Sampling the World

I took the ferry to Lamma Island today. It is one of the major islands of Hong Kong. And no motor vehicles are allowed there. I walked from one end of it to the other. I had a lobster lunch there. I caught the ferry back to Hong Kong.

I got my fortune told by an old man, dressed business casual.

Here are the notes I took:

Make a design business–something beautiful. [I thought maybe web design]. Women are comfortable with me because the right side of my face is larger. Therefore, my future wife will be nervous about other women.

I might work for a big company now that is going down, but with me it will go back up.

I should learn to be a good swimmer. I should get married ASAP. I will have good female helper from 25-36. Don’t do anything risky in a year ending in 6 or 7. Wife will be aggressive and stubborn. Rich in old age. Confident. Clever. Southwest USA is good. Good to live by sea, but be careful of the rough waters. Lucky numbers are 2 and 4. Can be successful leader, but take one step at a time.

I got the fortune just for the experience. It was fun to do once.

I viewed the Hong Kong skyline at night from the Kowloon waterfront. A girl from the mainland China chatted me up. Her English was okay. She said she studied English for four years in high school, four years in college (majored in English), and two years in post-grad college (masters in English). However, she had never been to an English-speaking country. Her English was only mediocre after ten years of learning. Lesson learned: if you want to learn a language, go where it’s spoken!

Hong Kong central was littered with Phillipino women! The were all–over–the–place: parks, courtyards, sidewalks, and a few streets. They posted up with blankets, bottled drinks, and food. It’s Sunday: their day of rest and catching up. I read that Phillipinos are welcomed into Hong Kong’s service industry (e.g. house maids).

I gave myself a tour today. I saw the exquisite tea musuem. I bussed around the beautiful, lush island over to the bustling Stanley Market. Then I headed back to Kowloon for some urban walking.

Hong Kong is a beautiful, lively city and I would like to return someday. I also love how 87% of the population uses public transit to get around. I’ve really grown to love public transit over my four-month trip.

July 17

I had a long two days ahead of me. I would spend most of today in Brunei, fly to Malaysia in the evening, then fly to Hong Kong early the next morning. I only had three days in Hong Kong, so I’d likely push myself not to catch up on sleep.

I landed in the Kuala Lumpur airport at 11pm, and my flight to Hong Kong was at 7am. So, I’d have to be back at the airport by 5am. I wanted to get a good night’s rest, but the timing was bad.

Unfortunately, the airport is an hour outside of town. There were only a few hotels around and those were all booked. It would be a waste of time and energy to taxi into the city for only a few hours sleep. So, I decided to stay at the airport and sleep on the floor.

It was the first time I’d slept at an airport. I wasn’t prepared. It took me an hour to find a good spot and get comfortable. I probably slept about 2 hours. I looked forward to sleeping on the morning plane to Hong Kong.

July 18

Now mind you. I hadn’t gotten a good night’s rest. And I hadn’t cut my hair in four months. When I got off that plane at 11am in Hong Kong, they had officers waiting in the plane’s connector tunnel. First up was an officer and a drug-sniffing dog. I passed by them fine. I had nothing to hide.

It struck me though. I wondered what has been happening in Hong Kong (or with flights from KL) that they required a drug-sniffing dog. I’ve never seen that level of security in an airport before. You couldn’t avoid the dog because of the narrow tunnel.

I turned the corner and saw about eight men in black nylon coats–resembling the DEA in the US. I walked with confidence. But alas I was stopped. Again, I had nothing to hide. But I must have looked sketchy to them–with my scraggly hair, bloodshot eyes, and humble fashion. If only I had gotten some good sleep.

The agent asked to see my passport. He grilled me for what seemed like five minutes.

“Where are you going?”

“Hong Kong,” I said.

“Why are you here?”

“To see a friend from college. And general tourism; it’s my first time here.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Chungking Mansion.”

The Chungking Mansion is a low-cost high-rise building. It attracts both legitimate business (i.e. room rentals, food stands, currency exchange) and illegitimate ones (i.e. selling fake goods, selling drugs, etc). It is a massive 17-story building, so the good and bad can be well separated. It has a bit of history in Hong Kong. And I wanted to stay there for the experience. Might as well, while I’m young, solo, and on a low-budget trip. However, the agent must have feared I was going there for the wrong reasons.

“Did you make a reservation?”

“No.”

“Why?”

“I want to inspect the rooms first and find a clean one.”

“How long will you be here?”

“Four days.”

“Where is your onward ticket?”

“I purchased it online. I don’t have a paper copy.”

“Where do you go next?”

“The USA with a connection in Tokyo’s airport.”

He closed my passport, handed it to me, and watched other passengers exiting the plane.

I starting walking again. Ugh. This was my first taste of China, and it was quite sour.

I was impressed by Hong Kong from the airport. It was modern and clean. I was back in the 1st-world! I felt spoiled. I had been roughing it for most of the trip. It was a low-budget trip. I headed over to the mini-mart in the airport and bought myself a lemon tea. I got on a 1st-class city bus to Kowloon (north of central Hong Kong).

I got off at the Chungking Mansion and was immediately hassled by four guys. There are many lodgings within the building. Most rooms are micro-apartments–an apartment within an apartment. For example, someone owns a five bedroom apartment and leases each room separately. The common area (living room and kitchen) is either small or non-existent.

I found a room from my guidebook that turned out to be a great deal. $11/night for three nights on the 16th floor, overlooking the main street. The room was ultra-small, but fine for my needs (that is sleeping). And, oh man, did I ever sleep. I slept the whole afternoon.

I met up with two friends from USC, Bhavna and Shammin, in central Hong Kong. They introduced me to dim sum, duck, and other Hong Kong cuisine. Wow, it was so good. I love Hong Kong food.

I was hoping to tour Macau tomorrow, but they said the ferries might be closed because a strong typhoon was approaching that night. Shucks.

I spoke with a tour guide today. Her English was impressive. She showed me all the great tours from her brochure. However, all the prices were high (1st-world prices). Unfortunately, I wouldn’t be doing any sort of tour in Brunei. The tours were expensive and so were rental cars. If I wanted to explore this island, Borneo, I’d probably do it in the Malaysian part where it’d be much cheaper.

She diverted the subject to the Sultan. She asserted that he took care of his citizens. He provided free education, medical, dental, and retirement funds for all citizens. Brunei’s bountiful oil sites are the source of the country’s wealth.

Then she restrained herself. She said it was illegal to talk about the Sultan.

I asked, even if it’s positive?

She said, yes, even still. It is illegal no matter what.

It’s unfortunate that Bruneians have 1st-world riches but lack 1st-world freedoms.

I took a water taxi down the river to the downtown area. It was the Sultan’s birthday. Many businesses were closed in observance.

It was quiet–a little too quiet. I quickly learned that everything was cancelled. They didn’t want a break out of the Swine Flu (H1N1).

Dude, that sucked so bad. That was the main reason I came here. I thought it would be perfect timing to experience Brunei. There was going to be huge festivities and displays of Bruneian culture. I was therefore relegated to second and third tier experiences, such as the Royal Regalia Museum and the main Mosque.

It’s funny. They were trying to prevent a large gathering of people. But many still came to hang out.

It was like an apocolyptic movie. There were hardly any women or children out. Scores of adult men just chilled in the shade next to closed businesses. Many stooped outside the mall. And many more sat in the stands at the sports field cheering at nothing–at themselves. So odd.

The Royal Regalia museum was cool. The guards carried large curved knives instead of guns. I saw some pictures and relics of past birthday parades. Oh well.

I checked out the main Mosque in the late afternoon. It’s pretty cool. Well, it’s the first mosque I’ve ever seen. It was quite decadent. I read that it had gold trimmings on the exterior.

The Muslims are strict about keeping non-Muslims out. I was able to step inside at a specific time in the late afternoon. There was only a 30-minute window for non-Muslims. When I took photos later on at sunset, some motioned me to go away. I got a strong feeling of exclusivity from the Mosque–quite the opposite of Buddhist temples.

I perched in a courtyard near the Mosque. Two nice, young guys interviewed me for the Brunei Times newspaper. They wanted to get quotes from foreigners about the festivities being cancelled. I gave them plenty to write about.

Bill Paetzke, a computer programmer from the United States, was also hoping to witness the celebrations. He found out about the celebrations from a guidebook and was interested in the images depicting the joyous occasion. “It looked really cool, so I wanted to go and see it for myself,” said Paetzke, who is on a four-month holiday around the sub-region after quitting his job recently.

He said that it was not easy and cheap to come to Brunei, but would come to see the celebrations in the future, if he was in the area at the right time. He diverted his time in seeing other aspects of Brunei. “Brunei is awesome,” he remarked.

Source: The Brunei Times

I was careful to end my rant on a positive note. The Sultan has supreme power in this land. And I didn’t want to provoke him.