Vicious Rants of an Angry Yellow Man

It is obvious that I like HK more than mainland China. I am biased because I was born in HK and spent the first eleven years of life there. I will always root for the HK people because the only thing that has been certain for them in recent history is uncertainty. From British rule to now Chinese rule, Hk people have had very little say about their future. They can only work hard and hope for the best. It is amazing that after all these years they are still the "Pearl of Asia".

Ten years ago HK was already a world class city. For the time being China has pretty much left it alone to run its economic machine. Since 1997 Hk has built a new airport. It is almost an absurdly big airport for a city of 7 million. It has shuttle trains to get from one part to another and still there is a lot of walking. It was built on another island away from the congestion of the HK and Kowloon. There is a train from the airport to HK along with a highway connected by a bridge. The view from the train or the highway is spectacular. Along the way we also pass the port of HK which is considered the most efficient in the world with computer automation everywhere. It certainly looked cleaner and more organized than the LA/Long Beach port which has resisted the latest innovations due to labor unions' fear of losing jobs.

The subway and bus system in HK are excellent. All the public transportations are clean and safe. English only speakers can get around the city with public transportation easily. Of course the hotel reception staffs are way better in English than those of China. The only problem in the hotels is that the rooms are very small. The prices of everything are similar to those of the U.S. so it is way more expensive than in China. The income average of HK people had surpassed the British in the 1980's and is close to those of Americans. Except for occaisional disabled people begging on the streets, there are very few homeless people in HK.

Since China took over Mandarin has become an official language along with Cantonese and English. On the subway train the announcements for each stop and connections are given in all 3 languages. When politicians speak they often have to speak three different ways. Many of the maids are now from the mainland and the busboys and sometimes waiters in hotels are also from the mainland and thus do not speak Cantonese. This was kind of annoying to me as I feel that Cantonese people built this city and now you cant't always be understood if you speak Cantonese. I can better understand the feelings of the angry white male who can't get somebody to understand them in their own country!

Just as there are backlash against illegal immigrants in the U.S., there are many HK people who are against people sneaking in from the mainland. Ironically the HK people import many workers from other countries particularly maids from the Phillipines. Yet they are trying the best to keep mainlanders from entering illegally. This is because the vast numbers that can possibly flood across the border. In HK people have to carry an identity card to show that they are residents or are there legally. We saw policemen stopped a woman on the street to see her card. She was legal even though she was from the mainland. My wife asked the cop how he knew whom to stop. He said he can spot people not from HK base on how they act. What about Chinese Americans who don't have their passport with them? He said most cops speak English well enough plus it is obvious to them who is a westerner even if he looks Chinese!

HK people work very hard. Twelve hour days, six days a week are not unusal. The education system is still hard. All my wife's friends' kids are having a hard time and are getting tutorial help. It speaks volume of the value of education when you see that in newspapers there is a section on education everyday that is as big as the sports section. And the sports section includes a lot of international sports. Of course they also have a horse racing section that is BIGGER than the regular sport section! So I guess gambling trumps education in HK.

Speaking of education. Like in the U.S. there are more women going to college than men in HK. I guess women are working harder than men everywhere. Boys are wasting their time playing video games just like here.

Overall HK continues on a path that was similar to ten years ago. I am sure the democratic activists and the press are being monitored closely by the Chinese government. So far China has keep its hands off. We went to HK University and we saw a large sculpture that was dedicated to the people who died for the cause of freedom at Tiannamen Square in 1989. If this sculpture ever comes down then we will know that the end of HK as we know it will have come.