A simple everyday item like an umbrella may seem like a trifle to most people. An umbrella was considered a luxury item in the 1950s. Nowadays, people can easily afford to buy one the moment it starts raining and probably never use it again. Although the umbrella industry is now dominated by big manufacturers and there is little room for such a rare profession to survive, many Hong Kongers used to bring their beloved umbrellas to Mr Ho Hung-hei for repair, instead of buying new ones.
Mr Ho had repaired and made umbrellas since 1947 at the Peel Street located in the bustling Central business district in Hong Kong. Despite the rarity of his profession, Mr Ho also commanded a loyal customer base around the world. He was literally the king of the umbrella. In 1994, Mr Ho broke a Guinness World Record for creating the most expensive umbrella — it was made of cow leather and sold for £167 in England. Now that’s vintage. That umbrella has been donated to the Hong Kong Museum of History. Mr Ho had passed away in July 2015. He was 87. It was a big pity that i did not have a chance to do a close-up interview with him when i travelled to Hong Kong for the past two years. His stall was always closed each time when i dropped by. I was told by the neighbouring shop owners that he retired in late 2014 due to poor health. This photo documentary (taken in 2014) is a tribute to his small humble umbrella repair store Ho Hei Kee 何希记造遮 where he had spent more than 55 years there in serving the Hong Kong community. 在日常生活中,尤其将要来临的雨季,雨伞虽看来普通不过,但却有人为之特别找专人订造,更有 人珍而重之地为爱伞不断修补。在香港,市民们总会想起中环卑利街的何洪希所提供的体贴造伞及维修雨伞服务,正好迎合这些人的执着。 何洪希以至全世界唯一一位被列为制作出全球最贵的牛皮雨伞,以167磅打入1994年的 Guinness World Record 健力士世界纪录大全。这把伞已捐赠给香港历史博物馆。 随着时代的变迁,每个城市的发展,一些别具特色的路边摊档,都一间又一间地消失。 我很遗憾没有机会为何洪希生前做个访问,听说他当时已身体不佳,无奈退休,将何希记结束。(遮,粤语方言,意思是雨伞)被誉为遮王的何洪希已在去年2015离世,享年87岁。 在卑利街,何洪希的为人和物都有着情,他曾是卑利街上活力十足的一道风景、一种情怀。无缘一面,实属可惜。以下我的图片于2014拍摄。
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It's another calling to do a walkabout around one of Singapore’s older yet charmingly quaint neighbourhoods, Dakota Crescent. If you had read the news, you would know by now that this estate will be demolished by the end of this year to make way for new developments under the urban renewal plans. I am sure there are many fond memories of this place bore by the previous and current generations of Singaporeans.
What I have seen that day somehow draws me back to the warmth of Singapore’s nostalgic old-world charm. In a fast-paced bustling city of modern skyscrapers, these photos are amazingly therapeutic. This photo documentary is a tribute to the soon-to-be demolished estate and serve as a resemblance to the early Singapore public housing history. 希望在任何地方的您,都能得到这一份珍贵情谊及祝福。但愿人长久 千里共婵娟。
Found this wonderful piece of street art in Singapore at People's Park Complex Level 6 Open Carpark. My documentary on the century old Tanjung Uma Village (a century-old fishing village in Indonesia with houses built over stilts) has been launched on Youtube! Some moments in life can be a reminder to all of us that the single biggest ingredient to happiness is gratitude. It took me about half my life (so far) to fully learn this lesson but it’s engrained in me now and this documentary photo trip was another dramatic additional demonstration of how it’s our attitudes, not our circumstances that define us as human beings. http://mypaper.sg/chinese-lifestyle/zou-fang-ba-dan-dao-zui-gu-lao-de-xiao-yu-cun-20140129 I hope that this documentary on a century old fishing village with houses built on stilts over the water at Batam island in Indonesia, would be a wake up call for people who keep thinking and revolving only in their own tiny world and not realising of all the things that are happening ‘outside’ their world. We are actually lucky beyond imagination. I know we all live in our own space, time and place, and to be too self-critical of our good fortune is false humility. But, this trip was a timely and healthy reminder to me of my excessive good fortune. I am blessed.
We all need reminders to appreciate life more. The historic London Court is one of the most famous sights and tourist destinations in the central business district of Perth's city. It is one of Perth’s more quirky shopping arcades that has stood the test of time. The shopping arcade was erected during the Depression period and designed in a distinctive Tudor style that gives a characteristic Old English feel. The whole alley has a lot to offer and as you enter you find yourself transported back to 16th century’s Tudor times and it is hard to belief you are in Perth, Western Australia and not in London. With cobble stone streets and Elizabethan style architecture, it is a popular tourist area, a lovely shopping arcade, full of old world charm, and lots of unique little specialty shops.
Built as a combination of residential and commercial premises incorporating Tudor design elements and a replica of Big Ben at the entrance, London Court attracts international visitors with its unique architecture nestled under the contrasting sky scrapers. |
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