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Dear Mr. Know-It-All,<br />
Mr. Know-It-All’s<br />
Guide to Life<br />
The word “wet market” was just added to the Oxford English<br />
Dictionary. But why are they called “wet markets”? – Wet Wally<br />
My Perfect<br />
This is one of those answers that is totally straightforward:<br />
Because of all the moisture. Because of the water spritzed on<br />
vegetables to keep them looking fresh, because of the tanks<br />
holding the fresh fish, because of the stalls which are hosed<br />
down at the end of a long day, scrubbed out to make way for<br />
the next day’s goods.<br />
In Cantonese wet goods, “sup for” ( 濕 貨 ), means<br />
“fresh produce”—as opposed to dry goods, “gon for”<br />
( 乾 貨 ), which entails everything from tinned goods to sweets<br />
to dried fish and Chinese herbs. A wet market specializes in<br />
fresh produce, although of course in practice the distinction,<br />
especially in streetside markets, is rather less fine.<br />
Hong Kong’s wet markets arose from China’s agrarian<br />
society. Farmers would be largely self-sufficient, but for the<br />
goods they couldn’t grow or make themselves, they’d have<br />
to barter for them: Hence the rise of market days, when the<br />
countryside would come together to buy what they needed,<br />
or trade away their excess. There are records of one of these<br />
“periodic markets” in Yuen Long as early as the 1500s.<br />
As Hongkongers moved away from farming and into<br />
more specialized trades, the markets became permanent.<br />
They began to occupy official buildings as well as streets—<br />
and the city’s first official wet market is also its most tragic.<br />
A Central Market of some kind stood in the same spot<br />
since 1842, sandwiched in-between Jubilee and Queen<br />
Victoria Streets in Central. Once a grand Victorian structure,<br />
the building is now in at least its third iteration: A less<br />
attractive Bauhaus edifice built in 1938. But in its heyday, the<br />
Central Market was the biggest meat market in Southeast<br />
Asia—a nexus for the entire city’s next meal (less glamorously,<br />
it also hosted the first female public toilet in Hong Kong).<br />
But as times moved on, wet markets sprang up closer<br />
to residential areas and supermarkets rose to prominence.<br />
Central Market fell out of favor, and was finally closed for<br />
good in 2003. These days one narrow section of the market<br />
serves as the Link Alley, that ugly bit we walk through<br />
between IFC and the Central Mid-Levels Escalator.<br />
The glory days of the market are long past. Revitalization<br />
projects are often mooted, but nothing much has been done<br />
for more than a decade. A promising “floating oasis” design<br />
fell apart. A new cheaper plan was finally approved in March<br />
this year, with a projected completion date of 2020.<br />
It’s a poor legacy for a building that was once the city’s<br />
lifeblood. But perhaps that’s the inevitable fate of the wet<br />
market: Washed out at the end of the day, scrubbed away to<br />
make way for the next day’s goods.<br />
The second iteration of the<br />
Central Market, built in 1895<br />
This week in My Perfect HK:<br />
Got an adorable pet? Of course<br />
you have! The SPCA Hong Kong<br />
has just opened enrolment for<br />
its 2017 cat and dog charity<br />
calendars. Sponsor your favorite<br />
furry friend to appear as a day,<br />
a month—or even on the cover—<br />
of the calendar. Best of all, your<br />
donations will go to cover the<br />
cost of living expenses for animals<br />
awaiting adoption. Deadline for<br />
entries is June 30, so check it<br />
out at spca.org.hk/calendar.<br />
Are you ready for your<br />
close up, Mr. DeMeow?<br />
Letters<br />
“ Very upset that ‘ Double Confirm ’<br />
didn’t make it in.”<br />
#PrivateEyeHK<br />
Words, words, words<br />
Responses to our viral online story (“Oxford<br />
English Dictionary Adds Hong Kong Words,”<br />
May 12) about the OED adding 13 Hong<br />
Kong English words to its database, including<br />
“char siu,” “milk tea,” “shroff”—and the<br />
extremely controversial “guanxi.”<br />
“Guanxi” is from mainland China, not Hong<br />
Kong, it is mandarin instead of cantonese.<br />
Kathy Cheung<br />
“guanxi” is not from Hong Kong.<br />
Miyuki Tse<br />
Guanxi sounds more big6 than 852<br />
Johnny Yuen<br />
Shroff. This word fucks me right off<br />
Joshua Woodley<br />
I got free parking coupon from the shroff<br />
lol no one will know wtf I’m talking about in<br />
Massachusetts<br />
Johnny Yuen<br />
點 解 叉 燒 要 叫 Char Siu, 奶 茶 唔 叫 nai cha?<br />
[why is char siu called char siu, but milk tea<br />
isn’t called “nai cha”?]<br />
Andrew Chan<br />
Dai pai dong all day long<br />
SirValentin Horatiu<br />
Yes, I’m surprised and disappointed that OED<br />
could get this so wrong.<br />
Bob McNab<br />
Very upset that “Double Confirm” didn’t<br />
make it in<br />
Gordon Sanders<br />
milk tea: best drink in the world.<br />
Joey Tang<br />
Yes for Char Siu! No Gwei-Lo yet though<br />
Diego López<br />
Emax Cheung<br />
Hahahah its about time! I’m gona get some<br />
[char siu] today to celebrate.<br />
Geet Goenka<br />
This is awesome!! I once learned shroff was<br />
originally borrowed from India by the colonial<br />
English. Dai pai dong and sitting out area<br />
are total faves. Totally agree about guanxi<br />
(get your regions of “China” right OED!) Still<br />
waiting for them to add 「 他 on-the-way 了 」<br />
Dan-Xia Bossard<br />
The Dark Side—and the Light<br />
Photo by Matt Haslam / Matt Haslam Photography<br />
Need to get something off your chest? Got an amazing photo? Write us!<br />
letters@hkmagmedia.com. Letters are printed as-is (unless they need fixing).<br />
4 HK MAGAZINE FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2016
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