Nostalgia in harmony
“The only thing better than singing is more singing.” ~ Ella Fitzgerald One of the best ways to experience the city is to immerse yourself in the many…
Hongkou market
Next door, next to go
If you walked by too quickly, you would have missed her. A crowd had gathered to watch an ongoing demolition of a row of old houses. Some were…
A negotiation in bread
The jolly baker was a fixture at the market where teaming masses of human bodies bumped and jostled their way around. He always had a smile on his…
A balloon a day…
A neighborhood market can sometimes be like the beating heart where all arteries lead to, the arteries being the longtangs or alley houses that surround it. There is…
Les poissons
Best heard with Les poissons. It was an open street of poultry and seafood massacre, and a very busy day for everyone at the market. The word glee…
The promise of a leather jacket
Who doesn’t want to look as handsome as James Dean, decked out in a dangerous looking leather jacket with a fur collar? The salesmen were not ethnically Chinese,…
All they need is each other
The room could only be described as unremarkable. Enclosed by bare and washed-out walls, there was a simple bed, a table and a chest of drawers with the…
They always look so innocent
“Look at my flying dragon!” PING!! Plastic connected loudly with glass. My knees buckled and my heart literally fell to the floor. My camera lens was just attacked…
The Last Squawk
When I was growing up in Singapore, chickens were also sold live and you would get to pick them out right from their cages. A vivid memory I had…
Maneuvering through traffic
For a two-way street, Hongkou market is a smorgasbord of traffic. It is impossible to stand still in any part of the street without a car, bicycle or…
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