“Chungking Mansions is the sum of all fears fears for parents whose children go backpacking around Asia. In the heart of one of the world’s richest and glitziest cities, its drawcard of cheap accommodation has long been matched by the availability of every kind of vice and dodgy deal, not to mention its almost palpable fire and health risks” 1
"Time magazine has called it the best example of globalisation in action. The Economist has compared it to the Spaceport Cantina in the original Star Wars movie. It has even starred in a Locked Up Abroad episode."2
Sounds gnarly… I’ve got to check this place out.
In reality, Chungking Mansions really isn't that bad but it comes with both a mysterious and misunderstood history. An abbreviated history from the book Ghetto at the Center of The World: Chunking Mansions by Gordon Matthews goes a little sumpthin' like this:
Constructed in 1961, Chungking Mansions has long been a “a ghetto at the center of the world,” where its cheapness, ease of entry into Hong Kong for many in the developing world and proximity to Chinese manufacturing has allowed the mansions be the center of globalization for third world countries. The construction of the building made it shoddy from the beginning with poor wiring that frequently led to fires when AC loads were placed upon it. Elevators would stop halfway between floors and fire escapes were nearly impossible to navigate with the compartmentalized construction that segmented each floor. Throw on top that the building ownership was decentralized and lacked incentive for improvements, which allowed for the building to become dilapidated rather quickly. Despite its prime location, the buildings physical shortfalls depressed rent prices and opened up an unique clientele.
Chungking's clientele consists of traders, owners, illegal workers, asylum seekers, sex workers, heroin addicts and backpackers like myself. It can be quite difficult for people of third world countries like Pakistan, Nigeria, Zimbabwe or Bhutan to enter another foreign country without a visa or paper work but Hong Kong will allow them in for either 14, 30 or 90 days. This short window allows them to get started on their asylum process or to just stay here and work illegally. And the only place the people from these countries that has rent cheap enough or owners to take the risk on foreign labor is at Chungking Mansions.
The mansions are also the worlds largest Radio Shack too. An estimated 20% of African mobile phones have passed through the mansions. While nobody in the USA uses Nokia cell phones anymore, they're the latest rage in Africa. People in countries like Nigeria will pack up their lives savings into a suitcase and return with a suit case of phones from the mansions, hoping to strike it rich by selling them back at home. Whether it'd be people seeking asylum or trading phones, Chungking Mansions is no different than the thousands of people who move to LA to become a movie star... Only a few of the thousands with hopes and dreams actually have their dreams become a reality.
Onto my experience...
The building is literally blocks away from the designer Prada stores and right in the center of town. Here's a view from the outside.
The front entrance will have annoying Indian guys trying to be your tailor. Then there is an elevator like many other Hong Kong buildings with the list of tenants next to it. For other buildings I had found that many of the best restaurants may be tucked away on some upper floor, and these signs are the only marketing it has to the sidewalk public.
On the first and second floors were cell phone shops, currency exchangers, luggage stores and the occasional restaurant that served what looked like day old curry dishes.
I ended up staying a night at one of the finer establishments known as the Chungking House Deluxe Hotel. When I showed up, the store owner was a Chinese man sleeping in the middle of the lobby on a cot who was quite unhappy to be woken up. Just a note, the Chinese places are known to be way cleaner than the places owned by Indians at the mansions. What a surprise :0
Random sandals found in the hotel room.
AC Included
Behind these windows were a 8'x8'x17 story chute
Now you can also be suckered into booking a hostel at Chungking mansions without even knowing it. Here's a view of hostels at the mansions on Hostel World, many of which don't make note that they are staying at such a dilapidated place.
It's difficult to find reviews on these places because after a couple weeks, they change their name on Hostel World so that people don't see the negative reviews.
Finally, supposedly there are some awesome curry places on the 3rd and 4th floor. I tried to find them but again the shoddy, compartmentalized construction made them impossible to find.
Really the mansions weren't as crazy as what I expected them to be. Many of the prostitutes and heroin addicts have been kicked out after security was hired under a revitalized ownership structure in 2005.
All in all, the story was more interesting than the mansions, but I survived and I can now check it off the bucket list.
1 http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/Vice-HQ-gets-facelift-but-its-only-skin-deep/2005/05/10/1115584956620.html
No comments:
Post a Comment