Goldfish Street/Market observations

See what are in those rows of plastic bags?

 Not from the same store -- but more of the same

on the same street

Yup, they're ornamental fish (in ready to carry

plastic bags) for sale on Goldfish Street/Market! :)

While on the plane on the way back from Japan more than a month ago now, I got to talking to the friendly fellow sitting next to me.  An ethnic Indian man who now is a resident of Orange County, California, he told me that he used to live in Hong Kong (and that his brother still lives in the Big Lychee).  Just due to be in transit in the territory (he was headed to Mainland China for business), he shared some of his happier memories of Hong Kong -- some of which involved his strolling around the section of Mongkok known as Goldfish Street or Market.

As it so happens, I had been in that area recently -- more specifically, I had gone to Fa Yuen Street Market to get a new pair of cargo pants; then with time to spare, decided to stroll around an area I had loved to visit when I came to Hong Kong before I moved here but don't spend that much time in these days.  

Being someone who prefers to visit large aquariums (like those in Osaka and Okinawa) rather than own a small one, I'm not going to be a customer of the many ornamental fish stores on Goldfish Street or Market.  Fortunately for me though, their having so much on display outside as well as inside their stores makes it so that there's much for me to see even without stepping into the stores and having to deal with their staff.

Put another way, I was happy and able to play camera-clicking tourist for an hour or so that day.  At the same time, I also found myself -- as (still) can be the case when I'm wondering about the sections of the Big Lychee that have recognizably featured in Hong Kong films -- feeling like I was playing a part in a Hong Kong movie!

Although I haven't viewed Derek Yee's sublime C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri in years, I'm pretty sure that there's a scene in which Anita Yuen's character takes Lau Ching Wan's character to Goldfish Street/Market (as part of an introductory tour of valued sections of her neighborhood).  More recently, Aarif Lee and Evelyn Choi could be seen frequenting this part of Mongkok in Alex Law's Berlin Crystal Bear-winning Echoes of the Rainbow.

Returning to real life: A 2010 CNN Go piece talked about Goldfish Street/Market facing the prospect of being shut down by the government and reported shop owners bemoaning efforts to make it (more of a) tourist attraction.  Touch wood, but Goldfish Street/Market continued to look pretty lively on my most recent visit -- and while I didn't buy any fish, here's taking the opportunity to show people what's on sale there -- and maybe someone (or ones) might be influenced by this post to not only visit there but also spend some money there and thereby make the shop owners happy! :)

A cloudy day hike up Mount Parker (Photo-essay)

At 532 meters high, Mount Parker is Hong Kong Island's second highest peak -- and is topped on the island only by 552 meter high Victoria Peak. But because there's a paved road that leads all the way up to the wireless signal station (which I had previously mistaken for an observatory) on its summit from the around sea-level King's Road, it's a hill/mountain that few serious hikers think of ascending.

As far as my regular hiking companion and I were concerned though, the top of Mount Parker's a good place to aim to get up to on a Sunday of a week where quite a bit of rain had poured down. So that was where we proceeded to go on one of our hikes where the main aims was to enjoy some nice scenery and look out for interesting critters as well as spend some time exercising out of doors... ;b

Minutes after we entered into Tai Tam Country Park (Quarry Bay

Extension), we spotted this bug resting on a park bench :)

Further up Mount Parker Road, we spotted this large 

stick insect that didn't seem to realize the railing 

it was on is only made to look like wood! :D

It was a cloudy day and actually quite windy too -- and despite 

it still being summer, yielded photos that looked autumnal

How I love spotting (and photographing) a stationary butterfly!

Seeing the "Radiation Risk" sign, we didn't stay for long in the area

-- but still stayed long enough to snap a few photos! ;b

This wireless signal station that I've seen so often from much 

further away looks, when viewed from this close, like it 

shares the same architect as some Malaysian mosques ;D

  A view of the eastern sections of Hong Kong Island,

the Kowloon Peninsula and Victoria Harbour --

complete with a flying bird of prey (a black kite perhaps?)

What I do know is that at least one bird of prey has its nest

on that high tower on the edge of Mount Parker's peak :)

To be continued, and soon!

Back to hiking the South Lantau Country Trail once more

One of many grasshoppers spotted while out

hiking on Lantau Island earlier today

The kind of view and scenery to be had 

along this hike that can get one thinking 

"I can't quite believe I'm in Hong Kong" :)

 

 One of those spots along the trail where it's hard to resist 

the impulse to stop to enjoy it for at least a few minutes

Since my last post about being out and about in Hong Kong, I've been on a few more hikes in the Big Lychee.  One of them took place on a day so hot and cloudless, and on a trail that was so demanding, that my hiking buddy ended up suffering quite a bit from heat exhaustion (and so much so that I was afraid that he had been afflicted with the even more serious condition that is heat stroke).

 

Just about a month after that (i.e., earlier today), we went hiking again -- and although it was largely sunny too this time around, the temperature was at least five degrees cooler and the humidity levels significantly lower.  All this contributed to this afternoon's excursion being a lot more pleasant and enjoyable -- and so much so that after reaching at the hike's planned end, we elected to extend our outing by continuing along an adjoining trail for a couple more kilometers!

 

The "bonus" part of the hike consisted of a largely downhill trek along the Old Village Footpath from Nam Shan to Mui Wo via Luk Tei Tong  The main part of the hike was along the approximately seven kilometer length portion of the South Lantau Country Trail that lies to the east of Pak Kung Au.

 

I've actually been on this portion of this Lantau Island trail that's still largely unpaved and apparently unknown to many people (since for such a nice trail, it really doesn't seem to attract too many hikers) twice before. The first time was at the tail end of 2007 -- i.e., close to five years ago now. The second time was around a couple of years later (See here and here for photo-essays of that hike).

Looking at my records got me realizing that this third hike along this trail was undertaken a few months earlier in the year than the two previous ones.  This might explain the larger amount of critters that my hiking buddy and I spotted while out in the wilds of Hong Kong this afternoon -- starting with grasshoppers galore early into the hike and including not only a nice variety of butterflies but also my third snake spotting over the course of three consecutive hikes!

 

All in all, it's quite amazing how many critters we spotted today -- not least because a good amount of the time, we had to look down and focus our sights on the trail on which we were walking, since it was on the uneven side and was open on one side that would have involved quite the fall if we had slipped or tripped and went over the edge.  In addition, at other times, our eyes could not help but look further into the distance to drink in scenic views -- and yes, our modus operandi was indeed to stop to take time to enjoy them rather than just walk quickly by or, perish the thought, outright ignore their beauty! ;b

Hand and Kitchen (This week's Photo Hunt themes)

Years (decades, actually!) ago, I attended boarding school in England. Because I was still a minor then, it was required by the school that I have designated guardians who, among other things, would take me into their care during exeats and half-term holidays. The way things turned out, the couple who were my designated guardians were a very traditionally English couple -- the kind of people who regularly dressed in tweeds, didn't believe in central heating (I'm not kidding!) and had a whole row of Wellington boots by the back door of their house to slip in and out of.

As it so happens, she -- who her husband and I would teasingly refer to as "Mrs T" in reference to her married surname's first letter but also because she often reminded us of Margaret Thatcher in certain of her ways and political views -- happened to be an exceedingly good cook.  (To this day, I don't think I've had Pavlovas better than the ones that came out of her kitchen, and I also have fond memories of her roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.)  

People often say that "a woman's home is in the kitchen" in a way that is meant to disparage. But for Mrs T, her kitchen truly was her realm -- so much so that when she was cooking, she literally would shoo her husband and me out of it because the truth of the matter is that our efforts to lend a hand often ended up slowing her down or even distracting her from her culinary efforts which she did take most seriously and carried out with much pride!

Over the years, I've realized -- and I think you can see where this is going, which explains why my entry this week for Sandi's and Gattina's Photo Hunts doesn't actually have images of hands or kitchens... ;b -- how right Mrs T was in terms of my place not being in the kitchen.  And living in Hong Kong, I'm totally able to have a way of life that makes it so that I haven't cooked a single meal in over five years! (Okay, I've cut up fruit for breakfast and boiled water for instant noodles but I don't think most people consider that to be real cooking, right?!)

I know that many people (especially those who don't live in places like Hong Kong) might find this state of affairs to be well nigh unthinkable.  But there are two fundamental truths at work here: firstly, I really do way prefer to eat than cook; and secondly, there truly are people who can cook so much better than I can -- so I just let them get on with it in the kitchen and enjoy the fruits of their labor!

As an example, take the offerings that come out of chef Bjoern Alexander's kitchen at Whisk, where I was a guest one evening a few weeks ago. More specifically, the photos at the top of this entry are of the Scotland, Germany (the chef's home country) and Norway courses of his seven course "Voyage" degustation menu.

Seriously -- there is no way I could create an oyster dish, salad and soup that's as beautifully put together and also delectably delicious as the ones I had at that dinner!  And it's not just that I don't have the hands to create such concoctions but, also, that I don't have the kind of imagination that would ever think of pairing together such as oyster, foie gras and grapefruit (for the "Scotland" dish) or having beef tartare as a base for a leafy salad (as in the "Germany" course).  

So can you blame me, really, if I'm just happy to leave the cooking to professionals -- and those who really love being in the(ir) kitchen; this especially so if they enjoy having me eating their creations with great gusto and delight?! :b

Finally -- a visit to Meiji Jingu (aka Meiji Shrine)

The O-torii at the Meiji Shrine that, at 12 meters high,

is Japan's tallest and largest torii

To get to the shrine' honden (main hall) and the open area in front 

of it, one has to pass through the Kita-mon (north gate)

A butterfly spotted in the iris garden section of Meiji Jingu Gyoen

-- only the irises weren't in bloom when I visited!

Puppet Ponyo posing in front of a small sample of the several

barrels of sake donated to the enshrined deities of the Meiji Shrine

Some 20 blog entries ago, I started blogging about my most recent trip to the country that has become my favorite to visit.  This blog entry on one of Tokyo's most famous Shinto shrines is the final one of this recent series of Japan-centric blog posts.

Up until this most recent Japan vacation, I had not visited Meiji Jingu (aka Meiji Shrine).  It wasn't that I was purposely avoiding it -- the way that I do Yasukuni.  But it just tended to be the case that there were so many other places that I wanted to check out more.  

But after a friend visiting Japan for the first time ever returned and raved about her Meiji Shrine experience, I figured that I should head to this Shinto shrine dedicated to the deified spirits of the Emperor Meiji and Empress Shotoken -- and I finally did so on the morning of the final day of my recent Japan trip.

Located in a large space on the western part of central Tokyo, the Meiji Shrine includes an area planned to be an "eternal forest that recreates itself" and presently contains some 170,000 trees.  Soon after entering the shrine area from near Harajuku train station, one finds oneself in a serene wooded space that can seem like its far away from the city center (but actually is within the Japanese capital city!).

Walking along a wide graveled path, the sounds that predominate seem to be that of the crunching caused by feet coming into contact gravel along with some bird songs rather than human voices.  And should one make a detour on the way to the main shrine buildings into a garden that is famous for its irises (though, alas, they were not blooming when I visited) and a well that is believed by some to be a "power spot" where they can experience "positive energy", one is likely to encounter far more silence than one might expect to be possible at a popular attraction like Meiji Shrine.

When in the vicinity of the main shrine buildings (whose area one doesn't have to pay to enter -- unlike the gardens), more people are to be seen and heard.  Even so, there is a general air of quiet and dignity about the place as a whole -- that does add to the overall visiting experience.

For all this, the irrepressible Puppet Ponyo could not resist temporarily getting out of my backpack to look about -- and strike a pose at least once at the Meiji Shrine.  And fortunately, like at such other places as in the vicinity of the Daibatsu at Kamakura or inside of Hokokuji's bamboo grove (also in Kamakura), no one seemed to mind her doing so! :)

Kiddy Land Pilgrimage

Part of the Studio Ghibli section of the 

Harajuku (i.e., main) branch of Kiddy Land!

Should there be any doubt: Rilakkuma and Hello Kitty

also have a presence at Kiddy Land! :)

A friend asked me recently which places in or around Tokyo I make a point to visit each time that I visit the Japanese capital city.  One answer I gave -- which, actually, she already knew about -- was the market at Tsukiji. (Though, strictly speaking, I only started going to Tsukiji in 2006 -- not having been there on my previous visits to Tokyo in the 1980s and 1990s.)

Another place in Tokyo that I've been to as frequently as I have Tsukiji is the Kiddy Land in Harajuku.  Sometimes described as the Hamleys of Japan, it's a toy store for both children and adults -- and particularly those who are fans of such as Hello Kitty, Rilakkuma and their Japanese ilk (though it also does have  substantial dedicated Disney character and Barbie sections).

The first time I visited Kiddy Land (in 2006), part of me thought I had died and gone to heaven.  On that occasion, I was particularly enamored -- and awed -- by its Studio Ghibli section.  (Granted that that was because I had not yet visited such as the Ghibli Museum's Mamma Auto! gift shop and other dedicated Studio Ghibli stores like the Dongary Garden in Tokyo Station's Character Street!  Even so, I have abiding memories of having come across a Totoro reclining chair-bed there that was the closest thing I've ever seen to my dream Totoro bed (only my dream bed would be at least Queen-sized...)!)

When I visited Tokyo last year, I was disappointed to discover that its Ometesando building was closed for renovation and although there was a temporary Kiddy Land in nearby Cat Street, the fact of the matter was that it just was not as big and consequently cool.  Of course, I still spent a considerable amount of time checking out this temple to kawaii's offerings though -- and did leave with several gifts for myself along with friends (among them those who adore Jiji, Rilakkuma and Pompompurin (referred to by the friend in question as "Pudding Puppy")).

Still, I definitely was happy to discover on my most recent Japan vacation that Kiddy Land was back in its larger, multi-storey Ometesando building.  And although I had previously resisted the urge, this time around, I yielded to the temptation to take photos inside this mecca for character-themed plushies and other products. (Actually, I'm not sure if it's really not allowed -- but in any event, no one came up to ask me to not do so!) :b

The main temple complex at Kenchoji (Photo-essay)

If I did things strictly chronologically, I'd put up this blog post before yesterday's which highlighted the tengu statues found on the way to Kenchoji temple's Hansobo shrine (rather than the other way around).  In any event, I think it will be interesting for people to view the two blog entries one after the other -- to see how the Hansobo shrine section that's located several minutes walk away on higher ground than the main Zen Buddhist temple complex visually differs from the part of Kenchoji that most visitors will be most -- and maybe even solely -- familiar with.

For the record: even without taking into account the part of my visit that took in the Hansobo shrine and the Shojoken Observatory (deck) located a few flights of stairs up from the shrine, Kenchoji was indeed the Kamakura attraction that I spent the most amount of time at on my second visit to that very attractive coastal town in Kanagawa Prefecture.  

One reason was because the complex (which includes about 10 sub-temples -- down from 49 sub-temples at its historical peak) was the largest of the four religious establishments I went to that day in Kamakura -- yes, bigger even than the more centrally located and well known Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine, never mind the east Kamakura temples of Hokokuji and Sugimoto-dera.  Another was that there really was so much that was interesting to see in the areas that were open to the public -- and so much so that I ended up not feeling aggrieved by much at all that there also does seem to be significant swathes of Kenchoji's grounds that are not are off limits to (secular) visitors to the temple...

  A photo that gives people some idea of the details that exist

on Kenchoji's structures -- in this case, the entrance area's roof 

whose decorations include the Hojo clan's triangular crest and 

what looks to me like a peach shaped longevity bun sculptures! 

Kenchoji's Somon (General Gate) used to stand in Kyoto

but was brought to Kamakura in 1943

The temple's Sanmon (Main Gate) is an impressive

30 meters high and was strong enough to survive

such as the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923

The central path leading from the Sanmon to the Butsuden (Buddha Hall) 

is lined by juniper trees that are over 750 years old and planted 

by the temple's founder, Lanxi Daolong (AKA Rankei Doryu)

Inside the Butsuden is this large sculpture of 

Jizo Bosatsu (AKA Kshitigarbha Bodhisattava) along with 

282 miniature figures of the same religious figure

Inside the Hatto (Dharma or Lecture Hall) located behind

-- and on the same axis as -- the Butsuden are such as

a fasting Buddha statue from Pakistan, a Senju Kannon statue

behind it and ceiling painting of a dragon above them

The Karamon (Chinese Gate) that was (is?) used 

exclusively by imperial court envoys visiting the temple

A sun-lit view from the Shojoken Observatory of Kenchoji's 

main temple complex nestled in the valley below and 

the surrounding greenery (and yes, it gives a good idea of 

how far away the Hansobo shrine area is from the main area!)