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Monday, February 10, 2014

Where I Was Going With "Where Are You Going?"

Dots on a pedestrian bridge window

Several recent posts shared a similar format: a questioning title followed by a single photo of a scene from Hong Kong. When I first looked at the photo of a ship with an ancient Chinese design sailing towards modern buildings, "Where are you going today?" immediately came to mind. This usually straightforward question now seemed to be asking something deeper. I also found it striking that the photo's effect on me was so different from experiencing the scene in person. Perhaps some of the feelings the boat's design evokes can be dampened by the sound of the boat's motor. Similarly, more mundane events occurring nearby may provide a grounding context. And heightened awareness that the boat is likely providing a very local tour could take one's imagination away from distant places or times.

The photo of a winding High Street in the second post brought to mind the same question but with a different spin. In this case, the potential destinations appear more restricted, though the two levels of roads suggests a significant choice was made earlier. There's also an added sense of mystery with the elevated road disappearing between the buildings. A video by Anil Maharjan reveals where the elevated road leads. Based on the video's perspective and it ending at a bus stop, I would guess it was taken from an upper-level front seat of a double decker bus--rather appropriate for what some describe as a double decker road. Even if you don't care where the road leads, the video provides a good ride:


Hill Road Bypass in Hong Kong from Anil Maharjan.

The third post asked a slightly different question--"Where do you want to go?" For me, this question was implicit in the earlier posts, and the scene of a man sitting alone on a large rock provided a setting to raise the question explicitly. I don't really know what the man was thinking about at the time, though. He may already be exactly where he wants to be.

The most recent post asked "Where do you want to play tennis today?" and included a scene from one of Hong Kong's many residential complexes. It mostly resulted from a bit of humor & self-mockery. But like the other posts, many different interpretations are possible.

The different interpretations possible for all of the posts are part of the reason I didn't say any of this before. I didn't want to lead people's experience of the photos any more than I already had. We often have our own places to go. Even now, new thoughts arise when I look at the photos. It reminds me that you don't need to move a single inch to see something different. Sometimes all it takes is a change of focus.

View of Kwai Cheong Road in Kwai Chung, Hong Kong, through a pedestrian bridge window with dots

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Where Are You Going Today?

junk boat with red sails in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong

Lunar New Year Fairs in Hong Kong

Leading up to the Lunar New Year holiday, Hong Kong holds fairs in 15 different locations for a period of 7 days. A section of the fairs are dedicated to flower markets but much else is also sold. A large number of stalls are run by college students to gain sales experience and to hopefully make some money.

I recently visited two of the largest fairs--one at Fa Hui Park in Sham Shui Po the night of the opening day and another at Victoria Park in Causeway Bay several days later. I also briefly stopped by a smaller fair in Kwun Tong. The Hong Kong fairs reminded me of a Lunar New Year fair I visited in Guangzhou 3 years ago. However, some of what I saw in Hong Kong reflected a culture specific to there and one set of stalls in particular was strikingly unlike anything one could expect to see at a fair in mainland China. I'll save that topic for a later post.

Below are assorted scenes capturing a small taste of the Hong Kong fairs. The first 10 photos are from Fa Hui Park and the second 10 are from Victoria Park. The fair at Victoria Park was larger and, at least when I went, the crowds were far denser. In some sections it required a significant effort simply to cross an aisle from one booth to another. Several Hongkongers said that's part of the experience which draws them there.

four female college students wearing large read bows on their heads and holding bags and stuffed toys
These college students at the Fa Hui Lunar New Year Fair tried their best to sell me a stuffed toy.

little girl hugging a stuffed toy
Fortunately, they found a more appreciative potential customer.

male college student making a Magic Goo balloon
If stuffed toys weren't your thing, perhaps some German Magic Goo would do the trick.

stall selling spicy XO sauce
Locally-made spicy XO sauce

stall selling kimchi
Also spicy: Korean kimchi

purple orchids at the Fa Hui Lunar New Year Fair in Hong Kong
A small sample of the flowers for sale

colorful pinwheels
Pinwheels are a popular part of the holiday.

seven college students holding stuffed toys
If you wanted a giant "no smoking" stuffed cigarette, this was your place.

large food stall with signs for Vitasoy
Like an American fair, food was available.

large pot of Chinese style meatballs
Although many of the options differed.

dense crowd at the Victoria Park Lunar New Year Fair in Hong Kong
Sections of the Victoria Park Lunar New Year Fair seemed completely packed during the day, but one vendor told me it would become even more crowded that night.

little girl sitting on a mans shoulders
High perches were needed by some.

woman at a stall selling and demonstrating Nano Diamond Coating
One of the more pragmatic offerings

man demonstrating a shower water filter
Shower water filters

woman looking at flowers
More flowers

two college students hold stuffed toys
And more stuffed toys

a stall sign with Barack Obama's head on a horse body
Many of the signs and names for the students' stalls incorporated a horse theme in recognition of the Chinese zodiac sign for the new year. In this case, they also played on the fact that Barack Obama's name in Chinese includes the character for "horse".

young woman selling signs reading "NEXT STATION UNIVERSITY", "YOU ARE AN ASSHOLE", "EXCEED THREE EXPLODE FOUR", etc.
Some college students sold their own creations which they said reflected Hong Kong culture.

man with blue dyed hair holding an item while many people in a crowd reach out their hands
A blue-haired man handing out free items had no problem drawing a crowd.

high school boy and girl holding and wearing pink inflatable items and a pink stuffed animal
Two friendly high-school students seeking customers in a less crowded area

Saturday, February 1, 2014

A Lunar New Year Contrast in Hong Kong

Due to the Lunar New Year holiday, many places in Hong Kong are far quieter than usual.

a mostly empty Reclamation Street in Hong Kong with many closed stores
Reclamation Street near the intersection with Waterloo Road

But some are not.

many people around the open Lunar-New-Year-decorated entrance of Langham Place in Hong Kong
Langham Place Mall

Friday, January 31, 2014

A New Year, A Different Animal

statue of a human figure with a horses head in traditional Chinese armor holding a flame
Statue at the Wong Tai Sin Temple in Hong Kong

Happy Lunar New Year, or whatever you want to call it. "Lunar New Year" seems to be common in my current location--Hong Kong. So I'll go with that plus the common New Year's greeting in Cantonese: "Kung Hei Fat Choy!"

Also, happy year of the wooden horse.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Bitcoin Red Envelopes Given Away in Hong Kong

young woman holding a red envelope with a Bitcoin offer in Hong Kong

While walking through Causeway Bay in Hong Kong today, the young woman in the above photo approached me and handed me a red envelope. Giving red envelopes with money inside is one of the traditions for the upcoming Chinese New Year holiday. But in this situation it was surely for a marketing purpose, and I did not expect to receive Hong Kong dollars. This red envelope included an especially interesting twist on the money theme though. Instead of cash, it contained a code for "free Bitcoins" as part of an ANX promotion.

As Danny Lee reported today in the South China Morning Post, I was not alone in receiving such a gift:
Vouchers worth HK$500,000 [approximately US$64,400] in bitcoin are being gifted to members of the public by the city’s biggest bitcoin exchange, ANX, to mark the dawn of the Year of the Horse ...

ANX hopes the stunt will encourage Hongkongers to embrace the controversial digital currency, which has shot to prominence in recent months amid mixed messages from central banks around the world over its use.

“We are trying to help the eco-system,” said Lo Ken-bon, the company’s founder and managing director. “One of the biggest issues is the adoption of it because it’s too complicated for most mainstream users – we are trying to get them started as easily as possible.”
The promotion caught my attention since I had been following some of the recent news and commentary regarding Bitcoin in mainland China. Hong Kong is its own world in many ways, and perhaps the promotion should not be too surprising in Asia's first city to soon have a Bitcoin ATM (video report on WSJ Live here). It will be fascinating to see if and how Bitcoin use grows in Hong Kong and the rest of China.

Maybe ANX has started a slightly new Chinese New Year tradition.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

A Bisected Zongzi on Display

As mentioned in a recent post, aside from the usual sticky rice, the contents of zongzi can be a mystery. After writing the post, I saw a place with at least a partial solution to this problem:

half of a zongzi wrapped in plastic wrap with insides on display

The store displayed a single zongzi that had been approximately cut in half and wrapped in plastic wrap. The insides were easily visible. Presumably the other nearby zongzi had similar contents.

Not only does it provide information about the items inside the zongzi, but, as my Hongkonger friend noted, it also tells you how much of the zongzi is not just rice--a concern for zongzi eaters. My friend had not seen zongzi displayed this way before, and it seemed unusual to me as well.

It's yet another example of how the best solutions can be the simplest.

Monday, January 27, 2014

McDonald's Offers Prosperous Chinese New Year Burgers

[Update at end]


Just over a year ago, I saw this McDonald's advertisement in Penang, Malaysia:

advertisement on a chain linked fence for McDonald's prosperity burger in Penang, Malaysia

I had written about McDonald's customizing its menu for local markets before, but this was the first time I saw the McDonald's Prosperity Burger -- a special offering for the Chinese New Year holiday. It's back in Malaysia this year, as announced on the McDonald's Malaysia website.

page for the Prosperity Burger on McDonald's Malaysia website


Adam Minter, author of Junkyard Planet, recently expressed his excitement over the Prosperity Burger's return:


He also provided a brief review:


Minter isn't alone in his opinion of the Prosperity Burger (see here and here), and he may be thrilled to hear it's available outside of Malaysia. For example, today in Hong Kong I saw an advertisement for the incomparable burger.

sign for the McDonald's Prosperity Burger in Hong Kong


The McDonald's Hong Kong website has a similar promotion.

page for the Prosperity Burger on McDonald's Hong Kong website

McDonald's in Hong Kong not only has the beef and chicken Prosperity Burgers found in Malaysia but also a pork version. Given that Islam is the state religion in Malaysia, it's not surprising McDonald's has not introduced the pork version there.

As the McDonald's Singapore website ...

page for the Prosperity Burger on McDonald's Singapore website


and the McDonald's Indonesia website ...

page for the Prosperity Burger on McDonald's Indonesia website

... show, the Prosperity Burger is also available in Singapore and Indonesia. And it can be found in Brunei as well. McDonald's does not appear to have a website dedicated for Brunei, but in an article seeming more like an advertisement the Brunei Times noted the Prosperity Burger's "highly anticipated seasonal return":
Nothing is more mouth-watering than the anticipation of biting into the Prosperity Burger’s succulent, juicy beef patty, dripping with lip-smacking black pepper sauce, topped with silvered onions on a sesame seed bun, and many Bruneians look forward to its return every year.
Bruneians (and Adam Minter) rejoice!

Despite all of these countries offering the Prosperity Burger, most Chinese in the world will still have to seek another way to celebrate the Chinese New Year. McDonald's in mainland China does not offer the Prosperity Burger.

Perhaps people there can enjoy a McDonald's breakfast hot dog instead.



Update: Links to more recent posts here about the Prosperity Burger and other Lunar New Year burgers: