Asia
FOTO FRIDAY: TUNG TAK PAWN SHOP, HONG KONG
Every Friday I’ll be sharing a photo from someplace in my travels.
This week’s photo is of Tung Tak in Hong Kong.
Pawn shops have seemingly found a recent resurgence thanks to popular TV shows like “Pawn Stars”. Even though they might not be as common in the US, you can still find a handful in every major city, but in Hong Kong it’s quite the opposite. Almost every neighborhood has one, if not two, pawn shops. This really surprised me until I found that pawn shops actually originated in Asia.
Despite this, the shops here are fairly different from their western counterpart. There is a lot of psychology and a strict etiquette associated with pawning, and even the layout of the shop is unique. Most shops in Hong Kong are still housed in pre-war, historic shophouses and have a history of over 100 years.
These multi-story buildings are often hand-painted with traditional verandahs and old-style windows. Pawn shops are easily distinguishable by their giant neon signs shaped as upside-down bats holding a coin, which represents that good fortune has arrived. Located in Wan Chai, the Tung Tak is one of the best-preserved examples of these shops, and is beautiful when illuminated by the red and green hues.
