Japanese Eyes?

Today while getting a haircut at Salon Esprit, the stylist asked me if I was Japanese. I told him I was Chinese, but from America. Then he said my eyes looked Japanese.

Are there really distinct differences between Asians? I've been asked if I'm Korean and Japanese a lot here. My friend says I look Korean because I have sharper features. Other people say it might be my hairstyle.

I'm considering lying the next time I'm asked just because it's a better explanation as to why I don't speak much Cantonese. I haven't really been scolded about not knowing Cantonese (as Aaron says he's been) yet. It's not my fault!

Everything's Smaller in HK

I went to McDonald's for my first time in HK today. The Filet-O-Fish seemed a bit smaller than in America, and the drink and fries were definitely smaller.

I've noticed overall that portions are smaller here in Hong Kong (except for the rice plates at the CUHK canteens). I suppose that's why the majority of people here are skinny.

Maybe I'll get used to the portions and lose some weight eventually! But for now I have snacks to tide me over.

I guess everything IS big in America. I've already realized portions at restaurants are huge and could be turned into two meals with leftovers. Maybe the solution to the obesity problem in America can start within restaurants. But that'll never happen. People just need to learn to control themselves.

Testing My Limits

After being sick (and staying in my room the majority of the time) for two weeks, I decided I had enough energy to sustain myself for a few hours at a mall.

I called my only friend who hadn't gone on a trip this holiday weekend and asked if he would like to join. He had to take care of something beforehand, so he said he would meet me at the mall.

I decided to go to Festival Walk at Kowloon Tong for the first time to shop (I had been there before just for dinner). I went up to the top floor (maybe 7th, but it's labeled as something else) and found a store with nice clothes and very good sale prices. I bought a skirt and t-shirt for myself and three shirts for my brother. All were 70% off.

My friend met up with me there and we continued shopping around the gigantic mall. I bought some other items I needed and then we had dinner.

By the time we were done with dinner, it was around 9:30 pm. We went back to a store where my friend sort of wanted a jacket, but he finally decided to wait.

Upon boarding the KCR train home, I suddenly realized that I had left my lanyard with my keys in a dressing room. I thought I had left it in Esprit, so I quickly got the number from my receipt and called it. The salespeople said there weren't any keys left in any dressing rooms.

So I called the first store I went into where I tried things on and remembered taking my keys off, but the woman didn't speak or understand English very well. It was time to attempt to use whatever Cantonese I had in me. I somehow got across the fact that I had left my keys in the fitting room, and she affirmed that she found keys. She was saying in Cantonese to pick it up in the morning, but I tried to explain in my Chinglish that I wanted them tonight.

My friend and I got off at the next stop and went back to Kowloon Tong where I ran to the mall and was rushing up the many escalators in the mall when I got a call from the woman from the store. She said in Cantonese that she was at the KCR station. It sounded like she said she was going to get on the train, so I started freaking out and trying to ask her where I could meet her. I realized she wasn't understanding, so I quickly stopped two girls in the mall and asked one of them in Cantonese if she spoke English. She said "Yes," so I asked her if she could translate for me and I handed the phone over to her.

The woman from the store said she was at 7-Eleven by the KCR station. The girls said they were headed that way, so they would come with me. We got to the 7-Eleven, but there was no woman in sight. I tried calling the number, but nobody picked up. I tried calling again, again no answer. Then I got a call back and picked it up and handed the phone over to the girl. I saw two women walking toward us just as the girl asked the woman over the phone if she was wearing a red shirt.

I got my keys back and said "mgoi sai" to everybody and ran back to where I had left my friend earlier (so he wouldn't have to exit the KCR and pay an unnecessary fee).

What an exhausting day. At least I am well enough to be able to run around like I did, though my cough is still pretty bad and I'm somewhat congested.

It seems all the workers I encounter don't know as much English as CUHK students, and I don't know enough Cantonese to understand everything they say to me. Today was definitely the hardest testing of my Cantonese, and I failed miserably (though it may be better than my friend's). I guess I better work harder at making friends with local students who would be willing to teach me Cantonese.

Aiyah.

Being Sick is a Bummer

There's a 4th Floor Gathering tonight, the only 4th Floor Gathering of the year.

I smelled some yummy fish balls and curry being cooked in the kitchens on our floor.

Unfortunately, I have a bad cold (fever, cough and phlegm) and don't have much strength. And I don't want to go around spreading my germs just so I can get some free food. Though I haven't really eaten much all day.

*sigh* C'est la vie.

Hair and Cameras Everywhere and Cough Syrup to Drink

Friday:

My friends and I paid a visit to the Hong Kong Museum of Art in Tsim Sha Tsui. There were supposed to be four exhibits, but one was temporarily closed. However, we sure got out money's (HK$5) worth!

The first exhibit we entered was the Xubaizhai Collection of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy. There were many beautiful paintings of flowers and landscapes that I wish I could have taken home with me.

The Chinese Antiquities Gallery was temporarily closed, so we continued to the Contemporary Hong Kong Art Gallery for "Hair Dialogue - Installation Art Exhibition." When we got there, we were welcomed by little cards of (what looked like) children's art using real human hair. We looked down at the provided materials and saw some hair, along with a pair of children's scissors, and wondered whose hair it was.
When we walked into the next room we were both awed and repulsed by what we saw.


Some of us were a bit wary to enter the room made of hair. Every now and then I would imagine the unappetizing feeling of hair in my mouth. But we finally entered and took a bunch of pictures.

The next room wasn't any better.

"What is that?" you say. "Hairballs?"

No. CHILDREN'S SLIPPERS made of...(what else?) human hair. The poster outside the exhibit said the artist had collected human hair and other human body particles for his art. One of my friends kept trying to figure out what the other human body particles he collected were.

We left the exhibit officially weirded out and went on to the next exhibit, Likeness And Unlikeness. I honestly wasn't dazzled by the "unlikeness" part of his art, but maybe that's because I like to do realistic illustrations. I really liked the way he painted shrimp and crab though.

We went to Chungking Mansion in search for a restaurant that my friend Cat had suggested. When we walking on the sidewalk toward Chungking Mansion, an Indian man shoved a flyer at me but I avoided eye contact, shook my head and kept walking. Unfortunately, my friend Jiesi made the mistake of taking a flyer, and a sudden swarm of Indian men surrounded her shoving flyers of various restaurants in her face.

It was then that I remembered what my friend Caren had warned me about (Sorry Jiesi!).

We finally got to Chungking Mansion and my friends started making comments about how seedy the place looked. I avoided eye contact with people and kept looking for shop numbers to try to find the restaurant. When we couldn't find the place, my friend Laura asked a man where the restaurant was and he said it was upstairs.

Another man heard where we were looking for and started guiding us upstairs when I got a phone call. My friends were all very concerned about where this man was taking us and looking at me for answers, all the while I was trying to talk to my friend on the phone.

We followed him up a set of stairs and arrived at our destination, Sher-E Punjab. My friends were expecting to go to a restaurant, not an area with a few tables with menus on the wall and no sign of a kitchen. I guess I should be more specific the next time I take them somewhere.

In the end, everyone was very happy with their food. I had some yummy chicken biryani, garlic naan, and a mango lassi for less than US$7!

Saturday we made a trip to Causeway Bay, which was a mistake since everyone else in Hong Kong seems to go to Causeway Bay on weekends.

I had already felt pretty tired and unwell in the morning, but I decided to go anyway. Walking through the crowds of people made me feel drained and I felt like I had a fever, but I didn't say anything to my friends until later on in the day. I had hoped I was still recovering from clubbing Thursday night, but I was wrong (I'll get to that later).

We hit up places I had already been to, but my other friends hadn't been to yet. I finally saw a pair of earrings I liked and bought them.

Then we went to eat at another restaurant Cat recommened, Macau Restaurant, nearby the World Trade Center. Most of my friends and I ordered the items that she had recommended, which ended up being very similar to Western food.

Earlier that day we had gone to Coffee Corner on campus for the first time and had Western food and discussed how much we missed Western food (gourmet salads with mixed greens, gourmet burgers, paninis, Mexican food, etc.). I haven't even gone to McDonald's once here, while others have gone a few (or several) times. But I just can't eat Chinese canteen food every day! I didn't even eat American food every day when I was in LA!

After dinner, we walked along the streets in that area and found a few stores with very cheap, pretty clothing for girls. We should have been walking along these streets the whole time! Then we went into this store called 2% and saw the strangest shoes!

Why would anyone make such a thing? Why would any store think this item would sell? And has anyone actually bought a pair of these?

We ended the night with a trip to Hui Lau Shan (that makes my third trip). I really really love this dessert place. I LOVE MANGO! And nearly all the desserts on the menu have mango, mango juice, and/or mango pudding!


The last time I went I had glutinous rice balls in mango juice with extra mangoes (and a scoop of mango sorbet), and it was heavenly.

This time I had mango pudding with mixed fruits.
The mango pudding was delicious, but the strawberries and kiwis were sour (my friend ordered the same thing and said her strawberries and kiwis were great).

We all had digital cameras and were snapping away.

When I got home Saturday night, I realized I was officially sick and slept most of the day away on Sunday. I woke up a few times to study for my Cantonese quiz, to fiddle around online, and make a doctor's appointment online for the next day.

Monday morning I went to the University Health Center and found out I had a small fever. The nurse made me put on a mask as I waited to see the doctor. The doctor checked my breathing and said my lungs were clear (even though my throat feels quite phlegmy). He said I had a bad cold and prescribed me three things for my symptoms (fever, phlegm and cough). Fortunately the visit and the medications were free.

To add to my misery, he told me I had to wear the mask in public, so I went to the grocery store and two classes wearing the mask. Then I realized several other people in class were coughing and weren't wearing masks. It sort of grossed me out thinking about the germs they were emiting while coughing. But I don't think I'll be wearing my mask in class since the medicine I have virtually subdues all my symptoms while in class (but also makes me very very drowsy).

Plus it's not very attractive, no?

I should get some rest now. Hopefully I can make it through my classes without falling asleep, which I was very tempted to do in my Cantonese class and actually did do in my International Communications class today.

Dancing the Night Away

I went clubbing for my first time in Hong Kong tonight. I, and a big group of CUHK exchange students, went to M1 in Tsim Sha Tsui. There was supposed to be some famous DJ from Taiwan making an appearance, so we went there instead of Lan Kwai Fong (the normal clubbing destination).

When we got there, we found out it was DJ Hot Dog. But hot he was not. Instead there were a few guys on stage performing not-so-great rap. After those people got off the stage, another DJ started spinning songs and we finally got to dancing.

I had a lot of fun, but I came home smelling of cigarettes. The second-hand smoke in the club really bothered me. In California, people aren't allowed to smoke indoors. But it's fine here, and lots of people do it.

Plus this fog machine kept going off and clouding up things. My friend said it smelled like baby powder, and I guessed that maybe they were spraying baby powder into the air as fog, which meant we were inhaling baby powder.

We noticed there was a drastic difference between the locals and us exchange students when it came to dancing skills. Actually, some of the European exchange students weren't all that great at dancing either...

And the one drink I had wasn't very good. I ordered a Sex on the Beach, and it ended up coming in a whiskey glass instead of the normal size glass. I think it was made with whiskey instead of vodka because it was a Jack Daniel's event. Good thing it was only about USD$6. Plus admission was free for girls.

Overall I had fun. It was a good way to get to know some more exchange students and check out the local night life (Lan Kwai Fong is frequented by international people, not locals).

I'm looking forward to visiting the Hong Kong Museum of Art tomorrow (or later today) and eating out in the city! I'm really not too fond of the food at the canteens on campus.

Joi gin!

Chinese With Their Chitchat

People sure like to talk here.

For the past two weeks in my International Communications class, the students just chitchat away while the teacher is lecturing. The first time I didn't really notice it as much because I was sitting closer to the front of the class. During this week's class I sat more in the middle and could hear the girls behind me talking away.

Another American I was sitting next to kept commenting on how sorry she felt for the professor. I couldn't believe how disrespectful they were being. Why do you even attend class if you won't be paying attention?

Later that night I asked my roommate (she's from the mainland) if people talk in her class, and she said people here talk when the professor isn't that great, or if they have something to discuss with their friends. Then she asked if people did that in America and I said no. I've never heard people having private conversations throughout an entire class period.

At least this doesn't happen in my other classes. The girl sitting next to me said people chat in ALL of her classes.

I've also noticed that girls tend to chat while they're showering in the communal bathrooms. I asked my roommate if she's noticed it, and she said that she chats with her friend sometimes when she's showering. She asked me if that was strange, and I realized I never had to experience communal bathrooms until now. I wonder if the girls in America chat while showering in communal bathrooms...

Rainy Days

The weather has gone from sunny, hot and humid to gloomy and cold over the weekend. Though I prefer chilly whether to the hot humidity, the gloomy weather makes me want to stay inside.

I also didn't realize how short of a time period I would be experiencing heat. I had packed so much more clothing for warm weather than cold weather. One of my friends didn't come prepared at all for cold weather.

Clothing isn't as cheap as I thought it would be here. Yes, cheap clothing can be bought at the street markets, but you get what you pay for. The quality of clothing on the streets isn't all that great. I prefer looking for good sales in the chain stores and malls where I can find items a little cheaper than sale items in America. Plus there's no sales tax.

Consumerism is really big here in Hong Kong. There are malls at nearly every stop on the KCR and MTR routes, and there are plenty of people in those malls, even on week days.

I'm finding it quite difficult to resist consumerism. Especially when it's raining and I want to go out, a mall is a great place to spend a day.

But it hit me really hard that I can't work here, and I didn't do a good job of saving money over the summer. So I'm basically spending my mom's money, and I feel terrible. I'm going to try to resist clothes shopping. And I've decided to try to eat in my room as much as possible instead of eating meals at the school canteens or eating out in the city. I also need to resist the temptations of all the bakeries and snack offerings in Hong Kong. Believe me, there are plenty.

I really need to start going to the gym. Though I do a good amount of walking here, it doesn't make up for the snacks and eating out. I also feel a little pressured to lose weight because of how thin the girls are here, and how some of the boutiques tailor to smaller girls. One store I went into only had sizes small and medium. I fit into the medium, but just barely.

At least no one has said anything to me about being bigger than most girls. One of my friends has been told she's a lot more buff than girls here, but that's probably because she speaks Cantonese to the locals. Unfortunately, my Cantonese isn't good enough to be able to do that.

I really only know certain words and phrases. But my Cantonese class is getting me a little more accustomed to speaking Cantonese. I know most of the words we've been learning in class already. But I normally don't speak them, so it's good practice.

Days are getting less exciting because of classes and lack of money. Life here is pretty similar to America. Eat, sleep, study and shop; though food selection is different (and much cheaper) and everyone else is speaking Cantonese.

I plan to go clubbing in Tsim Sha Tsui Thursday night. Friday my friends and I will go to the Hong Kong Museum of Art. I think this weekend we will see the Big Buddha on Lantau Island. Next weekend we might take a day trip to Macau. My friends want to take a long weekend trip to Taipei, Taiwan sometime.

I hope travelling isn't too costly. I would like to go to Taipei, Shanghai and Guangzhou. I would also like to go to Vietnam, and maybe Thailand and Singapore. I probably can't afford to go to as many places as my friends want to go to. We'll see...

Dim Sum and Karaoke

I finally had dim sum yesterday. I went to an open, ceiling-less restaurant on the bottom floor of Maritime Square in Tsing Yi. We ordered the dishes that we knew how to say since the menu was all in Chinese and none of us could read.

The dim sum was the best I've had in a long time. I liked every dish, and I normally can't say that about dim sum restaurants in California. My mom was right about dim sum being smaller here than in America.

To top the good dining experience off, the meal was only USD$20 total, so $5 each for the four of us.

Afterward, my friend and I decided to shop along the streets in Tsim Sha Tsui. We walked along Nathan Road and Granville Road. Granville Road had lots of little boutiques with very inexpensive sale prices compared to the malls here(, which have prices nearly equivalent to American malls).

I found some casual shoes by Arnold Palmer for HKD$179, which is a lot cheaper than Converses and other big brands that go for HKD$350 and up. I've really developed a liking for the Arnold Palmer line of shoes. They're like the All Stars, but with cute little details.

Tonight I finally went karaoke in Hong Kong. I love going karaoke in SoCal, so I really wanted to go karaoke here. Unfortunately, I was utterly disappointed. First of all, the place we went to was ridiculously expensive. It was this chain called Neway that my friend heard was pretty good. When we got there I found out it would be HD$88 per person including two free non-alcoholic drinks. But then they add on these snacks and fruit plates and make you pay more. Overall it was HKD$163 per person. That's about USD$21!

I normally pay between USD$6-12 to karaoke in SoCal! And I definitely could have done without the mediocre drinks and snacks. Plus the song selection wasn't as great as the karaoke places in SoCal. But I suppose I should have guessed that there wouldn't be as good of a selection of English songs here in Hong Kong.

I'll have to ask my friend about the karaoke place she had mentioned before. She said it only costs about USD$4 for the whole night.

Culture Shock (or Lack Thereof)

I am nearing the end of my second week in Hong Kong and I can't say I've experienced much culture shock. Being raised by Chinese parents have exposed me to most aspects of Chinese culture, so I'm not feeling like a fish out of water as many of the non-Asian exchange students feel.

I guess I could describe what I've experienced as more of a lifestyle shock. I'm not used to eating Chinese food all the time. And I'm not used to being surrounded by nearly all Asians...A LOT of Asians at that. The crowds of people constantly on the street and in malls amazes me.

I love the public transportation here. The KCR train and MTR subway make getting around this great city so easy.

I guess the time I feel most out of place is when I'm shopping and the sales people speak Cantonese to me and I can only pick out a few words. Then I have to ask if they speak English.

I've never felt so inadequate as a Chinese American. I really don't know much Cantonese at all other than a few key phrases that I've heard over and over again from my parents.

I hope my two Cantonese classes help with that. But they are only once a week, so I need to make more of an effort to practice Cantonese with the locals here. One problem is the local students all want to practice their English. I've been told if I want to practice Cantonese, I should speak to the janitors and other school workers.

Maybe I'll try speaking Cantonese with my roommate, though her native language is Mandarin. But she does know more Cantonese than I do.

Today I am finally going to have some dimsum in the city. I hope I am not disappointed, for I have been disappointed by many Chinese restaurants in California.