Since it was the weekend, I decided to spend my day at a park and avoid going to the tourist attraction spots which will be overcrowded. Especially since it was the holiday season.
Getting off at the “Admiralty” metro station for Hong Kong Park means that you will have to go through “Pacific Place” shopping mall. A very luxurious mall with mostly high-end designer stores and sophisticated cafes and restaurants; “Pacific Place” is a haven for fashion lovers. The winter sale was on, and all I could think of was finding the nearest pharmacy to get a cure for my upset stomach from the previous night’s local dinner.
Once I got my medical condition diagnosed by a lovely pharmacist who spoke fluent English with an American accent and had my medicine, I was ready for my first tourist attraction of the day: Hong Kong Park.
It was a rainy day with a good amount of showers. Nothing like London showers though. Just a nice drizzle combined with some light winds. It seemed like I was the only person enjoying the rainy weather at the park. As the park was almost empty except for a few care-free tourists, and some people who were passing through the park to get to the other side of the street. I didn’t mind the rain at all. In fact, it made my park day even more enjoyable. I was exploring the different areas of the highly lush and green park, walking down trails, and taking pictures of everything from pretty trees and flowers to cute turtles and fishes in the pond. The rain added a zest of fresh air to my walk at the park, and I was grateful for being able to enjoy a lush green park under the light rain.
I wanted to check out “Jardine’s Crescent” street market; which was in the area, and I spent a considerable amount of the day looking for the market and asking around for it. But with no luck. Some people couldn’t understand what I was talking about, others didn’t speak English, or simply had no idea about a market in the vicinity. Being the stubborn and strong-headed person that I am, I could not forget about the market or dismiss the thought of getting to it. Since it was already a part of my plan for the day! and I had to find it no matter how challenging the process was!
But first, I needed to sit down somewhere as I was exhausted from all the walking and roaming around. I also wanted to eat my lunch which consisted of a banana and a cup of hot tea that I got from a nearby Starbucks. That task proved to be even more difficult than the mission of finding the street market. It was a Saturday afternoon during the busy holiday season in Central Hong Kong and it was raining. This only meant one thing: there wasn’t a single seat available at any of the coffee shops in the area.
Students were sitting at Starbucks catching up, working on their projects, or saving the empty chairs for their friends who will be joining them soon. At another popular cafe a few blocks away, all the tables were taken. And although this was an extremely spacious branch with many places to sit, I was greatly surprised and frustrated when I couldn’t find a single empty place to sit. I continued to walk down the streets with my hot cup of tea in my hand, dragging my tremendously tired legs and body. Until I decided to head to the park across the street which turned out to be “Victoria Park”. Luckily, the rain had just stopped by then, and so it wasn’t a problem to sit at a park bench and finally have my banana lunch and fortunately still warm tea! Yes it was an unpredictable situation and I was glad to have found a way around it.
Going back to my previous challenge of finding the street market, I continued to ask staff at random stores. Eventually, someone directed me to the street that the market is named after: Jardine’s Crescent. As I walked down that street – still asking people about a street market and not getting any clues – I began to loose hope of ever finding that market (which I was certain that it existed). Then, I spot a flower stall and my heart fills with joy! Because I had read an online tip about that market that said: Don’t miss the small wet market at the end of the street (flower stalls). So, as I walked towards the flower stall, I was hoping (and wondering at the same time) that I have finally found my lost market! And I was thrilled that I did!
I walked along the flower stalls to find myself in this twisting little market. Full of a wide range of items from fruits and vegetables to cartoon stationery.
As I exited the market onto the main shopping street, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the sign that I was planning to follow at the beginning of the day when I first started my search for the market! But because I was lost in the busy and densely populated streets and the mayhem of the weekend crowd, I had completely forgotten about that clue that I intended to try out…I was also amazed at the tiny corner that leads to the market. It was more like a whole in the wall kind of thing. Literally! a space in between two walls on the busy shopping street….and next to the store “Forever 21” where the lady at the first shop that I asked for directions had guided me. Except that I couldn’t find the high-street retail store to begin with!
Oh well, I guess most of us women are not so good in directions.
