Late Wednesday afternoon / Early Wednesday evening / Three weeks ago
I walk down Lancashire Road (蘭開夏路) – although “down” gives neither me nor you any real sense of direction. But then again, I haven’t made any plans.
This is still Kowloon Tong (九龍塘), as evidenced by the large, recently-constructed apartments that tower to my left. The street and sidewalk are both fairly quiet; only the occasional student and/or jogger pass by from time to time.
The road curves into another direction before beginning to slope downhill. The sidewalk follows in due fashion, and I can feel my strides lengthening with each step.
Past Inverness Road, however, things begin to change. The apartments in the distance look more aged than the ones I’ve been passing. A sign points straight ahead toward Kowloon City (九龍城). Traffic becomes more audible, almost suddenly. And soon, that dull din that’s become characteristic of Hong Kong emerges.
But wait: “Kowloon City (九龍城)?” Isn’t this just Kowloon all over again – the flashing lights, the roar of engines, the clouds of cooking steam, the noisy chatter of pedestrians?
Not quite. This is, after all, Kowloon City.
The Hong Kong Project 