We always seem to return home after time away from our normal routine slightly the wiser for the experience. Maybe we have more time to observe and take things in. Maybe new experiences leave a more indelible impression. Anyway, we seem to be able to make a little bit more sense of the world as we travel around.
Hong Kong is China’s experiment with capitalism. This is a conclusion that can be drawn from just looking at the way the city has developed. Western shopping malls selling global brands appear to be the way of the future. Shiny modern apartment blocks are replacing the cramped, high density concrete apartment “boxes” of the 70s and 80s that featured retro-fitted air conditioning and external clotheslines suspended over the streets below. Malls are replacing family-owned and -operated businesses, and market stalls are being replaced by supermarkets.
Infrastructure is being replaced and expanded at rates far greater than observed in Australia or the USA. Freeways and bridges joining Hong Kong to Macau are under construction. Road and construction works are evident across the island and mainland. Buildings are reaching higher and higher heights.
Mobile phones are ubiquitous, with many people observed carrying more than one. Heads seem permanently lowered to take in whatever is being scrolled through on-screen. Social media and chat apps seem to dominate.
The current POTUS is an aberration, and the rest of the population of the USA should not be judged by his actions. The people we met along the way were polite, positive and engaging. We were mistaken for being British, European and even New Zealanders. When we confirmed our Australian origins we would be told stories of how they either visited once and had a great time or how they would love to visit (even though it wasn’t clear that they knew where Australia actually is on the map).
While it is becoming easier to find a reasonable coffee, there are still far too many places serving second-rate café lattés, espressos and cappuccinos. There is still a propensity to use weak, drip filter American coffee topped with some form of milk substitute, sometimes dispensed from a can.
Good food is generally available, even though we noted more cases of morbid obesity than we have in any other country. For us, morbid obesity crosses the line when you turn and stare to confirm that what you thought you saw is actually real. The size of some people noted during our travels had us discussing a variety of topics including what size bed they must have, where they would shop for clothes, down to how they might need their bathroom modified to cater for their specific needs. Our speculation went into detail about very personal matters that won’t be repeated here. We ate some amazing meals and generally the standard of food served up was pretty good. Plating up dishes to make them look attractive varied from amazing to non-existent (largely due to the quantity of food piled on the plate).
Driving in the cities and on the open road has some interesting differences. One that Chris hopes to remove from his repertoire before driving when back home is the ability to turn right at red lights if it is clear to do so. This seemed to keep traffic moving a bit, although always felt wrong.
The traffic, whether in the city or on the interstate highways, tends to routinely travel in excess of the speed limit. Fifteen mph above the limit is the average, but speeds in excess of that are not uncommon. Apparently speed cameras have no place in the USA, as they violate one of the constitutional amendments on individual rights.
Outside the larger cities, people appear to live a simple life based around community and tradition.
Wendy & Chris Arkey
The distinction between seasons in the northern states is dramatic; whole industries and individual endeavours are influenced by the seasonal cycle. Boating endeavours simply cease with the onset of the winter months. Boats are removed from their moorings and stored out of the water, wrapped in an industrial strength shrink wrap to keep out the rain, sleet and snow. Outdoor activities, camping and caravan parks simply close. It was common for us to see signs outside such places thanking the public for their patronage and hoping they returned when the facility reopened mid-spring.
Pick-up trucks were transitioning to become snow ploughs, with the inclusion of a bulldozer blade up front. Great piles of firewood were being prepared and carefully stacked within easy reach of most houses in rural districts.
The change of seasons was being officially celebrated by businesses and individuals alike. The Halloween tradition of using pumpkins as Jack-o-Lanterns was extended, to feature them with stalks of corn in celebration of a prosperous harvest. Most rural houses and businesses included bright orange pumpkins and cornstalks beside their entrance.
Much of the construction industry closes over the winter period. This includes work on houses, commercial buildings and roads; new work, repairs and general maintenance. We speculated that sub-zero temperatures must present all manner of issues such as whether paint would dry or simply freeze, how concrete might set and whether there are union conditions prohibiting work when the thermometer falls below a particular temperature. This may all go some way to explaining why winter sport watching on TV is so popular – there’s little else to do when your construction job is not possible and it’s too cold to do much else (other than bring in firewood or clear snow with the pickup truck).
Serving your country is held in very high esteem. Service is not limited to the armed forces, extending instead to include police, firefighters and ambulance / paramedics. These servicemen & women are called to board domestic flights at the same time as first and business class passengers. They are publicly honoured at sporting events (where representatives are called upon to stand by the singer of the national anthem) and again given a standing ovation during a break in play.
News coverage is incredibly myopic. The various channels and programs have their own biases, reflecting in many ways the views of their proprietor, management and / or the individual presenters. What is served up as “news” is often little more than a single statement or action that is then analysed to within an inch of its life by opinion pieces – sometimes delivered by people with very tenuous credentials. Everyone is frantic to be ahead of the pack when delivering breaking news. As a result, little is filtered because it is so bereft of substance that every snippet has to be treated with the gravity of a momentous historical turning point in case it actually is. Very few are, and they rarely last more than a couple of hours in the news cycle. The story about the boy who cried wolf comes to mind.
The media focus on celebrity is also interesting. Apparently if you are vaguely good at one thing, be it entertaining or blogging or the like, you are instantly attractive to the masses for reasons that can only be linked to commercial opportunity. Suddenly your every move, statement or action is followed and analysed, again with the gravity of a major world-defining event. All this while the balance of life in places like Myanmar, Syria and more broadly the Middle East is under threat. Major global decisions are being made on matters like Brexit that aren’t mentioned or analysed. Scientific breakthroughs are being made that go unheralded while we hear instead about a sordid affair between two C-grade celebrities who hooked up on a reality program and posted a sex tape to the Internet.
To avoid finishing on a negative note, it seems appropriate to mention the positives and the memorable moments (in no particular order):
- the hustle and bustle of Asia: it’s food, sights, smells and sounds are always great to revisit
- escaping the cities and getting out into the country throws a different perspective on things – be it exploring a traditional fishing village on an outer Hong Kong island, wandering through a small country village where a past US President was born, raised and unexpectedly sworn in, or circumnavigating a lake with a coastal national park as the fall colours begin painting the landscape in a red, yellow and brown pallet
- great food experiences that included lobster rolls, pop-overs, crab cakes, seafood chowder, dim sum dumplings, an amazing degustation meal, and high tea in a heritage hotel in Chicago
- we listened to the blast of fog horns in the night, a live stage performance at Les Miserables, the chant of the crowd at the ice hockey when a home goal was scored, the playing of Happy Birthday on a harp during high tea, and the sounds of jazz and swing music in a downturn jazz joint in the south Loop
- we went expecting all manner of weather. Hong Kong was typically hot and humid, Boston and the north eastern states were unseasonably warm, thick fog rolled in off the Atlantic on a number of occasions, 4 inches (100mm) of rain fell in Chicago during a 24-hour period and we were blessed with mild weather when we should have been experiencing the onset of winter
- we spent important and cherished time with family and friends in Hong Kong, on the road and in Chicago.
Our thoughts have slowly started turning to the remaining months of this year (long haul flights provide plenty of time for introspection). There will family and friends to catch up with, visitors from New Zealand are due on our doorstep in a few weeks, there is a new grandchild to welcome into the world, Christmas and New Year to enjoy and weddings to be part of.
Our formal travel plans for 2018 include a pilgrims’ temple walk in southern Japan during cherry blossom season and another extended 4WD adventure north to Cape York to explore places we loved during our previous time there (and possibly discovering what lies over the next hill or at the end of the tracks we couldn’t explore last time).