China Day 7 (HK Day 1)

View from the seat, waiting for the train.

Waking up early is tiring.

But it was necessary in order for us to make it to the train station in time to catch to HK.

Excitement was bubbling.

On the way to the train station, I passed a car that had no car plate. It may seem strange, but this also isn't the first time I've seen a car without its registration plate (also I'm aware that other countries don't call it 'car plate', but something instead -- the word escapes me right now). It reminded me of the seemingly lawlessness of China. I had an ongoing joke with some friends on China camp a few years ago that "nothing's illegal in China" and even today, it makes me laugh (oh how I miss China camp). But as ridiculous as the statement is, it almost seems true.

For a country that leans to the communist side of things rather than laissez-faire (at least, compared to other countries), it's ironic that the people break so many laws. We all know that copyright doesn't exist in China (fake Louie Vuitton everywhere.), and anyone who trusts zebra crossings will surely have an evolutionary disadvantage. Unregistered cars, 6 people in a five-seater car, illegal u-turns, and one that really upsets me: smoking in no-smoking areas.

Motorbikes are banned in Guangzhou, because of the mass-traffic they caused. Imagine a million motorbikes running amok in the crowded roads of China, much like ants rushing to food. Yeah. They were banned a few years back (5? 6? 3? I don't remember), and after phasing them out, it's true that there's no more motorbikes here (although it took more than a couple of years to truly rid of them all), but there's no law against bikes. And, well, nothing's illegal in China, right? So people installed motors onto their bikes. Ta-da! A bike disguised as a motorbike. 

And surely the officials are aware of these 'law-abiding' citizens. The officials are always aware.

But honestly, with a urban population nearing 13 million (just in GZ!), it's no wonder the officials either 

a) don't care about, or 

b) can't keep track/control of people who break the law. 

All-in-all though, the Government still has control over a lot of things, such as Internet. It's really a mixed bag, and I'm not trying to say it's a good or bad thing, it's just how it is.

It's not to say they don't /have/ laws. They do. It's just people don't listen to them. For the most part it's okay. It's just ironic.

Anyway, so we made it to the train station. This is the first time I've been to HK by train, so it was an entirely new experience. Three hours isn't long.

I slept most of the journey, to make up for my lack of sleep in the morning. I'm also still recovering from a slightly running nose, remnant from my cold. After my second nap, I was watching the landscape past by when my mother told me we just entered HK. I was surprised, in the way that nothing appeared different. I could have mistaken it for Guangzhou, to be honest -- high rise apartments, a grey cover on everything, and the general feel of everything was seemingly identical. But I suppose this was because we were still in the rural areas.

Near the city, once we arrived in Kowloon, I noticed there was a lot more English. On signs, buildings, etc. Which suited me just fine! Also a lot less people (which was also good), and in general, it seemed to be slightly more colourful. Cars drove on the left side of the road, much like Sydney but in contrast to Guangzhou. In most other senses though, it was quite similar to the rest of China, as far as I knew. At least, that's what it seemed at the time.

Look how little people there are!! Woahhhhhh.

 After meeting with some relatives who were locals of HK, we stopped by our apartment to drop off our luggage, and then went to the local shopping centre to have wonton noodles for lunch (yummm). A full day of shopping was planned out, so we needed a lot of energy to make it through.

After spending a good deal of time in Esprit, we walked along the expensive side of the shopping mall, stumbling into brands like Burberry, Ralph Lauren (ahhh I love polos), and many that are so beyond my league of affordability that I never even heard of them.

Some people like window shopping and trying on expensive clothes, but not me. Touching these clothes worth thousands of AUD dollars was insane because you begin to realise that there are people that wear these things on a daily basis. The inequality is screaming to be heard.

Though, I must admit, running your fingers across the silky texture of these cloaks and garments really feels nice. "Soon Manjekah, soon." or "when I'm a neurosurgeon and I'm rich, then I'll buy everything in here"; oh the countless times I've said those phrases.

Something remarkable about this shopping district is that people actually bring empty suitcases with them when shopping, so that they're able to fill them up with purchased goods and not have to hassle themselves by carrying them. It's surely mindblowing to even begin considering the total net worth of the products in this one building. I don't think my mind can imagine enough zeros to fathom the true value.

So instead of shopping around the Giorgio Armani stall that I find myself in, I sit down on a seat and write this.

After shopping a bit more, we went to dinner with my mother's friends, some of which she hasn't seen in over 30 years, which is incredible. Here I am thinking 6 months of separation is a long time. It was also Christmas time, so there were Christmas carols.

We also went out for a walk along the Avenue of Stars, which consisted of handprints of famous film celebrities, of the likes of Jet Li, Bruce Li (handprints missing), Jackie Chan, Sam Hui, Chow Yun Fat, and my all time favourite, Stephen Chow. 

We also walked along the infamous Hong Kong cityside, but unfortunately it's difficult to take photos without a tripod at night. ISO was painful and a struggle to deal with, but I made do.

The cityscape is so beautiful.

Also experimented with some longer exposures, which was real fun. Oh, the things you can do with a camera when inspiration finally hits after a long time of sitting in utter boredom.

 

Needless to say, my brother looked strange standing statue-still in the midst of bustling crowds. It was quite humerous.

Also here's some random dried squid that we ate.

After waiting for, what felt like, twenty hours at a taxi stand (hyperbole), we managed to hop in and arrive home at 12am. Early, I know. I did drink tea at dinner though, which probably explains why I'm awake at 1:30am, though it's about high time I slept.

Yes, that line is for taxis.

The access to wi-fi and Internet that's unblocked is a taste I haven't had in a while, and catching up on all the notifications proved difficult. But I had nice chats with a few friends and it was really great to catch up.

A side note to what I've noticed in HK is that people here are a lot nicer than in Guangzhou. Just a greater sense of social etiquette, and a large feeling of public service. Heaps of reminders to maintain health, and government initiatives to improve the quality of life -- things I rarely see in mainland China, and it really impressed me a lot. The culture is certainly very different here, and a lot more merry.

You'd never see a group of young adults spending their free time singing Christmas carols on the street, just for fun, in Guangzhou. But here? That's another story.

I have a lot more to say about my thoughts on HK, but it's getting late and tomorrow's a big day out at Ocean Park, so I bid thee farewell. It's been a jam-packed first day in HK.