Disappearing HK: Ngau Tau Kok

I am one of many many (mostly young people) arriving at NTK today to capture these soon-to-disappear images of HK. Like many other old public housing estates, Lower NTK 牛頭角, built in 1960s, will be torn down soon. The brand-new Upper NTK Block are already standing next to the older, shorter Lower Block

Inside NTK Estate, there's no 7-11, no ParkNShop. Instead, you see the true momNpa's, selling everything from clothes, dried food, to stationery. Most are facing outwards to the streets/pedestrian walks, but you can also see the back from the dark alleys that run through the whole estate. There are a surprisingly large number of barber shops. And there are tons of street/food vendors. There are atriums and large spaces in between blocks, with benches, trees, and parks for kids. Shops and restaurants are intervened into the residential blocks

Was surprised to see some many coming to take pictures. So are they just photo enthusiasts that wont give up any chance to take out their cameras, or they really want to record a part of HK's disappearing past? Are they there for their "assignments" from schools, or there because they will miss this place, and respect the past, and the contribution it made to HK? So do young people in HK embrace these "HK culture and values", or such nostalgia is just a fad that will pass? If we are optimistic for a while, what can we count on our younger generation to do, and what sort of cultural fabric will they weave to make the new HK?

There's nothing wrong with redevelopment. Older bldgs should make way for newer ones, to improve living conditions for all. What's interesting is -- so HK will get yet another LINK-run air-con shopping mall, with the same shops; and people will move into brand-new high-rises, with their doors tight shut so they dont even know who's their next-door neighbor?