A hub of glolbalization

Christy and I are in the midst of planning a return to Southeast Asia. This time we will be going for 18 days, we will be meeting my aunt in Thailand, and we will be bringing our bikes. We secured tickets to Bangkok (BKK) for HK$1600 (US$200) on Ethiopian Airlines.

As part of the prep I realized teh bicycle panniers I have are pretty beat up, and would have a hard time getting us thru this trip. In the spirit of Hong Kong, I thought “why not buy a new set?” But as it turns out, this type of cycling is quite uncommon around here, so the only panniers I could find were HK$2000, and they werent even what I wanted. What my heart is set on are a pair of the German Ortlieb bags (cost around US$200). Well no one Hong Kong seems to carry them, but there is a distributor in Bangkok! So we’ll fly from Hong Kong on an Ethiopian airlines to buy a German product in Thailand. And then we can embark on our adventure Thailand, Lao, Vietnam, back to Thailand, spend time with my family visiting from Iran, and then head to Cambodia before returning to Bangkok and finally back to Hong Kong.
I know people all over teh world experience this type of globalization, often on a daily basis. But I feel like Hong Kong, with its “World’s Freest Economy” and “One Country Two Systems” status, really embodies these types of globalized experiences.

Even my friends, are an ecclectic international bunch, with Britons, ‘Mer’cans, Chinese with Aussie accents, Aussies with Chinese accents, and of course those damn Germanics with their perfect English! Of course, San Francisco was similiar in this way, with many of the people I met being from exotic places like France, Spain, and Latin American.

Also, this doesn’t fit in with anything else, but we had some damn good Indian fast food at the mall. I mean HELLA good, like better than anything I had in SF. This definitely helped to offset the mediocre Mexican food we had earlier this week.

Finally a video..!

This past Sunday, a group of about a dozen fixed gear riders (comprising most of Hong Kong’s fixed gear community) meet up for a ride around Cheung Chau Island. This is another one of those “one of the biggest islands in Hong Kong” and well as “no cars are allowed” islands.

Of course it seems to be true Hong Kong style that nothing will go as planned or on schedule (maybe it’s just a reflection of myself and the people whom I get along with), but eventually everyone was together and so we began riding! Most of the island consists of narrow paths rolling up and down thru the hills. At the top of every uphill was some kind of smoke break, catch your breath, session. And then lots of anxious joking as one by one we would descend down the unknown pathway, hoping the road didnt get too treacherous.

The ride was organized as a goodbye for the loveable German Henrick, who would be departing HK for at least several weeks. It was also the first group ride since Brian’s unfortunate accident (we all met up at his family’s restaurant before the ride). So it was also a nice opportunity for the different HK fixie heads to all come together, since there have been some new people, as well as some fracturing of the community.

Henrick was overwhelmed with joy when we finally made it to the BEACH!! Only a few of actually tested the refreshing waters. But after this, the fixedology crew decided to head back. But a half dozen of us soldiered on, in search of the Mini Great Wall. Alas, we never did find it, but we did find some steep climbs, a tourist whom we attempted to get directions from. Unfortuantely, Alex also crashed on his beautiful track back, destroying his front Carbon wheel. He was a little banged up, and his bike unrideable, so we all walked in the last part.

After losing a few more troops to other events of the evening, we sat down to take in the evening glow, and then began a seafood feast.

So I wanted to upload a video, but I’ll have to host it on YouTube or something similar first. For now you can see it on my facebook page: http://sfsu.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=514318474608

Just a random update

Chinese New Year came and went a few weeks back, but it feels like the tempo of life has been different since then. I think perhaps its the culture shock that’s kicked in.

The last week or so has also brought forth some unexpected bad news. For one, Brian Fu, the man behind hkfixed who has just recently opened Hong Kong’s first and only fixed gear bike shop, was in a messy collision with a taxi.

Around the same time I found out about what happened to Brian, I found out the great Sheldon Brown, whom I only knew thru the internet, but respected greatly for his knowledge and enthusiasm towards cycling, passed away.

A couple nights ago I come home to an email from Dustin, informing me that our friend had taken his own life.

Despite these bits, not all is bad. I recently submitted a few photos into a couple different photo competitions. I’m not artist, so it was exciting to submit my work for something.

I also finally have all the equipment needed to film, and then upload footage to the computer. YouTube here I come!

But unfortunately, I don’t have the best computer for editing. And the computers around campus can be a royal pain in the ass to use. I’ve also discovered, a rather decent collection of video and audio for loan from the library. But this has been a blessing in disguise, and I’ve spent way too many hours trying to get these lovely school computers to do the seemingly simple task of playing a movie.

The weather has also become a bit less cold here, which is nice. Tho that seems to have been replaced with more rainfall, which isnt nearly as bothersome when its not cold.

Last night, I finally made it out to a “club” (was actually a small pool hall). Everything was going rather well and uneventful, until cops showed up late in the evening. This was an unknown concept to be, but I guess not uncommon in HK. As our friend from England, Shawn mentioned, when the cops show up, that means the party’s over. But instead music was killed, lights turned on, and the plain-clothed and uniformed officers that just kept on multiplying, walked around the club, with that menacing stare of mid-level authoritarian. When it seemed like everything was ok, a group of patrons made a loud giggley outburst. This seemed to be just the sort of clue the police were looking for to further their investigation. They began yelling at everyone to sit down, and take out ID. Since Christy and I only had school and non-HK ID, they proceeded to ask a series of irrelevant questions, in order to test my lying abilities, such as what I was studying at school. After that point, I could relax again. And once they finally left, there was a free round of drinks on the house, which I rather appreciated.

And on the taxi ride home, I was proud of being able to tell the driver where to take us, in Cantonese, without busting out my little Chinese cheat sheet, and pointing to the writing.

Just Keepin it Real

I recently sent an email to my sister letting her know of the goings-on in Hong Kong. After writing it, I realized that not every thing in this blog (or in my journals or even the pictures I’ve been taking) have captured my true feelings right now. I’m not sure why I’ve decided to post this because it’s a bit negative, but I’m hoping that it’ll be a growing piece for the end of this stay.

Hi sister,

How’s it goin? Thanks for sending that sister email, it was cute. So what’s up witchu? Things are good here except I’m feeling a lot of culture shock. I’m not sure if I like it in Hong Kong–mostly because the way people are is really getting to me. For example, we went to Disneyland and we kept getting cut in front of in line. The people will bum rush an open spot in line. The mentality of people in HK has been explained to me like this: there’s a constant race for space because of the massive population that people feel like they need to seize every open spot and if you’re cut in front of then you’re just shit out of luck. Well this kept happening by all types of different people–little old ladies, young people, middle-aged, little kids, WHOLE families–everyone Chinese, and in a manner in which they ignore you, as to put up a front that they didn’t even realize they just cut you. By the end of the day, Yussef and I were taking up the whole aisle holding hands so that no one could cut through. It pretty much made standing in line really stressful. It didn’t ruin the day, but definitely got on my nerves. Next, people rarely smile. I get stares as it is (especially from South East Asians), so I usually smile back, of course, I just get glares anyway. All in all, the race for whatever in a non-happy manner is draining! I feel like I’m constantly getting rushed here or rushed there without a thought so when I finally reach my destination, I’m so tired cuz I’ve been so hard for the previous hour of getting there. It’s effing ridiculous. Definitely not the lifestyle I want in life right now. Thus, I’m laying in bed listening to the Buena Vista Social Club dreaming of the day when I visit the Philippines or El Salvador, sit in a tree with my radio and peel mangos. Care to join? Let’s plan a trip, what d’you say?
Sorry this email came off as a bitch, but I wanted to share some downs cuz I feel like all I’ve been sharing are the ups.

And then it ends with some sistery-love.

Mmm

Things I’ve eaten in the Past Week:

snail, shrimp head, pigeon, & fish ball

California primaries

While the Lunar New Year break kicked in this week, back in the States, Super Tuesday was underway. A few weeks ago the US Consulate came to our school and had a little info meeting. We took that opportunity to register for overseas voting. Unfortunately, it seems our ballots never came. I’m not going to say this is for the best, because I believe in voting, at least in principle. And its fun, like playing the lottery for free. I specifically registered for the Democratic party, since you can only vote in your party for the primary in California. I don’t think I’ve ever voted for a Democrat before, but I can’t deny that the Clinton/Obama soap opera is certainly been more exciting than the politics of the last seven years.

But the truth is I still can’t say who I’d vote for before the two. Unlike some, I don’t think it makes much difference on the stance or policy between these two politicians. What does interest me are the symbolic and societal differences of a black or female president. In other words, I want which ever president who presence will represent the furthest shift from the status quo. I’m also concerned about the upsettability of the Democratic candidate. Will the social conservatives be able to better rally against a while female or a black male?

I cannot seem to come to a clear stance the differences between these two candidates, so I guess I will just sit back and watch this thing unfold from the other side of the Peaceful Ocean. And to think, before leaving, I was thinking in the election process, upon returning to the States.

3 nights and 3 days in Thailand

Tuk Tuk, originally uploaded by yussefThe3rd.

Monday night thru Thursday of this past week was spent in Thailand. I must say it felt like a real luxury to be able to just dip out for a few day excursion. A trip consisted of getting into Bangkok and finding a place to stay that night. Then catching the bus to a small town about 70km southeast of Bangkok, know as Petburi, Petchburi, or Petchaburi. We missed our stop, so then had to get a ride on moto taxis, in which we sat on the back, while they zipped us down the highway, and then thru the streets of Petchburi, until we finally surpasses the language barrier, and found the Rambien Nam Ram Guesthouse. This place was sick. Supposedly there were 6 basic rooms (but it always seems like there were way more people than could fit into six rooms), a restaurant, bicycle and motobike rentals, and tours to the surrounding area. All this was run by Nid a super-nice lady who made us feel right at home.

After finally making it to the guesthouse, we sit down for a meal — which was of course delicious if not the largest portions — and then we rented a motobike. The highlight of the trip, which is a bit cynical no doubt, is me wrecking this thing right out the door. I gave it a couple revs, and rode it on the sidewalk, so I thought I was set. I told Christy I was good to go, so she hopped on, I reved again, but as we began to move it was immediately clear we we’re riding off into the sunset. I think I’m braking, but seem to still be accelerating, right into the VCD store across the narrow street! We just barely miss a parked car, and then the bike falls over, and we slide into the store, only inches from taking out an entire section of anime.

I was of course more than a bit embarrased, and I think there was a sense of bewilderment and humor on the part of the locals. Of course its so typical that some foreigners show up and immediately crash a moto. But everyone was also very helpful, and no one got remotely mad. Nid came out to make sure we were okay. Christy and I both had some minor bangs, but nothing that would ruin our trip. I just kept on apologizing. She asked if I would pay for the repairs, which of course I would. She then handed us the keys to another moto, and told us to be careful! The repairs came about to 280 baht (it was 250 baht to rent the bike for a day), so I had to pay on extra 10 usd. This time I took a couple test runs up and down the street, and then we were off. No more crashes for the trip. And once I got the crash out of my system, zooming around (actually we were getting passed by most everyone) was ridiculously fun. I think I had a smile stuck on my face the whole rest of the trip.

The next day we rode 60km southwest to Kaeng Kra Chan, Thailand’s largest national park. While we didn’t make it into the tropical part we were hoping to see, the lake that we stayed by was beautiful and relaxing. At one point we took a kayak out on the water, and just paddled around the little islands. Even tho the plan of our trip was to make it to this park, the notion of the journey being the adventure really rang true. By the time we made it to the park, I think a sense of accomplishment and enjoyment set in, and rather than trek onward, trying to pack as much into our few days of travel, it was nice to simply sit down in the grass and enjoy the scenery.

In the evenings we would stroll around Petchburi, and try different foods. Thursday morning we then caught the bus back to Bangkok, where we were picked up by a very nice tuk tuk driver. At some point he got so excited talking to us, he missed an exit, so what do we do? of course just turn around, and drive down a narrow one way street again the oncoming traffic!

The end of our day consisted of looking for souvenier shops. We found a cool urban art store BKKER, as well as a nice typical handcraft type shop.

This trip was truely amazing. Like I said it was a luxury that we were able to decide on short notice to go, and didnt have to worry about only having a few days. It was a great start to traveling in this part of the world. I think the only real downside was returning to Hong Kong. For one thing its been cold since we got back, even raining some days. Plus the cultural differences are pretty glaring in some regards. In Th everyone was wearing flip flops and minimal clothes, HK everyone is over dressed and wearing too many dark drab colors. People feel a bit cold and indifferent here, in Thailand people seemed so friendly and happy just to exchange a smile with you. Of course, in so many ways it’s comparing apples to oranges. But it’s also easy to say that once it comes time to do more traveling, I look forward to returning to southeast Asia.

Lamma Island and HK’s electricity

Where: Southwest of Hong Kong Island
When: 19 January 2008
How: MTR to Central, Ferry to Yung Shue Wan

At 13.5 square kilometers, Lamma Island is Hong Kong’s 3rd largest island. This small island is known for having no cars, being a popular community for expatriots, and having good seafood. It is also home to the main power plant for Hong Kong.

Finally, Bicycles

I was becoming discouraged with the cycling culture here until this past weekend. We took a ferry to Lamma Island where living is much simpler than in HK. The locals get around by bicycle and there aren’t skyscrapers lighting up the night sky. There is however a giant coal plant across the island from a wind power generator. I thought that was ironic and I couldn’t help but get that feeling I’ve been getting since we’ve arrived. It’s been hard for me to completely rejoice this city because of the pollution and possible toxins in the materials, and for goodness-sakes, the hygiene! It seems that everywhere we turn there’s a warning about good hygiene and the spread of avian flu. Today in Mongkok, there was even a mat to sanitize the soles of our shoes…. I don’t want to seem culturally insensitive and I do agree that with the high concentration of people moving about that the risk of spreading disease is high, but the paranoia about spreading disease is a bit excessive for my taste. If people don’t really get avian flu from the birds, they’re sure to ‘feel’ the symptoms from the amount of fear that’s being drilled in. I forgot this, but when we moved into our hostels, we got 3 or 4 brochures on avian flu alone (the other two were about residence rules and a list of grocery stores).

But this blog’s about cycling.

I just found out that Yussef’s doing one on this topic too (of course), so I’ll keep this one short. I think linking up with the hkfixed heads is by far my most favorite time since getting here. I love that we can connect with people from HK in an arena other than school. We’ve all got different age groups, occupations, backgrounds, and can get together and have so much fun. The rides also go beyond cycling. There’s conversation about culture, art, learning Cantonese bad words, etc. But I’ll stop oogling about it for now.

Last week also, we finished up the first week of classes. I’ve got to say that the learning environment here is much different than what i’ve experienced at home. the students are very group-oriented and frankly don’t give as much into the lectures as we at home would. i felt like such a square while i was trying to zone the conversation out around me to try and listen to the prof. the other students tell me that it’s cuz the teacher can’t ’see them’ or simply because the info being given is irrelevant. well, i found out quickly that that wasn’t so much the case. when i got put into a group for a topic on women and development, it was pulling teeth to try and find direction. finally after a girl consulted with another group that we were trying to put together an outline did things seem to get moving. i know this happens in the states too, but i don’t feel like it happened as blatantly as this incident. of course, this may just be my sensitivity to people’s actions and my overanalyzing.

I’ve also gone shop-ping! for clothes. I feel like i need to say something about this because of my last post. ok, yes, there are very stylish and affordable clothes in hong kong if you’re down to endure a shirt that wreaks of chemicals (i figured it was left-over factory dew). but the shop-ping! experience itself was interesting. first, there were no fitting rooms and signs that said, “no fitting,” i even got scolded for trying to fit a hoody. you tell an employee which item you’d like a ‘new one’ of, and she yells it into the depths of who-knows-where, and then wrapped up in plastic baggy folded up ready to go, shoots down your clothing item onto the register. verrrrrrry interesting. i was glad to find out that the sizes the ladies chose for me were right. but it occurred to me why these clothes were so cheap: locally made, no middle-man, no visual marketing, and probably no high wages for the yellers/fashion experts. (the employees also insisted on me buying these funny jackets without sleeves that went down to my knees).

On a completely different note, and please be prepared that this is a rather sensitive subject: we just got word that an exchange student was found dead after ‘falling’ from his hostel. Actually, there was a rumor about it earlier. While we were making dinner, a girl named Evelyne came into the common room and told us that someone had jumped off Hall 1’s rooftop and landed on an awning/covering. We then received an official email about the incident. My thoughts are with the family and I hope that all the students around us find support if they need it.

So back to bikes.

I can’t wait to ride some more, although I am a bit disappointed in myself for not taking the initiative to ride around the city. I’m just plain scared. Riding to KCR outside of our school is reason enough to not do it here. Taxi cabs are ruthless and shiv, I still don’t get the lights. Let me just clarify that ‘can’t wait to ride more’ means that I actually can’t wait to find a new and exciting trail! I don’t like that I’ve taken this direction because all-in-all, i feel that more cycling around this city is needed. The structure here is strictly pedestrians and cars. sure public transit is efficient and affordable, but there’s got to more than just that and autos. by providing more alternatives to fuel, the effects of burning fuel can be alleviated.

Lastly, i really want to thank kaiser for being so awesome. this dood has done a great deal in making sure that we get in and out of kcr and hong kong island with our bicycles as smoothly as possible. he’s on his way to australia to continue with school, and we’re all hoping to see each other again somewhere on this planet.

An Easy Meal

While Yussef and I were having dinner last night, it occurred to me how easily it happened. During the first few days here, our meal-eating turned into adventures. We found out only after a few smirks that you order at a counter, receive a ticket then take the ticket to the designated food counter. And from there, actually receiving the meal was a surprise because a few times we weren’t so sure what we had actually ordered…. Well, last night, we got exactly what we had both wanted, and with ease–yeaah!

So we’ve been here a week, and things have gone well. We’ve even gotten some special sight-seeing in. This past Saturday was especially great. In the morning, we took a tour with the rest of the exchange students to a rural area of Hong Kong called the New Territories. We saw a lot–temples, a walled-village, and a wishing tree (pictures on the flickr link on the right); but most interestingly was the drive to these places. Outside the window, I saw lots of little villas that were different from the area of Kowloon that we live in. Here, there are huge skyscrapers that look like grand office buildings, but are actually housing. However, along the countryside, they look like 4-unit buildings, about 4 to a plot and seemingly low-density. Also were the numerous scrap yards we cruised by. At almost every turn, there was a junk yard of scrap cars and metal. Then when we got to the more dense areas of the New Territories and the skyscrapers of housing appeared once again. I was surprised to see them, but then again, not really.

That night was even greater. We took our bikes on the ferry across the harbor to meet up with the heads from HKfixed. The ferry ride was amazing! We were out in the middle of the harbor and there was a 360 degree view of Hong Kong and Kowloon. The cities lights up the sky with their buildings and light shows. I’ve described it a few times as the lights dancing to music. I also happened to notice some of the boat crew admiring the view as well–I guess it never gets old. Upon arriving on the island, we met up with the HKfixed doods, and so begun a night of fun. First, there was much hanging outting, and then a race, and a nice long-distance ride. I was having a good time, even with riding on the left side, the reverse street lights, and crazy buses whizzing by. At the end, though, I took quite a spill and found out that HK’s pavement is softer than SF’s…heh heh. Originally, we planned on getting back to the ferry in time for the last ride back, but things were going so well, we decided to hang out a little later and risk taking the MTR (train that doesn’t allow bicycles) back. Kaiser said he’d even cruise with us. We got on the first train smoothly, but then got caught at the transfer point, and were still on the island, so there was no riding home at that point. Kaiser made a few calls, and we ended up taking a van-taxi home. Fun all around!

Then yesterday, we attended the first day of class–corporate social responsibility, a new paradigm for sustainability. The professor seems very knowledgeable and his assignments are quite interesting. We will be blogging on sustainable business practices in Asia–that is east of Pakistan to Japan and from Mongolia to Australia. He also mentioned how ‘green’ business practices are already established in the West, but that those methods may not necessarily fit with these societies. I’m already familiar with some of the ideas in the West, so it will be interesting to learn about these ‘differences.’

The weather is also turning. When we arrived, it was quite warm and humid, and we got by wearing shorts and tees. Yesterday, though, the air was much crisper and we even experienced a few drops of rain. My roommate just got home too, and she mentioned that it’s raining right now. It’s been taking me a minute to get used to the Celsius degrees and I want to say that it’s around 25 degrees right now, but I’m not so sure. Let’s just say it’s gray outside, the air is crisp, and my nose has been dripping since yesterday. )

I also want to comment a little on the fashion because since the turn of the weather I’ve been in search of a hoodie/jacket. I’ve noticed that the ladies dress very ‘chic’ with lots of blacks, browns and grays, a huge contrast to my purples, greens, flowers, and oranges. And in some areas, the clothing materials seem very cheap or rather, itchy. I haven’t yet seen a new style that I haven’t seen in the states, but then again, I’ve only been here a week. I’ll leave this one at that, and comment more about it later.

Soon, I’d like to start venturing into some new Canton music. There’s this craze called Cantopop that I’m interested in hearing, and there’s been some word on Chinese Hip Hop that will be fun to hear. I’m going to keep a special ear out for some China-ska and possibly China-dub? he he. I’ve also noticed very little graffiti in Kowloon or Hong Kong. Some of the doods from HKfixed are into that sorta thing, so maybe they’ll have some insight into hip spots. Speaking of hip spots, I’ve got to mention a bar that a few of us went into. It was a karaoke bar, but to me, it seemed more like a dive. The vibe was very familiar to the dive scene at home. We even learned a HK drinking game that stole the night.

I’ve also tried watching some HK TV, but it wasn’t so great mostly because it consisted of cooking shows that I couldn’t understand. I did only give it an hour or so, but then America’s Next Top Model came on, and that was that. Maybe more on TV later…maybe.