December 24, 2008 at 4:20 am · Filed under Shopping
Given the dismal economic outlook, it comes without much appetite to suggest that one go shopping in Hong Kong. (To wit, I have rewritten this opening sentence at least five times since settling on this one.) But at the same time, one must tell it like it is: HK is about the shopping. It is not about reading circles and literary salons and idle afternoon contemplations over a cappuccio on the terrasse. It is about shuh-opping.
One of the most visible manifestations of rampant retail therapy is sartorial; Hong Kong is about clothes shopping. If that interests you, I’ll further posit that this activity will be particularly fruitful for those in the readership who are, like us, of a smaller stature. Because being in Asia — and being Asian, for the most part, unless you are Yao Ming — you will find that the bar on S, M, L, XL definitions is lower. And thankfully so; entering the fitting room, you may be surprised to realize that the erstwhile droopy shoulders, boxy sleeves and unruly hem-lines — that you have steeled yourself for after years of buying ill-fitting, potato sack-like clothing in the West — are gone. (And gone with that, too, the additional hassle and expense of taking the durn thing to the tailor afterwards).
So then, where to go and blow the proverbial wad? Ahh but grasshopper, that is a question of style and interest-level. As a start, Hong Kong, being a wonderland of materialism, carries all the major labels from Paris, Milan, New York, London, Tokyo. (Surprisingly or not, the prices for many European brands will be cheaper by upwards of 20% than back home. Guess who is waiting to buy his wedding shoes in HK? Word.) But really, it’s not about the major labels; the fun involves heading into the wilds of Causeway Bay or Kowloon to dig thru the racks of the smaller, local shops, which carry the wares of younger, lesser-known designers.
I won’t get into any sort of list of places to go; I think it’s best for you to just wander around Causeway Bay and duck into various boutiques, many of which are scattered in the upper floors of malls (unlike in, say, New York, which is structured sort of like tiramisu, with the goods — i.e. commercial and retail outlets — on the bottom, stacked above by a boring spongey mass of residential, Asian cities are set up more like layer cakes, with stuff going down on the upper floors, and even the roof, of the bldg). In any case, one place that we have reliably found cool threads and decent deals at is with i.t and its myriad subsidiary outlets.
I’m unclear about the corporate structure, but my take is that I.T is an umbrella company that owns several fashion outlets — sort of a youthful, ‘contempo-casual’ version of LMVH. When you wander into one of their main stores — I.T (for the fashionista grownups) or i.t (for the hipster kids) — you’ll see racks of clothing separated in sections by designer (if you’ve gone to Opening Ceremony in New York you’ll be familiar with the concept).
I.T also has something to do with two other outlets that we’ve also been lucky with: izzue.com and 5cm. The look n’ feel is all black, white, or otherwise neutral palettes. Wool and cotton dominate. Stripes prevail. As do funky touches, like built-in ties. Think Club Monaco with a tweakier edge; the architects will eat it up …
December 23, 2008 at 4:48 am · Filed under Knowing
Chances are you will be crossing between Kowloon and Hong Kong Island a fair bit. There are several ways to do this, each of which come with its advantages and caveats.
You can take the MTR subway, which you should do if you are traveling farther distances (and not merely crossing the harbour). But we’re here to tell you that the Central (HK) - Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon) ride can be really annoying, because the Central Station is deep, labyrithine, and ENORMOUS; you may innocently enter from an above-ground escalator only to find yourself at your platform an eternity later, having embarked, unbeknownst to you when you signed up, on a subterranean odyssey longer than the width of the harbour itself. This is a general truism about the MTR — the stations and trains are efficient and clean, but damn if those things aren’t buried deep in the earth.
You can also cross Victoria Harbour by taxi, of course, via one of two tunnels located at either side of HK and Tsim Sha Tsui. You will need to do this if you’re out late (ferry service ends at around 11pm each night), but don’t fret — distances in HK are short, and fares are reasonable; in moderate traffic, a Central-TST journey will take about 10 minutes and cost about $10USD. In bad traffic, however, and it’s a different story — attempting a motorized crossing during the daytime is pure folly.
By far the easiest, cheapest, and most enjoyable way to cross the harbour is by the Star Ferry service.
Just walk to through one of the two ferry terminals if you are in Hong Kong (one pier is in Wanchai to the east — technically the Wanchai Ferry, and the other is in Central on the west, right in front of the ifc); or if you are in Kowloon, to the one terminal at the tip of TST near the Cultural Center. Just follow the signs — they will prompt you either to the top or the bottom deck of the ferry (personally, I think the upper deck is a bit nicer). Cost difference is negligible, in any case; lower deck is $0.25US, upper is $0.28. Madness. (I don’t think you can buy a loosie for that little in NYC).
Below is a shot of the, uh, interface for the token machine. Don’t get too bent out of shape about the design, though — just look at that sweet, sweet price. Drop your pittance in the coin slot below, collect your plastic token from the tray at the bottom, and you’re good to ride.
December 23, 2008 at 3:54 am · Filed under Eating
Wow, way to represent. Michelin awards Hong Kong restaurant Lung King Heen at the Four Seasons its ultimate rating of three stars, which is pretty astonishing, given that:
A. A third of all 3-star Michelin restaurants are in France (a higher proportion if you parse by French cuisine)
B. This restaurant is Cantonese, a cuisine (at least in the US) more readily associated with greasy takeout and often-shady dim sum — a first in Michelin Guide history
C. Many master chefs of Chinese cookery were sent to re-education camps — or worse — by Mao during the Cultural Revolution. Might this signal a resurgence of high cuisine in China??
Found some food porn from the restaurant in a flickr set here.
December 23, 2008 at 3:40 am · Filed under Sleeping
Economist — and economic — Aravind passes along a last-minute housing tip (re: a short-term flat rental), which we shall repost here, in case it got buried in the comments ghetto:
If anyone is still looking for accommodations, I have a good tip: check for short-term apartments. There are many still available for the holidays, most have in-suite laundry, internet access, satellite TV (as if), etc - and they are DIRT cheap compared to hotels: I was choosing between 7 places in the range of 190 - 500 HKD per night… that’s $24 - $64 US!!
Two good places to look are: http://hongkong.craigslist.org (under “housting”, “sublets / temporary”), and http://hongkong.gumtree.com.hk (under “Flat…”, “short term”).
(FYI, there’s a whole 2-bedroom flat in Wanchai that I just turned down, for $500 HKD / night available from 12/25 - 1/4… see craigslist’s posts for last Sunday!)
December 23, 2008 at 2:56 am · Filed under Knowing
You will notice when transactin’ in Hong Kong that you’ll be handed your change/receipt/plastic back two-handed, along with an ever so slight bow of the head. Something about the elegance and gentility of this gesture inveigled me to make a post of it.
So now you too can be a money-/card-handling ninja — try it! It’s E-Z.
(FYI, this gesture applies to business card handoffs, and seems to be pan-Asian in nature too)
November 30, 2008 at 2:47 pm · Filed under Flying, Knowing
Compared to paying the exorbitant expense of cab fare only to get stuck in traffic on the BQE, or the pain of hauling your crap from one transfer point to another and squeezing yourself and your luggage into a packed A train at rush hour, getting from Chek Lap Kok Airport on Lantau Island to Kowloon or Central Hong Kong — or back — is a veritable breeze. The how is detailed below; the pithy nature of this post should speak volumes.
Arrival.
Once you clear customs, directly across the hall you’ll see these signs:
Nearby there are several of your typical airport currency exchanges and ATM machines. Exchange, or better yet, take out about $1000HKD (about $130USD; the current exchange rate is roughly $7.80HKD to the US dollar — check here for the latest), which should last you a good few days in HK.
Just in front of the trains you’ll see these ticket machines. Depending on the location of your hotel, buy the appropriate single or roundtrip ticket. Fares below:
- Kowloon: $90HKD/$11.50USD Single-trip / $160HKD/$20.50USD Round-trip
- Hong Kong: $100HKD/$13USD Single-trip / $180HKD/$23USD Round-trip
More information about the MTR can be found here.
The trains are fast, no-frills, and they show up every 12 minutes. They only make three stops; Tsing-Yi, Kowloon, and Hong Kong. Onboard, you’ll find this handy progress meter:
The Kowloon stop is actually in the relatively new development of West Kowloon, rather than where your hotel probably is, which is Tsim Sha Tsui further to the south and east, about a 5-10 minute cab ride away. If you’re staying in HK, the HK stop on the MTR is below the ifc (International Finance Centre) in Central (for fans of the latest Batman movie, this is the building in Hong Kong that Batman goes batgliding off of). Here’s the MTR map.
Whether you’re arriving at the Kowloon or Hong Kong stops, you’ll see taxi stands near the exits. Now, this part is important, important, important. Many, if not most taxi drivers in post-colonial HK don’t speak much English, so be sure you have your hotel name, in both English and Chinese, and perhaps a map or a photo printed out on something that the cabbie can read. It sounds absurd, but it’s happened too many times to us to count, and it really totally sucks, coming upon hour-18 or -20 into your trip only to faceplant with the finish line in sight!
Taxis are stupid cheap in HK, so don’t worry too much about dough. For the short ride to your hotel should be maybe 3-5 clams US. Total elapsed time from boarding the train: 35-45 mins.
Departure.
In short, you do the reverse of the above, with one particularly awesome twist: Free In-Town Check-In Service.
So say the scenario is this: you’re getting kicked out of your hotel and you’re dragging all your bags around, your flight doesn’t leave til the evening but you still have a few things to check out in the city — what to do? In-town check-in, that’s what.
After heading down to the trains in either Kowloon or Hong Kong, you’ll see something like the following; an airport check-in area:
One which works much like its counterpart at the actual airport. To gain access to the desks, use your round-trip MTR card (or purchase another single-trip ticket if you didn’t get one when you arrived).
Et voilà — you are baggage-free once again!
Once you are ready to head back to the airport, just descend one more level to the trains …
November 27, 2008 at 10:29 pm · Filed under Shopping
One of the primary draws of showing up in Hong Kong is to have a suit made to measure. Another, related draw, is coming to Hong Kong and getting garments you own copied in whichever fabric you choose. Topping this is having only to pay Chine$e prices.
Bespoke culture is pervasive in Hong Kong, having arrived via Shanghai following the communist takeover over of China in the late forties. Not seeing much of a market in China with the rise of the ubiquitous Mao suit, Shanghainese tailors skipped south to Hong Kong, then still a free colony under British administration. There they found a good fit (har!), plying their wares for the bustling commercial and banking culture in HK. A half-century later and the practice is still going strong.
So, the basics: you walk into a tailor shop and you’ll get your measurements taken. Then you’ll pick out materials, and will be told when to come back for your fitting (usually the next day or the day after). For the fitting, the tailor will have constructed a rough body for you to try on. Here they’ll fine tune, marking places to take in, areas to loosen up, etc. Depending on the place, there may or may not be a third fitting, but generally your suit should be ready by the next day. If you’re not around to pick it up, they’ll ship it out to you. Overall, the turnover is around 3-4 days, and the average cost for getting a full suit with slacks made is $300-400USD. A bespoke shirt is usually around $50USD.
And now, a few tips. HK tailors have been doing this for years and years, and thereby have a very established mental model for what a suit is. If you have a different idea, or want to tweak some details, it may blow some minds. The best practice is to bring a photo of something you want to have reproduced, or better yet, bring in a shirt/pants/suit that you own and love, and have them copy the cut exactly. The key thing to remember is to be insistent if you have a strong idea of what you want!
Which tailor to go to? There are hundreds to choose from, most of them located in Kowloon. The fancier ones will be located in, around or below the hotels in Tsim Sha Tsui, while the cheaper guys will be scattered along Nathan Road further north. The cheapest of all ($150-200USD for a full suit) will be located a train ride away in Shenzhen in China, although like anything in life (and in regards to products made in China!), caveat emptor …
There are a couple that Meredith and I have used that we’ve been fairly happy with. Amigo Tailor and Ricky’s Tailor are both located in the New World Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui. See below:
Of the two, Amigo is more amenable to direction, but Ricky’s makes really good men’s slacks. Both are priced equivalently, and turn things around fairly quickly (Amigo may be a tad quicker) …
November 27, 2008 at 8:58 pm · Filed under Knowing
We’ve gotten some questions about prepaid SIM cards to use to communicate while in HK. And the good news is, this is very easy to do.
There are at least three major cellphone providers with bricks and mortars everyplace, selling pay-as-you-go SIM cards; these are PCCW, Vodaphone and Peoples (though there are more). Also, every 7-Eleven in the city — and there are tons of them — sell, if i recall, in $50HKD increments, which is about $7USD, and is more than enough for a few days of random ‘where you at’-type conversations. I highly recommend doing this — it is easy and cheap compared to using your US-based service while abroad. You can still do that, but it’s insanely expensive — for you and for others!
Just bring your unlocked GSM phone and swap out your US SIM card with the prepaid HK card, and you’re set. ‘Official’ T-Mobile, ATT, and Verizon (but not Spring/Nextel unfortunately!) phones will be need to be ‘unlocked’. I’m not super-clear on this process, but there are ways … If you don’t want to mess with your phone, are on a non-GSM provider, or own an iPhone, you should bring an older phone or buy a disposable one when you get there. We have a couple of junked unlocked Nokias we’ll bring along too.
Lastly, our HK mobile phone number is 6579.8187 — give us a buzz when you arrive!
October 9, 2008 at 12:45 pm · Filed under Sleeping
Still looking for affordable places to stay? Here are a few more leads …..
Behold, the Cityview Hotel in Kowloon, near the Yau Ma Tei subway stop. Here is the Tripadvisor review for your edification …
Rates for the end of December/early January list dates $935/990HKD, which works out to about $120-130USD per night.
And here is the Dorsett Seaview.
Check out their website for special webdeals — that last we checked, it was $750-850HKD ($97-110USD) per night for the time around NYE and the festivities. Between the Jordan and Yau Ma Tei subway stops, t’s a little closer to Tsim Sha Tsui.
Here are the Dorsett’s Tripadvisor reviews.
October 9, 2008 at 7:29 am · Filed under Knowing
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT: Hahaha, ok, my bad — this was stoopid. As many of you have pointed out, the date on the invite (which most of you should have received by now) is not correct. FinkelChang goes down in January, not December, of 2009. Thanks for understanding, and sorry for the confusion!
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