I am a Brit Born Chinese from Hong Kong and have been to Hong Kong countless times and every time I come to Hong Kong I still get a massive culture shock. I speak the language, I love the fashion, the food is incredibly tasty but my first day back in Hong Kong has been an interesting one. Despite being a HK girl myself; here is a checklist of what to expect when stepping foot into Hong Kong:
1. You will notice a sudden increase in Mainland Chinese tourists visiting Hong Kong. How can you tell? They travel in large groups; usually they in their 50s and above; talking really loudly amongst themselves. How did I notice? There were 10 of them on the moving escalator (still in the airport arrival gates) and one of them decides to ungracefully trip over at the end of the escalator; knocking over the rest of her tour group (yes, it turned into a human mountain at the end of the moving escalator)! It was weird, funny and embarrassing!
2. Surgical face masks! Yes, I actually miss/love those! From oldies to younglings, they are proud wearers of the good ol’ surgical masks if they are sick, don’t want to catch anything from anyone; or to protect themselves from the polluted air. I love to wear them for novelty sake as I don’t think I will be able to wear them in England without people staring at me funny.
3. We know that Hong Kong is the home of technology but sadly; all I am seeing are kids/adults/grannies on their phones and tablets on their commute. It’s great that there is internet connection within the MTR network but I just think it’s a terrible habit and addiction.
4. On Sundays, there’s a lot of foreign domestic helpers/maids (all girls/women) taking up camp along the whole public stairway and anywhere that has a shade. I am used to this but what really really intrigued me were the little activities they do while chilling. I saw this girl taking a seductive selfie while biting her lip…I don’t know who she plans to send that pic to but that was a tad awkward to witness.
I didn’t expect myself to come to HK so soon but sometimes; family comes first and thought it’s best to travel to Perth (yes I am en route to Perth) via Hong Kong and see my grannies. There were 3 things on my agenda though; meet my Azerbaijani friend who left my work place to come to Hong Kong, stock up on Lipton Oolong Tea sachets (no joke a box costs £1.50 in HK and £14 in London. Shit just got serious, I completely raided through their shelves) and shop shop shop!! I only have 4 days on Hong Kong so do check in on all things Hong Kong and stay tuned. May x
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