Blowing Water | It’s not for everyone, but Mong Kok is the real, raw and raunchy side of Hong Kong culture we should be fighting to preserve
Noisy, congested, polluted, vibrant, creative and colourful, our city is all these things and the government must protect our heritage, not turn us into another cookie-cutter metropolis with chain stores and bland malls
Hong Kong is a noisy, congested and polluted place, but it is also one of the most beloved cities in the world, and Mong Kok is a microcosm of this buzzing metropolis.
Sadly, the decision to close one of the area’s most vibrant and colourful streets – the pedestrian zone of Sai Yeung Choi Street South – was welcomed by plenty of people.
The notoriously loud street, which is free of cars during weekends and public holidays, has grown to become a hugely popular venue for performers for the past 18 years.
The initial idea to pedestrianise was to boost commerce by increasing foot traffic.
However, a lack of rules and operational structure has plunged the area into a fierce battleground for vigorous street performers, who were often accompanied by enormous speakers. This caused unbearable noise disturbance to residents and businesses nearby, while the sheer number of people who came to experience the sights and sounds inevitably raised safety concerns. Last year, police received more than 1,200 complaints from the area’s fed-up residents.