Hong Kong through our eyes

After quite a bit of travelling the last few months I came to realize that Hong Kong truly is our home now. Whenever the airplane lands at the airport I seem to get excited to be back where I belong. It's funny how that takes a while, the first few months I felt very alien. It didn't help that it was Christmas time then. You couldn't be further removed from all familiarity of this holiday when living in Hong Kong....
The parts that I used to not like about Hong Kong have slowly changed in my perception. Even the ugly paint peeled high rises, the overwhelming smell of Chinese herbs, the balconies stuffed with plastic clutter have become parts of the city that I have started to appreciate. The modernity of the city was appalling to me at first but now I actually like the diversity within the modern architecture around us.
Nevertheless I find it such a shame that the Chinese have not much regard for old things. Parts of the city with great historical value are being torn down right and left. It doesn't seem to 'hurt' them at all. Recently a typical Chinese mansion with great views of the city was sold to a millionaire. The board of historical preservation had actually spent some time on this case before the sale. But it was only when the ornamental ceramic green tiles had all been removed and jackhammers were drilled into the outside walls that the people started to protest. Most still don't care and rather have a modern house replace the old one. It's with pain in my heart that I see the city change very fast. The last bits of old China in the city will be knocked down pretty soon. That old Tea House that I wrote about in a previous post is unfortunately also one of the targets of demolition.
The thing that I have discovered about the Chinese is that they are very practical. Practicality stands before everything. So if an old historical building has only ten apartments and that spot could house hundreds in a high rise of course they will go for the practical option. There are more people than available space and furthermore lots of money can be made in the process. Some people have the opinion that money is the first thing on the Chinese their list. That could be true. But I also think they are a very practical people and seldom have regrets.
I read the books Taipan and Noble House recently. Very interesting, especially when living in Hong Kong. They are historical novels, the setting is in and around Hong Kong, from the 1800's and on. I learnt a lot about their way of thinking. It's very easy to judge when you don't understand something. For instance: the Chinese are known for their apathy when it comes to disasters. Mostly they will stand by and look and not help. I thought at first that this could be selfishness. After having read these books I realize that it's a cultural difference. The Chinese believe strongly in 'joss'. This is something like good luck/bad luck/faith. So when you are caught in a disaster that is seen as your joss. The gods want this for you so why intervene?! It's amazing the effect cultural difference can have on the behaviour of people.
Lately I read about another case, a sad one. Somebody working in a kitchen in mainland China had bought salt to cook with. He was able to buy a huge bag very cheaply (practical again) not thinking much about the fact that it was industrial salt. You can imagine what happened: more than 30 people died after eating. These stories are quite common. Luckily we live in Hong Kong and not in mainland China. The supermarkets test a lot of their imported foods and will refuse anything dicey. But once in a while something sneaks through. For that reason most Europeans and Americans boy cot Chinese products. Australia and New Zealand are the countries that most expats buy from. So do we!
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