Hong Kong Visa Trip

My visa ends December 15th, so I must travel outside the mainland and re-enter to activate my double-entry visa, thus enabling me to stay another 3 months. So I decided to take the train for half the day and enter and stay in Hong Kong for a week which is technically China but still considered "outside the country". After spending 3 months in rural China, coming to a modern and big city like Hong Kong feels like I time traveled 50 years into the future. From motorbikes to sports cars, from farms to skyscrapers, from being the only person in a 100 foot radius to being packed in a subway, it's honestly a little bit overwhelming. Everybody has the newest fanciest phones, people are wearing clothes and fashions I've never seen before, there are people that do not have yellow skin, and people are driving on the opposite side of the road! It's definitely interesting how two places of the same country can be so radically different. Not just the appearances and the technology, but the lifestyles, mindsets and culture.

This big city is also a lot different than the big cities in China, notably Beijing and Shanghai. Hong Kong seems to be more like its Western counterparts, with more Western norms and manners. People actually wait for those getting off the subway before they get on. Lines are straight and orderly for the most part. People don’t clear their throat and spit on the streets. Waitresses are more outwardly friendly and smile. Today, when I was eating dinner, the owner even insisted on giving me more rice for free when she didn’t even have to bother. I also went to the Hong Kong Museum of History today. I spent 3 hours there and wish I could have spent more time there. It was fascinating to learn about the whole history of Hong Kong, from old British trading ports, to the Opium War, to the Japanese occupation, to the handing back of power to China. I had these bits and pieces of history in my head before, but today it finally came together and made me realize how truly unique Hong Kong is and how different it is from Mainland China. Spending a week here has also made me appreciate how lucky I am to experience simplicity in a rural area in a world where technology and modernization is quickly dominating every aspect of life. I think that rural areas of China even though may be a little more backwards and less "civilized," life there offers a chance to build friendships on a more genuine basis, to see how strong the human heart and spirit are, and to understand how truly important our environment is to mankind.