Water world

My world outside is a shade of very light grey. It's been raining since 4 or 5 am and everything is shrouded in a misty veil. Maybe its a typhoon level 1 warning outside. When it jumps to level 8, everyone takes their potted plants off the balconies and secures all the windows. Me? I just have to stay in from work.

Now even on the weekends I wake up at 6.30am, sharp. I'm so used to it that my body fails to heed the call of sleep deprivation and chooses instead to listen to its crazy internal alarm clock. Something tells me that it's time to start an eye-cream investment fund.

I like it when it rains. I've always liked the rain. It's better than the hot and humid days I have to face in conservative and suffocating office wear. Being Malaysian, I'm configured to deal with 30 degrees weather, however nothing prepared my sensitive Malaysian skin for the humidity. The huge bodies of water surrounding Hong Kong gives the entire island a sauna effect. I can't walk more than 20 minutes to Lan Kwai Fong without my sweat glands starting to work on overdrive, and by the time I arrive all I want to do is jump into a cold shower.

People in Hong Kong tend to ask me strange questions about my background. The almost immediate response to "I'm from Malaysia" is: "But, you look Chinese. I thought you were Chinese"... to which I reel back in disbelief. The better ones even go as far as to say, "But then I can tell you don't look that much Chinese, are you Muslim?". I have to hold the laughter in. If I'm in the right mood I tell them that I'm not really the complete ethnic Chinese I claim to be and that I'm part Malay and Indian and I speak Indonesian. It's almost true. My great grandmother was Thai.

Last week I hopped onto a ferry to cross the great divide that separates Hong Kong island from the heartlands of Kowloon. I prefer to say it in Cantonese - Gao Loong, nine dragons. Gives it that majestic air, which is just about right as it covers a such a great expense of land making tiny little elitist Hong Kong Island appear almost insignificant. Once you arrive at Tsim Sha Tsui, the southern point of Kowloon - Hong Kong has turned upside down and everything has rough edges. Even better when you're caught in the middle of the 1st of July holiday - the handover to China day. Scary, yet thrilling. As I meandered my way through thick crowds, the thought of "Hong Kong feet" crossed my mind more than once. I completely understand how the term got coined now.

The street markets in Mongkok was where I was heading for. I've been told of the legendary Ladies Street, and I just had to see it for myself. I came home with 2 new tops and a new pair of shoes. The street markets aren't so different from Petaling Street, back home. It feels good to be right at home over there.

I'd blog more about the clubbing scene in Hong Kong. But I'll save it for another post. Karaoeke completely overwhelms me. The social stakes are high.