Re: Alpha's Summer Adventure - Bye Bye, Beijing (p31)
Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 2:01 pm
SINO Centre
03-07-09
Today we had planned to go to the SINO Centre in Mong Kok for a bit of shopping. Mong Kok is very much like Akihabara in Tokyo, Geek Central, full of Anime, Games , Gadgets, Technology and everything else associated with geeks. I’m not ashamed to admit, i’m a big fan of Games, Gadgets and Technology.
We had to keep our plans for today a secret at the breakfast table when talking with Antonia’s mother as Mong Kok is a dangerous place to visit. Recently, there have been attacks there where someone threw acid down onto the street from a tall building causing a lot of damage to the public. Still, the SINO Centre is indoors and the attacker wasn’t likely to come back after security was heavily ramped up.
It wasn’t till early afternoon we finally got out of the house and arrived at Admiralty station and got on the train to Mong Kok station. It’s a short and inexpensive trip to Mong Kok from Admiralty and we was there in just a few minutes.
Pictures of Mong Kok
Today we were heading to the SINO Centre, a tower block shopping centre with many shops selling gadgets, anime and games ect. I had no idea what to expect but was recommended it by a few people so I was excited. A short walk from the station and we had arrived.
We spend a lot of time in the SINO Centre looking around the shops. Many sold similar things but there were a few that really stood out. You’re not really allowed to take pictures of the shops and the stuff they sell but I got a few sneaky shots where I could.
Party Games Shop
This shop sells all sorts of puzzle games and interesting quirky toys and games, mostly imported from Japan. There was a lot of cool things in here, I was very tempted to spend a lot in here but held off.
3 Cubian
Nothing really special about this shop, sells a load of random cheap gadgety type things. You’ll find lots of interesting things in here. There are many shops like this but I like this one the most.
Brick Shop
This shop sells Lego and lots of it. Many interesting sets and merchandise I haven’t seen before. A fun shop for me as I am a big Lego fan.
Gima Street
Frogs. Lots and lots of frogs. This shop is full of all things frogs, keychains, badges, watches towels, notebooks, stationary. I like the colour green and I like frogs so despite its cuteness I liked this shop a lot. Good for froggy gifts.
Hobby Figure
I’m not a big fan of Anime Gashapon but if you like this sort of stuff, you’ll love this shop. It’s full of Anime figures and gashapon. You can buy single figures or full sets for what seems like a fair price.
Qui Qui
This shop is one of my favourites. It’s full of cute character products ranging from keychains to giant plushes. Great for gifts and fun to look around if you like this sort of stuff.
We spent a long time shopping and looking around the SINO Centre. When we reached the top floor we came to a small Ice Cream stand that seemed to offer a million flavours. I looked and saw Lemon Sorbet so ordered that, as the guy moved all the boxes in the fridge to find the sorbet, I saw Lemon and Lime Sherbert so asked for that instead, as he went for that I saw Lemon and Lime Super Sorbet which I settled with, awesome.
We went back downstairs and looked around at the Game Shops, Antonia wanted a DS. We asked around for prices and EVERY shop offered an R4 with the DS. The prices were really cheap but then they were Korean, obviously imported at a much lower cost. We settled with one shop and got a Light Blue DS with an R4. After we got the DS, we left to go home.
I really enjoyed the SINO Centre, there were so many cool and interesting shops here but there’s one thing I did not like about this place, the fakes. There are a lot of fake products in the SINO Centre. I was very disappointed when I saw some things I really wanted but then noticed they were fake. Not everything here is fake so don’t avoid the SINO Centre, it’s awesome. It’s just most of the shops that sell a little bit of everything sell fake products but it’s easy enough to tell.
So if you ever find yourself in Hong Kong wanting to explore a cool shopping mall with lots of unique and interesting products, head down to the SINO Centre.
I'm glad I went here today, it was a lot of fun and I got a few cool gifts including the Shark Bag that I wanted since I saw someone wearing one in the arcade. I'm glad Antonia didn't mind spending so long in here, most people would be dragging me by the arm trying to get me to leave but we was in here for hours without her making any sort of fuss. The SINO Centre is defintly one of my favourite places in Hong Kong, we'll be going back to Mong Kok and other places like this in the future.
We got something for Pudding too...
03-07-09
Today we had planned to go to the SINO Centre in Mong Kok for a bit of shopping. Mong Kok is very much like Akihabara in Tokyo, Geek Central, full of Anime, Games , Gadgets, Technology and everything else associated with geeks. I’m not ashamed to admit, i’m a big fan of Games, Gadgets and Technology.
We had to keep our plans for today a secret at the breakfast table when talking with Antonia’s mother as Mong Kok is a dangerous place to visit. Recently, there have been attacks there where someone threw acid down onto the street from a tall building causing a lot of damage to the public. Still, the SINO Centre is indoors and the attacker wasn’t likely to come back after security was heavily ramped up.
It wasn’t till early afternoon we finally got out of the house and arrived at Admiralty station and got on the train to Mong Kok station. It’s a short and inexpensive trip to Mong Kok from Admiralty and we was there in just a few minutes.
Pictures of Mong Kok
Today we were heading to the SINO Centre, a tower block shopping centre with many shops selling gadgets, anime and games ect. I had no idea what to expect but was recommended it by a few people so I was excited. A short walk from the station and we had arrived.
We spend a lot of time in the SINO Centre looking around the shops. Many sold similar things but there were a few that really stood out. You’re not really allowed to take pictures of the shops and the stuff they sell but I got a few sneaky shots where I could.
Party Games Shop
This shop sells all sorts of puzzle games and interesting quirky toys and games, mostly imported from Japan. There was a lot of cool things in here, I was very tempted to spend a lot in here but held off.
3 Cubian
Nothing really special about this shop, sells a load of random cheap gadgety type things. You’ll find lots of interesting things in here. There are many shops like this but I like this one the most.
Brick Shop
This shop sells Lego and lots of it. Many interesting sets and merchandise I haven’t seen before. A fun shop for me as I am a big Lego fan.
Gima Street
Frogs. Lots and lots of frogs. This shop is full of all things frogs, keychains, badges, watches towels, notebooks, stationary. I like the colour green and I like frogs so despite its cuteness I liked this shop a lot. Good for froggy gifts.
Hobby Figure
I’m not a big fan of Anime Gashapon but if you like this sort of stuff, you’ll love this shop. It’s full of Anime figures and gashapon. You can buy single figures or full sets for what seems like a fair price.
Qui Qui
This shop is one of my favourites. It’s full of cute character products ranging from keychains to giant plushes. Great for gifts and fun to look around if you like this sort of stuff.
We spent a long time shopping and looking around the SINO Centre. When we reached the top floor we came to a small Ice Cream stand that seemed to offer a million flavours. I looked and saw Lemon Sorbet so ordered that, as the guy moved all the boxes in the fridge to find the sorbet, I saw Lemon and Lime Sherbert so asked for that instead, as he went for that I saw Lemon and Lime Super Sorbet which I settled with, awesome.
We went back downstairs and looked around at the Game Shops, Antonia wanted a DS. We asked around for prices and EVERY shop offered an R4 with the DS. The prices were really cheap but then they were Korean, obviously imported at a much lower cost. We settled with one shop and got a Light Blue DS with an R4. After we got the DS, we left to go home.
I really enjoyed the SINO Centre, there were so many cool and interesting shops here but there’s one thing I did not like about this place, the fakes. There are a lot of fake products in the SINO Centre. I was very disappointed when I saw some things I really wanted but then noticed they were fake. Not everything here is fake so don’t avoid the SINO Centre, it’s awesome. It’s just most of the shops that sell a little bit of everything sell fake products but it’s easy enough to tell.
So if you ever find yourself in Hong Kong wanting to explore a cool shopping mall with lots of unique and interesting products, head down to the SINO Centre.
I'm glad I went here today, it was a lot of fun and I got a few cool gifts including the Shark Bag that I wanted since I saw someone wearing one in the arcade. I'm glad Antonia didn't mind spending so long in here, most people would be dragging me by the arm trying to get me to leave but we was in here for hours without her making any sort of fuss. The SINO Centre is defintly one of my favourite places in Hong Kong, we'll be going back to Mong Kok and other places like this in the future.
We got something for Pudding too...