Hong Kong Phu-EEEE

Well, what is there to say about Hong Kong that you haven't heard? THE TRUTH.

Everyone knows that Hong Kong is this big exciting business city, full of neon lights and bustling crowds:a place where fortunes are made but ancient families are still revered, a slightly Anglo post-colonial, New York of Asia, if you will....

However, what you may not know is that there is nothing cultural or historical from the colonial era left to see. There are a lot of five-star hotels that remind me of Wall Street in the 80's. One can imagine Gordon Gekko staying there. The financial district or 'Central District' is a lot like New Yorks in that it's on the waterfront, full of high-rises, a mix of immigrants but predominantly English-speaking...well, it used to be.



Hong Kong today is China today. If I had visited Hong Kong before the trade-over, maybe I would have seen more balding, bellied, quick-witted white guys running around in red suspenders....but when we arrive on Sunday in the financial district, everything is closed. There are no stockbroker types only thousands (and I mean thousands) of Phillipino nannies line the streets. Most of them cloistered together, squatting on the backs of their feet and sharing homemade dishes they've brought for lunch. The bus terminal is the predominant feature of the financial district on weekends, as it is full of more workers coming in or going out to visit their families. Most interesting is the presence of multiple merchants, who's job seems to consist of supplying cartons and taping up goods, which -God Bless these girls-they are sending back to their families. I ask one of them, where are all the philipino men and she half-smiles and says she thinks most of them are back home gambling or drinking, so the women go away to support their families but I would suppose also to escape a lifetime of misery with a catholic view on divorce.





I am impressed with the work ethic of these women and shocked how many there are all over Hong Kong. This is a place that eats up people and I don't think there's too much interest in the individual or protection for the underclasses (specifically, non-chinese, non-male underclasses).
I also realize how good the Philipino nannies in the UK or the US have it, compare to Singapore, where they are literally not allowed out of the house unaccompanied, the Middle East, where they are prosecuted if they attempt to self-protect themselves from physical abuse, or Hong Kong, where I'm sure there is also prevalent innapropriate sexual behaviour as well as --- monetary treatment and no laws they know can protect them. As is so often the case, traveling abroad makes me grateful for where and who I am...but it also makes me want to help those I see, who are not so lucky.

Well, enough dark philosophizing - this is a travel column after all!

After our brief sojourn through the travel district, we take the boat tour around the harbors. There are no buildings over a century old, with the exception of thePost Office, now a bank and the charming Bank of China, which is a fascinating version of the Asian take on Art Deco.





Like everyone else in the world, I've seen Hong Kong in photos and on t.v., but I was expecting there to be some sort of historical district or atleast section where all the embassies would be located, Sommerset Maughm's old haunts, etc. However, new doesn't mean boring and as we are on our tour, we are shown the many buildings built with holes running through them. It would seem this is common Chinese business practice, as it is good feng-shui (supposedly the wind-demons can then fly through the building rather than into it). There is one, which is so large, it looks like an orwellian super-town, with a strange perfect circle cut through the middle of what appear to be three apartment blocks holding wall.

Other fun themes seem to include a hollywood blvd. style stars of chinese cinema boardwalk and numerous Kowloon Bay options. Exausted from walking the island, circling the island and going under the island (in the excellent new subway), we decide to take a trolley back to our hotel. Proper Trolley Cars run up and down Hong Kong and add a bit of fun, flavor and deathwish to any pedestrians day.



As nightfall engulfs us, Hong Kong comes alive. A city with not much daytime architectural rarities, Hong Kong glitters and shines with ebullient excitement at night. Everything is a neon day-glow paradise and one begins to realize that the entire town is made of hip restaurants and bustling nightlife. Although our first night, we just wandered around MongKok, making a point of getting lost as much as possible and seeing what we could discover. The second night, however, I'd recommend any traveller repeat. The second night, we went on the Victoria Peak tram, which is an uphill monorail that takes one to the highest point in Hong Kong (Victoria Peak). It is stunning by night and covered with fun restaurants representing all price ranges. There is also (as is mandatory in Asia) shopping with an indoor mall attached to the tram station.




The next day, life isn't quite as fun as we try to cross the many uncrossable corners and battle the waves of people with our stroller. However, our lives change as we sit down in one of the many reflexology rooms and feel as our whole bodies are altered including sinus relief all from these well trained professionals rubbing our feet. If you haven't experienced reflexology, it's a bit more than rubbing, they have terrible torture techniques served to the balls of your feet and are able to 'snap' each toe with their fingers...but in the end, all of it will leave you healthier and happier and only 5 dollars lighter!

Well, you can't talk about Hong Kong and not talk about shopping,...so, now you know why we really needed the reflexology...

Hong Kong supposedly has the best fake handbags and everything else in the world. I did see a chain of boutique stores openly selling knock-off handbags. However, I was unable to find one bag made of real leather the whole time and after an afternoon perusing 'lady market' unsuccessfully and Kowloon market with relative success. I realized that you can find everything you might ever want in Kowloon. It just depends what street it is on...there is a shag carpeting street, a bathroom tiling street, a plastic pool toys street, a paper lantern street, among numerous others.




The real values in Hong Kong are in real goods, which have been marked down and food's value is also great. This whole trip we gorged ourselves for atleast one meal a day on quality sushi and sashimi and never wound up paying more than 50 dollars a night, including wine, beer, drinks,etc. In fact, it would more likely be 20 dollars. Don't get me wrong, HK is still a town built on expat expense accounts and if you want your 25 dollar martini, you'll find it along with a 5 course fushion credit card bill, if that's what you are looking for...but Hong Kong has something for everyone. Cheap, expensive, glam, seedy, young, middle aged, old, mid-life crisis, fast lane or bossa nova. It's a great weekend trip and a great place to be single or young and married.

What I think might be hard in Hong Kong is to be a young family or single and middle aged (atleast as a man). Like in many places in Asia, as a white female, I tend to get more than usual heterosexual attention from 'a jury of my peers', but this is the first time I've pushed a stroller and still gotten this much unwanted attention.

Yes, Hong Kong as a tourist destination is as great as everyone says it is...but I'm not sure how great it actually is to live there....as a tourist.