Central Adventure.

Hong Kong already feels like a lifetime ago, this year has swept over me so quickly it's hard to even think about everything that's happened but I thought it would be a shame to have so many photographs from such a great trip and not get around to sharing them with you. At first I put it off because I didn't have time, then it was because my old laptop was too slow, now, I guess I haven't really got an excuse.

Because I have so many pictures, I always had an idea to blend these posts in with other content but when I didn't get around to writing much else, I just put them on the back burner.

These are from a long day in Central, the main part of Hong Kong island. It included a visit to a temple, discovering my new favourite place in Hong Kong, the PMQ, taking in street art and hiking up to the Hong Kong Zoological & Botanical Gardens before taking it all in again by boat.


[Man Mo Temple, 126 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong]
There are lots of Man Mo Temples across Hong Kong but the one on Hollywood Road is the largest. It houses hundreds of huge incense coils which were great to photograph, we did have to mind the falling ash though!









I love that despite being so dense and urban, there are still nods to Hong Kong's almost-tropical roots and rather than chopping some trees down, they're still there, making themselves known.

Old Police Married Quarters (PMQ)

PMQ, 35 Aberdeen St, Central, Hong Kong.
Without a doubt my new favourite place in Hong Kong. ♥

A complex rich with heritage, from its time as the first government school in Hong Kong to being occupied by the Japanese to just a place to live for junior police officers and their families, the PMQ is now establishing itself as the creative hub of Hong Kong, showcasing a range of independent shops, art exhibitions and places to eat.


From that description alone, it should be pretty easy to see why I fell in love so hard. I wish there were more places like it in the UK, which is why I mentioned being so pleased about the OXO Tower taking on a similar idea (long may it continue to develop).

I felt like I noticed more of the endless Chanel/Gucci/Other Designer Things train than ever before so to find somewhere full of unique shops that were either standalone or part of much smaller chains stocking things that I could actually think about affording made a nice change.

If you're ever in that part of the world, it's more than worth a visit, for the visual merchandising inspiration alone!



Wish I could have done the VM in Open Quote justice, it was probably the most perfect bookshop.







Everything is a candle at Glue Associates.



Naturally the white + teal facade was the PMQ's main appeal as a space.



Hong Kong is the most vertical place in the world so pockets of green space are always welcome.








It really goes to show that modernisation doesn't have to mean tearing down and actually, using the history can make somewhere mean so much more. The main thing the PMQ does that I feel is so brilliant is providing such a great opportunity to emerging artists and start-ups with a seemingly lesser city price tag.

I just want to know why everywhere isn't doing this, everyone should be doing this, right? RIGHT?