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Published: September 11th 2007
A new page has been turned, I arrived in Hong Kong on Friday August 31st, and put down my travel sandals (which used to be blue but after Laos and Cambodia they are more like grey/non descript), my holding-all-my-wordly-possessions-backpack and my trusted Lonely Planet guidebooks. Instead I have endorsed the power suit and DAILY CLEAN CLOTHES which felt amazing.
I am staying in a very comfy serviced flat in the heart of the city - I have until the end of September in that flat, after that I will need to move to a Proper Place. My flat is quite high up a hill, but that is not a problem because in Hong Kong the activity of walking is only optional: there is actually an escalator that goes up and down the hill. Yes like those big escalators that take you deep inside an underground station, except here they take you deep into the city centre. Actually it does not go up AND down, but rather up (in the day + evening) OR down (in the morning, to bring all the commuters down the hill). And as I learnt the hard way last week, it stops going up at midnight, so if you are walking back home at 12.01, you have got quite a lot of climbing to do with the real legs.
But even though escalators avoid you doing any walking and taxis are cheap so avoid even more walking, the people here are still very fitness conscious and go to the gym a lot. So basically you can go to the gym to run for an hour, and then jump on an escalator to avoid walking back home 😊
I had been in Hong Kong for once before, so my impressions are not totally those of a new comer, but they are still quite overwhelming. Hong Kong is fast paced and buzzing, it does not sleep - you can do your shopping at 8 pm on a Sunday, or buy fake Gucci handbags at midnight on a Tuesday. I really love the morning when I commute down to work on my escalator and get sucked into the frenzy of crowds of people who are all running about going to work. It's like being an ant in an ant hill. And I love people watching at that time, especially as it's a real fashion show here, you will rarely see people in a boring black suit. (I mean the girls, the boys don't have much room for funkyness in their suits, maybe except for the hairstyles).
I have spent two week ends here now and I must say time goes by so fast I feel I have done lots of things but did not have time to do anything! The first week end was spent visiting my friends Aurore and Jason in their amazing beach-side house (yes in Hong Kong you can get a beach after a 30-40 min drive), plus shopping around for some back-to-work staples. Speaking of shopping, I think I am doomed, I am living in a place awash with cheap shoes, how can I resist and avoid stacking up my future tiny apartment in strappy sandals, stilettos and leather pumps??? I shall keep you updated on that dilemna.
This past week end was quite touristic, I met up with my friends Valerie (guest visitor from London) and Elena (resident) and Elena's family for a stroll around the Peak. The Peak is the mountain in the middle of Hong Kong, it's super steep (you can take up old wooden tram to go up the hill which is quite impressive). I thought I was quite blasee about the views in Hong Kong by now but when I got to the top there, I felt a bit speechless. Actually it was funny because the whole tram, full of tourist, had a huge collective gasp of "WOOOW" when we got above the tree line and saw the view. As the hill is steep it means you get to be very high but still quite close to the centre of Hong Kong, and you can really appreciate how vertical it is.
The missions for this week are:
- find a flat (difficulty: 8/10, because need to decide where, what, when).
- open a bank account (difficulty: 4/10, I think I have all the papers I need, fingers crossed)
- get my Hong Kong ID Card (difficulty: 1/10, this place is very organised with well oiled bureacracy). Once I have a card I will be a REAL CITIZEN, and it means when I arrive at the airport I can jump all the queues at airport immigration ("Out of my way tourists!!").
- buy some super glue to fix my glasses which have a bit that broke (difficulty: 7/10, it seems people here do not use super glue, it's impossible to find in town!! Maybe because if stuff breaks they buy a new one rather than fix it??)
- figure out how to not need to sleep anymore (difficulty: 9/10)
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Elisabeth V
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Update
I was wrong about the bank account being easy, I did not manage to open it yet. After collecting what I thought was the necessary documentation, turning up at my local branch, going through the reception lady, taking a number, queuing, and finally getting into the advisor's office, I was told I was missing the bit of paper that proves my adress in Hong Kong. See the issue is I have NO adress in Hong Kong yet, pffft. Also it turns out I need to bring a wad of cash with me to open an account because the accounts here are not for storing a bit of your cash and using it when you need it, but rather for stacking up your cash and never having access to it again (if you go below a given limit you get fined). Any takers for a bet on how many days it will take me? :)