Hong Kong > Shanghai

I’m writing this as I wait at the terminal for my flight from Shenzhen to Shanghai — I went to Hong Kong for the weekend to visit my relatives. I ate delicious Chinese food – I still don’t get how they take the most ordinary food and make it into something better than perfect – hung out with my aunts and uncles who I sadly do not get to see often enough, and reveled in the overabundance of shopping malls. Both my wallet and daily caloric intake took a beating. Thank goodness I do not live here, or else my self-control would be nonexistent (as well as my bank account and waistline).

 In front of one of the most touristy destinations in HK - I made my uncles pose with me in front of the Bruce Lee statue, because that is pretty much the only thing you do at the Avenue of Stars (minus admire the skyline). It was fun and they were mortified (locals just do not get caught doing this, I had to beg them). Also, I enjoyed the ferry ride across the harbor immensely, Hong Kong is just so pretty at night!

Frozen yogurt with Ian, my little cousin. He just lost 4 teeth and is the most adorable thing when he smiles (or shares his opinions about anything in general). 

Hiked down a mountain to a fish market, this place is so removed from the skyscrapers and traffic of the city! 

Fast food in Hong Kong (I know, isn't it awesome?) I got curry and my uncle Eddie got pork and rice. If only American fast food were like this!

The view of the city from Happy Valley, the racetrack. One of the few open, grassy spaces you find in the city, how peaceful! 

Melody this is for you -- went to get milk tea and buns at Tsui Hua (notice the headline on the daily, haha!) 

After being in China for 2 months, it’s funny how I could instantly notice the subtle differences between Hong Kong and the mainland. I definitely think that Hong Kong is the more livable of the two cities when compared to Shanghai – the public transportation system is much more complete and convenient, the people more helpful and polite. Did I mention that its much cleaner and the food is safe to eat? There are normal toilets, and the people have actually heard of bleach (and use it)!!! Needless to say, Hong Kong was such a welcome break from always being on the alert in Shanghai. Having family around does make such a difference—I felt like I could relax and not worry about whether or not food was safe to eat, if I could trust someone, if I could find my way around without getting lost, or if I was ordering the right thing on the menu. Not that I consciously worry about these things in Shanghai, but I have to say that my stress level went down significantly this weekend. Now its back to the usual grind, but I’m sure once I get used to living in Shanghai (and my Chinese gets better) I’ll have a much easier time of it. I’ve recently made some friends in Shanghai that are also here from California, and a friend of mine will be arriving tomorrow to study until December, so I’m really excited to have some company! It’s amazing what a difference friends and familiar faces can make on the whole transition/adapting process - definitely makes it a lot easier.

Hong Kong

Seeing as I was 12 the last time I visited, I wasn't sure what to expect this time (don't even get me started on Macau). I remember a blur of lights, noise (mostly unintelligible cantonese), good food and good shopping, but nothing specific. Gosh what a waste, remind me never to take my kids traveling until they're in high school. This time around though, it was almost an overwhelming of the senses, where every experience is sharpened because it is familiar, but at the same time not.

This is how they deliver vegetables?

Bartholomew in front of Victoria Park (equivalent of NYC's Central Park)

First off, I don't speak cantonese. And I certainly don't read chinese, which puts me at a huge disadvantage when it comes to bargaining at night markets (very important), communicating with my aunts and uncles (so I can tell them about my exciting life back home and how much I have grown - and NOT physically- since they last saw me), and finding my way around the maze-like roads (when i'm not risking my life looking lef-right-left). Unlike Europe, where life is like a pretty picture and things just seem to fit into the landscape (maybe I'm just used to westernized culture?), Hong Kong is full of interruptions. It's colorful, bright, and loud-- not just the language. Buildings are so tall you can't see the end of them, and people live in such close quarters its really quite claustrophobic. People are everywhere, ants moving from place to place, just like in those fast-forward clips of Times Square in Tokyo.

Hong Kong at night

And the food-- it's like the chinese food you find in LA, except hyped up on steriods, better than you thought your dimsum/chow mein/roast duck experience could ever get! Flavors and textures of foods I grew up with are more refined - and also foreign, in a way, to what I know. I've discovered that there really are gourmet chinese restaurants, not the hole-in-the-wall places in LA that seem to have questionable preparation methods (eat, don't question). Don't get me wrong, still still have that in Hong Kong, but at the same time you can buy lunch for less than $3 USD. Clean, elegant restaurants with fishing boats hanging from the ceiling, better soup dumplings than din tai fung (not to mention the people in the window making them are actually Chinese), and tastefully hung paintings. Who woulda thunk?

  The best duck I have ever had!!

dim sum-- it looks the same as the stuff here, but it certainly doesn't taste like it.

Shop selling lots of dried goods that I would never eat.