It is very sad

O has been asking for a trip to Artland - an art supplies store in Wanchai - for weeks now and nothing has happened. He wanted to get "tint screen" and "Graphix paper" - items I have never heard of before. Realistically the trip will not materialize anytime before the X'mas holidays, so on Saturday I decided to find art supply stores which are nearer to us and make a trip there with him.

Google tells me there is one in Taipo on Kwong Fuk Road! Which is just a 15 minute walk from us. It is called "Contemporary art supplies". Then there are two others on Sai Yee Street in Mongkok, quite near the KCR (this was Saturday, so there was still a KCR) exits. If Contemporary sucked, I thought, we could go to the Taipo Market station and go to Mongkok.

And man, did it suck BIG TIME! The shop was just slightly bigger than my office, at the end sat the shop keeper, an older man wearing thick rimmed glasses, reading a book. He didn't move AT ALL the whole time we where there. The shop was not lit by any artificial light, and there was a cloth draped over the shop front window (to prevent discolouration of the goods by UV rays I guess). So, obviously, it was pretty dark in there. The wares, JESUS CHRIST! I have never in a shop in Hong Kong seen such dust over goods for sale! Everything was covered in dust, EVERYTHING.

Me and O just looked at one another and O said "shall we ask the man if they sell tint screen?" I said "honey, I don't think they sell that kind of stuff here" "how do you know? Maybe they keep it behind the counter". "Son, I think tint screen wasn't even invented when they last changed their stock".

And so, we left. Very disappointed.

Of course we found what we were looking for in the shops in Mongkok. And by the way, Kwong Yick on 169 Sai Yee Street sells tint screen for $8 per sheet CHEAPER than the shop around the corner, Hong Kong Art Professional supplies. The staff were much more helpful also. But my point is, it would have been so much nicer if that little shop on Kwong Fuk Road had smelt less like death. If the shopkeeper had made even a little effort, if he had bothered to dust off the goods a little, I would be so happy to buy something, anything, from him.

Perhaps he is waiting for the street to be re-developed.