The Newest Expat/ Rad Lamma Jamma

It's been 3 full days since I touched down at HKG and the verdict is in: Hong Kong is, in a word, incredible.  In a few more words, here's why:

Efficient Transportation: From the minute you land on Chek Lap Kok, the island that plays home to Hong Kong's International Airport, it is clear that Hong Kong is the model of transportation efficiency.  Immediately after deplaning,  travelers are funneled onto a high speed airport train and guided through to customs and baggage reclaim by clearly posted signs in both English and Cantonese.  From there, all it takes is one quick stop to pick up an Octopus card, and you're whisked toward Kowloon and Hong Kong Island onboard the 24 minute high-speed airport express.  From both stops, you have the option of continuing your journey on one of 5 MTR lines, or you can hop outside and grab a city bus or minibus.  Alternatively, you can get a little wild and splurge on a cab.  A trip half way across the island will set you back by about the same amount as a Venti Macchiato.

Transportation around the city by foot is an equally attractive alternative, especially if you share my concern about all the noodle bowls and pints of TsingTao going straight to your thighs.  Unless you're walking immediately alongside the harbour, there is little to no chance that you'll be able to avoid the steep hills of the midlevels- unless of course your destination happens to lie at the top of the Central-Midlevels Escalator, in which case you can throw on a pair of super high heels and go for a ride without the fear of falling backwards down the street.

Nicole, Kora and I marvel at the moving walkway

The Alternative

Conspicuous Consumption:  From Central to Causeway Bay, Hong Kong is teeming with local and international vendors eagerly awaiting the opportunity to trade everything from luxury goods to electronics to dried minnows served up in bulk for a stack of Hong Kong Dollars.  The square footage devoted to luxury brand retailers alone is staggering (Giorgio Armani's flagship boutique on Chater Street boasts its own flower shop), but the true marvel is how many local retailers are tucked away in the city's narrow side streets.  I had the chance to walk through a few of these local shops as I meandered through Causeway Bay on Friday, but due to the stores' "no fitting" policies and my utter failure to identify any of the foods displayed in clear plastic bins, I decided not to commit to anything but new sheets and kitchen supplies from Ikea.

Air Conditioning: Hong Kong is the AirCon capital of the world and it's no wonder why.  Outside it is HOT and HUMID.  Heavily air conditioned malls no doubt contribute to this city's love of shopping.

Not-so-ironic Hipsters:  With its abundance of vintage (read: not-so-cheap and stylishly outdated) clothing and fixed-gear bicycles, Hong Kong provides a perfect base for Hipsters.  Normally, I have limited tolerance for non-prescription horn-rimmed glasses and knitted toques in the summer time, but for some reason I find this awkward counterculture movement slightly less offensive in HK.  Maybe it's the fact that local guys have the bodies to pull off skinny jeans without making me want to vom, or maybe it's because meticulously maintained shags that scream "I spend $150 at the salon and 30 minutes every morning to look like I just rolled out of bed" were popular (for guys and girls) long before Zack Effron or Justin Beiber arrived on the scene.  Whatever it is, all I know is that walking around here, I have lost the urge to kick the first person I see wearing a flannel shirt, offensive graphic Tee and purple Converse.

Sexy Parties in SoHo:  After running around Causeway bay on Friday,  I met up with friends (old and new) at Two IFC for a glass of Pinot Grigio on the third floor terrace overlooking the Harbour toward Kowloon.   Not only a spectacular view, but because the patio is public space, guests are welcome (albeit at the risk of catching a few glares from the waitstaff) to bring their own outside food and beverages.

View toward Kowloon from Two IFC

After a couple drinks we headed for dinner at a small Nepalese restaurant called Base Camp on Stauton Street in Soho.  From Base Camp, we headed straight up the hill to a house party hosted by Johnny- a charismatic expat working in "finance" (everyone in Hong Kong works in banking, consulting, finance or law).  We brought our own grocery store Stellas, but immediately accepted the offer to switch to Veuve Clicquot.  Thanks to the strong expat community in Hong Kong it doesn't take long to make new English-speaking friends who are equally as eager to widen their social circle.  As an added bonus, because a large majority of people are relative newcomers to the city, there is very little room for pretentious anti-tourist sentiment and visitors are welcomed with open arms even at the city's more exclusive venues.

Nature:  I have to admit to a certain degree of ignorance with respect to knowledge of Hong Kong geography prior to this trip.  In my mind, I envisioned Hong Kong as a sprawling metropolis with a strong financial core and impressive skyline.  I was partially correct.  What I wasn't expecting was overgrown bamboo forests, lush green mountains, exotic plantains, flowering shrubs and sandy beaches. This is exactly what I found on Lamma, a small island immediately southwest of Hong Kong Island.  On Friday afternoon, Jesse, Nicole and I traded 14HKD (approximately CAD$2) for a seat on the inter-island ferry from Central and after praying that our boat wouldn't capsize in the stormy swells of Hong Kong Harbour, we arrived on the island.  Having failed to check the weather forecast, we had to seek shelter from a brief flash storm which gave us the opportunity to chat with a fantastically friendly British expat who gave us some helpful tips on navigating our way around the island.

After riding out the torrential downpour in the Waterfront Restaurant, we took the trail from Yung Shue Wan to Sok Kwu Wan stopping along the way to take in the spectacular views.  Of course, juxtaposed against the natural landscapes are sites that quickly reminded me that we weren't far from civilization.  Hong Kong Electric's imposing Lamma Island Power Station provided an almost comical backdrop to the otherwise peaceful beaches and the frequent ferries which shuttle tourists in and out of the island's harbours are evidence that Lamma is much more than a sleepy fishing village.

Fresh Local Fare:  I am only slightly ashamed to admit that my first meal in Hong Kong was a Quesadilla because I more than made up for it last night in Lamma by embracing the local gastronomy and ordering fresh crab, prawns and grouper (served whole- head and all) at Rainbow Seafood Restaurant in SKW.  I also snacked on dried minnows which admittedly I had to wash down with several large gulps of TsingTao.  The food was delicious as expected and the service was superb (a very pleasant byproduct of the fierce competition among businesses in Hong Kong all vieing for tourist patronage.

60 Foot Yachts:  You mean you don't have one?  This is not surprising since 99% of the world's pleasure crafts seem to have dropped anchor in Hong Kong harbour.  Boat ownership holds high prestige all over the world, but in HK it is trendier than military-inspired fall attire.  What's not trendy is watching your 60 foot yacht catch on fire.  Our dinner in SKW came with some unexpected entertainment.  About half way through our meal, we were startled by sirens in the quiet harbour and turned around just in time to see a yacht burst into flames.  Half an hour later when we left the restaurant the fire crew and coast guard were still fighting a losing battle against the blaze.  I'm sure that burning to the ground while surrounded by water is not the type of trendy irony most boat owners strive for.

Fire fighters try unsuccessfully to quell the cabin fire

Live Concerts:  Okay, so I'm not just brushing up on my Cantopop over here, I'm experiencing it live!  After an adventure-packed day on Lamma, we arrived back in Central just in time to catch some of HK's biggest stars live in concert.  Highlights included sharing a seating area with Jason's biggest fan, snapping some paparazzo-style pics of an unknown Asian supermodel, and watching Super Boyz perform their smash hit "Superstar" (Fact: I have been a huge fan of Super Boyz since mid July 2010 when this tune came blasting through the speakers for Cantonese Day at Wild Water Kingdom Water slides in Toronto).

Jason Chan

HK Supermodel

Super boys perform live

All of this in only three days makes me wonder how I'm going to keep up the pace for the next 4 months- and at the same time whether or not I will be ready to leave after such a short visit!

An Inaugural Adieu

Pre-Departure Planning

It's 10:36 a.m. in Vancouver, Canada - a mere 1 hour and 53 minutes since I first logged onto Blogspot in an  attempt to launch this epic web log (Yes, I decided that if I wanted to become a true blogger, I first needed to know the origins of my new favourite four-letter word, and yes, it took me close to 2 hours to to figure it out).  As a newcomer to the blog scene, I will strive to keep this blog short, sweet, and laced with hilarious tales of misadventure.  As an important caveat, I will warn readers that my storytelling abilities have sometimes been likened to those of Grandpa Simpson and I have no qualms about subjecting family and friends to bad jokes, poor puns and grossly gratuitous alliteration, all of which will play an integral role in setting the tone of this blog.

Since this is, in essence, a travel blog, it only makes sense to start off by signing off.  I will be saying sayonara (alliteration) to Canada in approximately 15 hours or, to be more precise, in exactly 3 loads of laundry, 2 skim milk lattes, 6 Facebook Logins, 1 Toronto Star Crossword, 3 daily horoscopes (because I had to keep reading until I found the one that told me I should embark on a new adventure), 40 minutes on the treadmill, 300 crunches (to counteract last night's peach sundae and 2 bottles of wine and to stay on track with Ab-Challenge 2010),  1 trip to BMO, 1 campaign against York University and its administration, 1 (inevitable) freak-out about having too much to pack, 2 too many glasses of pinot noir in the Air Canada Lounge and A LOT of big goodbyes.

The purposes of my trip (in no particular order) are to:

1. Travel: Macau, Mainland China, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand are all on my list
2. Find a trendy Chinese alternative to my favourite summer beverage: the white-wine spritzer 
3. Have a suit tailored for less than the cost of a monthly TTC pass (adult fare, not student rate)
4. Put an end to horking
5. Watch Jersey Shore dubbed over in Cantonese
6. Brush up on my HK Celebrity gossip and Cantopop
7. Buy all of my Christmas gifts at the Pearl, Bird, Dried Food and Goldfish Markets
8. Snap at least one picture of a monkey

Oh, yah, and to study law at the University of Hong Kong, which is the actual purpose of my trip.  After 6 years of post-secondary education in Ontario, I have finally discovered that "fall semester" need not be synonymous with "Alpaca Wool Sweater", and so I will be trading in my salt-stained Uggs and Extra Large Steeped Teas for Sundresses, chunky sandals and iced coffees as I immerse myself in Chinese IP law and Regulation of Cyberspace.

And so concludes my inaugural post.  Hello, and Farewell... until China!