martiancookbook

Thank you for sharing this, do you have any plans to add an RSS feed in the future?

Agreed! Fantasy tends to assume your basic needs are satisfied, especially the unsexy ones. E.g. you rarely see someone use the restroom in space, and I bet that the “fantastical” nature of Kowloon is interrupted in reality by waste management

When I say “free” and “uninhibited”, I am talking only about the mind playing with fantasy, not the actual lived experience of residents

Maybe it's non-normative ways of living? In many places, people are not allowed to live in whichever way they please - there are rules and regulations, mostly in the name of safety (from crime, fire/flood, infection, etc).

Kowloon seems to exist outside/before these restrictions, and might therefore feel more "free" in some way. It might also be why fantasy/science fiction fantasy tends to take place in a slightly more "lawless" and uninhibited world.

I grew up in Texas, only 1 mile away from my elementary school. I was dropped off every single day by car, and only ever used my bike to kill time within my "superblock" (not sure what to call it, but the streets which are blocked in by the 40mph arterial stroads.) I would have loved this!

Even when I went on to middle school (0.5 mile away), I was still dropped off by car. Thinking back, I'm not sure there were even bike racks, though there was of course a massive parking lot. Yikes, in retrospect.

Thank you for sharing this! I was unaware of the origins of the name of the publication Bellingcat.

https://www.bellingcat.com/

My guess is that to “localize” a street is to use it as a street - primarily for interacting with the storefronts, offices or residences along it. To make it “express” is to use it as a road - primarily for transit.

Check out the Strongtowns definitions of street, roads, and stroads: https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2018/2/15/how-to-turn-a-...

"...since he always had something to show them as interesting as anything that they could show him, he made his way among all nations."

Reminds me of a piece of advice I read when researching one-bag packing for a long trip: learn how to make balloon animals and pack balloons. Then, you can entertain children & endear yourself to their families. [1]

I think both the silly-looking bicycle and the balloon animals create some sort of surprise and delight that set the tone for a good interaction when you are a stranger doing something objectively weird.

[1] https://www.onebag.com/packing-list-specialty.html