I haven't had a single garden tomato this year and that depresses the heck out of me.

A view of Hong Kong from my hotel.



A side street with market.



While Hong Kong was a fascinating place, every time I returned to the hotel after being out in the streets, I felt like I had to shower. The smog-laden humidity is so heavy it felt as if dirt was physically settling on my skin. The market streets were always wet with some mystery run off, and the buildings boasted layers and layers of grime.

An amusing juxtaposition of a filthy Hong Kong building and a gleaming Starbucks sign.

In addition to beautiful and exotic fruits, I am typically fascinated by the meats and seafood at foreign markets. In Italy, huge portions of beef, cured hams, and salami were displayed in cases or hanging from ceilings. It was really the most beautiful sight. It's true that tripe was popular as well, but my longing for the prosciutto and aged cheeses was far greater than any disgust I may have felt for the innards offered at the market.

In Hong Kong, meats were displayed in market booths, with butchers at the ready to prepare your desired cut. And though every piece of every animal was available, it was the lack of refrigeration that surprised me most.



A closer look at the Ox tail. At first, I thought this tail belonged to a horse!

By now, you know that I love visiting markets while I am traveling.  Past blog posts have featured the extraordinary Mercato Centrale in Florence, Italy and the many different markets of Singapore.  So, it's no surprise that I spent a lot of time exploring the street markets in Hong Kong.  They were fascinating and, at the same time, disgusting.  

While I was in HK, it seemed to be peak season for durian; the popular fruit that is so odiferous it is banned from public places including subways, malls, hotels, and even some businesses. Fruit stand workers commonly open them up, divide the fruit, and wrap the sections in plastic wrap to sell "ready-to-eat."  The market streets were heavy with the stench of this fruit. Travel and food writer Richard Sterling writes in his book The Traveling Curmudgeon:

... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia.

By my last day on the island, I could barely stomach a stroll through these streets. 

Durian: Spiny and center stage.

Aside from the stink, Asian fruit stands are beautiful. Click photos to enlarge.