Out of Place

I look Chinese. I swear.

Coming to Hong Kong, I thought I'd just blend into the streets along with the millions of other Chinese people that resides on this tiny island. Since coming here, I would say half the time, people tries Catonese with first and the other half English. I dismissed it as the level of English that is present here in Hong Kong. After all, the classes are taught in English in Hong Kong schools.

Today I went to SOGO, an Hong Kong department store that I would compare to Macy's. I wanted to look for a memory foam mattress (which seems to be hard to find in Asia). When I waited for the elevator to leave, there was a white male staring at me. Not like he was looking randomly, but actually staring for several minutes. In the elevator, he decided to strike up a conversation with me, in English. He was a French expat working in Hong Kong. When I asked him what made him decide to strike up a conversation with me rather than the 10 other people waiting for the elevator, he told me something about me stood out. I seemed I would be Westernized. That's when I realized, the people here aren't speaking English to me because that's the norm, they're speaking English to me because something about me must be screaming American. Let me know if you have a theory on why I look American.

One theory I have is that I look like a tourist since Hong Kong is a major tourist destination spot. Since I look lost and confused most of the time when I'm on the streets, I am sure I look like a tourist. However, given how I look, the logical conclusion is that I would be a tourist from Mainland China - ethnically, that is who I am. But the people here don't ever speak Mandarin towards me, the way they would speak to a Mainland tourist. Any other theories?

First Impressions, part 2

This place rains a lot. It hasn't stopped raining since I arrived last night. Sometimes, it'd be drizzling; sometimes, it'd be pouring. No matter what, however, the humidity doesn't seem to fade. It's actually not crazy hot outside: only around 80 degrees. Normally, I would not turn on the air conditioning in that type of temperature. However, I tried to leave the air conditioning off in my apartment - the humidity became unbearable after just an hour. Everything felt sticky and damp. Even right after a downpour, the humidity would not dissapate. I'm beginning to worry what this place feels like under the sun with all the humidity...

Another thing I have noticed here in Hong Kong - everything Japanese is good and expensive. Seriously. Half the things I saw in drugstores and groceries stores were purely Japanese with no English or Chinese characters. I have no idea how anyone even knows what they are or how to use them. They are also priced much higher than its counterparty American and Chinese brands. I always thought the Chinese had an infuctuation with its western brands from Europe and America, but it seems like Japan is really the big dogs in the house.

One inconvienent thing I have discovered about Hong Kong is that everything is made with short people in mind. I don't mean to be insensitive or mean, but seriously, everything is short! I actually have to bend down a good 1/2 feet to a feet to simply open the door to my partment. The doorknob and keyhole are literally below my hips. The closet, all my dresses touches the floor even though they are all knee length (or maybe shorter).

Lastly, I need help! I can't find sparkling water anywhere in Hong Kong. I have looked through convienence stores like 7-11, grocery stores, and random stands on the streets. No sparkling water, club soda, or l'eau gaseuse! In New York, it was so common place and easy to find that I have developed a strong preference towards sparkling water. Even my alcoholic beverage of choice is vodka soda. What am I going to do here?

First Impressions

I landed at Hong Kong airport at 7PM. Two things popped into my mind: it was hot and it was brand new. As I waited in line to clear immigrations in Hong Kong, I noticed one thing. Only the visitors were waiting in line. It seems that Hong Kong residents can just scan some type of a card through a DC-metro looking smart card terminal and enter. How efficient! Even the line for the visitors moved exceedingly fast. The immigration officers had very few questions and simply stamped away. They didn't even ask why I was in the country (granted, there was a work visa stickered on my passport). It took less than 20 minutes for me to go from the gate through immigration, pick up luggage and meet my driver. I was shocked at the efficiencies of the airport compared to the U.S. or Europe. I recently travelled through Europe with a few close friends and JFK, Newark, Heathrow, and Amsterdam Airport were all sadly slow and difficult to navigate through by comparison.

The airport was surprisingly fair away from Hong Kong island. It took 50 minutes to get to the service apartment in Causeway Bay on Hong Kong island without traffic. JFK is only about 30 minutes from Midtown without traffic. For a HKD 22,800 (~USD 2,900) per month, the studio was very small, fitting only one queen size bed with min. walking space. The kitchen was in a closet, where you open up the cabinet doors to access. Seems shocking, but Hong Kong real estate is actually more expensive than New York City. It seems that the Asians require much less space than Americans. The apartment seemed small even by New York standards.

The apartment does have amazing service. A staff member picked me up in the pouring rain to help me with my luggage. The staff's attitudes are friendly. They even stayed in my room for over 15 minutes to help me set up my computer and internet. However, they always leave so quickly, before I can tip them. When tipping was not the practice in Europe, the service was horrendous. The bartenders ignore you for over 20 minutes in an open bar. Waiters never come by with water. However, it seems here in Hong Kong, while tipping is not customary, the service is actually better than the states.