaper, chat with neighbors, and play chess. [Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]At Pak Tsz Lane Park, even graffiti is dedicated to Dr. Sun Yat-sen.[Pak Tsz Lane Park, Central, 2020]Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 9: Original site of the Queen’s College During Sun’s time at the school, the Government Central School expanded to a new complex at the intersection of Hollywood Road and Aberdeen Street (now the site of PMQ). The school was renamed to Queen’s College (皇仁書院) in 1894. In front of the PMQ on Hollywood Road, an art piece was erected to commemorate the former school site. [Art installation outside the PMQ at the junction of Hollywood Road and Shing Wong Street, Central, 2020]DDr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 10: The Alice Memorial Hospital and the College of Medicine for Chinese In 1887, Sun entered Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese (now School of Medicine of Hong Kong University), the first institution in the city to teach Western medicine. [Art installation at the junction of Hollywood Road and Aberdeen Street, Central, 2021] Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 12: Hong Kong Headquarters of the Revive China Society (興中會) Disguised under a business named “Kuen Hang Club” (乾亨行) at Staunton Street (士丹頓街) in today’s SoHo , Sun found Revive China Society (興中會) to organize revolution activities. The former site is now marked by a plaque designed by a local artist. [Staunton Street, Central, 2021] Dr. Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail Spot No. 16: Hong Kong in the Time of Dr Sun Yat-sen Outside PMQ on Staunton Street, outdoor display of historical photographs reveal the scenery of the city during the time of Sun Yat-sen. [Staunton Street, Central, 2021] Built in 1914, Kom Tong Hall was renovated and converted into a museum to house a collection of artefacts and historical photos to tell the story of Sun Yat-sen. [Castle Road, Mid-Levels, 2020]Kom Tong Hall is a magnificent example of Edwardian architecture in Hong Kong in the early 20 century. [Castle Road, Mid-Levels, 2016]Some of the architectural details are well preserved to this day. [Castle Road, Mid-Levels, 2016]Even if one is not interested in history, visitors would be impressed by the well preserved staircase. [Castle Road, Mid-Levels, 2016]
Linking a number of tourist attractions like Tai Kwun, PMQ and Man Mo Temple, Hollywood Road is always popular for tourists in Hong Kong. While tourists come for the historical attractions, many locals, on the other hand, come to Hollywood Road for food and drinks. South of Hollywood Road, the narrow Staunton Street (士丹頓街) was once home to wet market vendors, trading offices, family-run stores and small Buddhist convents (庵堂). In fact, Staunton Street was once nicknamed the Street of Buddhist Nuns (師姑街). After the Central – Mid Levels Escalators opened to the public in 1993 and brought an influx of pedestrians from the business district downhill, Staunton Street and the adjacent Elgin Street(伊利近街) have quietly undergone a dramatic transformation. Expatriates started to move into the area. Old shops and Buddhist convents were gradually replaced by bars, pubs, restaurants, comedy clubs, cafes, and wine shops. In 1996, Thomas Goetz, a restaurant owner from Elgin Street, came up with the acronym “SoHo” (蘇豪) for this new entertainment and dining area of Central, referring to the location “South of Hollywood Road”. From then on, the Staunton Street that I used to go as a child to get fresh grocery and pay ritualistic respect to my grandfather at a small Buddhist convent has silently disappeared. Today, SoHo would remain sleepy most of the day, and then bursts into life after sunset. The yell of market vendors and pungent incense smoke have been replaced by causal giggles and laughter, and the smell of beer.
Further away from the Central – Mid Levels Escalators and less than 150m northwest of the buzzing SoHo, Gough Street (歌賦街), Kau U Fong (九如坊) and Aberdeen Street (鴨巴甸街) offer a much more laid-back and tranquil ambience. Once home to family run shops and small printing presses, these sleepy back streets have become a hipper cousin of the nearby SoHo. Known as NoHo for “North of Hollywood Road”, this area is particular attractive to locals who come for the foodie scene: Chinese cuisine, dai pai dong dishes, beef brisket noodles, Japanese ramen, sushi, Western fine dining, unadon, Vietnamese pho, hand-drip cafes, bubble tea, chocolate, etc. Despite its abundance of dining options, the shops here remain small and peaceful. Compared to its noisier neighbour, NoHo is much more low key, as if deliberately staying away from the public limelight. Here visitors would enjoy a sense of discovery and intimacy that is hard to find anywhere else in Central.
Looking down from PMQ, the stepped Shin Hing Street (善慶街) marks one of the entrances into Gough Street from Hollywood Road. [Junction of Hollywood Road and Shin Hing Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]An old furniture store still occupies the corner of Hollywood Road and Shin Hing Street. [Top of Shin Hing Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Many love the tranquil and “European” feel of NoHo, which is a rarity in urban Hong Kong. [Shin Hing Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Art installation related to the history of Sun Yatsen, the Father of Modern China, has become a playground for children. [Junction of Shin Hing Street and Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Before the pandemic, the steps of Shin Hing Street was often turned into a stepped seating and drinking area in the evening and during weekends. [Shin Hing Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]At Mee Lun Street (美輪街), a small ladder street just a few shops away from Shin Hing Street, a simple dai pai dong street eatery has been a pedestrian magnet for years. Opened in 1959, Sing Heung Yuen (勝香園) dai pai dong is a big attraction in NoHo. Before the pandemic, there would always a long queue (mainly tourists and young couples) whenever the eatery is opened. [Junction of Mee Lun Street and Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]One of the most famous dishes at Sing Heung Yuen (勝香園) is tomato beef and egg noodles. [Junction of Mun Lun Street and Gough Street, NoHo,Sheung Wan, 2020] Sasa the cat of Sing Heung Yuen (勝香園) is a popular member of the Mun Lun Street neighbourhood. Without tourists during the pandemic, Sasa got a little more freedom to linger around. When the eatery is busy and all seats are taken, the owner would take Sasa back to their apartment nearby. [Junction of Mun Lun Street and Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Kau Kee Beef Briskets（九記牛腩) is another tourist favourite in NoHo. Kau Kee’s business during the pandemic is greatly affected. [Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2021]Apart from food, design shops such as Homeless offers another crucial aspect of urban living in Hong Kong. [Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]One street downhill from Gough Street, Kau U Fong (九如坊) offers another clusters of tranquil options for foodies. [Kau U Fong, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]As chill as SoHo but with smaller crowds, that is the real beauty of NoHo. [Kau U Fong, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]In recent years, one of the most well known establishments in Kau U Fong is The Chairman (大班樓), a Michelin 1-star Chinese restaurant that uses mostly organic ingredients from small local suppliers and fishermen. [Kau U Fong, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]The most famous fish at The Chairman is undoubtedly steamed crab in aged Xiaoxing wine with Chan Village rice noodles. [The Chairman, Kau U Fong, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Perpendicular to Gough Street and Kau U Fong is the sloped Aberdeen Street. Despite its slope, the street is also filled with new restaurants and cafes, including Tenkai, a Japanese fine dining restaurant specialized in tempura omakase. [Aberdeen Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]Further downhill, the more causal Ode has also attracted a constant queue outside. The restaurant is specialized in ramen in sea bream fish broth. [Aberdeen Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan, 2020]The relatively new and sleek looking Aesop store at Gough / Aberdeen Street is a neat addition to the NoHo neighbourhood. [Junction of Aberdeen Street and Gough Street, NoHo, Sheung Wan,2020]
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Near Hollywood Road, the vivid wall paintings at Graham Street remind visitors that we are now about to enter an interesting and fun neighbourhood. [Junction of Graham Street and Hollywood Road, SoHo, Central, 2014]Since 1993, the world’s longest covered escalator system has brought tens of thousands of pedestrians up and down the slope of Central, from 34,000 daily usage in 1996 to about 85,000 in 2010. This influx of energy has directly contributed to the development of the SoHo District. [Junction of Shelley and Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2014]The Central – Mid Level Escalators was the unexpected driving force behind the creation of the entertainment district of SoHo in Central. [Junction of Shelley and Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2014]Restaurants and bars cascade up along the escalator system of Shelley Street. [Shelley Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]Staunton has become the central axis of SoHo entertainment district. [Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2014]Staunton Street ends at Old Bailey Street where Tai Kwun, the former Central Police Headquarters is situated. [Junction of Staunton and Shelley Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]A simple restaurant serving British food marks the eastern entrance of SoHo at Old Bailey Street. [Junction of Old Bailey and Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]From crafted beer to high end whiskey, sake, and wines, Staunton Street offers plenty of options to anyone looking for fun after work. [Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]A constant queue from morning till dusk, Bakehouse is the clear winner of SoHo during the Covid 19 pandemic. Operated by Grégoire Michaud, a renowned baker who has an impressive resume of work experiences in high end hotels and restaurants, the famous bakery has become an urban sensation in the past few years in Hong Kong. [Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]The former shops and Buddhist convents below old apartment blocks have been converted into restaurants and bars. [Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2021]The ambience of Staunton Street would dramatically transformed as evening approaches. [Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2021]One street further uphill from Staunton Street, Elgin Street is also at the heart of the bar hopping circuit of SoHo. [Elgin Street, SoHo, Central, 2014]Like other old neighborhoods in Hong Kong, there is a deity shrine in SoHo that protects all in the community. [Junction of Staunton and Peel Street, Soho, Central, 2021]Across from the shrine, a bar specialized in shesha water pipes has an interesting wall painting at its door. [Peel Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]During the Covid 19 pandemic, many bars and pubs were asked to temporarily close their doors. The restaurants remain opened have to follow strict regulations for number of customers per table, distance between seats, shorter opening times, stringent mechanical requirements for air changes, regular disinfection of spaces, etc. [Peel Street, SoHo, Central, 2020]SoHo is not all about fine dining and bar hopping. Other businesses such as custom tailor and second hand bookstore have also left their marks. [Flow Books, Hollywood Road, SoHo, Central, 2014]The true beauty of SoHo is about how people with different backgrounds may come and mingle in a few small streets uphill from the business district of Central. [Flow Books, Hollywood Road, SoHo, Central, 2014]
Between Sheung Wan and Central lies a tranquil stepped alleyway known as Shing Wong Street (城皇街). In Chinese tradition, “Shing Wong” is the guardian deity of city wall, or in a broader sense, the patron saint of the neighbourhood. Shing Wong Street reminds us that there was once a Shing Wong Temple (城皇廟) stood at the site bounded by Shing Wong Street (城皇街), Staunton Street (士丹頓街), Aberdeen Street (鴨巴甸街), and Hollywood Road (荷李活道), a relatively large plot of land in the old Victoria City. Probably built in 1843 or earlier, some consider the former Shing Wong Temple the oldest temple in colonial Hong Kong. Its importance was soon overtaken by Man Mo Temple (文武廟) further down Hollywood Road. In 1870’s, Shing Wong Temple was temporarily converted into a mental health asylum. And then in the 1880’s the government bought the temple and redeveloped it into the new campus of Central School (中央書院), the city’s first upper primary and secondary school to provide modern education. The school was later renamed as Victoria College (維多利亞書院) in 1889 and later the Queen’s College (皇仁書院). Merchant tycoon Sir Robert Ho Tung, and Sun Yatsen, the Father of Modern China were some of the well known graduates from the college’s early years. The Neo-Classical college building was one of the most expensive construction projects in 19th century Hong Kong.
For half a century the splendid Queen’s College building stood proudly in Upper Sheung Wan, until 1941 when the school was forced to close down due to WWII. The building suffered devastating destruction during the war and became nothing more than ruins and rubble when the city was liberated from Japanese occupation. In 1948, the ruins were cleared to make way for a new era. In 1951, a functionalist building was erected for a completely different purpose: residential compound for the police force. Sitting on four levels of platforms, the Police Married Quarters offered about 170 dwelling units. The functionalist compound served its intended purpose for another half a century, until the last residents moved out in 2000. Subsequently the government rezoned the site for private residential development. The heritage site was at risk to be lost forever.
“Save the Trees” was the first slogan local resident Katty Law put up in 2005 to protest against the felling of the Hollywood Road “stone wall trees” of the Police Married Quarters. Among a few other residents from the local neighborhood, Law found a NGO known as Central and Western Concern Group (中西區關注組). The neighborhood group successfully persuaded the government to consider removing the site from residential redevelopment and engaging in archaeological examination of the site. The government agreed to study the site. This eventually led to discovering the historical foundation of the former Queen’s College. In 2009, the government finally announced preserving the former Police Married Quarters and revitalizing it into a hub for art and design that is known as PMQ today. In 2014, the PMQ reincarnated one more time. A glass canopy was constructed over the central court, where public events would now be held. The former residential units were retrofitted into studio spaces for selective tenants including designers, artists, galleries, fashion designers, jewellery designers, lifestyle shops, vintage stores, cultural institutions, cafes, bakeries, and restaurants. A new hub for tourists and art lovers has been reborn upon the legacies of a temple, school and police residence.
The name Shing Wong Street (城皇街) is the only reminder of the former Shing Wong Temple that once occupied the site of the PMQ in the mid-19th century. [Shing Wong Street as seen from the side platform of the PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]Retaining walls surrounding the PMQ date back to the era of the former Queen’s College. [Stone wall trees at PMQ’s retaining wall along Shing Wong Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]Protecting the stone wall trees on the retaining wall along Hollywood Road was the spark that inspired Katty Law to found Central and Western Concern Group, a NGO that focuses on protecting the neighbourhood heritage of Central and Western District. PMQ’s retaining wall is the most obvious remnant from the era of the former Queen’s College. [Stone wall trees on PMQ’s retaining wall along Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, 2020]Bounded by Hollywood Road, Aberdeen Street, Shing Wong Street and Staunton Street, the former Queen’s College was one of the most important construction project in the city during the 1880’s. [Queen’s College along Hollywood Road with the sloped Aberdeen Street on the left, photograph by Arnold Wright, 1908, Public Domain]A block further uphill from Hollywood Road, the PMQ is also accessible from Staunton Street in SOHO. The functionalist architecture from 1951 reflects a pragmatic and efficient living culture in the postwar era. [PMQ along Staunton Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]In contrast to the functionalist approach of the PMQ, the Neo-Classical architecture of the former Queen’s College (also named Victoria College) represented a distant era of the bygone Victoria City. [Junction of Staunton and Shing Wong Street, photograph published by Robert Crisp Hurley in 1897. Image courtesy of “Sixty Diamond Jubilee Pictures of Hong Kong”, University of Bristol (www.hpcbristol.net). (CC BY_NC_ND 4.0)]To deal with the change of levels of the site, the PMQ is situated on a series of platforms defined by stone retaining walls. [The terracing PMQ complex as seen from Aberdeen Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]Built in 1918, the underground public toilet at the junction of Aberdeen and Staunton Street was the only female underground public toilet in Hong Kong. Listed as an historical building, the facility is no longer in use. [Junction of Aberdeen and Staunton Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]Serving as the main entrance and event space, the courtyard of the PMQ is accessible from the sloped Aberdeen Street. [The PMQ as seen from Aberdeen Street, Sheung Wan, 2019]Before the Covid 19 pandemic, the PMQ courtyard often hosts large scale art installations, outdoor exhibitions or handicraft market. Inspired by the Chinese proverb “MAKE HAPPY THOSE WHO ARE NEAR AND THOSE WHO ARE FAR WILL COME,” the Gather for Gifts of Love Pavilion by British designer Morag Myerscough defined the entrance of the 2019 Christmas Bazaar. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2019]During the Covid 19 pandemic, Littleurbanmountain Design (小市山設計) kept their rotating Christmas Trees in a “social distancing arrangement”. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2020]Often, the courtyard features an introductory display for the main exhibit housed in the Qube exhibition block on the 2nd floor behind the courtyard. [Installation of the Hanzi Exhibition (漢字展), PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2018]Under the glass canopy, large installation can reach up to about four storey high. Kaws, a famous American artist and designer, captured everyone’s attention with his enormous Mickey Mouse like clown figures in 2019. KAWS: Along the Way [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2019]Further into the courtyard, two columns are enhanced with mosaic artwork by French street artist Invader and figure wall painting by local artist Little Thunder (門小雷). [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2020]Historical foundations of the former Queen’s College can be visited by tour. Visitors can also have a peek of the foundations from the glass floor at the courtyard. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2020]The cover area of the courtyard often hosts handicraft markets or live performances. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2020]Chairs designed by Prouve, Wegner, Eames, etc. are on display near the main courtyard. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2020]One level lower than the courtyard, the former Central Junior Police Call Clubhouse is now home to a fancy French restaurant managed by renowned Chef Julien Royer. [Central Junior Police Call Clubhouse, PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]The recreational clubhouse of the former residence was converted into the Hollywood Road Police Primary School in the 1950’s, and then into the Central Junior Police Call Clubhouse in 1981. [Louise restaurant, PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]Several cool looking concrete seats are placed on the lower platform of PMQ. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]The stone retaining wall and its adjacent granite steps at the lower platform have been around since 1889. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]Step art has been popular with selfies of visitors. The event “Hong Kong on Steps: Tales of Our City” regularly transform the 20 or so staircases into painting canvases. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]A handful of new features have been added during the conversion of PMQ into a public building, including signage. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2021]Above the Qube exhibition block, a lush green roof garden on the 4th floor offers a pleasant resting area for visitors. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2014]After a few years, a number of shop have moved out, complaining the lack of visitors at PMQ during weekdays. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2021]Snacks and drinks are always the most popular way to engage visitors during festivals and events. [PMQ courtyard, Sheung Wan, 2018]Striking the balance between an NGO and a retail complex has proven to be difficult. Many shops continues to seek for the right business model. Handicraft workshops or children art classes are some of the most popular way for the tenants to generate income. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2021]Many old features, including the window frames and handles, are carefully preserved at PMQ. [PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2014]We regularly go to Levain Bakery for their artisan sourdough bread. Sometimes, we would sit down at their balcony for breakfast. [Levain Bakery, PMQ, Sheung Wan, 2020]SOHOFAMA promotes healthy eating and happy living, emphasizing on chemical-free, and local organic food. [PMQ at Staunton Street, Sheung Wan, 2014]Sake Central has everything about sake, from the handmade cups to the sake products from all over Japan. [PMQ at Staunton Street, Sheung Wan, 2020]
Moving up the hill on the Central – Mid-Levels Escalator is a pleasant way to experience the urban scenery of Hong Kong. [Escalator at Soho, 2014]From vibrant city scenes to quiet residential neighborhoods, the escalator journey offers visitors a continuous sequence of moving pictures. [Escalator near Caine Road, 2014]The higher the escalator reaches, the more residential the scenery gets. [Escalator near Mosque Street, 2014]
Whenever I flew with Cathay Pacific, I often selected Wong Kar Wai’s (王家衛) Chungking Express (重慶森林) from their entertainment system when I was about to take a nap. Indulging myself in the repeating music of Dennis Brown’s Things in Life and The Mamas & the Papas’ California Dreamin’, and Christopher Doyle’s dynamic shots of Tsim Sha Tsui and Central always relaxed my mind. Chungking Express is undoubtedly one of my most favorite Hong Kong films. Chungking Express is lighthearted, complex, ambiguous, and beautiful. There are two stories in the film. The first story follows policeman 233 (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and a female drug smuggler (Brigitte Lin) at Chungking Mansion in Tsim Sha Tsui. The second story follows policeman 633 (Tony Leung) and a female staff (Faye Wong) at Midnight Express, a snack bar in the entertainment district of Central. Released in 1994, three years before Hong Kong was returned to China, the film did capture a mixed bag of sentiments and mood of that era: sense of uncertainty, ambiguity, loneliness, loss, affection, impermanence, desire to change, hope for a brighter future, etc. Without pretentious shots of the city’s famous skyline, Chungking Express is a visually dazzling film that captures the daily life of Hong Kongers happened in wet market, snack bar, old tenement apartment, convenience store, and the Chungking Mansion, a huge mixed use complex in Kowloon where new immigrants and tourists gather and stay the night. Director Wong Kar Wai describes the film as his love letter to Hong Kong. 27 years have passed. Chungking Express remains as an icon of Hong Kong cinema, and an exquisite documentation of the ever-changing city in that particular moment in history.
Perhaps it is because both protagonists Tony Leung (梁朝偉) and Faye Wong (王菲) are two of my favorite Hong Kong stars back in the 1990’s, or The Mamas & the Papas’ California Dreamin’ is too overpowering, or the filming locations in Central are just a few blocks from where I spent my childhood, I always like the story of Midnight Express more. Every time watching the film would remind me the old Central before the disastrous urban renewal projects that have torn apart Graham Street Market and gentrification that have wiped out uncounted tenement apartments and small shop owners who can no longer afford the skyrocketed rent. 1994 also marked the first anniversary of the Central – Mid-Levels Escalator (中環至半山自動扶梯), a 800m escalator system from Downtown Central up to the Mid-Levels. Wong Kar Wai chose the escalator and an adjacent apartment unit (home of Christopher Doyle, the legendary cinematographer of many Wong’s films) as the major film set for Chungking Express. Wong’s selection prominently imprints the escalator in the cultural atlas of the city, and introduces such unique urban feature to the whole world. In fact, the success of Chungking Express has consolidated Wong Kar Kai’s name onto the stage of international cinema, paving the way for his triumphs in the later half of the 1990’s, including Happy Together and In the Mood for Love.
Today, the 800m escalators system remains the longest in the world, and a popular tourist attraction. In 2015, CNN website picked the Central – Mid-Levels Escalator as one of the coolest commutes in the world. The idea of building an urban escalator system began in early 1980’s, when the Hong Kong government considered various options to improve traffic and pedestrian circulation between Central, the business district of Hong Kong, and Mid Levels, the residential neighbourhood on the slope of Victoria Peak. Cable car and monorail were also considered, but an escalator system was eventually selected. After 2.5 years of construction, the system was opened to the public in 1993. Wong Kar Wai seized the opportunity and became the first director to shoot a movie there. The escalator soon became popular among residents and office workers in Central, and led to dramatic gentrification of the surroundings. Buildings along the escalator system were torn down for new apartments. Small shops were replaced by bars and upscale restaurants, forming a vibrant entertainment district that we now call Soho. For both good and bad, the Central – Mid-Levels Escalator has been a major catalyst that wipes out the old Central I have known as a child. Yet on the other hand, the convenience it brings us who live in the area has undeniably become an inseparable part of our daily routine.
Cochrane Street (閣麟街) is one of the hilly streets going uphill from Queen’s Road Central (皇后大道中). Today, the junction of Cochrane Street and Queen’s Road Central is where the Central – Mid-Levels Escalator begins to climb uphill. [Cochrane Street: Wellcome Library, London. By John Thomson, 1868 / 1871. http://wellcomeimages.org. Creative Commons CC BY 4.0]The streetscape of Cochrane Street (閣麟街) has completely transformed after the escalator was built in 1993. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Queen’s Road Central, 2014]Looking down from the escalator, Stanley Street (士丹利街) is one of the last few spots in Central that dai pai dong (大排檔) or street eateries can still be found. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Stanley Street, 2016]In Chungking Express, Tony Leung often comes here for lunch and Faye Wong would come by after getting grocery from Graham Street Market just around the corner. [Street eateries near the junction of Stanley Street and Graham Street, 2014]Apart from distant traffic noises and pedestrian chattering, live music is occasionally heard on the escalator. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Wellington Street, 2018]Stairs and elevators are provided at street intersections for access to the escalator system. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Gage Street, 2020]The escalator reaches Gage Street (結志街) at the end of Cochrane Street (閣麟街). Gage Street has long been part of the Graham Street Market, the oldest open market in Hong Kong with 160 years of history. Today, the once vibrant street market has been partially demolished by the profit making Urban Renewal Authority for residential developments. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Gage Street, 2020]Near the intersection of Gage Street (結志街), Cochrane Street (閣麟街) and Lyndhurst Terrace (擺花街), an old Hong Kong-style cafe called Lan Fong Yuen (蘭芳園) is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the area. Established in 1952, Lan Fong Yuen is known as the place where Hong Kong style milk tea was invented. [Junction of Cochrane Street, Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2020]Below the escalator, tourists and locals queued outside Lan Fong Yuen (蘭芳園). [Junction of Cochrane Street, Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2014]Sometimes the Lan Fong Yuen queue can get a little chaotic, especially when there are trucks coming into Gage Street. [Junction of Cochrane Street, Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2014]The two seats outside Lan Fong Yuen are probably the smallest dai pai dong or street vendors I have seen in the area. Watching pedestrians moving on the escalator would probably distract the customers from their meal. [Junction of Cochrane Street and Gage Street, 2014]At many occasions, the escalator would get awfully close to the adjacent buildings. Sometimes, escalator pedestrians can make direct eye contact with people inside the building. [Junction of Cochrane Street, Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2020]At many occasions, pedestrians on the escalator system can make direct eye contact with people inside the building. [Junction of Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2021]The one-way escalators move downhill everyday from 6 to 10am, and uphill from 10am to midnight. [Junction of Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street, 2020]When the escalator reaches Hollywood Road (荷李活道), the scenery from the escalator is dominated by the former police headquarters known as Tai Kwun (大館). Tai Kwun has been converted into a cultural and entertainment complex in recent years. [Junction of escalator and Hollywood Road, 2018]A connection bridge was built a few years ago to link up the escalator and the side entrance of Tai Kwun. [Junction of Hollywood Road and Old Bailey Street, 2018]The Central – Mid-Levels Escalator and Soho entertainment district are popular among tourists ever since its completion. [Junction of Shelley and Hollywood Road, 2014]The escalator brings office workers from the financial district up to the bars and restaurants in Soho. [Near junction of Shelley Street and Staunton Street, 2020]In the heart of Soho, the escalators is cut off at Staunton Street (士丹頓街). [Junction of Shelley Street and Staunton Street, 2014]Fancy restaurants and lively bars have transformed the once peaceful residential Elgin Street (伊利近街). [Junction of escalator and Elgin Street, 2020]The pace of the escalator is ideal for a leisure wander in the hilly neighbourhoods. [Escalator near Elgin Street, 2014]The Central – Mid-Levels Escalator is a modern alternative of the old ladder streets of Hong Kong. [Escalator near Elgin Street, 2014]Above Hollywood Road (荷李活道), the escalator continues up the sloped Shelley Street (些利街) in segments. [Shelley Street as viewed from landing at Caine Road, 2020]Above Caine Road (堅道), the escalator entered the district of Mid-Levels (半山), an affluent residential district right above Downtown Hong Kong. [Escalator south of Caine Road, 2020]Before hitting Mosque Street (摩羅廟街), the escalator passes by the entrance Jamia Masjid Mosque, the oldest mosque in Hong Kong. [Jamia Masjid Mosque, north of Mosque Street, 2020]Jamia Masjid Mosque is also called Lascar Temple. Built in 1849 and rebuilt in 1915, the beautiful mosque is listed as a Grade 1 historical building. [Jamia Mosque, 2020]Built in early 20th century, the three storey building offered free accommodation to mosque worshipers. [Jamia Mosque, 2014]Around Jamia Masjid Mosque, the escalator snakes through clusters of apartments. [Escalator at Mosque Junction, 2014]Beyond Jamia Mosque, the escalator continued to climb up the slope towards Robinson Road (羅便臣道) and Conduit Road (干德道). [Escalator at Mosque Junction, 2014]
Blue Lapis Road 