Hong Kong is one of those cities that never sleeps. In our first week our tour guide said that the only time there was limited traffic on Hong Kong Island was around 4 AM on Saturday morning - there was no such thing a no traffic. But compared to another major city such as Copenhagen, it is the crowd and constant atmosphere at all hours of the day which make Hong Kong so special.
Following a hefty night out in Central, my room mate and I took a cab to Mong Kok to hunt down breakfast. It was 5:30 in the morning, but most places were bustling, and we settled for noodles and beef in soup with hot milk tea, costing us HKD 30 a piece. But as opposed to Europe, where all that is open is McDonalds and pizza-places, we could get pretty much anything we wanted, and at no price difference than had it been 10 AM.
Although late nights are not that common, hopefully there will be a chance to roam some more around after nightfall. My tour book says that there is a fruit market in Mong Kok which is only open between 2 and 6 AM, and a trip to the peak when it is dark is supposed to be something special. Another curious event is squid-jigging, which my room mate is doing tonight at 11 PM off the Hong Kong coast with a friend. Sometimes going out should be more than just alcohol.
søndag den 26. februar 2012
fredag den 24. februar 2012
Networking
Networking, for some reason, only seems to apply to the business community. Although there are numerous other instances of networks being utilized to get job positions or favours, one never hears about a geologist getting a business-lunch. This stereotype is no doubt enhanced by films such as "Wall Street" and "American Psycho", but it exists no the less, and today I attended such an event.
Arranged by the Danish Chamber of Commerce (DCC), a privately funded organization with the goal to enhance businesses in their local area, the event was an informal networking lunch in Wan Chai for all Scandinavians. Since several other GLOBErs were going, I had the day off, and it was an all-you-can-eat Indian buffet for 110 HKD, I decided to sign up for it.
It turned out that we were 14 participants, 5 of which were GLOBE students. The others were representatives of the DCC, the Swedish and British equivalent, and the Danish Consulate. After politely greeting everyone and raking in 3 business cards, I sat down and meticulously worked myself through the delicious selection of dahl, curry, samosas, chicken, salad etc. Between plates, I picked up very interesting, though completely non-business related, conversations with two non-GLOBE Danes. People left after an hour or so, although the GLOBErs and the two Danes stayed for coffee.
One seems to leave those events on a very anticlimactic note - the importance and grandeur imagined is replaced with what was basically a lunch in ones native language. It was polite of them to invite us, especially since one might feel a bit alone in Hong Kong (which also explains why expats tend to cluster together when abroad). But it struck me as peculiar that they called it a networking event (perhaps to get our attention), because although I got their business cards, I'll probably never see them again in my life. Totally worth going though, for the experience and the food - suji halwa is one of the best desserts I have had so far in Hong Kong!
Arranged by the Danish Chamber of Commerce (DCC), a privately funded organization with the goal to enhance businesses in their local area, the event was an informal networking lunch in Wan Chai for all Scandinavians. Since several other GLOBErs were going, I had the day off, and it was an all-you-can-eat Indian buffet for 110 HKD, I decided to sign up for it.
It turned out that we were 14 participants, 5 of which were GLOBE students. The others were representatives of the DCC, the Swedish and British equivalent, and the Danish Consulate. After politely greeting everyone and raking in 3 business cards, I sat down and meticulously worked myself through the delicious selection of dahl, curry, samosas, chicken, salad etc. Between plates, I picked up very interesting, though completely non-business related, conversations with two non-GLOBE Danes. People left after an hour or so, although the GLOBErs and the two Danes stayed for coffee.
One seems to leave those events on a very anticlimactic note - the importance and grandeur imagined is replaced with what was basically a lunch in ones native language. It was polite of them to invite us, especially since one might feel a bit alone in Hong Kong (which also explains why expats tend to cluster together when abroad). But it struck me as peculiar that they called it a networking event (perhaps to get our attention), because although I got their business cards, I'll probably never see them again in my life. Totally worth going though, for the experience and the food - suji halwa is one of the best desserts I have had so far in Hong Kong!
onsdag den 22. februar 2012
Claypot rice
Spending so much time with my parents also meant I neglected socializing with most other people here in Hong Kong. So tonight I spent time with my two room mates, from USA and Hong Kong respectively, having claypot rice in Tai Po.
Located one stop north of University, I had yet to explore Tai Po. It has no real tourist attractions and it is not located close to the main city (such as Yau Ma Tei). Most students go there to visit the 5-story high food mall, but seeing as I cannot be bothered to cook this semester, it is not really my thing.
A 10 minute walk took us from the train station into central Tai Po and the restaurant, a small, family owned place on the corner of a narrow street. It was packed, everything was in Chinese, so my friend just ordered us his favourite. Claypot rice is, as the name suggests, cooked rice with vegetables and meat in a small clay pot. You get the whole pot served in front of you, and before you eat, you scoop soy sauce into the pot and cover it up again for a couple of minutes to let the rice soak it up. When reaching the bottom of the pot, the rice is slightly burnt and crispy. It is delicious, and totally worth the 140 dollars we paid for three pots and a round of beer.
Having a local friend is probably one of the things I feel most fortunate about. His underground view of the city, all the ins and outs, as well as what to do and where to go, is priceless. I would never have found that place on my own, giving me the feeling that I learnt something new about Hong Kong, and it is also refreshing not to have cantine food once in a while. Next week we'll have Dim Sum in town - I can't wait.
Located one stop north of University, I had yet to explore Tai Po. It has no real tourist attractions and it is not located close to the main city (such as Yau Ma Tei). Most students go there to visit the 5-story high food mall, but seeing as I cannot be bothered to cook this semester, it is not really my thing.
A 10 minute walk took us from the train station into central Tai Po and the restaurant, a small, family owned place on the corner of a narrow street. It was packed, everything was in Chinese, so my friend just ordered us his favourite. Claypot rice is, as the name suggests, cooked rice with vegetables and meat in a small clay pot. You get the whole pot served in front of you, and before you eat, you scoop soy sauce into the pot and cover it up again for a couple of minutes to let the rice soak it up. When reaching the bottom of the pot, the rice is slightly burnt and crispy. It is delicious, and totally worth the 140 dollars we paid for three pots and a round of beer.
Having a local friend is probably one of the things I feel most fortunate about. His underground view of the city, all the ins and outs, as well as what to do and where to go, is priceless. I would never have found that place on my own, giving me the feeling that I learnt something new about Hong Kong, and it is also refreshing not to have cantine food once in a while. Next week we'll have Dim Sum in town - I can't wait.
tirsdag den 21. februar 2012
School work
With my parents now safely back in Denmark, it is about time I started being a bit more serious about this blog. But for all the events that have happened in the last week of internet-blog silence, the recurring theme is school work.
Unlike my Danish education, which has a single, comprehensive final exam after 7-8 weeks of lectures in each course, my courses in Hong Kong take the whole semester. My courses are consequently less intense, with only 3 class-hours a week (compared to 6 hours + exercise classes in Denmark), so the amount of work roughly equals out. That is until we have midterms.
Semester-courses often have midterms, and I have them in three out of five courses, with the result counting some 25% of my total score. This is low enough so that a bad performance doesn't discourage you for the remaining half of the semester, but large enough to actually make an impact, although I must admit I struggle to find the motivation.
The most bizarre thing is that although everybody knows midterms are part of the courses, the administration insists on conducting them all the same week. Therefore I have 3 closed-book midterms in the space of 4 days, all covering everything which has so far been read. Not that this is inhuman, but considering the added pressure on the student, would it be impossible to make conduct them in the space of two weeks? Or even three? I guess not, and consequently I shall be spending most of my weekend at the library - perhaps blogging will be slightly affected again.
Unlike my Danish education, which has a single, comprehensive final exam after 7-8 weeks of lectures in each course, my courses in Hong Kong take the whole semester. My courses are consequently less intense, with only 3 class-hours a week (compared to 6 hours + exercise classes in Denmark), so the amount of work roughly equals out. That is until we have midterms.
Semester-courses often have midterms, and I have them in three out of five courses, with the result counting some 25% of my total score. This is low enough so that a bad performance doesn't discourage you for the remaining half of the semester, but large enough to actually make an impact, although I must admit I struggle to find the motivation.
The most bizarre thing is that although everybody knows midterms are part of the courses, the administration insists on conducting them all the same week. Therefore I have 3 closed-book midterms in the space of 4 days, all covering everything which has so far been read. Not that this is inhuman, but considering the added pressure on the student, would it be impossible to make conduct them in the space of two weeks? Or even three? I guess not, and consequently I shall be spending most of my weekend at the library - perhaps blogging will be slightly affected again.
onsdag den 15. februar 2012
Horse racing
One of the most popular tourist attractions for westerners in Hong Kong is the Happy Valley Race Course. Located amidst skyscrapers near Causeway Bay (on Hong Kong Island), this small race track packs 32.000 people every Wednesday night. So yesterday, I naturally took my parents there.
The race course opened in 1845, and was built for the British who at the time ruled Hong Kong. The Chinese, however, became more and more fond of horse racing, so the atmosphere is a peculiar mix of gruff elderly Cantonese men, who have statistics and insider information and come for the gambling; and westerners, expats and tourists, who come for the beer, the socializing, and have no clue who or what they are betting on. Happy Valley is one of the oddities of Hong Kong which distinguishes the city from the rest of Asia.
In some ways, it is very Asian: Entry price is 10 HKD, although food and drink is slightly more expensive than the norm. Bets can be placed from 1 HKD to 500.000 HKD (!) revealing Asia's love and mental insanity when it comes to gambling (Macau, the gambling capital of the East, has daily revenues from gambling which are 5 times higher than the Strip in Las Vegas), and you can bet on almost anything. On the other hand, British upper-class still resides, with members' stands, tournaments, and the race track being a spotless lawn.
Betting can be confusing, but it actually intriguing. The 4 main types of bets are winner, placement, quinella and quinella placement. In the first two, you pick a single horse (out of 12), either as the winner or as a placement within the top three. Of course the placement bet gives you considerably lower odds. Quinellas are the same, except you pick two horses - either top two in any order, or two out of top three in any order. You can bet on as many as the top 5 horses (in either a fixed or random order), but those bets are so unlikely that the odds are enormous - some winnings on those bets were several hundred thousand dollars. The odds are updated constantly, and are determined by what everybody else bets on - so if you know something others don't, you can get a considerable return.
A night at Happy Valley lasts 4 hours between 7:00 and 11:00, with the 8 races taking place at 30 minute intervals. After missing the first race, we decided to place one 10 HKD bet on each race, limiting our losses to 70 HKD. I won a quinella on my first race, betting that the two favoured horses would finish 1-2, and a couple of other safe bets, so I ended the day 110 HKD up. That was nothing compared to the total value of bets placed, just shy of 1.000.000.000 HKD! Although some of that was paid out in winnings, operation expenses and rent, I'm pretty sure they make a fine profit. House always wins, as they say.
The race course opened in 1845, and was built for the British who at the time ruled Hong Kong. The Chinese, however, became more and more fond of horse racing, so the atmosphere is a peculiar mix of gruff elderly Cantonese men, who have statistics and insider information and come for the gambling; and westerners, expats and tourists, who come for the beer, the socializing, and have no clue who or what they are betting on. Happy Valley is one of the oddities of Hong Kong which distinguishes the city from the rest of Asia.
In some ways, it is very Asian: Entry price is 10 HKD, although food and drink is slightly more expensive than the norm. Bets can be placed from 1 HKD to 500.000 HKD (!) revealing Asia's love and mental insanity when it comes to gambling (Macau, the gambling capital of the East, has daily revenues from gambling which are 5 times higher than the Strip in Las Vegas), and you can bet on almost anything. On the other hand, British upper-class still resides, with members' stands, tournaments, and the race track being a spotless lawn.
Betting can be confusing, but it actually intriguing. The 4 main types of bets are winner, placement, quinella and quinella placement. In the first two, you pick a single horse (out of 12), either as the winner or as a placement within the top three. Of course the placement bet gives you considerably lower odds. Quinellas are the same, except you pick two horses - either top two in any order, or two out of top three in any order. You can bet on as many as the top 5 horses (in either a fixed or random order), but those bets are so unlikely that the odds are enormous - some winnings on those bets were several hundred thousand dollars. The odds are updated constantly, and are determined by what everybody else bets on - so if you know something others don't, you can get a considerable return.
A night at Happy Valley lasts 4 hours between 7:00 and 11:00, with the 8 races taking place at 30 minute intervals. After missing the first race, we decided to place one 10 HKD bet on each race, limiting our losses to 70 HKD. I won a quinella on my first race, betting that the two favoured horses would finish 1-2, and a couple of other safe bets, so I ended the day 110 HKD up. That was nothing compared to the total value of bets placed, just shy of 1.000.000.000 HKD! Although some of that was paid out in winnings, operation expenses and rent, I'm pretty sure they make a fine profit. House always wins, as they say.
tirsdag den 14. februar 2012
Parents
Parents are great, especially when you have moved out and they only show up for shorter periods of time. One such time is now, when they are in Hong Kong for 8 days, and although they interfere with my daily blogging, they are a pleasure to have around.
One perk is payment - being a student on a limited income in a foreign country, and since they want to see as much as possible in the days they are here (and want me to join them), some social convention mean they pay for everything. Maybe it is a principal, but I can't even buy a 6 dollar ice cream without my mother swooping in to beat me to the cashier. I thoroughly enjoy it, but it reminds me of the debt that children owe their parents - a debt that can never be repaid.
A second pleasure is that since they want to experience events, places and culture, and they expect me to show them around everywhere, I get to see some sides of Hong Kong that I have not yet ventured to. One thing was the Star Ferry, which costs a measly $2,50, to cross the Victoria harbour, and a second was seeing Soho, the Midlevels, the worlds longest escalator that runs up there, and dining in a fantastic Indian restaurant. The place was located on the 4th floor of a small building, but it was exquisite cuisine and part of supermonday, a 2-for-1 deal that 20-something restaurants have every Monday.
At the end of the day, it is just nice spending time with your parents. I guess as you grow up you tend to see them more as experienced role models rather than parents, and although you are more equal, it is clear that they have a lot of experience and knowledge which often takes you by surprise. So I am thoroughly looking forward to tomorrows horse racing in Happy Valley, our Thursday night half-price sushi in Mong Kok, as well as hiking over the weekend.
One perk is payment - being a student on a limited income in a foreign country, and since they want to see as much as possible in the days they are here (and want me to join them), some social convention mean they pay for everything. Maybe it is a principal, but I can't even buy a 6 dollar ice cream without my mother swooping in to beat me to the cashier. I thoroughly enjoy it, but it reminds me of the debt that children owe their parents - a debt that can never be repaid.
A second pleasure is that since they want to experience events, places and culture, and they expect me to show them around everywhere, I get to see some sides of Hong Kong that I have not yet ventured to. One thing was the Star Ferry, which costs a measly $2,50, to cross the Victoria harbour, and a second was seeing Soho, the Midlevels, the worlds longest escalator that runs up there, and dining in a fantastic Indian restaurant. The place was located on the 4th floor of a small building, but it was exquisite cuisine and part of supermonday, a 2-for-1 deal that 20-something restaurants have every Monday.
At the end of the day, it is just nice spending time with your parents. I guess as you grow up you tend to see them more as experienced role models rather than parents, and although you are more equal, it is clear that they have a lot of experience and knowledge which often takes you by surprise. So I am thoroughly looking forward to tomorrows horse racing in Happy Valley, our Thursday night half-price sushi in Mong Kok, as well as hiking over the weekend.
fredag den 10. februar 2012
Money
With Denmark having one of the most egalitarian societies in the world, travelling anywhere else will remind one of how large the gap between rich and poor can be. Africa certainly has its fair share of poor people, but being a child, and with most of my impressions coming from an international school and a clustering of expatriate families, I never took much notice of it. But in Asia, the income gap shows everywhere.
The most striking observation is not how poor people are, but how rich. Walking through the bustling markets of Mong Kok, small stalls selling 15-dollar T-shirts are flanked by luxurious stores selling jewellery and $500.000 hand bags. Real estate prices surrounding Victoria Peak are among the highest in the world, with prices reaching $100.000 per square foot. Michelin-star restaurants are situated next to $50 all-you-can-eat venues, and cars of top brands such as BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Bentley or Jaguar are everywhere, even though traffic is a nightmare and the MTR costs about 8 bucks.
In Denmark, this would not be possible. Wealthy people tend to cluster together (in Denmark it is in Northern Sealand outside Copenhagen, colloquially known as the whiskey belt), since money is not something you show off. If you have it, great - but it does not make you a better person than the rest of us, and it does not get you any perks. This is very different from the American view of money, who see money as the result of hard work and risk-taking in line with the American dream. While many Europeans have inherited money and with it a life style and an (anachonistic) place in society, Americans have often started with nothing, and are wealthy because somebody in their family has worked for it. This encourages freedom and opportunities, and explains many American GLOBE'rs dislike of a too large state.
In China, until recently, wealth used to belong to the Government and with it the officials in power. However, with the economic reforms, private profiteering has resulted in the increased wealth of society as a whole, and actually reduced social inequality. But the gradual change toward free markets takes time, and so far the system has resulted in many monopolies / oligopolies, national champions and favoured areas of development. Hence there is a growing number of Chinese who are wealthy beyond their wildest imagination. An example could be a family-owned mining firm, who gets the sole patent to mine bauxite in Inner Mongolia. The company has no competition, sells the bauxite to a state-owned enterprise, and collects sky-high profits.
Cheng Du gave a quick insight into the lives of these people's children. The marketing term for such consumers between 14 and 25 years of age is "little emperor". They have no siblings, have better-than-average schooling in English, and so much money they do not know how to spend it. It is often more about something being exclusive than it being an economically sound investment. For companies appealing to multiple segments of the market, it is a hard balance to strike, but nightclubs, for example, would have no entrance fee and beers for $40, but also Moet champagne and $29.000 bottles of wine. Other times, clubs are members-only, with membership alone costing $30.000.
In Hong Kong, this outrageous consumption is also visible, enhanced by the type of people who make up the trading capital of East Asia. Investment bankers, working +100 hour weeks and earning disposable monthly incomes of way over $80.000, are not too concerned about money. In the every-day encounter with such wealth, one can easily lose any kind of rational consumption pattern, as it becomes tempting to try and bridge the obvious social gap and the status that comes with it. It also explains why, for so many local students I have met, money is a goal in itself. Many Danes would be disgusted with this mindset, but unlike in Denmark, money actually does buy you more than just things.
The most striking observation is not how poor people are, but how rich. Walking through the bustling markets of Mong Kok, small stalls selling 15-dollar T-shirts are flanked by luxurious stores selling jewellery and $500.000 hand bags. Real estate prices surrounding Victoria Peak are among the highest in the world, with prices reaching $100.000 per square foot. Michelin-star restaurants are situated next to $50 all-you-can-eat venues, and cars of top brands such as BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Bentley or Jaguar are everywhere, even though traffic is a nightmare and the MTR costs about 8 bucks.
In Denmark, this would not be possible. Wealthy people tend to cluster together (in Denmark it is in Northern Sealand outside Copenhagen, colloquially known as the whiskey belt), since money is not something you show off. If you have it, great - but it does not make you a better person than the rest of us, and it does not get you any perks. This is very different from the American view of money, who see money as the result of hard work and risk-taking in line with the American dream. While many Europeans have inherited money and with it a life style and an (anachonistic) place in society, Americans have often started with nothing, and are wealthy because somebody in their family has worked for it. This encourages freedom and opportunities, and explains many American GLOBE'rs dislike of a too large state.
In China, until recently, wealth used to belong to the Government and with it the officials in power. However, with the economic reforms, private profiteering has resulted in the increased wealth of society as a whole, and actually reduced social inequality. But the gradual change toward free markets takes time, and so far the system has resulted in many monopolies / oligopolies, national champions and favoured areas of development. Hence there is a growing number of Chinese who are wealthy beyond their wildest imagination. An example could be a family-owned mining firm, who gets the sole patent to mine bauxite in Inner Mongolia. The company has no competition, sells the bauxite to a state-owned enterprise, and collects sky-high profits.
Cheng Du gave a quick insight into the lives of these people's children. The marketing term for such consumers between 14 and 25 years of age is "little emperor". They have no siblings, have better-than-average schooling in English, and so much money they do not know how to spend it. It is often more about something being exclusive than it being an economically sound investment. For companies appealing to multiple segments of the market, it is a hard balance to strike, but nightclubs, for example, would have no entrance fee and beers for $40, but also Moet champagne and $29.000 bottles of wine. Other times, clubs are members-only, with membership alone costing $30.000.
In Hong Kong, this outrageous consumption is also visible, enhanced by the type of people who make up the trading capital of East Asia. Investment bankers, working +100 hour weeks and earning disposable monthly incomes of way over $80.000, are not too concerned about money. In the every-day encounter with such wealth, one can easily lose any kind of rational consumption pattern, as it becomes tempting to try and bridge the obvious social gap and the status that comes with it. It also explains why, for so many local students I have met, money is a goal in itself. Many Danes would be disgusted with this mindset, but unlike in Denmark, money actually does buy you more than just things.
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