I had forgotten how beautiful the San Francisco airport was and it definitely felt good to be back, there was even an exhibit set up celebrating the city Shanghai. I took it as a sign that Shanghai is where I should be. On the flight I sat next to someone who was wearing an EAP (UC Study abroad program) shirt. I had seen him earlier in line while waiting to board and what a great surprise that I ended up sitting next to him. I introduced myself as an EAP student as well and learned that he was going to study at Hong Kong University for a semester. For the rest of the flight, I told him of the few places I knew in Hong Kong and he taught me some very basic mandarin of which I only remember bits and pieces of. Meeting a fellow EAP student had me feeling quite lucky because I always seem to meet the right people at the right time.
My aunt is on the right
At the airport I was picked up by my aunt, who I had not seen for five years and who just barely recognized me. My aunt was going to be my keeper for the next three days, she never let me out of her sight. I only managed to get away with her once for about two hours but that was only because I was meeting Dr. Fung. I swear my aunt must have thought I was five years old because she never let me carry or hold anything while we were walking around Hong Kong. Every bag I had to fight to keep it out of her grasp. I simply felt bad letting my aunt take everything, but many times she did when I was not paying attention. My aunt was a great host, she took me everywhere I needed to go, bought me everything I wanted to eat and planned everything perfectly. The only downside was that she would constantly nag me about the same things over and over again. Who needs a mom if you have an aunt like that? On the last day I was in Hong Kong, my aunt called up her friend who had just moved to Shanghai and introduced me to her. My aunt told me that if I ever needed any help that I could call her friend Rainbow.
With my Godmother
On Wednesday I had dinner with my godmother, who is probably my favorite person in Hong Kong and for good reason too. My godmother is young at heart, which makes being around her a blast. As a general rule, when I visit Hong Kong I pretty much get anything I want, but my godmother takes it to the next level and tonight it was with the alcohol. One of the family friends that was invited half complained and half joked that he had wanted to bring some bottles of wine to dinner but that my godfather had told him to set a good example and not bring them. Well after I told my godmother that I drink in college, she immediately ordered a bottle of wine worth over a thousand Hong Kong dollars, this was in addition to the beer that I already had. The rest of the night was spent taking pictures, discussing how strict and uptight my mom was and how terrible they all thought her gingerbread cookies were when she used to mail them for Christmas. A lot of time was spent on how I should be wary of Shanghai girls because they were very good at seducing men and they would be eyeing my passport. My godmother even told me a horror story of how her friend’s son went to Shanghai fell in love with a woman that was eleven years older than him, which caused his mother a lot of grief. The night ended with goodbyes and more advice on staying safe in Shanghai.
Hopefully not the last picture I take with my grandparents
I visited my grandparents on two separate occasions because the first time that I went, my grandfather was sleeping so I was unable to see him. I had heard from my parents about how much my grandmother’s memory had deteriorated but I was still shocked when I experienced it for myself. In a span of five minutes I must have answered the same question about going to Shanghai, seven to eight times. She could also barely remember who I was, having to ask my aunt repeatedly if I was my mom’s son. Yet despite all of this, she seemed genuinely happy to see me, so much so that I decided to come back the next day. Meeting my grandfather the next day had its share of surprises as well. One of the first things that my grandfather notices about me when I sit down is how thick my arm is. He even squeezed my bicep a little as if to make sure it is muscle, and he was even more impressed when I told him I had started to do martial arts. I was once again warned, this time by my grandparents to be wary of Shanghai girls. Before I left, I took a picture with them, which could quite possibly be the last picture I have of them together.
Dr. John Fung
The last thing on my schedule was a meeting with Dr. Fung, an elementary school friend of my dad. Dr. Fung is the director of the Hong Kong Council of Social Services, an umbrella group of non-profits in Hong Kong. He told me of the various social media projects that he was working on and it all sounded extremely exciting. In my head, I wish he had offered me an opportunity to intern at his office, but that never happened. Before I left, Dr. Fung gave me a letter of introduction and a book to give to a professor of journalism in Fudan. In addition, he gave me an article written by the professor about internet use in China which I found interesting. The only problem was that Dr. Fung was not sure how good the professor’s English was but judging from the article that the professor wrote, which was in English, I think I should be able to communicate.
With a new phone, sunglasses and a handful of new contacts I left Hong Kong on a Friday afternoon for Shanghai.
Additional Pictures of Hong Kong
- muffinman
