Hong Kong’s last colonial governor, Chris Patten, was said to have liked poking around Hollywood Road’s antique shops and art galleries. I know nothing about antiques but often explored Hollywood Road and its old areas when I lived in a serviced apartment in Central years ago. It was the second road to be built during colonial rule, after Queen’s Road Central. The UK-based global magazine Time Out has named it the world’s second coolest street after Melbourne’s High Street in this year’s rankings. Why did it take a UK magazine to understand Hollywood Road’s appeal? That should be a wake-up call for Hong Kong’s highly paid officials.
To poke around means to look around in search of something. A wake-up call used this way is a warning to remedy an unsatisfactory situation. Hollywood Road and its surrounding areas is a mix of trendy bars, restaurants, and old and new Hong Kong. It was a slice of heaven in past years for Western tourists who liked antiques, artwork, nightlife, and old Hong Kong. But Hong Kong no longer attracts Western tourists. Hollywood Road is still a slice of heaven for locals to explore old Hong Kong, enjoy the nightlife, and shop for antiques. A slice of heaven is an idiom that describes a beautiful, ideal, or interesting place.
Mainland tourists will probably flood Hollywood Road now that Time Out has praised it. But Hong Kong also needs a return of foreign tourists. Night markets and the government’s plan for monthly fireworks are not creative enough. The government needs to hard-sell Time Out’s praise of Hollywood Road and think of creatively cool ideas to bring back foreign tourists.
香港最後一任港督彭定康，曾說喜歡去荷李活道的古董店與畫廊閒逛（poking around）。我對古董一無所知，但多年前還住在中區的服務式住宅時，便常探索荷李活道及附近的舊區。那是殖民統治時，繼皇后大道中後第二條建成的道路。總部駐英國的國際雜誌《Time Out》就將荷李活道列為今年全球第二最型格街道，僅次於墨爾本的高街。為甚麼荷李活道的魅力，要遠至一本英國雜誌才能發掘出來？那應該成為香港高薪厚祿的官員的一些警示（wake-up call）吧。
To poke around是指去四處尋索、翻找一些東西。A wake-up call在這裏是指響起了警號，叫人改善某個不如意的狀況。荷李活道及其周邊的地區，混合了潮流酒吧、餐廳，以至新舊香港。過去那些年頭，一直是喜歡古玩、藝術作品、夜生活與舊香港的西方遊客的天堂（a slice of heaven）。然而，香港已不再吸引西方遊客。荷李活道依然是本地人尋覓舊香港、享受夜生活和買古玩的天堂（a slice of heaven）。A slice of heaven是個成語，用來形容一個美麗、理想或有趣的地方。
現在經過《Time Out》的一番讚譽，大概內地遊客也會湧進荷李活道吧。但香港亦需要外地遊客的回歸。夜市以及政府計劃每月一次的煙火，並不夠創意。政府需要強行推銷《Time Out》對荷李活道的讚賞，以及再想一些更棒的創意點子，以吸引外地遊客回來。
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Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻
