Family life

During a hectic week which included my birthday, I was glad to be invited back to a CUHK student's family to have dinner.

Located on the 8th floor of a skyscraper some 5 minute walk from the Choi Hung MTR station in Kowloon, the apartment had a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom and 2 bed rooms, with the total size being no greater than 50 square meters. It was the home of my friend's grandparents, and we were 9 people for dinner - 2 fellow foreign students, my CUHK friend, her grand parents, parents, the mother's sister, and myself.

The food was delicious; we had curry fish balls, steamed fish, a Chinese variant of spinach, chicken wings, scrambled egg and tomato, and pumpkin soup. But the best thing was to gain an insight into the living facilities of a Hong Kong family and how it is structured.

Firstly, it is common for both parents to work full-time. A side effect of Chairman Mao's policies is the idea that all people are equal contributors to society, effectively removing any disparity from gender. Thus, my CUHK friend, along with her cousin, was raised by her grandparents, giving her an almost equally strong bond with that generation as that to her parents.

Second, the lack of space to expand means that the space is fully utilized. This is most visible in the kitchen, which contains a lot of cooking utensils and cutlery, but almost no stock of fresh food. The lack of space makes storage of food impossible, so daily visits will be made to the market places (which are thus nearby and always open).

We also managed to ask about Chinese television, the upcoming Hong Kong election, the 10 foot tall red shrine located in the middle of the room, the legality of shark fin soup and grandma's best recipes. A perfect break from studying - some things cannot be learned in a book.