Lamma Island irresistibly easy going and uniquely original
Hidden treasure Lamma Island a welcome change from busy city living
Lamma Island offers an easy-going lifestyle
To our delight we visited Hong Kong’s outlying Lamma Island and found its residents fully in support of independent and unique enterprises.
When you go out shopping, how often are your purchases wrapped in an unfathomable amount of plastic, a one-person game of pass the-parcel where the prize is what you have already paid for?
As environmental impacts of consumerism become an increasingly important concern, style, sustainability and the support of local businesses take on more gravity.
While visiting the tranquil seaside community we came across a few gems that reflected the unique culture of its residents.
From records to reusable materials and extraordinary items sourced overseas, Lamma Island proved to be a hidden treasure trove and a welcome change from the busy nature of city living.
On a sunny Saturday, we headed off to the outlying island, making the most of the warm weather that is Hong Kong winter.
The ferry was abuzz with hikers, families, and weekend tourists eager to explore a new corner of the city.
Upon arrival, the footpath from the ferry pier, allowing a picturesque view of rolling mountains and small boats resting near the shoreline, joined up with Yung Shue Wan main street.
Largely comprised of seafood restaurants and independent stores, Lamma’s equivalent to High Street stays true to the area’s history and standing as Hong Kong’s largest fishing site, while offering sights and goods to keep visitor interest piqued.
Not yet in the mood for food, we kept our eyes open for specific stores we were eager to explore.
In contrast to the sleek interiors and polished looks of stores in Hong Kong’s many shopping districts, Lamma’s storefronts give off a relaxed and laid-back feel that contributes to, or even perpetuates, the island’s reputation as an easy-going, “hippy” place.
After a busy week hustling at office jobs, it is likely this chill atmosphere has city slickers flocking to the slow-going community.
We followed the sea of people passing by restaurants with inviting “specials” boards and seafood tanks bearing live fish, shrimps and crabs.
Our first visit is an easy spot to miss. Though Lamma Vinyl record store lies close to the start of the main street, it is off to the side and set on the second floor of a two-storey building, located ona slight incline.
To enter, customers walk up a steep staircase. Each step is punctuated with promotional messages enticing visitors with a list of the store’s product types, which prospective customers can read as they pass by original record sleeves or promotional posters for popular retro bands such as Dexys Midnight Runner and The Beatles.
Entering the store, hundreds of records are neatly organized by a diverse range of genres, from jazz funk to canto pop and western classical.
Its widest collections include Bach, Vivaldi and jazz sub-genres. Besides vinyl records, cassette tapes and CDs are sorted from floor to ceiling.
Among the music, kitschy memorabilia in the form of old-fashioned comic strips, Russian nesting dolls, photographs of past events and record players from different eras give physical context to the periods separating the music and the intimate nature of music that makes it a universal experience able to encompass the entirety of complex human emotion.
As I came across a few gems, the store owner warmly offered to play the records on the store’s vintage sound system so that I could hear the quality. Eagerly accepting, I sat on a high stool while the first record, a 1920s vinyl collection of Rudy Vallee’s greatest hits, came to life.
The electric energy of big bands clearly came through, and I was excited to bring the record home to enjoy for years to come.
Our next stop was a treasure trove of unique, one-of-a-kind sustainable goods that were cute to boot.
The simple and cute mural adorning the façade of Lamma Corner enticed many customers inside. The same customers fawned over hand-painted watercolour paintings, repurposed plastic water jugs (now in the form of miniature shopping baskets), glass straws with glass-blown animal figurines attached, painted porcelain spoons from Japan, and much more.
The theme of environmental concern and personal action was manifest throughout the store, with materials such as cardboard and Styrofoam reused as store signs describing the wares on offer and as bulletin boards on which to hang wooden keychains.
Engaging and informative infographics relating to the environmental cost of waste and plastics were tacked to the walls, the perfect backdrop for the eco-friendly objects that Lamma Corner has to offer.
I purchased a one-of-a-kind printed kitchen towel, and the store owner showed off her resourcefulness by packaging it in a repurposed calendar page, now folded, and stapled to function as a shopping bag.
I stayed behind to watch as she created a new set of calendar-page shopping bags, amazed at the efficiency she has worn into the routine, with a single bag made in under a minute.
Watching her take on such unconventional and interesting ways of approaching global waste, I knew this store was one worth revisiting.
Leaving Lamma Corner, our final stop was off the beaten path. Located on one of the island’s side streets, the souvenir shop Ozen Corner was flanked by tall trees.
Selling goods sourced from Turkey, bold patterns adorn bags and purses of all shapes and sizes, silken pashmina scarves, wall hangings and tiny rugs, perfect for highlighting a specific space in Hong Kong’s infamously tiny apartments.
The fragrant aroma of Turkish coffee came from the bags of coffee beans on offer, which appropriately sat on a display next to sets of copper cups and glass coffee pots.
Jewellery patterned with the “evil eye”, most coloured in the traditional deep blue, were unique protective wards made of glass, metal and wood.
As we left Lamma Island, arms were laden with our shopping hauls, we eagerly spoke of our next trip to the refreshing community, with its bohemian atmosphere, easy-going lifestyle.
Text Victoria Mae Martyn / Photos Victoria Mae Martyn and Martin Wray
