For in-the-know travellers, Hong Kong features not only overwhelming skyscrapers, the shopping paradise or wonderful night life, but also a memorable history of being a fishing village. But most people still know little, so you’re encouraged to visit Wanchai to explore Hong Kong’s fascinating fishing village civilization.
It takes only 3min from the bustling Central Hong Kong to Wanchai by metro. Famous for its old pier, Wanchai is now home to Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Central Plaza, Times Square Hong Kong and other landmark architectures. Outgrowing its past as a small coastal fishing village, Wanchai has been a prosperous commercial center in Hong Kong, and an important passage of the Cross Harbour Tunnel from Causeway Bay to Hung Hom.
However, it still retains the original look by keeping the twisting, densely populated alleys, small shops, simple fruit stalls, snack stands, as well as the ancient Wanchi Post Office and Pak Tai Temple. Locals enjoy a special life by shopping in the Causeway Bay - one of the city's congested shopping meccas, and bargaining on the messy Bowring Street for daily fresh food like vegetables, beef, meet and seafood.
Take the traditional double-decker to Hennessy Road, and marvel at the dramatic contrast between the thriving modern office buildings and the traditional Chinese markets. Head south, through the narrow Lee Tung Street, Swatow Street and Amoy Street, where the cargo were waiting to be transported to world port cities, you’ll have an in-depth experience of local life. People enjoy chatting in the dim sum restaurants, and go to market together, which are very different from the modern urban life.
On Stone Nullah Lane (connecting with Queen's Road and Johnston Road), among the unknown stores, there is a yellow house and a blue house. The blue boasts a clinic serving the neighborhood and Hong Kong Story House that preserve the old-fashioned furniture and old stories of Hong Kong.
