Best Shopping in Asia Pacific

(The flea markets in Hong Kong are mostly along a narrow street flanked by old buildings in busy business areas. A walk through the flea markets is in itself an experience. This is the Ladies' Market in Mongkok)

Is Hong Kong still a shopping paradise? Yes, according to the Global Travel and Tourism Survey findings just released by CNN. Hong Kong ranked above all in the Asia Pacific region on tourism categories of shopping, night life and vibrant city life.

For shopping, Hong Kong can undoubtedly offers you the best experience in the region and even in the whole whorld.

(A tourist wandering in a Fa Yuen Street flea market, overlooked by Winnie the Pooh)

Apart from the ubiquituous first-rate, big shopping malls across the territory, the flea markets give a different experience of shopping which I preferred. The flea markets are unique in its own right. They are mostly crowded but systematic, old without being off-putting or smelly. The flea markets I have been to, in Athens, Paris, the Notting Hill, the Aussie and South East Asian cities, are either too haphazardly crowed, systematically arranged, extremely sparsed apart, in shabby existence. Those in Hong Kong are not superior. They are just made with the right mix. I just like their atmosphere, not least at night.

The flea markets on my list of recommendation include the Fa Yuen Street flea market (don't miss the flower market and the fish market nearby), the Ladies' Market (best for streetshots) and, the best of all, the Stanley Market (mecca for barflies). Those along the Fuk Wah Street in Shamshuipo are rarely known among tourists, but worth a visit too.

Just in case you are interested, Australia and Japan ranked after Hong Kong for most vibrant city life.

For shopping destinations, Singapore and mainland China are outshore by Hong Kong according to survey results.

Comments

A Real Hero

(Grip On Reality: This photo was taken on my way to work. I was walking past trucks parking on a cul-de-sac when the ropes caught my attention. The light was right, the colour was right and the criss-crossing pattern was perfect and I held up my GX200. People passing by checked me out and wondered what could be made out of such a boring scene. To me, the fun in photography is that the photographer makes something interesting out of what is not obvious to most at the scene. The ropes tied in knots somehow reminded people I know who are in the grip of the recession) You must have also known a friend or two, or even yourself, being baffled by the spiral downturn of the economy. Bank went bankrupt and the rich was faced with a shrinking wealth. A friend of mine has just had his salary cut by over 10% and some of his colleagues started to be shed. But, wait. Was this done really for the sake of continuing the business? Or is there a factor or greed in it? I wonder whether the

New Low Prices

The window shopping some hours ago has almost provoked my AgIDS illness. Just in case you’re in Hong Kong or are coming here, and have the money to burn (All in HK$/ body only): GX200 = $3,280 GRD2 = $3,380 LX3 = $3,180 G10 = $3,280 Prices are available form a gear shop on the 1st floor of the Mongkok Computer Centre. Besides these new low prices, I found that Wing Shing Photo (55-57Sai Yeung Choi St., MK Tel: 2396 6886/ 91-95 Fa Yuen St., MK Tel: 2396 6885) is offering a Sony A700 + Carl Zeiss Lens package for HK$9,980 (hopefully, a bargain will make it some hundreds cheaper).

Eye Contact

(Leica D-lux 5) The digital era may make it easier to end up with fave shots. Even lousy photos may be turned likable after a few clicks in the post-processing workflow. But if digital advancement or amendments have any bearing on the cultivation of personal style, no photographers will need to discover his or her own photographer’s eye. Undoutedly, this is out of the question. Only with a trained photographer’s eye can we give a thinking gaze and capture an eternal moment, in our unique style. Style is the soul of a great photo. A few posts have been written in GXG to touch on the topic of photographer’s eye. Instead of finding an answer, which would require academic discussions, the posts are intended to give my general reflections and spark interests in moving towards further exploration of the topic. The posts can be viewed after the links: 1) Photographer's Eye: Storytelling 2) Photographer's Eye: Little Show of Observing 3) Photographer's Eye: Sight-Worthy 4

GX GARNERINGS

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