If I had a choice of when I am to be born I would have chosen the 60s in Hong Kong. I guess its the golden age of the city and opportunities arises which nowadays we, those who are born in the late 80s, early 90s often felt left behind. I guess my criticisms come from all dimensions. One obvious thing to look at is the economic crisis we’re in. Those of us trying to find jobs are left hanging high and dry. Well, I’m one of the lucky ones, very lucky when I think about it.
My friend/colleauge said to me: The graduates nowadays are so 1-dimensional. Well, I suppose I’m not 1-d as such but the way in which I was brought up and raised I’m given only 1 route to take, and everyone takes that same route: School -> Uni -> Work -> Get married -> Retirement. Safe route I suppose. The more I think about it, the more I am upset we’re being moulded by society’s definition of success.
My uncle sent me this blog: http://hk.myblog.yahoo.com/ekwleung/ I absolutely enjoy this blog. I don’t usually read many blogs which is not written by my freinds. However, I feel a great sense of nostalgia. People find it very strange that I am nostalgic over photographs of Hong Kong taken over 40-50 years ago, an era I have never experienced. However, its always an era I so looked forward to living in. People dressed differently, the routemasters roamed the streets of colonial buildings, foreigners spoke in Cantonese. When I was young, I collected models of buses. My favorite of them were the routemasters and those single decker non-airconditioned buses which they took off the roads when I was 9 or 10 years old. To see it in action on photographs and movies just reminded me of the fact I was born in the wrong era. That was also another reason why I looked forward to going to London when I was younger - the view of routemasters roaming down knightsbridge allow me to imagine what it must be like being 20 in the 80s. Of course there isn’t much left other than bus 9 and bus 15 acting as the heritage route for tourists to feel what its like to have a conductor selling tickets. I am glad though I manage to make it here before the last of bus 14 stopped their services which served me well between China Town and Evelyn Gardens.
Sometimes I think what it is that makes us happy, and sometimes I think about the images of the past. I remember the day when I was like 6 or 7 and there was a bus with a dryers ice-cream advertisement, and I begged my grandma to take me on. Those were the good times - when grandma and I would take the KCR (when it was still those yellow and grey trains) to Hung Hom and catch the star ferry to meet my dad in time for him to get off work in the island. Then he would drive us back using the car ferries run by Yau Ma Tei Ferry company which of course stopped running. Hong Kong is a fast changing place. Everytime I go back, something changes. The truth is, I get very saddened by it. Going back to where you grow up and see that everything is no longer the way it used to be. Even those days when Jackie and I used to hike Lantau Islands back in year 9 or 10. Now, they have flipping cable cars and a disneyland. I guess Hong Kong people just move on, those living in the city just see their homeland pass them by. Sometimes I look at old people who sit in the park, I wonder what it is that they remember, and how they must think how different today’s Hong Kong is.
I don’t really like to go back to Hong Kong now, contrary to what people might think. I cannot relate to the society anymore. As proud as I am to say I am from Hong Kong, I can’t really say I know the place anymore. The culture has changed so much. Mainland Chinese moving to Hong Kong, claiming that Hong Kong, which is rightfully China, should be considered Chinese. The fact is, Hong Kong was built up by the British with the contribution of Chinese and Indians (and Napalese) who would call themselves 香港人. However, its now politically incorrect to call yourself 香港人 (without attributing that phrase to equating 中国人), especially outside Hong Kong. Chinese would feel uneasy about it, they would say to you, well, are you saying Hong Kong is independent? Hong Kong IS part of China now. However, I don’t feel very Chinese (nor Pakistani for argument sake)! I have my very own identity and that is purely I’m from Hong Kong, and perhaps a Hong Kong I no longer recognise.
Sometimes I wished I was old enough to remember Margret Thatcher fall off the steps in China or lives under the governor which the Mclehose Trail or Wilson Trail was named after. I guess in a world where the Americans are bowing down to the Chinese, I am not that pro-Chinese. I do feel like a generation’s thinking has been changed by the on-going brainwashing of the Chinese Anthem, and a strong Chinese identity. Perhaps that is what Hong Kong needs for the future, we have to recognise that Hong Kong is part of China. However, a person cannot forget where he/she came and to do that one must understand their history. So, I’m really glad that Mr Leung has decided to keep a blog about the heritage.
I was really worked up about this apparent cultural white-wash of Hong Kong’s heritage (which in my opinion apart from the Chinese, also includes the British, the Indians and even the Jewish community (the Penninsula group, Kadoorie Farm)) but I guess no one in this politically polarised world wants to acknowledge that.
Sometimes I would sit in a chinese restaurants in London looking over my shoulders to a bunch of ‘foreigners’ who may be English or Indian, and I would think to myself, a bunch of foreigners who knows nothing about China having Chinese food. Then when they start to speak to each other in Cantonese I would find myself in shame of ignorance and stereotype. Then I remind myself: perhaps this is the destination for the true 香港人 (including myself) - the diaspora who will never belong in their own land.
I told my uncle how this blog makes me feel somewhat saddened by the loss of culture in HK with the increasing number of influx of people from Mainland China. My uncle wisely told me, “When I see this blog, I know that everything would be changed, nothing is forever.”
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