“Diversity is the one thing we all have in common. Celebrate it every day”- Winston Churchill.
I wasn’t as ‘cultured’ as I perhaps should have been upon my arrival in Hong Kong. The ‘culture shock’ which bombarded me when I got here was substantial, and I could not believe how different the way of life was over here. Adjusting to the difference, certainly took time, albeit a reasonably short amount of it on the grand scheme of things. On the global scale, I realise Northern Ireland seems to be a much more ‘sheltered’ country in relation to here, and my experience so far has really taught me the value and importance of diversity. People accept differences in Hong Kong, and members of lots of different ethnicities live harmoniously with one another. I definitely feel that as a future teacher that this mentality can benefit me in my profession, as I will instill the significance of diversity amongst the children in my classroom, developing them into better global citizens.
The culture itself in Hong Kong can be described as a ‘cultural hybrid’ between east and west, in that it’s predominantly Chinese culture has been influenced by its history as a British colony (Louie, 2009). We are travelling to China this weekend, to visit the other Stranmillis students who are studying in Guangzhou. It will be great to catch up with them and to find out about how they are adjusting to life over here, as well as to compare the culture of Guangzhou with Hong Kong. Differences aside, it is nice to know that we are never too far away from some home comforts, such as the three-prong plug and the accessibility of Cadbury chocolate (even though we are off it for Lent)!
Rather surprisingly, a stark contrast between the rich and the poor exists in Hong Kong. I shared the common misconception that it would be a place completely covered in wealth, with its abundance of designer shops and high-rise office buildings. The truth is, although these signs of wealth do exist, one cannot escape reminders that the poor exist here, whether it is from a homeless amputee trailing himself through Mong Kok on a homemade skateboard, or a woman begging for money outside McDonalds. Interestingly, Gagape (2009) highlights Hong Kong as having the largest rich-poor gap in the world. I personally have been blessed with having enough money to come half way across the world to participate in this exchange programme, and seeing people on the streets actually makes me thankful and grateful for what I have, as I understand that not everyone is in the fortunate position that I am currently in.
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| A sports car indicating the wealth that exists here in Hong Kong. |
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| The homeless population is surprisingly large- even this cat is homeless. |
On Sunday, we explored a little (by mistake), by taking a wrong turn on our way to church and found ourselves in the middle of a typical food market. The smell was perhaps the hardest thing to get used to, and I was particularly disturbed at the sight of a chicken being killed and skinned right in front of my eyes at a meat stall. I was amazed at how close this place was from the hustle and bustle of the touristy city centre, but it really showed me just how much of a multicultural city Hong Kong is, as these two different cultures are able to co-exist within such proximity to each other.
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| A picture of a meat stall at the market- obviously very different standards from back home. |
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| Literally all of the meat is used here! (This is a tongue.) |
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| Another picture of a meat stall. |
We got the opportunity to spend time with friends this week, as we went out with them for a traditional Chinese barbeque. The restaurant was outdoors and provided an open fire pit for every table, over which we cooked our own meat on metal prong sticks. We sat around the fire as we cooked dinner, and spent time talking about our individual experiences so far. It just struck me while sitting there, just how great friends are, and I am so glad to be sharing this experience with each and every one of them!
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| Enjoying our barbeque! |
Ngo ngoi pung yo! (I love friends!)
Andrew Scott
REFERENCES
Gagape, E.W. (2009). Hong Kong tops world rich-poor gap, available at http://asiancorrespondent.com/17593/hong-kong-tops-world-rich-poor-gap/ (accessed on 15/03/2012).
Louie, K. (2010). Hong Kong Culture, Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong.
