Friday, November 9, 2012

Healthy Hong Kong

I'm back! After almost three weeks away on a business trip, I'm back in Hong Kong to start my 7th week exploring this city.

The time away has been good on many levels - connecting with colleagues and working with people in person again has been motivating on a professional level, seeing a close friend again after being away from friends since I arrived in Hong Kong was so refreshing I almost cried, and staying in a hotel surrounded by trees and birds and not hearing a constant drone of city noise was soothing. But no situation is perfect and I was ready to return to normal life on Wednesday evening. Things I missed about Hong Kong was the flexibility of using the MTR to get to work and not relying on taxi's, having access to shops and restaurants 24/7, a kitchen again to prepare my own food, and not living out of a suitcase. So I guess the usual experience for a business trip :-)

I have noticed the weather has got a little cooler, and the days a little shorter. Also with it I see the HK government have put up health awareness posters perhaps as prevention for any upcoming flu season. Fortunately they were also translated in English so I could understand:


Maintain Cough Manners


Washing Hands well



And my favourite - Use Antibiotics Smartly.  


On the topic of health, I have noticed that people smoke more frequently in Hong Kong than in Malaysia. Anyone who has been out with me will know how sensitive I am to smoke and that I will move seats in a restaurant several times to avoid it, even having left half way through my meal in France once because the people next to us were constantly smoking. If there is any topic that will get me fired up, it is the discussion of banning smoking everywhere in public.  So let's see more of these posters to ' Enjoy a smoke free environment'  please because in my humble opinion people smoke too much in Hong Kong.




Lastly, just a quick thought: How long IS the Angry Birds craze going to last? Today I saw this new display for limited edition merchandise. Surely everyone has conquered it and is ready to move on? I'm amazed at how marketing can drag things out, almost as bad as the USA election media coverage.



3 comments:

  1. Hello fellow Expat blogger! I found your blog on the Expats Blog website. I blog from Monaco at gustia.net. Aren't you lucky to live in Hong Kong! I love the place. The buzz, the food, eveything. It's like no where else in the world. It makes Tokyo look like a sleepy village. I visit HK every January for a few weeks and I'd love to live there but I find the air a bit thick... I like your post with photos of all the health department signs. We could use more of that in Monaco where people sneeze into the open air on buses. Yikes! We have a lot to learn from Hong Kong. As for the Angry Birds? I was at the funfair in the Port of Monaco yesterday and I dropped 6Euro into a claw machine trying to win a stuffed toy replica of one of the blasted things. So I guess it's still going strong in Europe too. Or maybe just with me.

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    1. Hi Jennifer,
      Thanks for stopping by!

      Yup, I think you have the same impression about Hong Kong - very busy with thick air. I am starting to enjoy it more now that I can start filtering out all the visual and audio noise and pick up some really cool and interesting things.

      And good luck next time with the Angry Birds claw machine :-)
      I have to say the characters are cute, and the game kept me well entertained during long commutes at times, so it has served a noble purpose.

      Never been to Monaco before so will have to 'explore' more through your blog. Have a good week.

      Bronwyn

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  2. I enjoyed seeing the photos for healthy Hong Kong Bron, sounds good.
    Love you so much. xxx

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Feel free to leave a comment, I'm curious to know what you think too!