Observations

I've been in Hong Kong for a little over one month now. And I intend to stay here for another month. That is the best excuse I have for not writing more often. I think I've been running out of things to say. The whole point of this blog was to talk about my travels in SE Asia. But I haven't really been traveling....

However, I've started to notice things about Hong Kong, that I've never really thought about, before. Perhaps having lived here for a while, I am feeling more like a resident, and less like a wide-eyed tourist. I've been to Hong Kong many times, of course, but some things are starting to become evident to me that I have never really noticed before.

For instance:

1) Restaurant Service.
I've eaten in a large number of restaurants in Hong Kong, and Asia in general. But one thing I am really struggling to get used to, is how poor the service is in restaurants. Maybe I am just too fussy, but I just don't quite get the way they do things here. If you order an appetizer, a main, and a dessert...good luck getting them in THAT order. I often get the appetizer after the main course. When I press them for an explanation, it's usually "oh, we just type them in to the computer, we can't control the order they are delivered...". And if you are dining with a friend, it is pretty common for one person to get ALL of their food before the other will get any. And it's a good chance that they will get their dessert first. Very strange system here. And, they have the balls to charge for service automatically, even if the service is quite bad. Is the service really bad, because the staff are paid so poorly? Or this the accepted standard here in Asia?

2) Slow walkers.
I am staying in Causeway Bay, in Hong Kong. This is arguably one of the busiest areas of Hong Kong. There are always tens of thousands of people here on the streets at all times. But they walk SO SLOWLY! It's really a dramatic contradiction of how busy the city is. I've never really thought of myself as a fast walker, but I sure seem to be, in this city. Maybe my legs are really long? And I've noticed that people seem to be completely oblivious to others on the street. They will turn their head one way, and walk the other way. In a regular small city, this wouldn't matter much, but in Hong Kong they are constantly walking into others. And for some reason, when they walk in groups (very common), they walk slower, and side-by-side-by-side, blocking access to the sidewalk to all others. Why does this happen?

3) Groceries.
I went to the local supermarket recently. I understand that the Asian diet is a lot different, but it's not just that, that makes me scratch my head. I wanted to buy a loaf of bread, but they don't sell WHOLE loaves of bread. They only sell loaves with the ends cut off. Imagine a loaf of bread, then reduce is to the middle section, and that is what you get. Don't people like crusts here? And even then, the bread is square - not bread shaped. Weird.

4) Clothing
There is definitely a discernible style here. I never really noticed it in the past, but you can really see a Hong Kong style. It's not quite like other countries. Of course, I've been noticing mostly men, though. The body shape has a lot to do with it, too. Since HK men are usually quite slender, they are able to wear clothes that accentuate or flatter the body. So, that means slim cut pants with small waists, and sweaters or shirts that are fit to the body. Colours are bold, and fabrics are top quality. Even though guys here attempt to create an individual style, there still seems to be a uniform among all of them. I really stand out here, dressing as a Westerner.

I will be updating one of my websites in the next few days, posting photos of all the guys I've shot while on my travels in the south. Stay tuned!