Roots of my Pen Bug

[KCkc]

The Roots of my Fountain Pen Bug

 

I left Hong Kong when I was around sixteen. My parents wanted me to learn more about other cultures as part of my education. So I went off to boarding school in Oxford, England for 2 years finishing my GEC “A” level and then studied at University of San Francisco. After that, got a job settled in US.

 

This is my “old school” in HK, where I attended since kindergarten. This is only the Middle and High school side. The elementary and kindergarten section are outside of the left margin of the picture, behind the trees.

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My grandmother, mother, and me all studied there. It is an American school run by Roman Catholic Maryknoll nuns. It’s amazing that one of the sisters taught all 3 of us !!!

 

I started tinkering with pens since 4th grade. I started with Hero and I am proud to say I had a nice collection of Parker 45 (Burgundy, Grey, Forest Green, Navy, Black, Flighter, Insignia to name a few). My parents threw them away (arghhhhhhh) during a recent house-cleaning, I was thinking that I could immigrate the pens to US for their retirement. Oh well…

 

The last time I was in Hong Kong was 1995 summer. I was there for a business trip. This time I am glad that some PT-ers have helped me find my way home by taking care of some of my babies. I am eternally grateful to all of you for your help. I got to pay for my plane ticket plus spare change for shopping.

 

Every now and then people would ask where to shop for a pen in HK on PT. Well, there is this place called Hop Cheung. This is their name card front and back:

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It is smaller than an average size cosmetic counter in an American department store but the total value of the pens can easily go up to the $100K. It is a 30+ year old store located in busy Central where the bankers, lawyers, politicians work and party. How did they do it? Well, think and utilize space like any HK person would …3 layers of pens per shelf and from floor all the way to ceiling of the shop.

 

This is a glimpse of the density of pens/square inch :

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/ebaywatch888/MeetingsShow/IMG_1344.jpg

 

I think they can easily get on the Guinness Book of Records as having the highest $/Sq inch of pen. Ok, it looks like a reasonable place since both men can fit side by side in between the 2 walls of pens and still maintain their personal space between themselves. But remember, they are average Chinese men with a slender build. So do not be surprised that the shop feels smaller when you pay a visit if you have average non-average-Asian build.

 

The owners are John and Addy. They are very friendly, humble people and not snobbish like some department store pen department sales clerk. They are easy to talk to, too. According to them , they have a loyal local customer base. Those who started off as office workers and young law school graduates would get a pen from them. Over the years as they move up in the world, they keep coming back for more pens. Some of their customers have since become prominent business people and politicians.

 

I have seen some newspaper clippings of them being interviewed in the store. According to Addy, they also have a lot of business from politicians and consulate people. One time an important Canadian politician was visiting Hong Kong and he paid a visit to their place. Addy said he thought he was just another tourist. Then he realized the police and Canadian secret service were blocking off the busy street for his visit. Only a day later did he realize the “tourist” who got a pen from him was an important Canadian politician. He visited them on his “free” day in HK.

 

They have all kinds of LE e.g. MB, Pelikan, Aurora to name a few. A multitude of regular edition pens e.g. Pelikan, MB, Cartier, Dupont, Dunhill, Stipula, Visconti, OMAS, Waterman, Parker, etc. Imagine at least 90% of Fountain Pen Hospital catalog on display.

 

At the end, got to get something to remember this pleasant visit. So I got a Dupont mini Orpheo BP/ 0.7mm MP. Nice handy wallet pen in black lacquer with PT at a nice price.

 

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So the other question is : Is it worth the visit ?

Answer is yes, but it will really be a savings over American/internet prices if you pay with HK$ versus charging them on a credit card. This is because my bank charged me a transaction fee and exchange rate adjustment against the purchase which is about 5% additional. In that case it is almost the same price as it is on sale here.

 

If you are looking for cheap Hero, how about less than US$3 ? You can still find some at Yue Wah Department Store. You can take the subway (MTR) to Jordan station and take the Yue Wah exit :

 

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This is a neat Chinese Department Store. The stationary department is on 5th floor. They have a limited supply of fountain pens e.g. Waterman, Parker and close-out Hero model 323. These are not the highest grade Hero but they are pretty decent for less then US$3 mint.

 

Also found pens for sale at full MSRP at Sogo, a Japanese Department Store in Causeway Bay. They carry brands such as MB, Waterman, and LAMY. They carry Rotring ABC that Richard Binder posts on his pen site as part of his collection for about US$25 or less.

 

So, here you go, friends, enjoy pen-hunting in HK when you get a chance to visit.

[Betty]

Awesome review! I love HK, though I only visited once, but I had a really fun time there.

[Slush99]

I never went to HK but I went to Taiwan. Had a great time and spent all my red envelopes on gel pens and stationery :ph34r:

[davyr]

a wonderful read, thanks. went to hk two or three years ago, and it was awesome. did you notice much of a change there with regards to the handover?

[KCkc]

a wonderful read, thanks. went to hk two or three years ago, and it was awesome. did you notice much of a change there with regards to the handover?

It has changed drastically since the change-over. I am amazed at the intense efforts of urbanization since 1997. New towns spring up like weeds after a summer rain.

 

I am happy to see such changes but also miss those "boonies" places which has transformed into vibrant suburbs now.

[TheNobleSavage]

KCkc, wonderful story and pictures. One day I hope to visit Japan, Mainland China and Hong Kong.

 

 

TNS

[wil]

KCkc, I had a fantastic experience at Hop Cheong.

 

With my backpack on, I was barely able to turn around 180 degress to browse the huge selection on their floor to ceiling walls of pens.

 

Specifically to MB pens, they also have far better prices than the local boutiques. At the time, I was particularly interested in the Solti and Karajan and these could be had for less than 1/3 of retail.

 

Now, I know where I'll be heading for my next MB product.

 

Btw, I too went back to my old grade school for photo ops. Unlike you, we moved when I was at the age of 9. Anyhow, here's a link to my flickr album.

 

KCkc, what did you think of that HK air index level?

[grasshopper]

An absolutely brilliant post, KCkc.

 

Many thanks for sharing with us and letting us know you better.

 

It is also especially timely and useful for me, since we are thinking of making a trip there next month.

 

Great advice on where to go while the wife does her own stuff. Just curious, do John and Addy have any vintages for sale or are they all moderns?

 

 

G.

[KCkc]

Specifically to MB pens, they also have far better prices than the local boutiques.  At the time, I was particularly interested in the Solti and Karajan and these could be had for less than 1/3 of retail. 

 

KCkc, what did you think of that HK air index level?

Wow, now I need to check them out for some MB LE that I have been eying.

 

HK Air Index Vs LA Smog Level :

Well, let's put it this way, the air in HK was clean enough that I did not have asthma attack. I wheeze at night in LA.

 

So I guess, it is cleaner than LA air. This is really sad !!!

 

 

Grasshopper:

They have a set of Waterman 54 Ripple in fairly good condition selling for US$800+. I am not a vintage expert, but personally I would feel more comfortable checking out a pen in a pen show. In fact, they are phasing out vintage, so I was told. But some people did hop in asking for Parker51, 61. I over-heard the prices were more than $100 US for an aerometric gold-filled cap.

Edited February 22, 2006 by KCkc

[wil]

Must be jet lag.

 

Just reread my own post and I didn't mean less than 1/3 off retail. It's more like a 30-40% off retail. Doh.

 

Re: HK polluted air, I had a real hard time in the busier areas in Kowloon. Especially when stuck in the center island while crossing the road, stranded while anywhere from 5-10 busses cruise by spitting out whatever the engines are hacking up.

 

I ended up coming back home sooner than expected partially because of this reason. >.<