Emojified Hong Kong MTR Stations

A few weeks before I was set to return back to the States after living in Hong Kong for almost five years I came across this map showing the literal translations of all the city's train stations. I always knew that each Chinese character has a specific meaning but never really thought about what the different MTR stations' names meant in Traditional Chinese.

I remember being so charmed by some of the names. I mean come on. Kowloon literally means "Nine Dragons" and one of my favorite districts of Tin Hau translates into "Heavenly Queen." I love it!

These translations begged to be visually represented in some way and I vowed that the next time I visited Hong Kong, I would have something designed. So before my Hong Kong trip this past April, I picked 22 stations and 'emojified' them, backdropped by the colors that correspond to each station. 

I really wanted to photograph each card at its respective station but with my packed schedule I was not able to (I almost missed my flight taking these around Sheung Wan!). But I really hope these will make you smile and the next time you have an outing in Quarry Bay you should try saying "Hey, let's meet at Goldfish Stream." and see what confused look or text you get in return.

And finally, Hong Kong itself, literally translating into "Fragrant Harbour," which some say was coined after the aromatic incense from factories around the Kowloon coast line.