Mahjong beach and other stories

Falling in love with Hong Kong isn't hard. It is the city of dreams and surprises. Both words having no negative connotations attached. Dreams. Surprise.

I didn't want my time in Hong Kong to be spent in a tiny city triangle. Walking to work, sitting in an office, walking home, sitting at home. I wanted to continue to discover new and exciting places in this remarkable and wonderful city. I don't want to end my time here, and think I could have done more. I borrowed a Hong Kong travel guide and bought the local paper. I was going to make a list of mini Hong Kong adventures, and I was going to make this city my own. Someone told me that you come to Hong Kong with an adventurers determination, and leave having realised that it's the same as everywhere else. You settle into a normal every day routine within months and then three years flashes by. Well, if that's what 'normally' happens, I shall be extraordinary then. I will make it my number one priority to experience the under ground Hong Kong. The challenges ahead, the discoveries to be made. The effort I am willing to put in to making this a unique experience will be unimaginable. I came as a free spirit; I wont leave in a cage. This is my Hong Kong, and I wont let anyone tell me otherwise.

Lei Yue Mun aka Mahjong Beach

We met in Wan Chai and headed for brunch. It already felt like a relaxing day with time limits vanished. We walked into a little local joint, and ordered two coffees and an egg sandwich. The coffee was delicious  the egg sandwich the most miserable looking food I have seen in Hong Kong. We talked about our weeks and ordered another coffee to take away with us. Four coffees and two egg sandwiches, the same price as one Starbucks coffee. I am boycotting supermarkets and chains. In a city that still has the options of local, family run businesses, I have decided to opt for these. Laziness encourages consumerism and decreases imagination. I don't want to become someone who wants everything fast and tasteless. I don't want to eat cardboard food made in 2 seconds, or tasteless coffee made in a minute. I don't want to eat vegetables packaged in plastic, and eat at restaurants that over price the food for people who aren't brave enough to try somewhere new.

From Wan Chai we took the MTR to Shau Kei Wan. From here we could find a sam pan to take us across the harbour. The tower blocks in Shau Kei Wan were breathtaking. So many lives in such a small square mile. So many people. So many homes. So many generations. So many dreams.

What an amazing discovery,. A traditional fishing village in the heart of Hong Kong. Completely untouched by the impending city. I hope it stays this way. Our sam pan came to a halt at the foot of a building made of bits and bobs, There was no obvious place to disembark, so we climbed up the side of another boat onto what felt like the back of someone's home. We went with it.

We walked around the market restaurant area. There were hundreds of tanks, full of sea creatures I had never seen before. The colours were remarkable and were a good reminder that nature is the most beautiful of all things. There were prehistoric looking creatures, crabs and fish. There were giant fish, tiny sharks and shells of all colours of the rainbow. The idea is you choose your dinner, take it to one of the restaurants where they will prepare it in what ever way you want. I had been warned that the cost of doing this was astronomical, so we treated it like visiting an aquarium and made our way through to the other side of the village.

The tiny village was made up of winding paths, with little houses built from every material you could imagine. There was no obvious route through, so there was the occasion we weren't sure if we were actually walking through someone's property. It was like a miniature Venice. No signs, no clear path and it felt like a million miles away from Hong Kong. A traditional Chinese fishing village right on the doorstep of the most developed city in the world. Once through the maze of houses, and alleyways, we came out to the other side where a beach lay. At first glance, the beach was like any other. I decided to investigate further, making my way through the gates and was surprised to find the beach was made up from washed up shells, plates, broken bottles, mahjong pieces and the washed up city life. It was quite beautiful. I found some shells to take home, I like to surround myself with memories. My room is starting to represent all the adventures I have been on so far. My live in collage.

From one beach to another. At the next beach we sat down to take it all in . We looked out on to the edge of Hong Kong Island and watched local families collecting various objects from the beach. There was a man sitting on a giant rock with the city as his background, fishing away like there wasn't the modern metropolis right in from of him. Beyond him, the ICC, IFC, the city sounds, sights, and smells. It was like he hadn't noticed the city going up across the water, and he didn't look like he even cared much. It was quite beautiful.
We collected some broken pots, and flat stones, for skimming across the water, and I found 10 mahjong pieces, hence renaming the beach Mahjong Beach. We skimmed our stones, and found out way back on to the path that continued round the coast line.

We walked past groups of locals sitting around playing mahjong, all greeting us with smiles and warmth. If you make it out this far, there isn't a 'you against us' feeling like in the city. They appreciate you have made an effort to come out this far, and thus, probably want to be here. They sold us some beers and we carried on through. We climbed rocks and found hidden houses. We found paths built from bottles, and over grown forgotten gardens. One particular house made a big impression as we mapped out how we thought it would have looked once, what people lived there and why they left. An idea for a story? One day.
There was a courtyard, and a double fronted house, now without a roof or windows. There was some Chinese writing over the door, and a path down to another courtyard. We imagined a garden party, with lanterns, people conversing and laughing. New arrivals and people hustling about making food and pouring drinks. Maybe one day I'll have the time and money to renovate such a place and encourage life back.

There was nothing to suggest we were anywhere near Hong Kong. It was perfect. Then my phone died, even more perfect. I was unplugged from Hong Kong. We wandered back through the paths, walking past temples and local people going about their Saturdays. We walked to the nearest MTR station and decided to go to Chi Lin Nunnery and gardens. The sun had come out and it was nice to have the time to wander around the city with no time restrictions. In fact we were completely unaware of the time.

After the nunnery, we decided that we should go and investigate another new place. Hong Kong has the cheapest Michelin stared restaurant in the world, Tim Ho Wan, in Mong Kok. There was a queue so we bought a beer and sat on the street waiting our turn. The restaurant seats 40, so we were happy to wait in order to taste this world renowned dim sum. The food was unbelievable. We ordered pork buns and dumplings and rice wrapped in a giant leave. The bill came to $130 (£10). You'd pay extortionate amounts for the same quality in Central. What a little gem to discover.

With surprises around every corner in Hong Kong it reminds me of how lucky I am to have found a job, home and friends in this city so far away from home.  I feel this is the start of some remarkable discoveries.


I have to learn to priorities if I am to make this happen. I cannot do everything, so I must be clear on what I want to do and achieve, and then make the time to achieve it. I cannot be two people, so I must manage the time I have better in order to live a fulfilled life. Making time for anything that doesn't add to my dreams, support my ambition or comfort my creativity, is out. This is my life and I will live it the way I want to.

Creativity is important to me. Imagination is fundamental to creativity. People with no imagination are not fundamental to me. Creating and learning are crucial to me. Surrounding myself with people who do not understand me is counter productive and stops my development and doesn't encourage my creative flare. I have an office job at the moment, I have to work even harder to find time to allow my creativity to live. I have to work. I have to create. I need diversity. I need to experience as much as I can while I can. I have an opportunity here, to take 100% control of my life. I have the chance to let go of all past experiences and stop them from affecting my beautiful future. I don't have to do anything. I can unplug from the city when I want to. I can disappear from the world and return when I want to. I can walk this world alone, and I don't mind that, if I master staying true to myself. To make decisions based on expectation, comparison or desires to be anything other than me, is daft. This will be my focus. Not trying to change, but to feed my deepest wants and desires. Anything and everything else is a waste of time. If I want to do something for me, then why and how is it that I have become too weak to say that and act on that. If my heart says something, I am easily swayed against it and end up turning my back on my heart to follow what my head is telling me I should do. Now that IS crazy.

The world doesn't need more people who were to scared to follow their dreams. It needs more people who were brave enough to listen to their hearts. 2013 will be my year of positive unconditional support and love.
Friendship shouldn't be conditional. 'Don't change so people will like you, be yourself and the right people will love you' springs to mind. In a city which has been described as 'the city of pier pressure', 'where lost souls come to be someone', I know I belong here. I meet people every week that I have more in common with than almost everyone I have ever met before. Hong Kong is full of people just like me. To remember that you are a unique person, and that just because you are all similar, doesn't mean that you have to give up on the unique parts of your character. That is what defines you.

I feel inspired to create again. And that is what I shall do. Create and develop. To live my life the way I want to live it.

International network and human after all

I've had a busy few weeks; the reoccurring story of Hong Kong. So much to do, so little time. If only I could avoid sleep. I could live two lives and do it all that way. Or, alternatively, make better decisions and manage my time better. There is just so many exciting things going on all the time, and now I have to fit them around a full time job. 

I've been falling in love with Hong Kong again, and falling out of love with it, all in the space of an hour, on a daily basis. Very standard for a city with it all. I've had moments of home sickness, and waves of uncertainty. I have experienced the surprise, magic and inspiration around every corner again. I have indulged in deep thoughts about the future, the decisions I make and the reasons I make them. I have been alive, and I have been confused. 

Let me go back...................

I went to a conference for work and realised that the area of events I had found myself in, wasn't exactly the dream. High yield and dim sum bonds, capital markets and listings wasn't very engaging, entertaining or even very interesting. A whole day of my life sat in a room with people talking about a subject I had no intention to know anything about. I started to doubt my existence in my job and Hong Kong. Was I still on an adventure if I was sitting in an office, with no natural light for 40 hours a week? Had I made a bad decisions? Had I given in too quickly and joined the 'safe' life and living in Hong Kong? Was this what I wanted or was this fear ruling my decisions? 

I contemplated my life, my decisions, my dreams and my ambitions. I asked questions, and sought answers. I listened. I listened to people that came across my path. I met a guy who said 'I never felt I belonged somewhere, until I came to Hong Kong.' Why wasn't I feeling this? Given, he had been here 5 years, I have been here less than 4 months. Would I find somewhere that I felt I 100% belonged? There seems to be two types of person, those who question their lives, and those who get on with it, and accept it. I meet people throughout my life, who understand this and others who don't have an ounce of an idea what I'm talking about. i'm glad I know both types. 

I went on a boat with a group of very inspiring people. They were all much further along their journeys than I. Managing, owning and enjoying their work, businesses and lives. It gave me a good perspective. I met a lady who started her own music school in Hong Kong 10 years ago and a guy who owned a design company and now invests in boutique businesses. Both were 10 years older than I am, and both achieved a huge amount. Why was I being so harsh on myself? Why was what I have achieved to date, not enough? Not enough for who? For me? Who am I comparing my unique life to? And always coming back with the conclusion, I could be, do and achieve more? 

I remembered my dreams and I was back on track. Feeling my present life was back in context. I came to Asia with a dream, and I was doing fine. I was still on a journey, and I was still heading in the right direction. I felt happy and secure again in the present. 

I presented an awards night for work. 150 lawyers in a room all-looking at me to hear the results and present lifetime achievement and outstanding achievement awards. Ironic. 

I overcame one of my fears during the evening. I had previously been struggling with networking with lawyers, academics and professionals. I was getting cold feet about sparking up conversation, something I rarely struggled with before. I was worrying I was going to be rumbled for not being intelligent enough, not knowing enough, not having enough experience. Then, I realised these people don't want to talk about law with me over a glass of champagne and canopies. I ended up having various conversations about poetry, literature, growing up in the UK, and what makes certain types of people follow which paths. I realised I could do this. I could make friends with lawyers, engage in interesting conversations and to be honest, most of the females I spoke to, we discussed shoes, and holidays. I'm not sure, who was leading the conversations, but it was a good realisation to have, that putting people on podiums wasn't going to help me. I spoke with a group of lawyers, who very kindly pointed out that your 20's are about self discovery (CHECK) and your 30's are where the fun really begins (excellent). I was told 'you really become comfortable in your own skin when you reach 30. You stop caring about what others think of you, and you develop true inner confidence'. Great stuff......I am on track then....still finding out about myself, ready for the acceptance at 30. Good to know. I have four years left in my 20's..........more fun, experience and self discovery coming up.

I went for a night hike up to the Peak and enjoyed good conversation with my flat mate. I was glad for the weekend and some free time to unplug from Hong Kong. I needed a few days where I didn't have to do anything, go anywhere or make decisions. I wanted to just be free without any restrictions. I was grateful to allow myself some time off putting any pressure on myself, time to enjoy Hong Kong again. 

I found my lust for life again........