When I was traveling in Hong Kong, I was mistaken for street prostitute on the street in broad daylight. A strange man came up to me and asked me how much money!

When people hear Yau Ma Tei, they usually think of tenement buildings with bad environment. We usually like to go to Bowl Lane and Shanghai Street to eat, which are all local small shops. One night, we were walking home from Bowl Lane and saw many ladies standing on the street... I suddenly got the meaning of the word "street standing".



My boyfriend is a humanities lover, and I, a master's student in anthropology, am ashamed of myself. He gave me some scientific knowledge. These ladies are called "street prostitutes", mostly migrant workers, and are generally older, mostly in their thirties or forties. Whenever night falls, they slowly start to appear on the street. They usually stand on the street and play with their phones, and when a man passes by, they communicate through eye contact.

At this time, if a man is interested, he will calmly ask, "How much?" If the price is right, the lady will take the guest directly to the tenement building. We once witnessed a scene of taking a guest upstairs. The whole process was very smooth and fast, and they must be regular customers.



"One floor, one prostitute" refers to this incident, which is often referred to as "one floor, one style". "One floor, one style" comes from a legal policy in Hong Kong: it is illegal for more than one sex worker to engage in prostitution in the same place. Yau Ma Tei is the hardest hit area. The "four pornographic streets" refer to the areas of Portland Street, Shanghai Street, Reclamation Street and Soy Sauce Street. Hong Kong immigrants who come to Hong Kong to study, especially girls, should try not to live in these places.

"One floor, one prostitute" refers to this incident, and is often called "one floor, one style". "One floor, one style" comes from a legal policy in Hong Kong: it is illegal for more than one sex worker to engage in prostitution in the same place. Yau Ma Tei is the worst-hit area. "Four Yellow Streets" refers to Portland Street, Shanghai Street, Kenqu Street and Soy Sauce Street. Hong Kong immigrants who come to Hong Kong to study, especially girls, should try not to live in these places.

I was bored standing by the wall playing with my mobile phone, occasionally checking if my boyfriend's car had arrived, and walking around the street boredly. About 10 minutes passed like this. Just then, a man approached me. With my PR intuition, I thought it was to greet a customer. I smiled and said, "Thunder Monkey." The man asked cautiously, "How much?" I instinctively said, "Huh?".

The man said, "Sorry." He immediately disappeared into the crowd, leaving me confused. I was about to complain to my friend, and just as I picked up the phone, I suddenly understood. . . I looked up at the road sign, oh. . . Portland Street. You thought I was a street prostitute. . . This is outrageous.



To this day, I still think of this incident every time I pass by Portland Street. I don't think it's insulting, I just tell it as a joke for everyone to laugh at. But every time I see them, I feel sad. What kind of life would lead to this path?