Entry 75: Mass of Humanity (Hong Kong)
It’s one of the most densely populated areas in the world with more than 7 million people living in a land area of less than 450 square miles. Hong Kong makes the East Village of Manhattan look like the suburbs.
When you walk around Hong Kong you can feel the mass of humanity that surrounds you. But the city’s planners have done such a good job that we experienced no gridlock in the city. You may always be moving in a pack of people, but at least you’re moving.
Seth had met Taniya only once before at a work event in California, but she told him to look her up when he got to Hong Kong. In the ultimate expression of the kindness of strangers, Taniya left her apartment to the three of us and went to stay at a friend’s house. We spent one night in Kowloon (the “Blade Runner” section of Hong Kong), but the rest of our time in Hong Kong we spent in Taniya’s wonderful Lamma Island apartment.
Taniya is what they call a “creative” in the advertising world. She is a free-thinker who sees opportunities where others see limitations (www.followyourpath.com). She’s the kind of person who says things like “I’ve had enough of Hong Kong. I think I’ll spend the next few months in Bali.” And she means it.
Although Taniya works for a high-powered ad firm in Hong Kong, she lives on Lamma Island in the archipelago just south of Hong Kong Island. Settled in 1960s by a bunch of hippies, there are no cars allowed on the entire island. Lamma Island is just 20 minutes away from the main island by ferry, but it’s worlds away from the craziness of downtown.
We explored the Island one morning and found it took just 2 hours to hike from one side of Lamma to the fishing village on the opposite side. We rewarded ourselves with a lunch of the freshest seafood Hong Kong has to offer.
After a few weeks of hit-or-miss food orders in Beijing and Shanghai, we found we couldn’t go wrong with the glorious Cantonese food in Hong Kong. We followed up our seafood meal on Lamma Island Through a friend of a friend (who invited more friends of friends) we gathered at a Kowloon hotspot and ate an amazing meal (including an order of deliciously marinated chicken feet) with a group of Hong Kong locals, mainland Chinese, Americans, and even one Puerto Rican woman who works in New York City and speaks perfect Mandarin.
We saved our best meal in Hong Kong for last – a Dim Sum lunch to beat Dim Sum lunches. Dumplings may have been invented on the mainland, but they have been perfected in Hong Kong.