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.