Many Hops Can Be Confusing

Wo Hop – New York, New York Although I prefer my Chinatown photos in contrasty black and white, I’m not opposed to shooting in color. I used my Leica D-Lux 8 for this photo instead of the Leica Monochrom. I generally used the D-Lux 8 for quickly documenting the place. I busted out the manually focused monochrome camera when I was greeted with a scene that deserved extra photographic attention. In this picture, the contrast of the red brick and bright blue sky works especially well. I had several pictures of Wo Hop and originally thought that was the restaurant where I ate with my friend. But I was wrong. My photos from inside the restaurant, however, pointed to another place with a similar name called Hop Lee. In fact, within a few yards of each other, there were Hop Lee, Hop Kee, and Wo Hop. All are independent establishments. I learned that hop in Cantonese roughly translates to together, united, or in harmony. Certainly auspicious to have this in their restaurant names. My friend…