Photo Essay: Life in the Slow Lane: The unlikely allure of Hong Kong’s Back Alleys

Hong Kong has a well-earned reputation as one of the most densely populated cities in the world. Stepping onto the streets that wind through the city’s canyons of concrete, glass, and steel, you can’t help but be swept along by the surging river of humanity. Going with the flow is not an option. It’s a necessity.

Refuge from the swirl of Hong Kong’s streets is surprisingly close by however. For those who dwell in the teeming inner city, escape from the madding crowds is just a few steps away. Right there in front of them, hidden in plain sight, are the city’s back alleys.

While Hong Kong’s back alleys are hardly places of conventional beauty, they are still attractive to many of the harried denizens of the city. In the clutter and claustrophobic confines of these overlooked spaces, residents find oases of peace and tranquillity. And in them a welcome escape from the unrelenting pace of Hong Kong life.

Peace and tranquility are not usually associated with urban back alleys. Alleys in most big cities around the world have a reputation for being not just dirty, they’re dangerous. But Hong Kong is an exceptionally safe city. And that reality has allowed its people to think differently about their alleys. In a city where space is such a scarce commodity, the ever adaptable people of Hong Kong have put their back alleys to good use.

Stroll down almost any alley that cuts across a busy area of the city and men and women, young and old, will be found. Some are sitting on plastic stools, abandoned chairs, or door stoops. Some are standing, backs leaning against graffitied walls. Some are smoking. Some have ducked into the relative tranquility of the alley to stare intently into their phones or make a call.

In some alleys cardboard scavengers can be found eke-ing out a livelihood. Children can be seen using the alleys as shortcuts as they navigate through their neighbourhoods. People can be seen gathering and chatting with friends and colleagues. Food and service businesses and their customers sprawl and spill into the spaces between the buildings that define the alley. Some even worship at the rough shrines that can be found in some alleys.

Hong Kong’s alleys were not originally created to be used as such social spaces. They are the result of decades of urban modernization, growth and planning. Initially known as scavenger lanes, today they are more commonly known as service lanes.

As service lanes the alleys serve many functions critical to the modern city. They act as firebreaks between buildings, and are routes for endless runs of power, water and sewer. They are crammed with the urban life support of air conditioners and ventilators. They provide routes of escape and venues for deliveries, and are inevitably odiferous locales for garbage accumulation and removal. This latter function makes back alleys the consequent home to countless scurrying creatures who thrive in the dark and greasy shadows.

Hong Kong’s back alleys are gritty, out of sight, and for many, out of mind. For the people who make use of them however, those who have repurposed these spaces of undefined ownership for their own use, they are a godsend. For them, even the briefest opportunity to spend time in the peace and quiet of a back alley is good for the soul. In this frenetic city, back alleys represent a surprisingly pleasant opportunity for life in the slow lane.

Taking a break in a Mong Kok alley
Collecting cardboard in Mong Kok
Conversation and a beer on a stoop in a Mong Kok alley
An aquarium shop that straddles an alley in Causeway Bay
A shrine in a Wan Chai alley
Customers at a snack bar in a Mong Kok alley
People gather outside a bar in a Sai Ying Pun lane
Taking a break in an alley in Mong Kok
A phone call in an alley in Mong Kok
A conversation at a kiosk in an alley in Causeway Bay
A barber in a Mong Kok alley
A Causeway Bay back alley
A shortcut down an alley in Mong Kok
A man takes a break in a Causeway Bay alley
Walking in a Mong Kok lane
A man stands in a haze of cooking smoke in Mong Kok
An alley in Mong Kok
A woman walks down an alley on a rainy night in Causeway Bay
Scavanging for cardboard in a Tai Heng alley
Closing up shop adjacent to a Mong Kok alley
A phone break in a Mong Kok alley
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