Wan Chai Ghost Stories

The three parallel roads of Star Street, Moon Street, and Sun Street sit on a steep slope above the harbor. In eighteen ninety-nine, the Hong Kong Electric Company built the city's first power station here. The plant relied on coal and…

The red brick facade of Nam Koo Terrace stands out against the dense greenery of the Wan Chai hillside. Built in the early nineteen twenties for a wealthy merchant named To Chun-man, the mansion served as a residence before the Japanese…

The Hung Shing Temple sits at the edge of the sidewalk, squeezed between modern high-rise office towers. Its bright, tiered roof and traditional incense smoke contrast sharply against the glass and steel around it. Fishermen built this…

Southorn Playground occupies a rectangular plot defined by its high chain-link fences and the constant, echoing sound of amateur football matches. It sits on land reclaimed from the harbor in the early twentieth century. Before it became a…

The Old Wan Chai Post Office is a small, L-shaped building with white walls and a pitched roof, sitting quietly at the corner of Queen's Road East. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, this corner became a place of frequent terror.…

The Blue House at Stone Nullah Lane stands out for its vibrant cobalt facade and traditional wooden balconies. Built in the nineteen twenties, this four-story tenement house originally served as a hospital for martial arts practitioners…

The Wan Chai Market building features an unmistakable curved facade of Bauhaus-style concrete, painted a bright, distinctive cream. Designed by the Public Works Department in nineteen thirty-seven, it served as the neighborhood hub for…