IMAGES OF HK: TEMPLE STREET circa 2011

Last Christmas 2011, we stayed in Jordan and one of the interesting places in Jordan is Temple Street!

We see Mc Donalds... we are now approaching Temple Street...

This is one of the souvenir shops as soon as we enter Temple Street.
But of course, there are also lots of souvenirs in the night market just a few meters away.

This is Temple Street as described in Wikipedia.

Temple Street is a street located in the areas of Jordan and Yau Ma Tei in Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is known for its night market and one of the busiest flea marketsat night in the territory. The night market is in the Yau Ma Tei, Jordan part of the street and not the Mong Kok part of the street. Popular with tourists and locals alike in the evening, it is common to see the place crowded at dusk. It sells cheap merchandise and food items. The place is sometimes known as Men's Street.

This is another description of Temple Street from: http://www.time.com/time/travel/cityguide/article/0,31489,1850110_1850124_1850397,00.html

HONG KONG: 10 THINGS TO DO by LIAM FITZPATRICK
This rowdy thoroughfare in central Kowloon starts at Temple Street's junction with Jordan Road, terminates five blocks north on Kansu Street and looks like every B-movie director's dream of Chinatown. Under the glare of bare light bulbs, hawkers flog everything from bizarre patent medicines to counterfeit watches. Prostitutes work the low-rise tenements, fortune-tellers cluster by the multistory car park and impoverished Chinese opera troupes busk for a few dollars just outside the public toilets. Outdoor food stalls display still-twitching, unnameable crustacea and old men and junkies gamble on games of Chinese chess in the concrete square outside the eponymous temple. Ghetto heaven. (Nearest MTR: Jordan or Yau Ma Tei)

Night market at the background

just like our "tiangges"

The night markets really look like our "tiangges" and you can haggle in these places. But for me, haggling is someone else's talent! 
Especially, if you are haggling with someone who doesn't understand your language!
Just make sure you know the base prices of what you want to buy... in the Philippines and in Hong Kong, then, make your move. And of course, be ready to BUY, after all the haggling!
  

But, we really did not go for the night market! We went to try out the well known Chinese cuisine, hawkers style, just like in Malaysia, where we ate at the side streets.

We saw the sign Temple Street Spicy Crabs!
You would be amazed at how many people go there to eat... for tourists and even for HongKong people. 
And they usually have a large beer with their meals, even for the ladies in the table near us!

We waited for our table in the middle of the street

from Wikipedia:

The night market is famous for its snacks and roadside dining, which serves local street cuisine. It sells a wide range of delicious local delicacies.

There are also lots of restaurants selling seafood. These hot pots can be perfect for an intimate dinner. They are delicious as well as cheap. All of these culinary delicacies represent Hong Kong's traditional and unique food culture.

So, we sat and chose our food. Since we were all new at this, we decided to check out what the other table ordered, and also what sounded familiar!

see the large beer bottles in the table near us...
and also in the other tables at our back.

of course, use chopsticks!

So, I just want to share with you what we ate here in Temple Street.

Clams in oyster sauce 

Chinese vegetables

Beef with vegetables

Fried Tofu

Chili Prawns

just a close up of the chili with the prawns!

If you are not into the hawkers type, the surroundings of the place wasn't that good, BUT, the food was reaaaalllllly GREAT!


As they say, to have the ambience of a Chinatown, as in the movies, Temple Street is one place to be in!