The Sparrows of Hong Kong
Chancing upon Hong Kong’s unseen domestic workers
I heard them long before I saw them; the twittering of voices, so happy, so light, rising to a deafening crescendo as I came closer. Walking back from the Star Ferry to Central involved a series of raised walkways. These connect the high-rise malls and expensive hotels while providing safe access over the road. Indeed, a day can pass in Hong Kong without ever descending to street level.
Hong Kong is a city for walking. In a place perennially crowded and which I have visited so many times since I was a child, yet, amazingly I still discover new places, whether it be in a side street or in full view. It’s so tempting to always revisit old favourites, yet in a place which has survived by continual reinvention, there is always something new — or very old — to find.
The Star Ferry is a classic example. These iconic ferries once ran from the pier at Edinburgh Place, Central, where the clock tower makes the white building a classic landmark. Built in 1957 on land reclaimed from the harbour, Edinburgh Place was itself demolished between 2006 and 2007 for yet more land reclamation. It was reached by a vast…
