Hong Kong - Who Knew?

Hong Kong was never on my list of "must see" places and it only ended up on my itinerary out of convenience; it was the cheapest entry point to China from India. Maybe it was because I just left one of the dirtiest and most inconvenient cities in the world (Delhi), but Hong Kong felt like a surreal paradise - a seamless blend of natural beauty, cutting-edge technology, and international sophistication. The streets are pedestrian-friendly and spotless, the buildings are super-sleek and modern, the traffic is calm and well-controlled, and there is green space everywhere! There are literally sky-scrapers and high rise apartments that are surrounded by forests! There is nothing resembling the homogenized, endless sprawl that characterizes most US cities, the development in Hong Kong has apparently been tightly controlled, thus there are trees and undeveloped land within reach of everywhere. On my second morning I my host's apartment looking for a place for a jog, and within TWO MINUTES I was on a path surrounded by the forest! I didn't see another person the entire time, but I did see animals scurrying around, birds singing in the trees, and high-rise buildings only a few hundred feet away - a really cool mix of urban lifestyle with natural surroundings.

As much as I admire Hong Kong for being possibly the most beautiful and liveable city I've seen, it is almost entirely based on commerce. Apparently shopping is the chief recreational activity of the population, or at least the tourists. Electronics, designer clothes, gourmet foods - all stuff that I don't care to look at and can't afford to buy. Since shopping wasn't an option, I ran through Hong Kong's tourist attractions in one full day of walking/tram-riding/subway-hopping. The city isn't terribly expensive, but since I'm used to Indian prices I couldn't bear to pay for anything other than cheap snacks from 7-11. I was also anxious to keep moving since mainland China was only a 30 tram ride to the north, so yesterday I headed to the Chinese "border". It isn't really a border since Hong Kong is a part of China, but since it has a significant degree of autonomy, it is treated as a separate territory. I had to get my passport stamped, show my Chinese visa (which isn't needed to get to Hong Kong) and go through customs. I was shocked by how smooth it all went (much, much easier than getting into Canada!) and before I knew it I was in the Motherland.

The rest was easy - I just found someone who spoke some English and took me to the ticket booth for Yangshuo buses, and viola - I arrived here in Yangshuo at the mind-numbing hour of 5:00 a.m. Blah, needless to say I'm tired, so I'm taking it easy today. I met up with my supervisor at the English College, and I can already tell this will be a VERY laid-back volunteer experience. One unexpected twist is that I'm staying with a Chinese family rather than in a volunteer dorm - at least for the time being. So far it's really nice - my first meal in china was a home-cooked pork and potato hotpot with rice. It will take a while to get over Indian food, but I'm sure I won't stave while I'm here. Tomorrow is a group bike trip to a local village - fresh air and green scenery! The perfect antidote to a month in a clausterphobia/asthma inducing Bhopal!