July 9th, 2013.
So I have to backtrack a little here. I was way too out of whack my first week here to be able to write every day, but better late than never right! I am finally adjusted to the 12 hour time difference and out of the jetlag-daze. It took me a solid 7 days to finally not be exhausted and waking up at the wrong hours, which my dad said was his experience his first time around here. My dad arrived in Hong Kong two weeks before the rest of my family to “scout out” the area and start working and getting adjusted….only to have to fly back to the States for my graduation (sorry, Dad!). It was really nice arriving here and already having someone in the family know where (some) things are and how things work.
As for getting here, the 16 hour plane ride actually wasn’t bad at all. We had bed seats so I slept through most of it—except for the last 4 hours which consisted of rackety turbulence. We later found out it was due to the Level 3 Typhoon that day. Let’s just say it was a good thing I wasn’t aware of that on the plane!
My first impression of Hong Kong as we drove in at around 8pm was, “There are so many lights. This is an impressive city!”
Nighttime in Hong Kong is a feast for one’s eyes. Every night at 8:05pm, a light show goes off and buildings start flashing and changing color. It is a crazy and mesmerizing display! We have yet to see the full skyline from the ferry (the only place you can see the full light show) so I am very eager to do so.
Funnily enough, on our first day in Asia the first thing we ate was French food and frozen yogurt. We needed something safe and dependable to keep us awake! I nearly fell asleep at lunch the first day…I was a walking zombie. It’s a really strange feeling, because you just ate food so you should feel fine but you don’t. Later we had Chinese for dinner (REAL Chinese) which was good, but definitely not what we are used to in the States.
To end this (have to hit the sack because lucky me gets to go to Singapore tomorrow) I’m going to list some of the things I’ve observed/learned about Hong Kong…
#1. Everyone is fit and slim here. Okay, not EVERYONE, but it is pretty rare to see someone who is really overweight.
#2. I’m only 5’4″ and I feel tall sometimes! Since Asian people are shorter in general, I fit right in. It’s nice not to feel short for once.
#3. If you are sick, it is custom to wear a face mask. We have seen several people walking around wearing them. It is out of respect that they wear them, which I think is kindof nice.
#4. Cultural difference: people here don’t expect you to hold doors open for them, and they won’t hold one open for you. Or say thank you if you do happen to. It just isn’t done here.
#5 Hong Kong is home to the steepest tram in the world. Yeah, it was freaky. And awesome!
#6. If you don’t want to break into a sweat outside during the summer, you saunter. NO speedwalking. Slow and steady is the pace. Also, try to walk inside instead of outside.
#7. Getting around speaking English here is a piece of cake. Even if people don’t speak much English, they understand enough to help you and are very used to ex-pats.
#8. The sidewalks here are above the roads. It is very cool, they are like connected pathways swirling around the city. They connect to buildings so you can cross from building to building and there are lots of pathways within buildings so you can stay inside as long as possible.
#9. Hong Kong is very much like London in a LOT of ways. Examples: Double deckers, same emergency number, British food brands at grocery stores, they drive on the other side, the plugs are like British plugs, and there are a bunch of British people here.
#10. On rainy days, parts of the island are engulfed in cloud. They descend really low, and sometimes there is a fog so thick you can’t see across to the other side of the harbor. If you live in an apartment that is high up or near the top of the mountain, you can’t open your windows sometimes or cloud will come in! Friends of ours used to have this problem so they moved down to the first floor of their apartment building.
More later! x
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