I find that physically looking Asian makes life a lot easier here in Hong Kong. A few of my Western friends (whether they be from America or Europe) that are not of Asian ancestry must deal with specific stereotypes that I usually don't deal with here, mainly because I look Asian. For example, there have been quite a number of stories that I have heard from my white friends that they have had to pay a higher price than locals (I guess you could call it the "western price"). Whereas a normal cab fare from the central area to CU would be 180 HKD, some of my friends have been asked to pay as much as 210 HKD. Or perhaps a ferry ride will cost less than 20 HK dollars for locals, but will be priced much more for westerners - merely because they cannot speak the language to bring the price down. I think it stems from the stereotype that, because you are from the US or Europe, you must be wealthy. I have always experienced Asian stereotypes from living in a predominantly white area, but I have never witnessed other ethnicities stereotyping Americans or Europeans.
My new friend. I really don't know what it is...except that it is a character from Japan. Yet another example of Japanese influence in China. This was a Hung Hum subway station.
Chicken Congee in Tai Wei. Very tasty.
Lantern Festival/Chinese Valentine's Day. Free palm reading available as well!
Typical BBQ - Asian style. This was at a public park. I went with one friend and my dad's cousin/family.
Teaching English with HK kids in rural schools. This is a traditional Chinese New Year meal - we had a lot of pig skin in ours! They are quite rowdy kids :-)
Happy Birthday to my brother :-) He's probably on his way to HK by now.
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