a strange and distant land

Well, not really. But if you consider that visiting Hong Kong took us the farthest we've ever been from home, it seemed that way at first. Especially when we walked outside of the airport and were suddenly immersed in a completely different culture where we were obviously the outsider, and, if we were lucky, would find someone who spoke a few words of English. Which, not surprisingly, were usually "Sorry" and "Yes". I consider myself sufficiently over the malaise brought on by jet lag and rejoining the daily grind, so I suppose now it's time to reminisce and recollect some of the more interesting aspects of our amazing vacation.

Hong Kong is comprised of Hong Kong Island, and the New Territories (including Kowloon, where the In-Laws live) on the mainland. Getting around is easy: the brutally efficient and highly organized MTR puts every transit system to shame, and makes the TTC look like a 20 year old joke. And the system doesn't end at subway and surface buses: there are ferries that travel from Hong Kong island to the mainland constantly and an interchange with a rail line that goes next door into China. Fares can be paid using one card, making travel almost effortless and getting lost nigh impossible. Not that you'd ever want to drive in Hong Kong anyway, because it's fucking nuts. Pedestrians are an inconvenience to drivers there. Paying attention to signals is essential, because you will get hit. Buses or taxis or regular commuters don't give a shit who you are; you're in the way.

Some of the first things you notice when dealing with the locals is the astonishing amount of friendliness and helpfulness that is extended. Even if they have no inkling of what you've just said to them, they will say "yes" or repeat exactly what you said. Which would imply some kind of understanding, but this is simply to avoid offending you. Luckily most well-travelled food establishments will have English menus, but even that can sometimes be risky.

Aside from the typical tourist amusements, shopping is probably the largest attraction for those visiting Hong Kong. In the street vendor subculture, bargaining is an absolute must. Outsiders and travelers quickly lose respect in the eyes of those tending their small shops, simply because it's a given that in any stall you walk into the prices for each item are marked up anywhere between 70 to 100%. This type of mentality doesn't necessarily carry over into the traditional shopping malls, mind you, but you might be able to pick up a deal or two through volume of purchases. In Shenzhen, China, about a 30 minute train ride from Hong Kong, you will find the "Knockoff Capital of the World". This clever moniker is far from an exaggeration, though - you will find anything you want, whether its designer shirts, handbags, watches or pirated DVDs and computer software. As a tourist walking into the main commercial center, you get swarmed by people trying to get you to their shops. This practice is annoying at first, but then it becomes a kind of game - the deals you can get are entirely up to the bargainer. Watching my father in-law haggle with a surprised shop owner for three Rolex watches was truly awe-inspiring, and probably one of the funniest and most memorable parts of the trip.

As expected, I tended to gravitate towards technology and gaming related vendors and shops, but contrary to my belief going in there really aren't many deals to be found. Given the exchange rate you're basically spending the same amount: most MP3 players and digital cameras are priced about the same as North America, and the only thing North Americans would save on is the tax. Not surprisingly piracy is still pretty rampant in both Hong Kong and China, especially DVDs of Western movies still in the theatre. In some computer shops you will occasionally find pirated software mixed in with the legitimate product. I remember seeing Doom III in a nice looking DVD snapcase for HK$10 ($2 CDN), right next to Joint Operations for HK$300 (around $50 CDN). I also noticed a lot of knockoff GBAs and GBA games, most of which are made in Taiwan and sell for ridiculously low prices. Of course, as with any product of this nature, you're taking a number of risks. The most important being whether or not it will work, and the chance that you just might get the dreaded body cavity search when Customs finds that shit in your luggage.

The few arcades I stumbled upon wandering the streets of Hong Kong either had King of Fighters 2000 or 30 variations of Mahjongg and Poker, which was a huge disappointment. The most decent arcade I had the chance of visiting was in Ocean Park, a tourist trap amusement center similar to Sea World. There I witnessed an intense Piano Dueling game that could only be described as piano proteges on speed battling for supremacy. I also saw some sort of shooter clone that looked like an Egyptian House of the Dead, complete with goofy looking pistols.

I picked up a few cool action figures over there, one of them being from one of the many toy machines you can find in shopping centres and toy stores throughout Hong Kong. I never saw any candy or gumball machines, instead these plastic action figure dispensers appear to be Japan's answer to children's sugar fixations. Gundam, Dragonball Z, Pokemon, Street Fighter, and countless other TV-show inspired characters fill these machines. I happened to find one that had Tales of Symphonia action figures imprisoned within, and I got my fanboy hands onto a miniature of Genis. The truly breathtaking UML megastore also supplied me with one badassed looking Gundam Strike model from the recent Gundam Seed cartoon series.

Traditionally, Far East popular culture has been stigmatized as being a shadow of western culture, but you just have to look around there and it's obvious this is far from the truth. Given the rash of anime-inspired media that children in North America are exposed to both on television and in videogames, I'd go so far as to say the exact opposite is true. Offensive advertisements and nonsensical t-shirts abound in Hong Kong, with MP3 players and cell phones as standard issue to its residents (I'm pretty sure they're handed out at the immigration office). The selection of foods is incredible, and it's definitely a highlight of the area. Although the sight of a larger selection of Hollywood-produced blockbusters at local theatres and a Starbucks or McDonald's on every street was a bit disconcerting, Hong Kong maintains a real sense of its own character. And for some reason, 80s-style fashion is really big there, and I had a damned hard time finding a normal pair of sneakers. If it wasn't retro Nikes on the shelf, it was retro Addidas. If you really like to shop, the real deals are to be found in clothing, as the product is essentially made across the bay in China and textiles are extremely cheap in that part of the world.

The question we asked ourselves when we arrived back in Vancouver preparing to enter Canadian customs was if we'd go back. Well that, and whether all the copied DVDs and video games were adequately hidden deep within our suitcase. The easy answer for me would be yes. It really is hard to believe that there is so much to see and do in such a relatively small place. I mean all you have to do is pick up a world map: The New Territories and Hong Kong Island are miniscule compared to the enormity of mainland China. We squeezed a lot into the time we were there, but as the end of our trip got closer we felt there was still so much left to explore. Although the smell of dried seafood and raw meat cooking in the sun was something you never really got used to, the atmosphere while walking around Hong Kong was an experience in itself. There's always something going on, and although the streets are unbearably crowded for most of the day, the busyness and fast pace never really got uncomfortable. I highly recommend it as a destination for anybody that's thinking of heading to Asia. With this in mind I thought about my long time aspiration of traveling to Japan, and simply chalked it up as a product of my arcade and anime-soaked high school years. Consider me a changed man; Hong Kong is where it's at.