Monday 25 June 2012


A Hong Kong High

When I first discovered that my days off wouldn’t be consecutive, I was a bit disappointed. That was the end of the weekend trips to Macau or to mainland China that I’d imagined. However, I’m certainly seeing the bright side of having a weekday off:  It’s a perfect way to avoid the worst of the tourist crowds.

 
Today was a case in point. I decided to enjoy the other Must-Do Hong Kong experience – a ride on the Peak Tram. At 552 meters, Victoria Peak is the highest point on Hong Kong Island. The tram, built in 1888, is a funicular railway that scales the slope to the plateau at 370 meters. (Note the U.S. spellings – I have to stay sharp for work!)

Essentially, the tram is two streetcars/trolleys/whatever that are linked together and pulled up the incline by steel cables. It’s an amazing ride. The incline is steep – you’re praying the cable doesn’t snap and send you shooting back down the hill. The ride takes you through the green, tropical canopy that blankets much of the island, but there’s a moment when the track breaks through the trees and a collective “ooh” goes up from the riders.

I was keen to take the trip back down, wondering what it would be like on that incline. Interestingly, the tram seats don’t shift position, so riders face backwards on the return trip. Perhaps that’s intentional – I imagine the scream quotient would be high otherwise!

The Peak Tower has a viewing area seven stories above the ground and the view is amazing! Despite some mist across the way, I was able to see Hong Kong Island’s densely packed shoreline – high rise after high rise after high rise – as well as the harbour and Kowloon across the way. An extraordinary number of ships are docked just off the Kowloon coast, waiting to come into port, where cranes stand like soldiers waiting for the command to unload.

It was also a pleasure to be so high above sea level. There was a lovely breeze and the warm wind just whipped through my hair. Humidity was forgotten for a while and that was a pleasure, indeed!

After taking in the vistas from the tower, I walked the road that rings the plateau. Once again, I was under a canopy of trees, making the walk shady, but humid. The vegetation varied from the small -- mosses and lichens – to the massive -- India rubber trees. Every so often, I’d come to a clearing and was able to enjoy a different view of the shores and the harbour between. I saw a couple dozen people during the hour I walked the path, and given Hong Kong’s crowds, it was a treat.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. I’m back on flat ground and getting things organized for tomorrow. Back to work!

Saturday 23 June 2012

Here Be Dragons ...

Well, dragon boats, anyway!  Today, Hong Kong celebrated the annual Tuen Ng festival. It commemorates the death of a poet-statesman who killed himself in the third century BC by jumping into the river – protest against a corrupt government. There are races in a couple of spots in Hong Kong, and mainland China and Macau also celebrate.
 
I took a city bus to Stanley, a town on the south side of the island that holds the biggest races. It was amazing just lining up for the bus. The city had cleverly anticipated the crowds and assigned loads of double-decker buses to the route, and the line just snaked around, but kept moving. As soon as a bus was full – and I mean PACKED! – it took off and the next one loaded.

The route to Stanley – named after the British secretary of state for the colonies at the time Hong Kong was ceded to the British in the 1800s -- took us along the coastline and I was gifted with some amazing vistas of blue water, sandy beaches and green hills rising above them.  The entire interior of the island is hilly and covered with vegetation, except where high rises have sprung up. Although the commute to downtown would be a bit long, I can see why people want to live along the coast road: the views are amazing!

Once the bus arrived in Stanley, I joined the crowds heading to the main beach, site of the races. It was crowded, but not insanely so, and I managed to find a spot on the seawall to watch the races. I ended up sitting next to a woman vacationing here from Switzerland. It’s one of the things I love best about being in Hong Kong: it’s a real crossroads and you meet people from all over the world.
 
Soon, I realized that I could actually walk down onto the beach near to where the boats were launching. It was such fun to see all the teams assembling. Many were corporate teams or club teams – there was even a team of U of T/UBC alumni! Teams wore matching shirts, and some wore crazy costumes (warriors, angels, etc.) or funky headdresses.

Dragon boats, as many of you know, are long, skinny boats whose paddlers sit in pairs and paddle to the rhythm set by a drummer at the bow. What a treat to be standing ankle deep in the warm water of the bay as the drums pounded and the paddlers stroked their fastest! It was a lively event and a wonderful one, because it brought together the expatriate community and the Hong Kong natives for one purpose.

Afterwards, I wandered the town market, walked to the pier and listened to the open air music in the town square. There were groups of all kinds: African drummers, pop cover bands, folksingers. It really added to the festive atmosphere.

And now that I’ve been to the beach, felt the yellow sand under my feet (shades of the Jersey Shore!) and the warm water (unlike the Jersey Shore!), I can’t wait to spend a day swimming. Once the festival ends, no fear of dragons!

Wednesday 20 June 2012


Back on the Chain Gang

It’s Day 3 of my new work life and I’ve lived to tell the tale!

After a three-month hiatus, I had wondered if working an eight-hour day would be a shock to my system, but I’m back in the groove. And editing seems more like play than like work.

Our office is in a sparkling glass highrise with flower arranagements in each elevator. How’s that for elegance?

The newsroom has about 30 people and it is filled with cubicles that have low walls, so there’s minimal privacy – in other words, your typical newsroom. And let me tell you, it’s a real hardship looking up from the computer to see picturesque Victoria Harbour with its cruise ships, freighters and fishing boats!
I’ve also moved into my apartment -- an adventure in itself. The taxi driver who took me from the hotel to the apartment was convinced that I wanted to go to Yee Wo Street, a larger, better-known street in Causeway Bay than my Yiu Wah Street – and they sound similar. By the time I realized his mistake, I was standing on the sidewalk six blocks from the apartment building with 70 pounds of luggage to shlep. By the time I arrived, sweat was streaming from every pore in my body! Thank heavens for the building manager and the cleaner. They helped me carry my suitcase up the three flights to my walk-up.

Although my street is fairly quiet – a relative term in Hong Kong – the nearby shopping streets are crazy-busy. Yesterday, I exited the subway at a different spot and saw an entire wave of people moving towards me-- never, not even in NYC, have I seen such a mass of humanity flowing. A colleague of mine visited New York last year for the first time and said that he wondered where all the people were! It’s all in your perspective.

I’ve already located a local restaurant that makes my favourite Singapore noodles, so you know what my default meal will be! It’s a tiny place that also specializes in congee, the rice gruel that is so popular here. I did try it, but neither the taste nor the texture appeal, so I’ll stick with noodles, thank you! And I’m sure I’ll try lots of other interesting dishes as time marches on. Scallion pancakes, anyone?

Saturday 16 June 2012


Woman on the Move

Let’s talk moving, as in housing and transit. Tomorrow, I will be moving into my new apartment in Causeway Bay, a district that seems to be undergoing gentrification.

I spent Friday visiting various studio “apartments” in my planned price range and found that they were all tiny. Space it at a premium here, especially on Hong Kong Island, and the prices reflect it. In fact, the studio apartments I viewed are more like college dorm rooms – it makes me feel young again!

My new apartment is 260 square feet and is furnished with a bed, night table, wardrobe and desk, plus a tiny bathroom and kitchenette. Like most “serviced” apartments, it comes with weekly maid service and linen change (!), cable TV, WiFi and utilities. I’ll be paying almost twice what I pay in Toronto for an apartment that only one-third as large, but with utilities, WiFi and cable thrown in, it’s a bit less pricey.

In a nod to NYC, the building is two blocks from Times Square, an upscale highrise mall with shops that I might find anywhere in the world: Burberry, Caswell & Massey, Dunhill, etc. (Shopping is everywhere, indeed!)

My building is a low-rise, only six or seven floors:  a treat in a region where 30-storey buildings are common. There’s a rooftop garden and laundry on site, too, which isn’t always the case. Many people send their laundry out for washing and laundries charge by the kilogram. I think I’d prefer to wash my own underwear, thank you!

As in New York, Times Square has a subway station, and it’s only a 10-minute ride to work, so my door-to-door commute should be no more than 30 minutes. Transit here is amazingly efficient. (Ah, Toronto, take lessons, please!) There is a comprehensive network of subway lines, complemented by buses and streetcars (called trams here). The subway is modern, and each platform has numerous entry points that align with the doors on the subway cars when they arrive. The track are behind glass, so I’m guessing that suicides by train aren’t easy to arrange (Hello, again, Toronto!), and it’s a great safety feature, too, especially since so many children ride the subway.

In fact, that’s something that really strikes me. Everyone uses the subway, no matter their age. It’s not simply working people, even on weekdays. There are elderly folks who creep towards the platforms, families with small children and youngsters travelling alone and in packs. It’s safe and convenient, and in a city where space is at a premium, it’s easier than driving. I’ve never had to wait more than three minutes for a train, time of day notwithstanding. And yes, Torontonians, the subway does go all the way to the airport – what a concept! :)

Thursday 14 June 2012

First Impressions


Hong Kong. Lovingly, it has been called the Vancouver of the East, although it would be just as accurate to call Canada’s left-coast jewel the Hong Kong of the West. Both cities treat their inhabitants to a mesmerizing combination of mountains and water, slopes speckled with flashes of greenery, skies that sparkle in the sun or whisper secrets in the mist.

Riding across the imposing span bridge from the airport on Lantau Island, I see Victoria Harbour, resplendent with ships: barges stacked with containers, busy tugs, laden freighters waiting to enter the port to unload, even the occasional sampan. Again, memories of Vancouver’s Coal Harbour run through my mind. The endless skyscrapers climbing the hills do nothing to dispel the notion that I’ve slipped into an alternate universe where British Columbia’s biggest city is reflected back to me, larger than life.



The streets, however, are more reminiscent of New York. People everywhere, intent on their destinations, hurrying along. Shops, shops and more shops of all kinds: the elegant, the affordable, the modest. Sleek indoor malls in office towers compete with family businesses scratching out a living at street level. Commerce rules the day, as I am reminded by the massive bank towers that dominate the skyline of Central, the island’s downtown core.

Hong Kong is also a crossroads for those commercial endeavours, it seems. People from all over Asia and the world are here to do business or make their livings. In the hotel today, I chatted with a businessman from Bangkok here to market small aircraft and a businesswoman from Shanghai here for a few days of meetings. Then, there are those like me who are combining work with the opportunity for adventure.  At breakfast, I visited with a young couple from Ohio, recent graduates who are here to teach English. They were giddy with the excitement of achieving their dream of working abroad in their field, keen to move into their newly rented apartment and get settled. Soon, I’ll be following suit.

I had wondered how much of the British influence would remain here 15 years after the handover – banners marking the anniversary decorate the streets of Central and an exhibition of China’s Xian warrior statues will also mark the occasion – and the jury is still out. Today, as I had lunch at a small restaurant of the kind that abound along the streets -- unpretentious, bare bones, good food – I found pointing and gesturing to be the language I had in common with the wait staff. Immigration from the mainland combined with a renewed emphasis on Chinese language since the handover makes English less prominent, I’ve been told.  Time to add a bit of Cantonese to my vocabulary!

Monday 4 June 2012

Only eight days until blast-off for Hong Kong. It's hard to believe it's almost here, but I'm ready. My suitcase is largely packed, I'll be getting my final hepatitis vaccine this week and I'm saying "au revoir" to family and friends, so it must really be happening.

The flight is 15 hours direct, which should be an adventure in itself, but I'm armed with reading material -- both books and my precious Kobo -- and my netbook, so I should be able to keep myself entertained. I also have my trusty eye mask -- I've found that it really helps black out the lights for sleeping, although my adrenaline may be pumping to hard to make any shut-eye possible.

The airline allows two bags for Asian flights, but I hope to keep my belongings to one bag and bring the other along to pack with anything I collect abroad. HK is known as a shopping mecca, and although I'm not a super shopper, I am sure I'll want souvenirs of this adventure.

I'm both nervous and excited, with excitement having the upper hand. Working abroad is a dream come true, so whatever the trip brings, it will be one for the memory bank!