The sound of Tic Tacs rattling in their plastic compartments reminds me of the historic double decker tramways that run though Hong Kong island. I always had Tic Tacs on me when I was here as a kid, often the orange ones but sometimes also the white. This, in turn, reminds me of the heat, the dust, the lack of air condition and the principle of the phrase, “you get what you pay for.”

Established in 1904, the Hong Kong electric tram is possibly the cheapest (and slowest) form of public transportation on the island. Routes run west to east and back from Kennedy Town to Shau Kei Wan with an additional route running south to Happy Valley. Simply get on the tram and pay when you get off. It’s not incredibly complicated.

Thankfully, I’m no longer a bratty kid and, even more thankfully, Hong Kong wasn’t a steaming hole of humidity during my last visit. Armed with my Olympus E-PL2, I captured the experience of riding the double decker car from its most eastern stop at Shau Kei Wan to Central, the heart of downtown and financial Hong Kong. There’s even a photo below of the street vendors who curse your enemies for a price (third photo from the bottom, left of the middle).

The video above is also the longest YouTube video I’ve ever made! If you like it, please friend me on YouTube.

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