World Cultures 101

When you tell people you are moving overseas (a work related move for those of you who were not in the know) , they seem to assume you are an expert in the region. This couldn't be further from the truth.  The fact is, until I started googling Hong Kong, I knew very little about the area.  All I did know was this little fact that stuck with me from Ms. Walzer's 10th grade World Cultures class -- Hong Kong was a British territory until 1997, when Britain returned it to China. Why I remembered that small bit of information, I don't know.  Maybe because it's kind of weird to think that another country had that chunk of land and was actually going to give it back.  And it was going to happen during my lifetime.  And I would eventually live there (though I didn't know it at the time)!

Anyways, for the record, I have yet to visit the land of Hong Kong.  And I won't get to set foot there until late-April when Gene and I go apartment hunting.  So for now, I'm just relying on what he's told me,what I've seen on television and these couple of facts and stats that I've found online.

• HK is located on the southeast coast of China at the mouth of the Pearl River and facing the South China Sea.  It is made up of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, which include 262 outlying islands.  The total area is about 425 square miles. (China is in Asia, in case you were wondering.)
• HK is 8,000+  from Raleigh, NC. (That's about an 18 hour flight, but good luck finding one direct from RDU.)
• The official name is Hong Kong S.A.R. (Special Administrative Region).  China has one other SAR - Macau. (Not SARS the disease, SAR)
• Since being returned to China from Britain in 1997, HK operates under the principle of 'One Country, Two Systems'.  It has kept its capitalist system, independent judiciary system, free trade and freedom of speech. (In other words, not a communist area)
• The climate is sub-tropical.  (The projected high temperature for Friday is 62 degrees.)
• Hong Kong's population is 7 million.  It is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. (7,000,004 come July)
• Despite the dense population, 80% of the area is rural or country parks. (Gotta love green space!)
• Chinese (Cantonese) and English are the official languages. (One of the benefits of being run by the British for so long!)
• Currency is the HK dollar, which is about 7.80 HKD to 1USD.  (It couldn't be an easy number to divide like 2 or 5, could it?  Seriously going to need a calculator!)
• Hong Kong is remarkably safe and the crime rate is very low.  Public smoking, littering and spitting are all punishable with fines. (Nothing I hate more then seeing someone hocker on the street.  Anti-spit laws alone are worth the move!)
• The time difference is 12 or 13 hours (depending on daylight savings) ahead of EST in the U.S. (So please don't call me at 3pm your time)

So there you have it.  Now you know as much about Hong Kong as I do.  And as you can see, I've got lots and lots to learn!  Best way to learn it?  Live it, I guess!