FMIHK is on a mini-break

I am heading to Thailand this week for a much needed mini-break. I will be staying in the jungles of Koh Samui in what I can only describe as a small hut. You can only access this "hotel" by 4x4, so it is sure to be an adventure. After Thailand I am heading to the Philippines for work, so I won't be blogging for a couple of weeks. As soon as I get back I will be posting my thoughts about Thailand and my brief trip to Manila, so be sure to check back.

Happy Easter everyone!

Kathleen-

Testosterone City

This weekend was the much anticipated Rugby Sevens weekend. Before I got to Hong Kong, I have never heard of it and when I did hear about it, I had no idea what it was. The Hong Kong Rugby Sevens tournament is a three day Rugby tournament that is known more for the extracurricular debauchery that takes place in the city than the rugby. Rugby is just the official reason that 40,000 people, mostly men from the UK and Australia, descend on the city. Anything goes during Rugby Sevens weekend, and believe me, when I say it's true. Everything really does go.

Since it was Sevens weekend, I did manage to catch a rugby game. I went on Friday night, the least popular day and sat in the South stands. The South stands are known for the costumes, the drunkenness and the pure shenanigans of the fans. This was my first brush with British fans who are passionate about their game. I always imagined that I would one day go to a European football game just to see what the fans were like--I know that I most certainly got a taste of it this weekend at the Sevens.

The games are all played with seven people on each team (different from regular rugby) and each half is seven minutes long, so the games are quick. I watched about ten games on Friday night including Canada versus Tonga. Canada won and although I was one of a few Canadians cheering in the stands I cheered loudly and very patriotically.

I kept things quiet on Friday night and decided to make my big night out on Saturday. I can't even describe the swells of people in the streets, spilling out of the bars by the hundreds. It was an amazing night and I am paying for it today. That's another thing that the Sevens weekend is known for--the astounding hangovers and the willingness to keep watching rugby despite it. There were many adventures last night, but I'm afraid I will end my post here. Another rule about Sevens weekend--what happens at the Sevens, stays at the Sevens.

The Stadium

The Canadian Team warming up.

Adam, come to Hong Kong

If I could speak personally to Adam Giambrone, I would tell him two things: Adam, you should come to Hong Kong to learn how keeping extra-marital affairs private is done (it’s quite remarkable how stealthy people are here), and Adam if you want to make the TTC the better way, you should take a close look at the MTR system in Hong Kong.

I’ve remarked to myself numerous times since I arrived in Hong Kong, how amazing the MTR system is (they don’t call it subway here, subway is a whole other thing in Hong Kong). I felt compelled to write about it this morning when I noticed something I hadn’t noticed before—classical music is pumped into the stations. It has quite the calming effect during the morning rush. But that’s not all. Oh no, that’s just the beginning.

Food and drink are not allowed on the MTR system, so it is sparkling clean. No gum, no wrappers, no smelly left over food, just sparkling clean trains. I thought that maybe people would leave their commuter newspapers behind on the train, but I think Hong Kongers actually respect their train system. They recycle their papers on the way out.

During rush hours there are attendants at each entrance of the train. This is to help the flow of traffic in and out. In fact, they even have lines painted on the floor so you can line up and smoothly enter and exit the train. No mad mob pushing to get on here.

The trains are frequent and usually timed with each other. The system is quite large, so many transfers from train to train can take place. Just walk across the hall in the station, and you’ve found your other train.

There are NO delays on the train. Actually, that’s not true. I had a delay once. The announcer came on the loud speak and in a completely audible tone told me that the wait would be exactly 2 and a half minutes, and that she was very sorry. She hoped she hadn’t inconvenienced my day. While there may be the occasion delay, there are no jumpers, so the delays aren’t that bad. No suicides on this train system. Why? There are large plexiglass barriers with sliding doors that prevent jumping.

The one complaint I would have is that due to the size of Hong Kong, there are a zillion exits at each station. They are numbered alphabetically, and although the signage is good, it can be a bit intimidating. The Hong Kong MTR people have solved this problem though. Customer service desks are in every station – every one! My first couple of weeks here I basically went to the customer service desk each time I travelled. They were very helpful and guided me through my MTR experience.

Forget the metro pass, here they have the Octopus card - the card that does everything. You fill it up with money and then use in on the bus, MTR, ferry system, oh but wait – you can also use it at Starbucks (and many, many other coffee shops around the city), grocery stores. It even doubles as my building security card. Love the Octopus card.

Perhaps the best thing about the Hong Kong MTR system is the cost. I took the MTR to work this morning (the distance is equivalent from Yonge and Eg to Union) and it cost me $0.76 CND. You read correctly. Seventy-six cents.

Adam Giambrone, you have a lot to learn.

Lamma

I woke up to the birds chirping, the sun shining and one goal--I was going to the beach. I boarded the ferry to Lamma Island--the closest of the outlying islands to Hong Kong and a half hour ride away from paradise. The island is known for it's "hippie" and "bohemian" population, and I have to say I loved it! I wandered around and ate lunch at a great vegetarian restaurant that was recommended to me called the Bookworm, where I devoured the best salad I have ever had and filled up on some refreshing fresh mint tea. Then it was time for the beach. After a 20 minute walk, I found myself on a quaint little beach. On such a sunny day, I was surprised to see only a few people out on the beach suntanning, and upon closer inspection I saw that all of the people on the beach were "gweilos" (or expats). All of the Asians people were tucked underneath the trees avoiding the sun. Not only were they tucked away but they covered themselves with gloves, blankets and sun visors. In Hong Kong, and I expect the rest of Asia, it is considered unattractive to be tanned or dark. The whiter you are the better in their eyes. Being tanned is a symbol of having to do outdoor work or "rice field work". Affluence and the appearance of affluence is very important in Hong Kong and tanned skin is frowned upon. In fact it is so frowned upon that there is a multi billion dollar skin whitening industry here--creams, bleaching treatments...all to achieve the whitest skin possible.

I dug myself a little sand seat and plopped myself down to soak up the rays. After a very grey couple of months, it was so nice to feel the sunshine. It's quite remarkable that only half an hour away from the shadows of the sky scrapers and millions of people bumping into each other, there is an oasis like Lamma Island. Though today was my first time in Lamma, I have no doubt that it won't be my last time. I can't wait to go back. When I got home and looked in the mirror I was pleased to see my nose was sun kissed and my summer tan has started. Thank goodness I'm not so white anymore.

Mishmash

This week was full of many random and exciting things. I battled my flu/cold and finally won after doing absolutely nothing on Sunday. I actually didn't even get out of my pyjamas. I laid on the couch and watched what seemed like 100 episodes of Entourage. This, I have found, is the cure to the flu. Tea and Entourage. It was a good thing I won against the flu, because I had a busy week ahead.

I don't want to make it a habit of talking about work on this blog, partly because work is my least favourite part of my Hong Kong adventure, but also because this is a public site and don't want to share a lot of details about the company I work for. I had a very exciting work week though, so this post will be my "no work talk" exception.

I played publicist and handler this week to an author and may-jah financial big wig this week. I have spent weeks planning his trip to Asia, thinking of every last detail and working torturous hours just to get ready. Well, last week was finally the big week. Big Whig's trip didn't get off to a great start--I had arranged a driver to pick him up at the airport and when I received a call from the Big Whig from the airport telling me there was no one to pick him up, I knew it would be a challenging few days. You would think that Hong Kong is the perfect picture of efficiency, and in many ways it is, but in so many ways it's not. I often hear people say "Welcome to Asia" after some sort of avoidable blunder. I never really understood it until my 10:30 p.m. phone call from Big Whig. Everything turned out well I am happy to say, he was pleased as punch with the media tour I had set up for him. The highlight for me was going on location with CNN to this amazing spot that overlooked the Hong Kong Harbour. As I looked out at the skyline, the CNN correspondent in my periphery, I allowed myself to feel the tinge of excitement that was lingering in my stomach. I also realized as I guided Big Whig from interview to interview, and from event to event that I have learned so much in only seven weeks. I knew where I was going and what I was doing. While the climb up the learning curve is far from complete, I think I have reached a much more manageable incline.

My week was also a mishmash because I attended the annual staff dinner. The evening was strange and filled with so many random occurrences I don't know if I can do them all justice. First off, my boss decided that the marketing team would go in costume. So not only do I stand out because I am tall and gleaming white, but now I had to put on a costume and bring more attention to myself. The theme of the evening was Hollywood Glamour so without my knowledge or consent it was decided that we were all going as characters from Alice in Wonderland and I would be the Red Queen (or the Queen of Hearts). I wasn't familiar with the Red Queen, but after some brief google research I concluded that she was mean, ugly and in some cases quite fat. Great. Not my idea of Hollywood Glamour. A make up artist was hired and I was transformed into ugly Red Queen. Not too many people were in costume at the event, mostly people opted for tuxes and gowns. I felt like a circus freak in a room full of models.

The entertainment was one of many oddities that evening. The first act was a child Michael Jackson impersonator (isn't that an oxymoron?) who performed a melange of the King of Pop's hits. The second act were dancers who incorporated so many different styles into their 3 minute dance that they looked possessed. The rest of the evening was filled with hours of strange contests and employee awards. Guess the Cantonese movie star and Hong Kong Dollar Bingo (they call out serial numbers on dollar bills - if they match your own money - you win).

The meal was about 20 courses long. There wasn't much for my vegetarian palate, so I gave in and had bbq'd pork. It was probably the best thing I have ever tasted in my life and even now I still get hungry just thinking about this bbq pork. It is a specialty in Hong Kong and it may just convert me back to a carnivore. The tough part of the meal came when shark fin soup was served. Shark fin soup is considered a delicacy in Asia and is a symbol of affluence. It is also one of the major contributing factors of the decline of the shark population in the world. 100 million sharks are killed each year, a large portion used for shark fin soup. The brutality of the killing is one thing, but when sharks are killed for shark fin soup, only a small part of the shark is used. The rest goes to waste. It is considered rude to not eat what is in front of you during a communal Chinese meal, but I couldn't do it. I didn't make a scene, I just used the fact that I was abstaining from eating shark fin soup as my form of protest. It's not only sharks though, a major contributing factor of the decline of the tiger population is because tigers are used in Chinese medicine. With half of the world's population in the region I am living in, it's no wonder that a species can go extinct just because its body part is popular in Asia. I realize that have to be careful to respect the culture I am living in, while at the same time stand strong in my beliefs. Shark fin soup was one of those moments for me. One of the table guests later asked why I didn't eat it, and I used the opportunity to share my views. He said he knew the problems with shark fin soup, but chose to eat it anyway. We spoke at length about it and I think I may have convinced him to give up shark fin soup for the time being. It may be one person of a billion, but at least it's something.

To lighten things up a bit, I have posted a picture of the ugly Red Queen (Alice is sitting next to me). This was as I was about to yell Bingo - my serial number had been chosen!

The Sanatorium

That's where I was this morning - the Hong Kong Hospital and Sanatorium. What a way to start a sunny Thursday morning in Hong Kong. I've been battling a pretty bad cold (or what I thought was a cold) for about a week now. I've neglected my health for work in the past week. No need to wag a finger at me - I know it's bad, I should have stayed home, but I didn't and so this morning I woke to another day with a fever, a clogged chest and feeling much worse than I did yesterday. I decided today was the day, I was going to finally see a doctor and maybe do something about my "cold".

I wish I could have taken pictures of the hospital, but I will do my best to describe what was a wonderful experience in health care. I entered the hospital and was immediately told to put on a mask, which I did. The hospital is very sterile, full of marble and strange cascading black and gold staircases a la Gone With the Wind. I made my way over to out patent services where I was triaged, then headed over to the Nurse's Station. This was my favourite part - not only do the nurses wear the old school nurses uniform, complete with white square hat but there are SO many of them. They buzz around with the utmost of care, but there were no other patients so I wasn't really sure what all the buzzing was about. Perhaps it was me they were buzzing about - the white, sickly giant among them. It took three of them to take my blood pressure and temperature. Then once it was ascertained that I did indeed still have a temperature I was directed to wait outside of Room 5 for the doctor. There are no cloth curtains here, no way, I waited in a leather chair outside of a proper doctor's office. Two of the nurses joined me, entered the doctors room and then directed me in. The nurses then stood behind me like guardians (or gargoyles depending on your outlook) waiting to jump at any task the doctor would assign them. The first and only task was to help me lift up my shirt so the doctor could hear me breath. Apparently I am not capable of doing this myself, but fear not - buzzing nurses were to the rescue!

The doctor was very efficient asking many questions and ruling out ailments - the diagnostic - the flu apparently, although I don't believe it for a second. I've already had the flu this year, I can't get it again! According to the doctor I did have the flu and then in moved into my chest and now I have a chest infection. I was told to go to the pharmacy and pick up my medication, but not before I was given a sick leave letter for the day (yay!).

Before I picked up my medication I had to pay. Oh yes, I forgot to mention this marble trimmed, leather decked out hospital was a private hospital - a public hospital adventure is for another day, perhaps when I am not sick. The grand total of the bill was $580 HKD, that's about $80 CDN, which included the cost of seeing the doctor, and the medication. Once the pharmacist called me, I would soon realize what a deal this actually was. I was prescribed seven different medications! SEVEN! This is a far cry from my naturopath back home, whom I was missing terribly at this point. I sort of laughed at the pharmacist and said, "Do you think I have enough medication here?". He either didn't understand or appreciate my sarcasm because he looked up for a second, make no facial expression and continued telling me what I needed to take and when. I would need an excel chart to understand how to take my medication, so I have opted to pick and choose. Congestion - check, cough - check, the others are not necessary in my opinion. Welcome to the office of Dr. Kathleen.

And then it was done. In and out of the hospital in 45 minutes. I'm home now, sipping peppermint tea and about to pop some pills and head to bed. I think what I really need is some rest.

Spring in Toronto?

I’ve been hearing about the amazing weather back home. Congrats to all my Torontonian friends on escaping winter. I’m slightly jealous, but to be honest I quite like the snow, so it sounds like I didn’t miss much. I had a very strange feeling this morning. I was walking to the office from the subway and the weather is quite cool and rainy today. It felt exactly like a late spring rainy day at home. It really threw me. I closed my eyes for a moment as I stepped outside of Starbucks with my morning tea and it was almost like being back in Toronto. As I listened more carefully and then opened my eyes I saw the thousands of people rushing to work, people eating noodles for breakfast, engaging in conversation in LOUD Cantonese, doing Tai Chi, car horns honking like crazy, cherry blossoms blooming….nope, definitely still in Hong Kong.

My Current Playlist

A Case of You – Joni Mitchell
Wintersong – Sarah McLaughlan
Ring of Fire – Johnny Cash
Sleeping Sickness – City of Colour
West End Girls – Pet Shop Boys
Gayatri Mantra – Deva Premal
Knocked Up – Kings of Leon
La Femme Parallel – Thievery Corporation
That Ole Devil Called Love – Billy Holiday

Post Script – Magnificent Macau

One thing I forgot to describe in my earlier post in the silence in the casinos. Macau is very different from Vegas, but perhaps the biggest difference was the level of noise in the casino. People take their gambling very seriously here, and the tables were filled with people concentrating, strategizing and taking their game very seriously. No rambunctious laughter, no pumping music. It was basically like gambling in a library.

Magnificent Macau

It's been a tough week for me, both personally and professionally. Adjusting to life in Hong Kong hasn't been easy. I would say that the most challenging part of my experience here has been my work life, but it has been affecting my whole outlook. Everyone has tough weeks, but this one seemed particularly hard. Most people who know me, know that I am a pretty positive person 95% of the time. In fact, I think I have an intolerance for negativity that border lines on impatience. I don't like being around negative people and I don't like it when it's in myself. On Thursday night I had had enough. After a long yoga and meditation session, I felt like I had a new outlook and I was prepared to bring that to all aspects of my life.

I woke up on Friday to a head cold and what turned out to be a very long and hard day at work. But it didn't really phase me. After work, I headed to a bar called The Pawn, and it has become my new favourite place in Hong Kong. Built in an old Pawn shop, the eclectic furniture, amazing acoustic music and chilled out atmosphere were just what I needed. I had planned to have one glass of champagne, but after four I decided to call it a night. I am feeling more and more comfortable in Hong Kong, and as I walked through the narrow side streets to find a cab, I realized that I am really getting to know this city. I am really becoming comfortable here.

On Saturday morning I met up with 6 friends and boarded the luxury ferry to Macau (think plush leather seats). I haven't been out of the country since I moved here, and even though it's just a short trip, escaping the crazy of Hong Kong was welcome. Most people know Macau now as a place to gamble, but it is so much more than that. Even though Macau pulls in $3 billion more than Las Vegas, there is not as much of a commercial and "Vegas" feel to it, as Vegas.

Macau's roots are Portuguese. It was only handed back to China from Portugal in 1999, so Portuguese influences are everywhere, including the language, the people, the culture and the architecture.

I was lucky to go on the trip with a new friend whose Mother has an apartment in Macau, solely for the purposes to have a place to stay on the weekend when she gambles. She booked us an amazing lunch at a Portuguese restaurant where we feasted on mild cheese flavoured with salt and pepper, clams in an amazing tomato sauce and for my main I had cod--a portion so big I was quite certain that I was eating the entire cod fish!

After that we headed into the main square, and took in the sites...churches, temples, forts. The people from Macau are such an amazing mix of Portuguese and Chinese--my ear kept tricking me as I heard people switch from Cantonese to Portuguese seamlessly. As I stood in the street and listened to the sounds that were all around me, I felt as though I was climbing my very own tower of Babel. We explored Macau for a few hours and then headed to the spa. My Post Valentine's Day Massage Massacre was redeemed because the 90 minute massage that I experienced in Macau was the best one I have every had in my life. Massages were followed up by a divine dinner at the Wynn hotel, where I think my quote of night was, "I think heaven just exploded in my mouth." That was in reference to the best lemon I have EVER had. I can still taste it.

My day was amazing--not only because Macau is an amazing place to explore, but because I spent time with five phenomenal women. My friends, and friendship, is not something that I have ever taken for granted, but it is something that has been heightened in my mind since arriving in Hong Kong. On Saturday, five people came together from Canada, Japan, and China all currently living in Hong Kong--some for only a couple of more weeks, some indefinitely...but despite the differences in our history, we laughed like we had known each other for years and shared in the positive energy that was all around us.

Here are some pictures of Magnificent Macau.

Anybody out there?

I've heard from a few people that they're reading this blog...but are you still? Drop me a line and let me know if I should continue this. I love writing it, but do you like reading it? Let me know.

Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho

Ah work. Work, work, work. It’s all I seem to be doing at the moment thus sucking up all of my blog ideas. What do I write about when all I am doing is working? Well, naturally… work. It’s what people do best in Hong Kong (that, and shop).

Needless to say, Hong Kongers work long hours, but their work day is a little different than the one I remember back home. A normal work day is from 9 to 5:45 p.m., but they get an hour and 15 minutes for lunch. An hour and 15 minutes!!! So in contrast, I usually gulp my lunch down in between conference calls and typing, but everybody, literally everybody clears out of the office at lunch and the cleaning staff come in. It’s a little odd for me because I still haven’t gotten out of the habit of eating lunch at my desk, so conference calls are a little tough when someone is vacuuming underneath you. In terms of the work day, no one is out of here before 7 p.m. Usually I head out of the office at 8 p.m or later usually to go home and take a conference call with North America at 9 p.m. The joys of a 13 hour time difference.

Other things to note – we have a tea lady. She brings tea and water around to everyone in the morning. I heart her. We also have keyboard cleaners that come by every two weeks or so to clean our keyboards. It’s good for me since I eat at my desk. We have a money tree in our lobby for good luck and prosperity and the office is organized according to Feng Shui. Very important.

On a business side I’ve learned fast that face-to-face meetings are much better than the phone so people travel to get to meetings. Giving “face” is huge to get things done. That means that you never say flat out “no” to an idea because that would remove “face”, you must dance around the idea for a bit carefully, perhaps compliment the idea, and then in a round about way say that it’s not going to happen. It’s tougher here – I need a thicker skin. I’ve cried once in the bathroom, but no one saw me (thank God). The pace is quicker, the stakes seem higher, the resources, much, much lower. Everyone covers their ass and they have no qualms about letting other people take the blame. Perfection is a must. Mistakes are not made. I’ve also learned that there are a few gems in my office who have helped (read saved) me. They have truly been the only way that I’ve survived my first month at work. I basically know what I’m doing now, and if I can get through the busy month of March, I’m quite sure I can get through anything.

Okay. Back to work! My sandwich is finished.