Posh Paper Offerings

Yesterday, locals here in Hong Kong celebrated the Ching Ming Festival, a public holiday dedicated specifically to ancestor worshipping. Ancestor worshipping is a Chinese tradition that dates back thousands of years and is based on the belief that the spirits of the dead continue to live in the natural world and have the power to influence the fortune and fate of the living. The goal of worshipping ancestors is therefore to ensure the continued well-being of the ancestors and at times to ask for special favours or assistance.

On Ching Ming, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, Chinese families remember and honour their ancestors at their graves or burial grounds. They gather together to pray, sweep the tombs, burn incense, make offerings of tea, wine, food and burn joss paper offerings.

Joss paper, or ghost money, are sheets of paper that are burned to enable the deceased to have all they need in the afterlife. Traditionally the joss paper is made from rice or bamboo and resembles real money.

Traditional Joss paper

However, more contemporary varieties of joss paper include paper credit cards, cheques and a variety of paper accessories such as clothes, food, houses, cars and even servants! In the days leading up to the festival you’ll find many shops around Hong Kong displaying the most amazing paper items. Below you can see some of the more interesting paper assecories I came across.

Cans of coke

A car

A suit

Designer tie and socks
(note how they misspelled Louis Vuitton, very typical!!)

A whole suckling pig

A plate of sushi

Teeth, toothpase and toothbrush

Even a massage chair!

Not bad, seems like they have everything they need in the afterlife!

Ciao

Under Construction

Walking through Hong Kong, you can’t help but notice the bamboo scaffolding covered with green netting all over town. While bamboo scaffolding has largely been banished from most high-rise construction sites in other Asian countries, the practice continues throughout Hong Kong.

The sight of the skyscraper tall bamboo scaffolding is pretty amazing and to my unfamiliar eye it looks very unsafe and flimsy. Particularly when you see that the bottom of the bamboo skeleton is resting on the diagonally cut ends of the bamboo and that the bamboo components are hold together by a thin piece of plastic.

But no matter how unsettling it may look, it is argued that bamboo is in fact very strong and surprisingly functional. Defenders of bamboo scaffolding argue that it is strong, extremely lightweight, flexible, cost-effective and eco-friendly as bamboo is the fastest growing type of wood. Bamboo also has an advantage over other types of scaffolding in typhoon prone areas such as Hong Kong as bamboo bends in high winds, while steel scaffolding breaks.

Despite these arguments in favour of bamboo scaffolding, bamboo scaffolding has been banned from many other countries mainly for safety and environmental reasons. It remains to be seen whether it will also be banned from Hong Kong or if the sight of buildings clad in green netting and bamboo scaffolding will remain part of the Hong Kong skyline.

Bye for now!

Ridiculous Hong Kong Rent

Hong Kong is well known for being an expensive city to live in but in the past year things have gotten a little bit worse with average rental costs jumping by 22% according to a recent report by ECA International. This makes Hong Kong the third most expensive city to live in after Tokyo and Moscow.

Hong Kong is one of the world’s most populated cities with more than 7 million people living in less than 500 square miles. Many residents therefore find themselves living in tiny apartments in one of Hong Kong’s many high rise apartment buildings.

Average rental prices can differ significantly depending on the area, size and the amount of luxury that you are after. If you have a very limited budget but are adamant to live close to where it’s all happening, you’ll probably find yourself living in the tiniest one room apartments. You’ll most likely have an electric hot plate on a table as a kitchen and in some cases you might even have to share a coin-operated bathroom with the rest of your floor. On the other end of the housing scale you can find the most amazing luxury apartments on the Peak and in the Midlevels with harbour views and facilities. In between these extremes most expats on average incomes will find that they need to make a choice between location and space and sacrifice one for the other. 

In our case we sacrificed location for space and
live in a wonderful apartment with a great pool
but a bit of a commute into city

Hong Kong may only be the third most expensive when it comes to average rental prices, but when you look at luxury apartments, Hong Kong rentals are found to be the most expensive in the world. An average two-bedroom apartment in Hong Kong costs about US$2,830 (HK$22,074 or €2059 euro) a month. However, when it comes to luxury rents in desirable expat areas, Hong Kong beats Tokyo by 30% with an average rent of US$16,700 (HK$1,3m or €121,413) a month!  With an average median income of US$2,246 (HK$17,500 or €1,624) per month you can imagine that this is far beyond the reach of the average Hong Kong resident and that you have to be on a pretty decent expat package to be able to afford such accommodation! I wish.


Not everyone lives in high rises.
These fishing families in Tai O still live in traditional stilt houses on the water.

Check out this video on youtube to see how one local architect has found a solution for his small 33 square feet apartment.

Ciao!

Sources:
http://www.eca-international.com/news/press_releases/7310/Rents_up_22_per_cent_in_Hong_Kong_as_confidence_returns_to_Asia_http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=1&art_id=108132&sid=31310001&con_type=1&d_str=20110216
http://www.gov.hk/en/about/abouthk/factsheets/docs/population.pdf

Odd Asian Eye Tape

Hong Kong never ceases to surprise me. Not a week goes by without seeing, hearing, reading or smelling something strange. Take for example the other week when I was browsing through Sasa, a Hong Kong cosmetics chain. Lined between the fruit shaped lip balms and Hello Kitty shower gels, I stumbled upon a rack of strange looking packages. On closer inspection these turned out to contain eye tape. Eye tape, how very odd!

After some research into this eye tape I learned that many Asian women desire to change the appearance of their eyelids.

Eyelids can generally be divided into two categories: the single eyelid and the double eyelid. With single eyelids, the eyelid is pretty much hidden by a skin fold that covers the eyelid. The amount of skin that falls over the eyelid varies, but most Asians have such single eyelids (eye A to G). Most Caucasians on the other hand have so-called double eyelids, whereby the eyelid is largely visible due to a crease in the eyelid (Eye H).

Whether it is an attempt for Asian women to look more Western or just to have their eyes to look more ‘open’, many Asian women are taking steps to have their mono eyelids changed to double eyelids and it is reported that Asian double eyelid surgery, also known as blepharoplasties, are the most common aesthetic cosmetic procedure in many parts of East Asia. But now, thanks to eye tape, Asian women no longer have to undergo surgery to obtain a double eye-lid.

While I personally have a double eyelid and definitely don’t need these stickers I decided to give the tape a shot for the sake of this article. Each package consists of approximately 30 oval shaped stickers that are to be applied just above the eye lashes thereby pushing the eyelid skin slightly back and creating a double eyelid. I have renewed respect for women who regularly wear this tape as it is not only difficult to apply, but it is also a rather uncomfortable feeling to have the stickers on your eye.

To be honest I don’t think it makes much difference and that single eyelids are perfectly beautiful but I guess at the end of the day, like with many things, it’s a matter of personal preference. Either way, I find the concept entertaining and I can add eye tape to my list of funny things I came across in Hong Kong.

See you soon!

Happy McValentines!

Yesterday, a young Hong Kong couple celebrated Valentines in a very special way as they got married under the golden arches at a local McDonalds restaurant. This wedding was the first formal so-called McWedding since McDonalds introduced the service in January.


The first couple seal the McWedding with a kiss. Reuters

According to McDonalds, the concept isn’t tacky and fills a niche in Hong Kong, where McDonalds restaurants are a very popular dating venue and prices for more typical weddings run exorbitantly high. A wedding at McDonalds comes well under the average cost for Hong Kong weddings and for a mere HK $9,999 (approx 1000 euro) you can get yourself a complete ‘Warm and Sweet Wedding Package'.

The package includes, venue, invitations, a bouquet and corsage, McDonalds food, Happy Meal gifts for guests, decorations, a McDonalds Apple Pie ‘cake’ and, most importantly, a pair of McDonalds balloon wedding rings!  If this isn’t enough for you, you can also add additional services including a McDonalds backdrop, wedding balloons, marriage dolls, balloon corsages, and most amazingly a white or red balloon wedding gown.

So far bookings for the McWeddings have been limited with only 2 more weddings confirmed for this year but the American fast food giant is hoping the McWeddings will take off in Hong Kong as young people steer away from traditions and look for out-of-the-ordinary wedding experiences.

There are two drawbacks though, firstly, forget having a private party as the outlets where the weddings can be held will remain open to the public. Worse, guests hoping to celebrate with a drink will be dissappointed as alcohol is banned at Hong Kong McDonalds. But if you don't really care about this and just want a cheap and original wedding, the McWedding might just be what you're after.

Let's just hope they couple will stay McHappily Ever After!

Sources:
http://www.mcdonalds.com.hk/english/about/wedding/index.asp http://lifewise.canoe.ca/valentines/features/2011/02/14/17266756.html

Lai See

During the first few days of the Chinese New Year festival you will say many people giving each other small red and gold envelopes filled with money. This tradition is called Lai See and you give Lai See to poeple to wish them good fortune and prosperity in the year to come.

Exaples of Lai See enveloppes

But giving Lai See is not as straightforward as it seems and there is a certain etiquette around who you give and how much you give. The general rule of thumb with Lai See is that it’s given from a senior to a junior. For example a boss will give Lai See to his employees, parents to their children and residents to doormen. Married couples will also give Lai See to their single friends.  

The amount given varies widely depending on who the Lai See is given to. But no matter what the amount, the money should only be given in single notes and should never contain any coins. It’s also important that the notes are new and locals often stand in line at the bank for hours to obtain new fresh notes.

As you may remember from my previous blog article (Unlucky fours), the Cantonese word for four sounds like the Cantonese word for deaths, so amounts of $40 and $400 should be avoided as they are considered bad luck.

In addition to the red envelopes, small gifts are also exchanges between friends and family during the Chinese New Year. Common gifts include fruit, cakes, biscuits and chocolates. As you can see shops are well stocked to provide for all the chocolate.

We decided to join the tradition and have given Lai See to our doormen and the ladies at the recption. We didn't manage to get new banknotes, but I'm sure they appreciate the effort! I wonder if I'll get any Lai See....

See you soon.

Chinese New Year

Hong Kong is preparing itself for the biggest holiday celebration of the year, the Chinese New Year. The Chinese New Year festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first month of the Chinese lunar calendar (February 3^rd) and ends on the 15^th day with the Lantern Festival. Wherever you look you can see signs of the upcoming festival with buildings brightly decorated in red and gold and shops even more busy than usual as the locals pour out their money to buy presents, decorations and food for the New Year’s festivities. Products in the shape of rabbits can also be seen everywhere as the Chinese New Year welcomes the Year of the Rabbit.

Shops around town are selling red and gold decorations

 

   

New Year's decorations in our mall



The story behind Chinese New Year is that a monster lived near a village and would attack the village on New Year’s Eve to eat the livestock, crops and even villagers. To keep the monster away red paper was pasted on doors, torches were lit and firecrackers set off as it was believed that the monster fears the colour red, the light of fire and loud noises. These three traditions remain key features of the current Chinese New Year.  

The Chinese New Year also witnesses the world’s largest human migration with migrant Chinese travelling home to spend Chinese New Year with their families. In 2010 an estimated 210 million Chinese hit the planes, buses and trains – the equivalent to the whole population of Brazil packing their suitcases. In China, where much of the migration takes place, it’s been claimed that trains are so overcrowded that people wear diapers for their +24hr journeys home. (Source: http://gohongkong.about.com/od/chinesenewyear/a/Chinese-New-Year-Facts.htm)

Some interesting facts about Chinese New Year:

• Almost all of the New Years decorations are red because the colour red ties closely to wealth and good luck in Chinese culture.
• The most important day of Chinese New Year is Chinese New Year’s eve and the first day of Chinese New Year. Shops will close for these two days although some will stay closed for up to 8-10 days. 
• On the days before the New Year celebrations Chinese families give their home a thorough cleaning to sweep away any ill-fortune in hope to make way for good incoming luck. Cleaning products are then put away on New Year’s Eve so that the newly arrived good luck cannot be swept away.
• It's estimated that a sixth of the world celebrate Chinese New Year, including more than 1 billion Chinese citizens.
• Mandarins are considered traditional symbols of abundance and good fortune and are therefore displayed as decorations and presented as gifts to friends and relatives. 
  

I'll be visiting some of the New Year's celebrations so I'll make sure to post some pictures of the festivities later this week.

Sun nien fai lok (Happy New Year)!