Thursday, October 19, 2006
50 Reasons to Love Hong Kong
Today I read this article from the current issue of HK magazine (go get one! i luv this topic), just quote some of them that i think GREAT: (hope i didnt infringe the copyright by quoting a few lines from there)
1. The Smell - There is a particular smell in crowded districts such as Wan Chai, Causeway Bay and Mongkok. It isnt the sewer-y, fiery, coconut-moistness of Bangkok, nor the polluted, sweaty aroma of Beijing. Distinct and instantly recognizable, it is a flurry of char siu and fresh fish, bus exhaust and garbage collection point, cigarette smoke and fishball steam, welding shops and wasted air-conditioning. It's the stink of home. And it's great.
(Great!? oh actually i cant recall these smells, but rather i think the smell of dried seafood is very obvious among the air in the Western district...)
5. Red, White and Blue Bags - The day these disappear from our streets will mark the beginning of the end of Hong Kong life as we know it. The sight of grandmas trudging up a hill with one of these multipurpose, super strong carryalls (in the literal sense) on each spindly arm is a staple city experience. We await the age when Louis Vuitton picks up on the trend so the current generation of tai-tais will afford us a similar sight in 30 years.
(I realli can imagine LV using this as their latest design in some time later!!! haa)
9. Octopus Cards - The ubiquitous Octopus card is one of the coolest gadget ever pioneered in Hong Kong. Its tentacles are suctioned to everything from public transport, Mcdonald's, vending machines, car parks and 7-Eleven. Which is awesome because it means you can use it to buy fishballs. Other world cities are eons behind, so it makes for great "my-city-is-better-than-yours" leverage while abroad.
(WOW! I cant agree anymore on this one! I realli wonder who 'create' Octopus Card... he shd name one of the greatest inventor in the 21th century! LOL)
14. Elderly Shirtless Men
(!!!!!! I wonder are there any special 'orientations' of this author!!???)
21. "Lambert Lui, promoter for music company Hierophat": Chinglish - "I'm still trying to master it."
(well, i think another 'special' thing in HK is that many ppl named themselves with some very weird English names like this LAMBERT)
24. Shouting Middle-aged Women
(LOL!!! i probably dun want one around!!)
30. Late-night Shopping - The whole point of shops is to sell things that people want. Most people work, however, which means most of us can't buy anything until after about 5pm. So it makes sense that shops stay open for at least a few hours after that. While this may seem logical, it is astounding that staying open late is so common here and yet so rare elsewhere in the world. But it is, and we're glad.
(Another point that i cant agree more again!! This is sth sooo sweet of staying in HK... I've once bought a mahjong table at the time of 11pm haha)
40. Cheap McDonald's - Twenty dollars or so in exchange for a meal that will leave you scraping dough from your fingertips with your teeth, and send you on your way to one of those over-publicized slimming salons that make you cringe on the bus. But with an outlet seemingly on every street corner and almost unrivalled price and efficiency, who cares?
(Another thing is that I think McDonald's in HK is the only place in the world that offers marconi breakfast as well as rice burgers at the same restaurant laaa)
45. Air-conditioned Walkways - It may be hotter than Eason's armpits outside (???), but we know - and no doubt you do, too - every air-conditioned route from Central to Causeway Bay. no sweat.
(hm... this is sweet only when it comes to talk about in summer hahaha)
50. 17 Public Holidays
(com'on!!!! isnt this a lot!!??? i think it's not enuff!!!!!)
Well, indeed i think there are a few more "reasons" to Love HK, just to name a few, quote n quoted by ME (hahhaa):
1. Egg tart - I wonder why the magazine invites Chris Patten to give 1 reason to love HK, but he didnt mention eggtarts!!! This traditional, "unique" HK dessert is sure one thing i LOVEEEE HK!! If you dunno what is it (dun tell me u dun know!!!), u can even find it in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_tart
2. Double decker buses - This is also another "scenery" only happened in HK, with these beautifully colored buses strolling all around the roads in HK, sometimes i think it's a bit scary to see such a big bus passing along such small n winding roads (esp. in the mid-levels), or creating a scene when the main roads like in Wanchai is "blocked" by ALL double-decker buses (shit! but these r great traffic jams!). This also created a group of fans in HK that like to "chase" these buses too haaa
3. NO GST - WOW i m not trying to be political or wat, but i realli cannot find any major cities in the world now that dun hv this tax! HK is hailed as a city of "shopping heavens" should realli try to avoid setting up the GST lor...
Any other reasons that u luv HK? try to share w me la =)
1. The Smell - There is a particular smell in crowded districts such as Wan Chai, Causeway Bay and Mongkok. It isnt the sewer-y, fiery, coconut-moistness of Bangkok, nor the polluted, sweaty aroma of Beijing. Distinct and instantly recognizable, it is a flurry of char siu and fresh fish, bus exhaust and garbage collection point, cigarette smoke and fishball steam, welding shops and wasted air-conditioning. It's the stink of home. And it's great.
(Great!? oh actually i cant recall these smells, but rather i think the smell of dried seafood is very obvious among the air in the Western district...)
5. Red, White and Blue Bags - The day these disappear from our streets will mark the beginning of the end of Hong Kong life as we know it. The sight of grandmas trudging up a hill with one of these multipurpose, super strong carryalls (in the literal sense) on each spindly arm is a staple city experience. We await the age when Louis Vuitton picks up on the trend so the current generation of tai-tais will afford us a similar sight in 30 years.
(I realli can imagine LV using this as their latest design in some time later!!! haa)
9. Octopus Cards - The ubiquitous Octopus card is one of the coolest gadget ever pioneered in Hong Kong. Its tentacles are suctioned to everything from public transport, Mcdonald's, vending machines, car parks and 7-Eleven. Which is awesome because it means you can use it to buy fishballs. Other world cities are eons behind, so it makes for great "my-city-is-better-than-yours" leverage while abroad.
(WOW! I cant agree anymore on this one! I realli wonder who 'create' Octopus Card... he shd name one of the greatest inventor in the 21th century! LOL)
14. Elderly Shirtless Men
(!!!!!! I wonder are there any special 'orientations' of this author!!???)
21. "Lambert Lui, promoter for music company Hierophat": Chinglish - "I'm still trying to master it."
(well, i think another 'special' thing in HK is that many ppl named themselves with some very weird English names like this LAMBERT)
24. Shouting Middle-aged Women
(LOL!!! i probably dun want one around!!)
30. Late-night Shopping - The whole point of shops is to sell things that people want. Most people work, however, which means most of us can't buy anything until after about 5pm. So it makes sense that shops stay open for at least a few hours after that. While this may seem logical, it is astounding that staying open late is so common here and yet so rare elsewhere in the world. But it is, and we're glad.
(Another point that i cant agree more again!! This is sth sooo sweet of staying in HK... I've once bought a mahjong table at the time of 11pm haha)
40. Cheap McDonald's - Twenty dollars or so in exchange for a meal that will leave you scraping dough from your fingertips with your teeth, and send you on your way to one of those over-publicized slimming salons that make you cringe on the bus. But with an outlet seemingly on every street corner and almost unrivalled price and efficiency, who cares?
(Another thing is that I think McDonald's in HK is the only place in the world that offers marconi breakfast as well as rice burgers at the same restaurant laaa)
45. Air-conditioned Walkways - It may be hotter than Eason's armpits outside (???), but we know - and no doubt you do, too - every air-conditioned route from Central to Causeway Bay. no sweat.
(hm... this is sweet only when it comes to talk about in summer hahaha)
50. 17 Public Holidays
(com'on!!!! isnt this a lot!!??? i think it's not enuff!!!!!)
Well, indeed i think there are a few more "reasons" to Love HK, just to name a few, quote n quoted by ME (hahhaa):
1. Egg tart - I wonder why the magazine invites Chris Patten to give 1 reason to love HK, but he didnt mention eggtarts!!! This traditional, "unique" HK dessert is sure one thing i LOVEEEE HK!! If you dunno what is it (dun tell me u dun know!!!), u can even find it in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_tart
2. Double decker buses - This is also another "scenery" only happened in HK, with these beautifully colored buses strolling all around the roads in HK, sometimes i think it's a bit scary to see such a big bus passing along such small n winding roads (esp. in the mid-levels), or creating a scene when the main roads like in Wanchai is "blocked" by ALL double-decker buses (shit! but these r great traffic jams!). This also created a group of fans in HK that like to "chase" these buses too haaa
3. NO GST - WOW i m not trying to be political or wat, but i realli cannot find any major cities in the world now that dun hv this tax! HK is hailed as a city of "shopping heavens" should realli try to avoid setting up the GST lor...
Any other reasons that u luv HK? try to share w me la =)
# posted by robii : 11:47 PM
