In 1981, a song with a rather annoying, but I must admit, a very catchy tune, made it to the airwaves in the Philippines, where I used to live. I would not describe it exactly as a hit song, but it was popular enough that I remember hearing it at least twice a day on the radio. It’s called, “Made in Hong Kong” and it was sung by actress/singer, Claudja Barry.
To this day, all I can remember is the highly-synthesized refrain that ran over and over again, “Made in Hong Kong, made in Hong Kong…everything is…made in Hong Kong.” The rest of the song, I recall, is just a litany of electronic gadgets and children’s toys. Basically, the song is a rundown of all the items that you could get from Hong Kong. (But after searching this song on the internet as an adult, I found out that aside from toys, “Romantic boys that are just like toys are also made in Hong Kong.” I am glad I did not pay much attention to the lyrics as a child).
The song was stuck in my head, not just because of the refrain, but because of the images it conjured in my head. In the late 70s and early 80s, my well-off uncles, aunts, and cousins spent most of their summers and Christmas vacations in Hong Kong and brought us back presents. The most popular items were electronic gadgets such as the much-coveted Game and Watch, a precursor to today’s hand-held LCD screen video games, and the classic Sanrio-branded goodies. While these were actually made in Japan, they were much available in the Hong Kong markets, and since affluent Filipinos that time frequented Hong Kong more than Japan, these items were associated more with Hong Kong shopping sprees.
Every time I would get these pasalubongs (the Filipino word for a “return-from-a-trip present”) from my cousins, I would feel a pang of longing. How I wished I could also go to Hong Kong and experience what it was like to shop in its night markets. Of course, I was also curious about the other things – the food, the culture, the boats along the harbour, and the giant Buddhas. But at that time, my parents did not have the budget, nor the interest to travel.
It was not until my late teens when I finally got to go. One of my aunts somehow convinced my mom to take a ladies’ trip. It was for my mom, my aunt, a cousin, and myself. I was so excited. This was my (and my mom’s) first trip out of the country.
My aunt and cousin, who were already seasoned Hong Kong travelers, acted as our tourist guides. And since we were newbies, we took a half-day package tour to cover the main Hong Kong “must-sees.”
Our first day started off with breakfast at McDonald’s, just because it was part of the hotel package. While it was not exactly a typical Cantonese breakfast, I found out that they did have some Cantonese items on the menu that one could not find in any McDonald’s outside of Hong Kong – congee, chicken noodles, Hong Kong-style tea, and toast with condensed milk. We opted for the Western classics though. We wanted to eat Cantonese food from local restaurants, not at McDonald’s. After breakfast, we were picked up by a shuttle from the hotel lobby. Our tour guide, who spoke with a British accent, introduced us to Hong Kong’s famous sights – Aberdeen Fishing Village, Stanley Market, Repulse Bay, and Victoria Peak.
At the Aberdeen Fishing Village, we strolled the harbour and took photos against the backdrop of floating villages made up of a collection of sampans that function both as fishing boats and permanent homes to the villagers, as well as floating restaurants, the grandest of which was the Jumbo Kingdom Restaurant. This was the iconic Hong Kong scene one saw in postcards and what I exactly had in my mind before I even got there.
Next, we were taken to Stanley Market, where we perused local goods such as Chinese silk dresses, lacquerware, paintings, jewelry, watches, lanterns, souvenirs, and much more. This was where I witnessed how amazing my aunt’s haggling skills were. Though she spoke a different Chinese dialect, she could get by in Cantonese and she was a pro at bargaining. Right outside was Stanley Harbour. We took more photos, then crossed Victoria Harbour to go to Repulse Bay located on Hong Kong Island.
The bay is said to be one of the most expensive areas in the country. The beach and the colonial buildings more than speak for themselves. The area also boasts of a plethora of luxury hotels, expensive shops, and fine-dining restaurants.
But the most interesting for me was the Tin Hau Temple located at the southern end of the bay. Our guide mentioned that this type of temple, which is dedicated for the protection of fishermen, can be found across the country, for Hong Kong has indeed a long fishing history. However, this particular temple is known for its beautiful artwork – giant statues of gods and goddesses, mythical creatures, and colourful carvings. There was also the Longevity Bridge, which we crossed several times (that is, my cousin and I), because according to local belief, one’s life could be prolonged by three days, each time one goes across.
As we meandered this part of the beach, we bumped into this photographer, who offered to take our pictures. I was not sure why, but at that time, we just followed his directions without asking any questions. I guess it was because he was so friendly and he looked harmless, just like a favourite uncle who is happy to capture your happy moments on film. My cousin and I posed beside the statues like professional models and just enjoyed the pictorial, and then our moms followed suit. Afterwards, he gave us the bill and asked for our hotel address. He said he would deliver the photos first thing in the morning. His English was not that great and he was rattling away in super fast Cantonese that my aunt and my mom just paid him and gave him our hotel information.
My aunt muttered that the price was quite high and that she did not have the patience to haggle with him this time because of the language barrier and because we were supposed to go back to our shuttle in a few minutes. In hindsight, it could have been a scam. The guy could have just run away with our money and could have used our photos for something. But this was more than twenty years ago and I suspect those types of scams were still unheard of in those days. Besides, the charming uncle with the toothy smile and jovial personality managed to earn our trust.
True enough, he knocked on our hotel door the following morning to deliver the photos, just as he had promised. Even better, the photo package not only included frames for the photos, but also souvenir plates. We each got two ceramic plates with our best photos in the middle, while the sides of the plates were decorated with tiny paintings of famous Hong Kong landmarks. At the top were Chinese characters that I guessed stood for Hong Kong, because at the bottom was the English version. And the plates came with plate stands! That was a pleasant surprise indeed. My aunt remarked that she now understood why the price was high. She originally thought we were just going to get prints. This definitely exceeded our expectations and we thought what we paid him was well worth it. We thanked the uncle and wished him a very nice day.
Fast forward twenty years, I am more than grateful that uncle photographer approached us that time. My photo plates are the only souvenirs I have left from that Hong Kong trip. The albums with the printed photos were all destroyed by the floods in my hometown. I have four photo plates (two for me, and two for my mom), and I have two of them displayed in my living room now – one of me, and one of my mom.
Our package tour ended at Victoria Peak. We took the shuttle up the hill while our tour guide gave a commentary about all the sights we had seen that morning. After enjoying the spectacular panoramic view of the city at the top and admiring the architecture of the Peak Tower, we boarded the tram and descended 396 meters down. The ride down the steep funicular railway not only provided us with a bird’s eye view of Hong Kong, but also treated us to an interesting visual illusion. As we were in a tilted position for most of the ride, the high rises on our left side appeared to be falling away from the peak. My aunt said she had only done this once before this trip and she got so dizzy. She was doing it again only on our account and vowed never to ride the tram again.
After our tour shuttle dropped us off at the hotel, my aunt brought us to her favourite restaurant by the water, where we feasted on an authentic Cantonese lunch. There, she initiated us on the rituals one must do before eating in Hong Kong. The first lesson was that the first tea service is for rinsing your dishes and utensils, not for drinking. Our server gave us a big bowl and a huge pot of tea. We followed my aunt as she placed her bowl, tea cup, and chopsticks inside the big bowl, poured tea all over them, and sloshed the hot liquid around to rinse every single piece, sort of disinfecting them and getting rid of food residue.
She also explained that once our teapot was empty and we wanted more tea, we should leave the lid half open to indicate that we wished to have a refill. It is also always polite to pour tea for others first before serving yourself and it is a definite "no-no" to leave the lid of a traditional tea cup flipped over on the table, for this is done only for the dead. Likewise, we should never stick our chopsticks vertically into our rice bowl for this is done only for food offerings for the dead.
Typical of a good Hong Kong eatery, the place was busy, noisy, and full of local patrons. She said that if a place does not have a line up outside, or has empty tables, or has only foreign customers, we should take those as bad signs. In fact, as we were sitting at a table for six, two locals just pulled out the extra chairs and sat beside us. While my mom and I were surprised, my aunt said, this was normal because seats are at a premium at these popular places. You just have to get used to eating with strangers.
We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around. We rode the underground rail which my aunt knew how to navigate very well to get from one place to the other. After doing some business in a bank, she took us to her favourite haunts – a jewelry store, a clothing store, a dry goods store, and others. The shop owners knew her, so we got discounts for our purchases.
The second day was spent exploring the Kowloon district. Our hotel was in Tsim Sha Tsui, so we were literally in the heart of Hong Kong shopping and night life, and everything was within walking distance. We ended our walk at the harbour. We strolled along the Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong’s own version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where statues of Hong Kong celebrities are displayed for tourists to take photos with. After a few snapshots, we found a nice restaurant overlooking the water. We watched the junk boats sail across Victoria Bay against the backdrop of the urban skyline while sipping our tea and eating some dim sum.
After lunch, we set sail on the Star Ferry to check out Hong Kong Island again. The ride on this historic green and white boat was so relaxing, much different from going there via shuttle on our first day. As the island is considered to be the commercial and political centre of the country, we checked out the government buildings as well as the skyscrapers along Causeway Bay. And because my aunt and cousin are avid shoppers, we naturally spent time in the large malls, but also visited the Sheung Wan district known for its colonial buildings and specialty shopping streets. The street names give you a clue about their specialties – Ginseng Street, Birds’ Nest Street, Herbal Medicine Street, Seafood Street, Antique Street, and the like. This offered me a glimpse of Hong Kong’s history before modernization and showcased the marriage of Cantonese and Western culture.
The third day and fourth days were mostly for more shopping (for my aunt and cousin; it was mostly window-shopping for my mom and me) and more eating on the main island, which was the most fun part for me. We followed my aunt as she zigzagged through the streets and alleys and introduced us to many of Hong Kong’s hidden commercial and culinary gems.
I believe that it was during this trip that I started to appreciate the less popular Cantonese dishes – congee, clay pot rice dishes, exotic dim sums, white chicken, Chinese-style pastries, stinky tofu, and milk tea. There is a saying that goes, “The Cantonese people eat everything with four legs, except tables, and everything that flies, except airplanes.” At that time though, I was not yet as adventurous as I am at present, so I don’t recall sampling any dishes that may have contained snakes, cats, dogs, or bugs.
I definitely had a blast on my first trip abroad, and I learned a lot.
Photo Credits:
chinafacttours.com, tripchinaguide.com, airfrance.us, visionsoftravel.org, discoverhongkong.com, ca.hotels.com/go/hong-kong/best-hong-kong-island-things-to-do, chinadiscovery.com, lonelyplanet.com, starferry.com.hk, openskiesmagazine.com, chinahighlights.com, beijing-visitor.com
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