Ruminations on destinations: Hong Kong
As I sit at the airport awaiting my flight to Shanghai, I thought I'd share a few thoughts & observations from my (admittedly limited) visit to Hong Kong.
#1: The city is extremely navigable. The metro system is one of the cleanest, well marked, inexpensive and user friendly I've encountered. It certainly helps that all signage, kiosks and PA announcements are in English (as well as Chinese) and the whole thing is cleaner than my bathroom and has central air. Speaking of ticket kiosks - wow were they easy! Puts the MetroNorth ones to shame. And if for some reason, despite all the signs and directions you are still in doubt? Well, just ask one of the friendly staff that are placed throughout each station for help (it does seem as though their main gig is to remind travelers to use the handrails!).
#2: There is a vast difference in style and vibe between Kowloon (mainland side) and Hong Kong (island). While Kowloon felt gritty, (as I mentioned earlier: Times Square meets Canal Street, and that's not a compliment), pushy (designer bags, watches, everything (fakes of course) being pushed in your face at every corner, and noticeable begging/homelessness, Hong Kong was like it's fancy older cousin: indulgent, spoiled, flashy and a label-whore's dream. The designer shop to people ratio is insane! I have never seen more Cartier & Chanel shops in my life. I think there are 2 Chanel boutiques in all of NYC -- I passed at least 6 in Hong Kong alone. And boy, do they LOVE their malls. (On the upside, when you need to escape the 90+ degree heat, you are always within a 1 block radius of a air conditioned mall).
#3: The people were so friendly. Not that this surprised me, more that I was so happy to find it to be the case. Shop keepers, cab drivers, random people on the street - all so eager to help point you in the right direction, recommend places to go and things to do and ask all about life in the US. I was asked repeatedly if I thought Obama was going to be able to pull the US out of it's financial crisis....unfortunately, my answer was rather more wishy-washy than I think they'd hoped for.
Literary Inspirations: Hong Kong
Before our 2nd annual birthday trip last year, my dear friend Katherine made such a fun recommendation: she suggested we read Hemmingway's To Have and Have Not before heading to Key West on vacation. As a totally dorked-out English major/ex-book publicist, I thought it was such a wonderful idea to read a novel based in the city we were visiting. It adds a bit of familiarity to a new spot and gives you something to think about other than your own experiences there.
I decided to copy this for my trip to Asia and set a goal for myself to read a novel based in each of the cities I'm visiting. For Hong Kong, I selected White Ghost Girls. Set in 1967, this novel tells the story of two American sisters living in Hong Kong, their detached mother and their Vietnam War photographer father during the Moist Revolution. A complicated and devastating coming of age story, it gave a glimpse into the everyday life of ex-pats in Hong Kong with the backdrop of two simultaneous political movements. The best part was wandering through Hong Kong and stumbling upon neighborhoods and landmarks mentioned throughout the book.
Au Revoir Hong Kong! On to mainland China.
As I sit at the airport awaiting my flight to Shanghai, I thought I'd share a few thoughts & observations from my (admittedly limited) visit to Hong Kong.
#1: The city is extremely navigable. The metro system is one of the cleanest, well marked, inexpensive and user friendly I've encountered. It certainly helps that all signage, kiosks and PA announcements are in English (as well as Chinese) and the whole thing is cleaner than my bathroom and has central air. Speaking of ticket kiosks - wow were they easy! Puts the MetroNorth ones to shame. And if for some reason, despite all the signs and directions you are still in doubt? Well, just ask one of the friendly staff that are placed throughout each station for help (it does seem as though their main gig is to remind travelers to use the handrails!).
#2: There is a vast difference in style and vibe between Kowloon (mainland side) and Hong Kong (island). While Kowloon felt gritty, (as I mentioned earlier: Times Square meets Canal Street, and that's not a compliment), pushy (designer bags, watches, everything (fakes of course) being pushed in your face at every corner, and noticeable begging/homelessness, Hong Kong was like it's fancy older cousin: indulgent, spoiled, flashy and a label-whore's dream. The designer shop to people ratio is insane! I have never seen more Cartier & Chanel shops in my life. I think there are 2 Chanel boutiques in all of NYC -- I passed at least 6 in Hong Kong alone. And boy, do they LOVE their malls. (On the upside, when you need to escape the 90+ degree heat, you are always within a 1 block radius of a air conditioned mall).
#3: The people were so friendly. Not that this surprised me, more that I was so happy to find it to be the case. Shop keepers, cab drivers, random people on the street - all so eager to help point you in the right direction, recommend places to go and things to do and ask all about life in the US. I was asked repeatedly if I thought Obama was going to be able to pull the US out of it's financial crisis....unfortunately, my answer was rather more wishy-washy than I think they'd hoped for.
Literary Inspirations: Hong Kong
Before our 2nd annual birthday trip last year, my dear friend Katherine made such a fun recommendation: she suggested we read Hemmingway's To Have and Have Not before heading to Key West on vacation. As a totally dorked-out English major/ex-book publicist, I thought it was such a wonderful idea to read a novel based in the city we were visiting. It adds a bit of familiarity to a new spot and gives you something to think about other than your own experiences there.
I decided to copy this for my trip to Asia and set a goal for myself to read a novel based in each of the cities I'm visiting. For Hong Kong, I selected White Ghost Girls. Set in 1967, this novel tells the story of two American sisters living in Hong Kong, their detached mother and their Vietnam War photographer father during the Moist Revolution. A complicated and devastating coming of age story, it gave a glimpse into the everyday life of ex-pats in Hong Kong with the backdrop of two simultaneous political movements. The best part was wandering through Hong Kong and stumbling upon neighborhoods and landmarks mentioned throughout the book.
Au Revoir Hong Kong! On to mainland China.
Love the shout and love that your reading about your travel spots.
ReplyDeleteBest travel / reading suggestion ever! I hope I can keep up with all of the books on this trip. Thank goodness for long flights!
DeleteI love this idea! Have you read anything by Lisa See? Her novels all seem to take place (at least partially) in Shanghai. Keep on adventuring! xo
ReplyDeleteYes! My Shanghai selection is "Shanghai Girls" by Lisa See! I read her book "Snow Flower & the Secret Fan" a few years ago and loved it.
DeleteYour mention of the designer shops begs the question -- have you gotten a sibling for the Paris Chanel? Or, perhaps more importantly, a souvenir from Cartier for me?! Miss you and love keeping up with everything through this blog!
ReplyDeleteHahaha. No siblings for Coco (the Paris Chanel)...yet. She's happy as an only child for the time being (and my bank acocunt is happy with that too). Re: Cartier - just because there are tons of stores, doesn't mean the prices are different :) Besides, that's what fiances are for! xoxo
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