I find myself awake at 4 in the morning because I am thinking about returning. I have come to Hong Kong as a trailing spouse. It is a common story in this place, and while it is often gendered female, I can think of a number of couples where the trailing partner is male. Indeed, there is even an internet group here called Tai Guy–a pun on the reference to Tai Tai. Tai Tai are the Hong Kong equivalent to ladies who lunch… and shop… and occasionally volunteer…and attend gallery openings on the first Tuesday of the month…and shop…and sometimes start businesses…and shop. Did I mention shopping was part of being a Tai Tai? Although technically the term for wife, it isn’t a complimentary one. It implies being kept. Continue reading
Author Archives: geofoodie
Morning Reflection
One of my favorite things to do in Hong Kong is have a coffee, or in this case a green tea latte, at the Starbucks located on the Avenue of the Stars (Hong Kong’s version of the Hollywood’s Avenue of Stars). This is one of the few Starbucks in Hong Kong with a view and it is a stunningly unobstructed panorama of the famous skyline. The skyscrapers on the island side now have to compete with an almost equally magnificent skyline on the Kowloon side, dominated by the ICC tower, which you can just see in the reflection on the cup. Sandwiched between these two competing, and sometimes overwhelming views, is Victoria Harbour. Behind this landscape, lost in the background, is a story of fishing boats, food safety, and the decline of an industry. Continue reading
Escaping poverty through low end globalisation?
This photograph is taken in Guangzhou (the city once known as Canton) at a wholesale clothing market. Most of the people in the market are not from Guangzhou. The market traders are a mix of people from China and from a number of different nations in Africa. The customers are primarily Africans. It is an international place, drawing all toward a common goal: to escape poverty through the international circulation of cell phones and clothing. Continue reading
Street food, everyday life, and patterns of inequality
Dim Sum. Photo taken at street food vendor in Mong Konk.
This photo is of steamer baskets containing dim sum. Dim sum are roughly translated as little bites, and can be savoury or sweet. My favorites are Char Sui Bao, Shu Mai, and Jin Dui. Char Sui Bao are white buns filled with bar-b-que pork. Shu Mai look like a large thimble or very small basket out of some sort of yellow dough and filled with either shrimp or pork filling. Continue reading
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