Stanley Market is one of the "Top 25" tourist destinations in many of the travel books we've read. My first impression of it in February when we visited was that it was a complete tourist trap. I was sure that people who live here wouldn't shop there. That's definitely not the case.
Since Hong Kong lacks stores like Target where you can buy everything from celery to sandals under one roof, Stanley Market functions as the neighborhood super store. (Note to public works aficianados: the white dot with arrows surrounding is a traffic circle! There are no landscaped medians here...but they still seem to function!)
As a person who doesn't really like to shop, I have always gravitated toward places that are well lit, clean, and have merchandise organized in a logical fashion - that way I can grab and go as quickly as possible. To survive, I have to get over those details...
Stanley Market certainly is an unconventional shopping experience. It's a series of hundreds of little shops (some no larger than a closet!) all cobbled together with a mish-mash of roofs - some plastic, some corrugated metal. In some areas, the roofs have limited utility. If it rains, water pours in and shop keepers cover most of the merchandise with plastic or close until it stops raining.
As a person who doesn't really like to shop, I have always gravitated toward places that are well lit, clean, and have merchandise organized in a logical fashion - that way I can grab and go as quickly as possible. To survive, I have to get over those details...
Stanley Market certainly is an unconventional shopping experience. It's a series of hundreds of little shops (some no larger than a closet!) all cobbled together with a mish-mash of roofs - some plastic, some corrugated metal. In some areas, the roofs have limited utility. If it rains, water pours in and shop keepers cover most of the merchandise with plastic or close until it stops raining.
I would never walk down an alley to look for a store in Kansas City. But here, alleys are meant to be explored.
You really CAN get just about anything at the market - you just have to look closely. The photo below is store that is called the "Everything Store" by those who live here - you can get everything from Post-It notes to a Chinese yo-yo there. Inside, the store is tiny and it's packed from top to bottom.
This is our version of Westlake Hardware.
I haven't shopped for clothing in the market, but I've learned some of the crazy "rules" - like you can only try on clothes that aren't marked down; if it's on sale, you buy at your own risk. Lydia thinks the market is kind of fun (other than it smells funny) - you never know what you might find there!
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