Open-air markets are quite similar to the booths at county fairs. These markets are a large part of Hong Kong’s unique shopping experience. Often, students are found wandering around these markets looking for all types of items, or simply just looking.

The most popular street market is the Ladies’ Market. It is two to three blocks long and the stands are set up in the middle of the street. The only thing separating one stall from the next is a flimsy wall divider, and each stand is allotted a crowded rectangle of about 10 feet by five feet. These dividers are the only walls in the market, which means there is little to protect the stands from elements such as rain.

The markets may have little protection from the weather, but the narrow aisle between the stands is constantly filled with tourists and even more local residents. Everyone here has to push everyone else out of the way in order to maneuver about the cramped market.

The youth speak Cantonese slang to each other, mothers clutch the hands of their children and the tourists walk around with their backpacks swinging everywhere. This makes the atmosphere seem impatient, closed in and slightly chaotic.

Outside the middle aisle and inside each stall, there is usually a folding table overflowing with items such as imitation name brands, tacky souvenirs and cheap jewelry. There is a plethora of Louis Vuitton and Gucci purses filling the tables of many stalls. Others have boxes full of things such as Hong Kong ashtrays and lighters with Mao Tse-tung on them. The stalls with jewelry shine lights on their tables to make the fake diamonds even shinier.

Other stalls sell clothing. Pants and shirts hang down off of racks and ropes at the top, making it look as though these articles of clothing are suspended in mid-air. There are also shirt displays that consist of nothing but a rack along the wall divider, and shirts haphazardly hung so that it looks like the shirts make up the wall.

The souvenirs and clothes may be enticing, but the best thing I have found is the pirated CDs and VCDs. Many vendors make copies of popular Chinese and American CDs and then sell them on the street for as little as a $1.50. Besides CDs, they sell copies of VCDs. These usually have the latest movies on them. Even “Lord of The Rings” is being sold on the street. These items have replaced the need for things such as Napster here in Hong Kong.

Within each stall resides a persistent vendor that tries to beckon people to his displays by yelling things at the crowd of customers. The vendors are of all ages from 20 to 60, but most are middle-aged. They are the society’s rougher people. Many smoke and have cracked voices. Their faces show they’ve endured street living for a long time. They seem to be the people that are well-practiced at living a lifestyle where their goal is to simply survive each day.

Since their survival depends on the sales they make, each vendor is desperate to make that sale, telling his customers anything to convince them to buy from his stand. If they see someone looking at an item, they will immediately approach that person and try to bargain a price so that they may make a sale. Their favorite line is something like “This item is this price, but for you it is cheaper,” or “there is a special price for you.”

They are often insulted if the customer does not purchase anything, and will try to keep the consumer at their stall as long as possible and, on occasion, they will yell threats at someone if they do not buy the item that they are looking at.

At the street corner, right next to the market, there is always street food for those who want to take a break from shopping. This usually consists of fish balls or some other type of seafood on a stick. Fish balls are exactly like meatballs, only with fish meat instead of beef. All the food at these stands sits out in the open and waits to be cooked. Everything is cooked the same way – fried in a big vat of oil. There are also vendors that sell fresh juice. This is squeezed from things such as watermelon and sugar cane, right before the buyer’s eyes.

Shopping at a department store is a nice atmosphere where I can relax, whereas shopping at the street markets is a perpetual adventure. I must always be aware of my surroundings so I don’t get pushed over by the crowd. I must also be wary of the vendors and learn their bargaining tactics so I can get the best deal. Shopping elsewhere can be a lot more convenient; however, there isn’t an experience quite like the street markets.

Ariel Ringlein is a junior in management from Guthrie Center. She is in Hong Kong for a semester as part of the ISU study abroad program.