But British Imperialism Tastes So Good!

Jan 20, 2006 – Zach
Tiffany and I traveled to Hong Kong for the weekend. My dad was on his way back from his annual Buddhist mecca to Thailand (you can see a 12 min. video of his trip at http://mindobserver.com/downloads/, which has both Quicktime and Real Player versions available), so we planned to meet him there.

What a shock to the senses! Hong Kong is so incredibly…. civilized. Or “civilised" as they would say in the Britspeak that pervades, even among the Chinese locals. Like an oasis in the desert, Tiffany and I were mesmerized by a whole population of Chinese that could actually understand us speak, and we eagerly drank in all the wonderful English with which they replied! Asking for directions? No problem! Ordering food? Didn’t have to point at a picture once!

No motorcycles racing down the sidewalk, no bicycles flying in front of your path, and NO SPITTING! Well, Tiffany and I just thought we were in heaven. The metro was well organized with many lines and stops, and passengers who didn’t storm each train as if it was the last one that would ever come again. Hong Kong seems much more dense than Shanghai, but is so much more efficient that it is quite easy to navigate.

Friday we got lost trying to meet up with my dad, and were happily asking everyone in sight for directions when we ran into him. Both of us were wandering around the wrong building!


Here’s a shot of what I thought was a decorative feature in the HSBC building, but is actually the real vault doorway to an escalator that goes down to the safety deposit boxes.








After meeting up, we walked around the streets of Hong Kong and finally settled on a restaurant for dinner that met our criteria: has customers, looks clean and looks cheap. Sure enough, the food was very good and inexpensive. But it tasted strangely familiar, and as we walked out of there we looked up and noticed the sign – Shanghainese food! So much for the authentic local experience…

Saturday we had dim sum at the IFC building, which is one of the newest and I think tallest skyscrapers in Hong Kong. After that we wandered around Harbour City mall for the afternoon. Hong Kong truly is a shopper’s paradise! The sheer volume of goods available was overwhelming, and unlike Shanghai, the quality actually appeared to be more substantial than the “should last a few months” standard to which we’ve become accustomed. The prices weren’t as cheap, but still we estimated that most things were 10-20% cheaper than the States. And they actually carried shoes in Tiffany’s size, so she was happy. (Here in Shanghai, they just laugh when she asks for her size.)

For dinner we fed one of our Western food cravings and visited Dan Ryan’s Chicago Steakhouse, where we inhaled a full side of baby back ribs, mashed potatoes, giant steamed broccoli, and a gooey, molten chocolate cake!

After dinner, fat and happy, Tiffany and I waddled over to a very hip joint called Aqua, located on the top floor of another skyscraper, and were treated to 360 degree nighttime views of the city. We met up with Tiffany’s friend Melissa (whom our faithful readers may remember, visited us in Shanghai last November) and her boyfriend Jim for a few fancy cocktails at this swanky bar. The closest to a genteel, classy bar of this caliber that I could think of in Shanghai was a place called Bar Rouge. Of course at Bar Rouge, the bartenders instill anarchy when they periodically light the bar on fire… Then they do the same to the deejay’s booth. And drunken patrons dance around the fire like crazed monkeys. It’s very Lord of the Flies… So come to think of it, they’re not really all that comparable.

Anyhoo, Sunday we had brunch at the venerable Peninsula Hotel, which is arguably the nicest (read: most wallet-thinning) hotel in Hong Kong. After that it was a boat tour of Victoria Harbor, a large water feature that dominates the Hong Kong geography. In fact, many people take the cross-harbor ferry to commute to work. What a great way to start each morning! While the ride is probably less than 15 minutes, you get a spectacular view of city skylines on both sides of the Harbor. And the water wasn’t rough, so it was also a very peaceful ride, with the boat bobbing and swaying in a gentle rhythm.

After the boat tour, we walked along the waterside, where Hong Kong has a Hollywood-type Walk of Fame, with stars commemorating Chinese actors. We walked to the Intercontinental Hotel, which has a great waterside location, and had big, fat burgers for our last Hong Kong meal of the weekend. If it sounds like all we did this weekend was stuff our faces, it’s because it’s true :O

All in all, it was great to visit with my dad, who was our first parental encounter since our Great Far East Adventure began. And oddly enough, by the end of the weekend, we started to miss our good ol’ Shanghai. With all of its daily insanities and frustrations, and all of its cultural idiosyncrasies that we may never understand, Shanghai has endeared itself to us in a way that I believe Hong Kong never could. The orderly, proper behavior of Hong Kong will never compare to the loud, unruly character of our adopted hometown.

Which is not to say that a return to Hong Kong isn’t in our future. I mean, there is still so much more shopping to be done…