May 19 2007 - Hong Kong After a Year

A year ago today I went to the Flower Market for the first time. My, that seems like a long time ago. A year ago I was slowly discovering this city, bravely trying to bargain, speak a little Chinese, find my way around, learning the public transportation system. I have learned so much in a year. Hong Kong seems like home now, a strange, exotic home at times, but I’ve become very comfortable here. For example, today Lee and I went running in the morning. I went up to the Peak, but I could have easily gone to Bowen Road instead – I tend to alternate between the two routes. Then we went to this very nice deli I’ve discovered in Central for lunch. Then Lee had to go to work for awhile, and I wandered around SoHo for a bit, and then went up to Caine Road to the Japan Center to buy the sorts of things that you would buy at a Walmart in the US – a fan, a mop, an umbrella (I go through umbrellas like crazy here; I actually wear them out!), light bulbs, a three-way plug. Japan Homes are great little rabbit-warren type stores. They’re not “big box” stores like in the US, but you might call them “shoe-box” stores. They pack a lot of basic goods into a small space, and since they are Japanese, the quality tends to be pretty good.

When I finished at the Japan home, it was raining – it’s that time of year, you know. The rains have just started. In fact, I’ve sort of been watching and even worrying about when the rains will start – will they overwhelm and depress me like they did last year? Because winter weather here is so nice I don’t think they will; I’ll view them as Hong Kong’s equivalent of winter; when indoor activities are the preference.

So, what have I learned in the past year? Almost too many things to list, but let’s see what comes to mind:

1. I’m not going to be speaking conversational Cantonese any time soon. It’s too hard. I’m not giving up, but my expectations are lower than they were a year ago. I’m making progress, but as I told my teacher, six months ago I recognized one word out of fifty when I listened to people’s conversations. Now it’s more like one word out of ten or twenty. Sigh.
2. I’ve acquired a reputation as a super-bargainer. I find it fun. I ask for a discount everywhere. I’m not afraid to walk away if the price isn’t low enough. I know what the prices should be in most cases. I have “my” shop-keepers in Shenzhen, and with the people I know I don’t have to bargain that much anymore; they shoot me a good price to start. And, if I really like something, in Shenzhen at least, I don’t worry too much about the price.
3. I can take public transportation without much trouble. I don’t take the buses very often, but I know how if I have to. I’ve been on almost all of the MTR lines and some of the KCR lines too.
4. I can find my around this city. It’s not hard. There’s an online service that gets you a little map of any legitimate Hong Kong address.
5. I have friends, people to do things with. I have my hiking friends, my shopping friends, my mahjong friends. I wouldn’t say I’ve met very many people that I’ve connected with on a deep level, but I have lots of people that I enjoy “hanging out” with.
6. The biggest negative to Hong Kong is the pollution, no doubt about it. It masks the spectacular views. It made Lee sick last fall. It makes me wonder just how beneficial it is when I run outside. It brings the worries about global warming pretty close to home.
7. The restaurants in this town are great. If you want to get all dressed up and spend big buck on a 4 star dinner this is the place. If you want to go somewhere more moderately priced, and still get a good meal, you can do that too. AND if you want to eat where the locals eat, you can get a great bowl of Chinese noodles for about $2 US!
8. The service in Hong Kong is great. I’m spoiled by it. When I go back to the US I get irritated by waiters coming up to your table, interrupting your meal and asking you how the food is! And, I can’t stand it any more when they try to take your plate or give you your bill, before you have indicated that you are finished! In Hong Kong, like in France, they won’t ever bring your bill unless you specifically ask for it! They leave you alone unless they see that you might want another glass of wine. They bring your food and disappear quietly. In a nice restaurant the chef might actually come by your table and talk to you, but it’s more like a conversation.
9. Traveling in Asia is truly amazing. So far we’ve been to Thailand, Singapore, Japan, Vietnam and the Maldives. There are SO many other places we want to go! It looks now like we could very well be here another 2-3 years. I’m glad, just for the simple fact that gives us more time to travel here.
10. I am SO lucky to be living in Hong Kong, and not in mainland China! I have friends that live in Shanghai and although it sounds like a fascinating place to visit (which I’m doing next weekend!) living there sounds very difficult. Hong Kong is easy, exotic, fun. I am so fortunate and I know it.