A Taste of China

An intermediate trip to break up the long haul that will bring us back to Italy from Australia, on a flight that on the outward leg was borne well thanks to the excitement of the prospect of arriving in the 'New World' of our world. The much-feared local authorities (who knows why, then?) after a glance that seems suspicious stamp our passports, and in an instant we find ourselves in the vortex of the most chaotic airport we have ever seen. A guide of few words sticks a sticker on us to recognise us, since we have booked (thankfully!) the transfer to the hotel. After a moment we notice the enormous difference from Australia: we have gone from one of the countries with a low population density to one of those with the highest! This reflection will accompany us throughout our stay in Hong Kong.

In the evening we drag ourselves wearily near the hotel and the confusion, the people, the lights and the strange smells finish us off.

The following morning, with the help of a guide (highly recommended, because I think Hong Kong is not at all easy to get around on your own, and also after a month spent independently it is pleasant for someone to take you around), we take a boat trip and observe from an unusual perspective the immense public housing skyscrapers and the houseboats that are all the rage in the waters of Hong Kong. Included in the organised day was a visit to a jewellery factory (honestly not welcome, and here we come back to being opposed to organised tours, where they try in every way to get you to buy something). At lunchtime they leave us free for a bit of shopping at Stanley Market, where we find out that the great bargains we imagined making are not to be had in these places, and besides, wherever they take tourists the rip-off is always just around the corner.

We do very much enjoy wandering through these alleys with stalls crammed side by side selling everything. The last stop of the excursion is the climb to the Peak, from where Hong Kong and its thick blanket of smog stretch out below us in a landscape that seems almost fake. Having left the group, we end our day with a stroll along Nathan Road, the street of the big brands, where you are not allowed to linger in front of the shop windows.....the flow of people is so intense that you find yourself swept along with no possibility of escape: you have to walk and not stop. So we take refuge in a park where we find people practising some kind of martial art and the gardens are truly ZEN. We close this day at the Symphony of Lights, a show staged every evening where the skyscrapers of the city's financial district light up to the rhythm of music.

Last reserves of energy for a walk along the Avenue of Stars (with the obligatory photo at the Bruce Lee statue) and a hop to Temple Market, where however confusion reigns, so we decide to head for the hotel.

We devote the last day to visiting Hong Kong Island, the part where the skyscrapers of the big global companies and banks reign supreme. The Star Ferry takes us for a few coins to the other side of the city, where we also take the characteristic double-decker trams. Here we notice some very unusual things: the pavements are raised above the road, on which a great many cars speed by, and people gather on cardboard beds to talk, eat and be together. It almost seems a situation of poverty that clashes greatly with the gleaming skyscrapers stretching up to the sky above our heads. We return to dry land and watch a beautiful demonstration of children playing in local dress against the background of the illuminated skyscrapers: the emblem of this modern China that is still closely bound to its traditions.

Extreme modernity and respect for traditions make this country, once very distant and now part of the everyday life of our lives, very fascinating and hard to understand. It was a trip that kept us away from home for a month, and it was the only one in which we felt the desire to return. Almost happy, we head to the airport where, after completing the formalities, we will face the long journey that will take us home.