How to change the Temple Street into an intangible cultural trail
INTTRODUCTION
Intangible cultural heritage could be understood as “traditional culture, folklore, or
popular culture that is performed or practiced with close ties to ‘place’ and with little
complex technological accompaniment.” (McKercher & Du Cros, 2002) Intangible
heritage appears to be authentic for its natural linkage to the original cultural space.
Therefore, it arouses the tourists’ desires to experience, to “consume the intangible
heritage” (McKercher, 2007).
The focus of this essay is how Temple Street can be an intangible cultural trail,
which displays some aspects of the intangible heritage of Hong Kong, and to some
extent, offers an opportunity for tourists to experience the heritage.
PRODUCT
The product is based on the Temple Street and its cultural elements; therefore, it is
necessary to have an overview of the street and the related cultural factors. Temple
Street was built during the Qing Dynasty and was named after the Tin Hau temple
located at the middle of the street, Yung Shue Tau. The unique characteristics of the
street made it a symbol for public life in Hong Kong in 1990s and a desirable location
to shoot films. Many gangster films describe the place as a street of crime, which
makes it somewhat dangerous and mysterious in the minds of some tourists. Currently,
there are series of intangible cultural elements in the street, for instance, the
Cantonese operatic songs singing, the fortune telling, the cool tea, Chinese traditional
food, the Mah-jong playing, etc. The Vikipedia (2006) listed 22 touristic streets in
Hong Kong, and the Temple Street is undoubtedly one of them. It is worthy of noting
that the street is different from others in terms of displaying the intangible cultural
heritage, put it in another words, no other streets can have such a diversity of
intangible culture as Temple Street does. The following paragraphs discussed the
components of the trail, among which the Cantonese operatic songs singing, the
fortune telling, Leung cha are important illustrations of intangible cultural heritage.
The Temple Street might not be the only open space for Cantonese operatic songs
singing, but it indeed is the most convenient destination to access in terms of operatic
song appreciating. Apparently, the activity has been one of the characteristics of the
street, and almost can not be left out in promotion materials despite the importance
attached to it vary from media to media, from texts to texts. The street musicians hold
their mini concerts at street corners near Yung Shue Tau every night, which offer a
friendly way for vistors to appreciate the traditional art. In such an open atmosphere,
the audiences could see the back stage, namely, the bands which play their
instruments to accompany the operatic song singing. And the audience, if they like,
can have communications with the singers and the players. The preceding outdoor
operatic song singing has its counterpart, i.e. indoor singing. The difference lies in the
indoor comfortable environment, the beverage and snacks available. And the
consumers are mostly regular customers, who have a friendship, more or less, with the
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singers. The outdoor and indoor Cantonese operatic song singing offers some possible
observations in terms of the continuity of traditional culture in the urban area, a
business environment. Accordingly, this cultural phenomenon has aroused some
academic concerns (see Fang, 2004; Yang, 2005). The existence of such activities,
singing Cantonese operatic songs in a traditional way, in Hong Kong, a highly
developed metropolis, illustrates the vivid and powerful life force of the traditional art.
The sense of those activities is far more than the estimation of academics.
Besides the Cantonese operatic song singing, the fortune telling is another crucial
element of the cultural trail. Currently, this activity is in larger scale than the previous
one in terms of the number of both the stalls and customers. Fortune telling has a
history of more than four thousand years. In China the earliest letters found in the
backbone of animals are nearly all related to tell fortune in the Shang Dynasty. And
the Law of Change, a philosophy monograph written more than 2500 years before,
was also used in aid of fortune telling. During this long process, the fortune telling has
set up a set of complex rules. In short, it is a typical element of Chinese traditional
culture. Thus the fortune telling offers an opportunity to see or experience this cultural
activity, which is a way to satisfy tourists’ curiosity of local culture.
Leung cha, literally “cool tea”, was invented several hundred years ago. It is not tea
in a real sense, but a kind of herb tea to help local residents to adapt the regional
climate, mainly to defense the attack of malaria, thus keep them healthy. With the
efforts of Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macau, the culture of cool tea was
successfully included in the list of Chinese intangible cultural heritage, which makes
the market for cool tea enlarge rapidly, and also arouses more concern from visitors.
The old shop, Chunhe Tan, has been selling cool tea in Temple Street since 1930s.
The pictures of the founder were hung here and there in the shop, which, together
with the old utensils used for the process of cool tea making, adds a historical sense to
the shop. Even a visitor do not drink a cup of cool tea, he can still get some
knowledge of this special drink, and also that of an old shop selling cool tea for more
than 70 years.
The previous three components, the Cantonese operatic song, the fortune telling
and the cool tea, account for the major part of the trail in terms of intangible culture.
Besides, there are still many traditional Chinese food shops and stalls (appropriate for
casual family or friends gathering), Mah-jong lounge (which are open for visitors, and
the historical and universal recreational activity could be observed there), and
traditional Chinese clinics. Furthermore, hundreds of stalls in Temple Street run their
business from 4 pm to midnight everyday, selling kinds of articles. Finally, the Tin
Hau temple built in 1876 is one of the famous among around 60 temples in Hong
Kong dedicated to the Goddess of the Sea, Tin Hau. In front of the temple is the
public square, which is the communal heart of Yaumatei, wherein Chinese chess
players and other recreational activities can be seen.
Currently, the outdoor Cantonese operatic song singing are enjoyed by locals and
visitors, so is the case for the traditional Chinese food, the variety of goods sold by the
venders, while the cool tea shop, Mah-jong lounge, traditional diagnosis and indoor
Cantonese operatic song singing are mostly patronized by the local middle-age and
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old persons. Furthermore, the fortune tellers appear to have quite a few non-local
customers.
Most of the components of the trail can find a place in the “continuum of intangible
heritage” (McKercher, 2007):
Table 1 Trail components in the continuum of intangible heritage
Private practice in Private practice in Public practice in
private space
public space
public space
Components Mah-jong playing in Fortune telling;
Outdoor Cantonese
of the trail
the lounges;
Chinese
chess operatic song;
Traditional
Chinese playing;
Traditional Chinese
diagnosis;
Cool tea;
food.
Indoor
Cantonese Religion activities in
operatic song.
Tin Hau Temple.
Of course, the aforementioned cultural elements together are not a product in a real
sense, but only raw materials for a product, i.e. an intangible cultural heritage trail.
Currently, they are separated and not packaged. Only through synthesis and packaging
can these scattered factors be combined into a competitive and attractive product in
the tourism market.
Furthermore, the intangible cultural components mentioned above are all kept in
their “cultural space” (McKercher & Du Cros, 2002), thus the authenticity was
remained. Apart from these, the location of the Temple Street, at the heart of Kowloon
peninsular, is also a comparative advantage. Located in the urban area means it is very
convenient to access, whether purposefully or incidentally.
MARKET AND PROMOTION
According to the analysis above, the reality of the Temple Street is clear now, i.e. a
historical street with a diversity of cultural activities, mainly related to intangible
culture. The core of characteristics is Cantonese operatic song and fortune telling,
which set up a vivid image and make it different from other touristic streets.
The Cantonese operatic song singing, both indoor and outdoor, has a certain degree
of appeal to the academics with concerns to the continuity of traditional culture. But
the sense of it is far more than this. Since the singers engage in such a traditional art
in a highly developed city as Hong Kong, it has already and will continue to arouse
general interest of visitors. At any rate, it offers an opportunity to experience the local
culture, thus has a likelihood of attracting a range of cultural tourist, from the
sightseeing to the purposeful (see McKercher & Du Cros, 2002: 140).
As for fortune telling, on an empirical basis, the possible customers are centralized
by age between 20 and 40 or so who have some doubts on the future or the past and
would like to consult the fortune tellers. For instance, some young ladies came here to
get some idea about their marriage (occurred or will occur). The business of fortune
telling has already targeted a wide range of visitors, which is illustrated by the boast
of being able to speak several Chinese dialects and foreign languages by some tellers.
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This activity has certain appeal to the tourists from the eastern cultural circle. And a
few western curious visitors are potential customers.
Apart from the core of the product, attractions can also be seen in terms of other
cultural activities, such as the cool tea, the Chinese traditional diagnosis, the
Mah-jong playing, the Chinese chess playing in the Public Square, etc. It had boarder
appeal to the general visitors.
Despite other streets might be famous for some reasons, seldom streets in Hong
Kong could display so many cultural elements in the respect of intangible culture as
the Temple Street do. However, in website of Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), its
outstanding image is primarily a shopping site, which can be seen from the following
citations:
This is the famous night market, open 4pm - midnight daily, where you can find all kinds of
bargains, including casual clothes and curios. You'll also often see fortune tellers, and
professional Chinese chess players. Market becomes busy after 7pm.
Source: Temple Street Night Market. (HKTB, 2006b)
Temple Street is an amazing sight, featuring rows of brightly lit stalls hawking an
astonishing variety of inexpensive items for men and women ─ including clothing, pens,
watches, CDs, cassettes, electronic gadgets, hardware and luggage. Fortune-tellers
cluster at the Yau Ma Tei end of the street, as do Chinese opera enthusiasts seeking
kindred spirits for impromptu performances.
Source: Temple Street Night Market. (HKTB, 2007)
With a purposeful search, a different interpretation might be found:
More than just a market, Temple Street has a unique atmosphere that makes it a
must-see attraction. Fortune tellers huddle by kerosene lamps next to local chess masters.
Street singers perform Cantonese opera. Tables and chairs from stalls selling local
delicacies overflow into this street that was named after a nearby temple honouring the
goddess Tin Hau. And great bargains abound with an emphasis on items for men.
Source: Special Markets. (HKTB, 2006a)
But where it is? The information is in the section of “Shopping > Special Markets”.
It appears to be a wrong place for such an interpretation that emphasizes the cultural
aspect of the Temple Street. The three citations above demonstrate that the
information for a certain destination might scatters here and there in the website of
HKTB, which might result in tourists could not find the right information they need.
Put it in another word, the right market might not be offered the right information.
Such a mess could be rectified by cross-references, hyperlinks, and additionally, put
the right information in the right place and complement necessary information. For
instance, the previous interpretation mainly mentioned three elements, the hawking,
the fortune telling, and the street musicians. However, there are more attractions in the
Temple Street.
Opportunities of the Temple Street can be seen in the following tourist activities:
the quest for authenticity, grass-root culture and local culture, and film tourism. Thus,
the target audience might be the cultural tourists, and the leisure, the shopping types.
Each type of these visitors can find their fun in the Temple Street.
To make the Temple Street an intangible cultural heritage trail, much work are
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necessary. On the basis of the beautification of the setting and the package of the
components, promotion should make efforts to change the primary perception of the
street from a shopping site to a cultural trail, see the following model:
As can be seen in the above model, in the traditional image the Temple Street is
mostly a shopping site, which contrasts with the new image after being packaged to
be a cultural trail, when shopping itself become a cultural activity in the respect of
that a tourist can appreciate and purchase cultural articles such as antiquities,
souvenirs, sculptures and carvings, books and handwritings, decorations, toys, and so
on. The role of shopping site undoubtedly can not be underestimated, however, to
package and promote the trail, more importance should be attached to the cultural
activities, from operatic song to fortune telling, even shopping itself. Furthermore,
other cultural elements, i.e. cool tea (making, drinking and the history), Mah-jong and
Chinese chess playing, traditional clinics, etc. were complemented into the package to
form a holistic image of the trail.
CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION
In short, the Temple Street is very special in the terms of displaying intangible
heritage, grass-root culture, the authentic living of locals, and is far more than a
shopping site. Just as the variety of articles selling at the stalls in that street, it has
wide range of appeal to tourists, from the shopping and the sightseeing to the cultural,
from the purposeful visit to the incidentally drop by, from the academic to the general.
However, the present promotion appears not to distinguish it from its counterparts in
terms of culture display. Accordingly, a rectification might be necessary. And with
some necessary construction and beautification in the street, the Temple Street has a
likelihood of becoming an intangible heritage trail, thus offer an opportunity for
visitors to Hong Kong to experience and consume the local culture.
REFERENCES
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Fang, J. (2004). Getan Performance of Cantonese Opera Developing in the Commercial Context in
Hong Kong: A Report of Fieldwork at Jinfenghuang of Temple Street in Yaumatei.
Huangzhong-journal of Wuhan Music Conservatory, (3): 8-15.
HKTB. (2006a). Special Markets.
http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/travelneeds/business/bt_shop_spma01.jhtml.
Accessed on 17, April, 2007.
HKTB. (2006b). Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok Markets for Leisure and Pleasure.
http://www.hktb.com/eng/attraction/hkwalks/ta_walk_walk2.jhtml. Accessed on 17, April,
2007.
HKTB. (2007). Temple Street Night Market.
http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/attraction/at_most_temp.jhtml. Accessed on 17,
April, 2007.
McKercher, B. (2007). Lecture of Cultural Tourism. SHTM at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
McKercher, B. and Du Cros, H. (2002). Cultural tourism: the partnership between tourism and cultural
heritage management. New York; London: Haworth Hospitality Press.
Vikipedia. (2006). Special streets for tourists.
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF%E7%89%B9%E8%
89%B2%E8%A1%97%E9%81%93. Accessed on 16, April, 2007.
Yang, H. (2005). A typical paradigm of the social protection of the traditional music:
investigation of
a mass Cantonese operatic song group in Hong Kong. Chinese Music, (1): 93-98.
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