Dear Vicky: My Rented Neighbourhood

Hello, everyone! I am back on the Emerald Isle. It’s been a blurry five weeks in Hong Kong, and now everything suddenly slows down.

I am still sorting through the photos I took during the trip. I shot a bunch of digital 0s-and-1s, and 12 rolls of film, which, admittedly isn’t a lot, way fewer than I would’ve liked, but considering I was on child duty most days there, it wasn’t too bad. Out of the 12 rolls, four are black and white, and 8 colours. This ratio is unusual for me, but I have my reasons, and hopefully, you’d agree once you see the photos. I sent in my final 4 rolls of film for development on the day of my flight, and I got scans of two rolls before I got to the airport. I am gonna start shipping my films for development at my Hong Kong lab, which offers faster turnaround, better quality at much lower cost than anything I could find in Dublin. So why not!

One of the highlights of this Hong Kong trip happened on last Friday, two days before my departure. I decided to go for a longer run on the promenade on Hong Kong island. My plan was to run to the waterfront from my hotel in Fortress Hill and head west towards Kennedy Town and then turn around, run the whole promenade to the east end of the island then back to my hotel. The run ended up to be 24 kilometres in total. When I first reached the Central waterfront, one of the busiest touristy spots in the city, I saw a man in full black outfit shooting photos with a tripod. His camera caught my eye, a Hasselblad 907x with a vintage lens. I slowed down-well, duh- and I noticed the man was wearing a black mask. It took me a second to realise that the man was none other than Mr. Chow Yun Fat, one of Hong Kong’s most beloved movie stars ever. The man’s a legend. He says he’s gonna donate all his money; he takes the MTR and minibuses, shops at wet markets like a normal person. He’s also an avid photographer and hiker. Not wanting to disturb him while he composed his shots, I stopped a few meters beside him and behind his camera. He acknowledged me when he saw me wave at him. A local man recognised him, too, and began loudly announcing his intention for chitchat as he approached Mr. Chow. In a flash, the guy got into an uncomfortably close proximity to Mr. Chow and his tripod. Mr. Chow told the man in a whisper not to get into his shot, and he could get a selfie once the exposure was done. He sounded very polite, with a hint of impatience. After he finished his shot, he moved his tripod and camera back from the waterfront. He gestured for the guy for a selfie. He took over the man’s phone, shot a selfie, and sent the man on his way. He then turned to me, to see if I’d like a selfie too. I gave him my phone, he told me to step forward and took the photo. I left him in peace after saying thank you. And there’s the photo. The run was worth it.

And now on to photos taken by me a non-famous person.

These photos were shot on Kodacolor 200.

Morning light on a building.

Lady with a flower bouquet.

The Times Square crossing, the Hong Kong one.

Another crossing, North Point.

Looking up.

Through a building.

Van reflection.

Yet another crossing, North Point.

A view of Vicky Harbour from an overpass.

Stairs and pipes. Maybe this should go into my pipe dream collection.

Restaurant.

More bamboo scaffolding.

Man and his dog.

Looking up again.

Man taking a break at a butcher shop.

The butcher shop.

Building, scaffolding and flag.

A circular overpass.

People and bamboo scaffolding.

And that’s it for today. Thank you for coming along for the walk. More photos from my Hong Kong trip are on the way, and some of them might even be half-decent. Fare-thee-well, till we meet again!