Walk Street
Countless times I've heard it said that shopping is Hong Kong's favorite sport. In the evenings and on weekends, shopping malls brim with people all wanting to 行街 (haang4 gaai1) "walk street." I have a love-hate relationship with shopping.
Tonight I went out with a few friends to engage in said sport (gotta fit in with the host culture, immaright?). We went to the Gap, and I wandered over to the jeans to take a look. I picked up a promising pair only to drop it like a hot coal after catching a glimpse of the price tag. They looked nice and all, but not $600 nice.
Maybe I should give you a little context. I grew up on Salvation Army and hand-me-downs. I don't want to pay almost a hundred US for jeans!
See that's the thing about shopping in Hong Kong. You either have more expensive Western stores where you can try things on or you have interesting local stores where you usually cannot.
Unfortunately there aren't much for thrift stores. Technically there are some around, but the pickings are slim there. Thrifting is considered pretty cool, or at least acceptable, in the States, and the chance of finding cool stuff there is quite high. The ones I've been to here have been...interesting. Especially if you have an interest in 70s menswear.
If I'm getting pants or a dress, Western stores are a necessity. When I first moved here, I did try to shop at the local stores. Tried is the key word. I found that I had been vastly mistaken my whole life. Instead of the medium I'd always thought I was, it turns out that I'm actually an Extra Large. Or Extra Extra Large.
Once, in desperation, I even asked a shop lady, "Do you have any pants in this shop that would fit me?"
She eyed me up and down.
"No." With that she was back on her phone again.
Finding shoes used to be a similar game. The shoes here tend to be on the narrow side, so I have to get a size bigger than usual. When I first moved to Hong Kong, it was almost impossible to find my size at the cheap shops. I still remember one shop lady on Fa Yuen Street. I asked her if they had a size 40, and she just started laughing. When she gave no signs of letting up, I slowly inched my way out of the shop and went to buy a bubble tea to drown my shame.
My feet suffer the most here, since there are no Payless or Famous Footwear shops here. Now it's more common to find a size 40, but the style and color could still be questionable. I sure stock up each time I go Stateside.
Now the thing I do like about the local shops is that they have interesting stuff. I just wandered through a store today that had a fried egg sweater. I mean come on. Hong Kong has all kinds of things like that you just never knew you needed. Flappy round sweater that doesn't close? Check. Black cloth mask with Korean "hahaha" on it? Check. Green rabbit slippers? Check.
The shop assistants usually range from being completely disinterested to borderline stalker. I kind of prefer the ones that ignore me, although maybe not when I'm trying to pay. Some shop assistants like to follow me around the shop, pulling things off hangers to shove in my face. I usually smile and nod at the fuchsia sweater with sequins and fringe, trying to forget the fact that she had picked one the size of a tent to shove at me.
At least it would fit! It may look terrible, but dang it, at least that fabric could fit over my body. Oh boy.
Can you see why when I say "walk street" I actually just want to walk down the street? That is until I've built up enough courage to face the fuchsia and sequins. Which will have to be soon because I badly need some new shoes.
Please keep me in your thoughts.
Tonight I went out with a few friends to engage in said sport (gotta fit in with the host culture, immaright?). We went to the Gap, and I wandered over to the jeans to take a look. I picked up a promising pair only to drop it like a hot coal after catching a glimpse of the price tag. They looked nice and all, but not $600 nice.
Maybe I should give you a little context. I grew up on Salvation Army and hand-me-downs. I don't want to pay almost a hundred US for jeans!
See that's the thing about shopping in Hong Kong. You either have more expensive Western stores where you can try things on or you have interesting local stores where you usually cannot.
Unfortunately there aren't much for thrift stores. Technically there are some around, but the pickings are slim there. Thrifting is considered pretty cool, or at least acceptable, in the States, and the chance of finding cool stuff there is quite high. The ones I've been to here have been...interesting. Especially if you have an interest in 70s menswear.
If I'm getting pants or a dress, Western stores are a necessity. When I first moved here, I did try to shop at the local stores. Tried is the key word. I found that I had been vastly mistaken my whole life. Instead of the medium I'd always thought I was, it turns out that I'm actually an Extra Large. Or Extra Extra Large.
Once, in desperation, I even asked a shop lady, "Do you have any pants in this shop that would fit me?"
She eyed me up and down.
"No." With that she was back on her phone again.
Finding shoes used to be a similar game. The shoes here tend to be on the narrow side, so I have to get a size bigger than usual. When I first moved to Hong Kong, it was almost impossible to find my size at the cheap shops. I still remember one shop lady on Fa Yuen Street. I asked her if they had a size 40, and she just started laughing. When she gave no signs of letting up, I slowly inched my way out of the shop and went to buy a bubble tea to drown my shame.
My feet suffer the most here, since there are no Payless or Famous Footwear shops here. Now it's more common to find a size 40, but the style and color could still be questionable. I sure stock up each time I go Stateside.
Now the thing I do like about the local shops is that they have interesting stuff. I just wandered through a store today that had a fried egg sweater. I mean come on. Hong Kong has all kinds of things like that you just never knew you needed. Flappy round sweater that doesn't close? Check. Black cloth mask with Korean "hahaha" on it? Check. Green rabbit slippers? Check.
The shop assistants usually range from being completely disinterested to borderline stalker. I kind of prefer the ones that ignore me, although maybe not when I'm trying to pay. Some shop assistants like to follow me around the shop, pulling things off hangers to shove in my face. I usually smile and nod at the fuchsia sweater with sequins and fringe, trying to forget the fact that she had picked one the size of a tent to shove at me.
At least it would fit! It may look terrible, but dang it, at least that fabric could fit over my body. Oh boy.
Can you see why when I say "walk street" I actually just want to walk down the street? That is until I've built up enough courage to face the fuchsia and sequins. Which will have to be soon because I badly need some new shoes.
Please keep me in your thoughts.
Can't say I am a big fan of shopping. Actually I cant stand it, but it is big here! I usually buy shorts and things like that back in Australia. The sizes here tend to be on the small side that's for sure! Nice read!
ReplyDeleteYes! I'm actually going to Australia pretty soon for a trip, and I'm hoping to hit up some thrift stores while I'm there. And thanks for stopping by!
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