EIL Intercultural Learning

Day 1- I boarded our first flight with some trepidation. As a novice flyer I was unsure as to how I would enjoy the experience, but as we soared above Dublin airport I quickly realised that the lack of leg room was of more imminent concern to me than the threat of us careering to a sensational death. Bar several emphatic triumphs over Laura on the play station in Charles de Gaulle, the rest of the journey was uneventful, largely due to a malfunctioning TV screen on the Paris-Hong Kong flight which forced me to read a dodgy book on the topic of banditry in the Sierra Madre of Mexico.

On arrival we were met by Damon and Charmaine who gave us an impromptu tour of their city through the window of the bus en route to our hotel. We marvelled at the density and height of the buildings and in every window camera flashes could be seen. Looking back on my own camera these photos now seem unnecessary and unspectacular compared to what we would see in the coming days, I suppose this shows how quickly we acclimatized to the city.

After settling into my room with Daniel and Craig, we went for our first meal with the Hong Kong delegation. My first chop stick assault was on a mango and duck spring roll. Delicious and slippery, the night continued in a similar fashion with the Irish dropping food, picking it up, dropping, and eventually enjoying it. I quickly discovered the secret to the chop sticks- dropping food is inevitable, the trick is to drop it into your mouth!

After dinner we took a quick stroll around our surrounding area, Mong Kong (Mong meaning busy). Half past ten on a Monday night, we were amazed by the throngs of people that paced up and down these pedestrianised streets. The place never sleeps, we were told and when I asked a young shop attended what time did they close, she merely shrugged, “when they go home”, “they” meaning the thousands of potential punters along Nathan road. Somehow I felt she was in for a long shift!

Day 2- Jet lagged and exhausted, we arose Wednesday morning for a trip to the Hong Kong museum of history. Bypassing the natural stuff ( because we slept it out and were late) we went straight for the cultural history of HK. The local delegates were of great help in explaining the significance of the exhibitions and the bus back to the hotel was alive with political discussion as we found out more about Hong Kong’s strange situation as a “special administrative region” in China and discovered what these young students predicted would change in 2047 when this status is expunged and their city is absorbed back into mainland China.

We donned our formal wear for the welcoming lunch, which was an extravagant array of “dim sum” (traditional food) and western food. This feast was accompanied by speeches from local diplomats and youth leaders as well as our leader Lillian and a particularly well spoken few words from Irish delegate Aidan Healy.

With suppressed appetites we set out for an over night stay in the Noah’s Ark resort, an impressive full scale rebuild of the biblical vessel. Grounded under a bridge ,opposite Ma Wan park, a theme park had cropped up around the ship and it housed an ultra modern hostel inside. Our time that evening was spent playing team building games which were both fun and helpful in getting to know the 23 delegates. That night the boys room was invaded and a small party was had, fuelled by Chinese junk food and set to the backing track of MTV Asia. The irony of the raging thunderstorm and heavy rains had us all amused as we dozed off to sleep on the top deck of the Ark.

Day 3- After a good night’s sleep it was time to explore the Ark. It became clear that this theme park was one which aimed to be both fun and informative for the visitors and it’s ethos seemed to be about environmental sustainability. The 4D film was particularly effective in conveying this message to the audience.

The morning’s exploits set us up nicely for our visit to the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology where following a brief introduction to the measures taken by the school to reduce carbon emissions, Adrian, an American ex-pat from UCLA, spear headed a lively and interesting discussion on the topic of environmental sustainability. He showed us how we could think sceptically and logically when flooded with adverts for “environmentally friendly” products. A tour of the college campus followed and this culminated on the top floor where we were treated to a panoramic view of the bay.

Dinner tonight was at Mido’s, an old style Chinese diner. Charmaine was on hand to decipher the menu for us and her selections, as always, were excellent, in particular the toast!

After our stomach constraints had once again been tested, we set off to Temple Street market where we were given some basic Cantonese bargaining phrases and sent out on a souvenir hunt. These markets proved somewhat of a Mecca for the label loving as the stalls were teeming with high quality designer knock offs.

The ritual pilling into someone’s room was done again tonight as everyone enjoyed each other’s company late into the night.

Day 4- As we boarded the bus to Magic Kingdom, I had rather naively presumed we were en route to Disneyland Hong Kong. Hence my intrigue, as we were shuffled into a modest looking tower block 30 minutes from the hotel. This intrigue increased as the elevator pinged past countless floors and by the time we arrived at our stop, I had reached a state of utter confusion. Weary looks were exchanged by the basketball playing residents as the Irish contingent strolled through their court. Ok, so I’m pretty sure it’s not Disneyland and as if to answer all my questions, a small sign on the wall of an apartment with no distinction to the hundreds of others we had passed before proclaimed “Magic Kingdom”. We entered and were brought to a small, square room where a makeshift stage had been erected and huge, luxurious, purple curtains hung proudly either side. This room was rife with props and costumes, and a video of Madonna suspended upon a huge cross, complete with thorned crown and blooded face only added to the surrealism of the spectacle. We learned that this was a social enterprise project, not too dissimilar to enterprise Ireland, that had allowed two brothers transcend their love for magic into a viable business venture and now they were famous across China, even appearing on national television. The magic itself was captivating, the magicians wistful appearance and loose grasp of the English language furthered the sense of magic in that little room, a feeling I’m sure I would not of felt if indeed we did go to Disneyland that morning.

Next on the itinerary was a visit to the Peak which was reached by a traditional tram that creaked and jolted to the top, all the time offering spectacular views of the high rise city. We reached the peak and in true Hong Kong style, that top of the world feeling was forgone. Instead the Peak boasted a pretty nice shopping mall, which for the modest fee of 2 dollars (20 cent) you could stand on the roof of, which at least offered a steady foot hold for taking pictures of the spectacular view.

After dinner, a jam-packed day continued with a visit to the YMCA centre for the deaf. Here we heard about everyday life for a deaf person in the bustling city that is Hong Kong and learned the alphabet in the Cantonese strain of Sign language. A regular visitor to the centre then took to the stage, hit the play button and on came Roy Orbison’s immortal track, and sang the lyrics of “Pretty Woman” in Sign louder than any of us could of dreamed of! We had a go at this which was great fun for everyone!

Our last stop that day was a visit to a local youth centre, where a councillor described the problems young people face in Hong Kong. The prominent one here seemed to be the lack of personal space the teenagers have due to their minuscule apartments. This leads them to hang around the streets late into the night which can lead to antisocial behaviour. This centre seeks to offer refuge to these “night drifters” and give them something productive to do such as hip hop dancing and band training.

Day 5- Saturday arrives and it’s time for some white knuckle fun! Ocean park, a sea-world/Alton towers type theme park is bisected by a huge ridge which divides panda habitats and aquariums from the roller coasters and other high speed thrills. To travel between the two sections one most climb aboard a cable car which gives you exceptional sea views from high up in the mountains. I’m usually that person holding peoples jackets while they go in search of thrills and adrenaline rushes in such theme parks but with my new found “When in Rome” rationalism, (the same mindset that saw me eating ducks claws and cows tongues throughout the week), I boarded THE DRAGON. Sure I felt like puking, sure I couldn’t feel my legs but hey, I survived and before long I was being catapulted into the stratosphere before plunging back down again, all the time being urged to “feel the depth” by the parks P.A. and gingerly stepping from that towards the sound of the Indiana Jones theme tune and the mine train.

Following an excellent dinner in a Shanghai style restaurant we walked along the beautiful waterfront on Hong Kong island and boarded Star’s ferry for a tour of the harbour, just in time for the 8 o’clock light show. A typically Hong Kong extravaganza sees countless sky scrapers coming to life with an impressive array of lasers and lights which seemingly dance and flirt along to the music tinkering away on board.

Day 6- Sunday, and first stop the Golden Bauhinia, a sculpture given to the people of Hong Kong in 1997 by the Chinese government . Supposedly a commemorative piece in remembrance of the establishment of the Hong Kong SAR, one cannot look past some subtleties surrounding the tourist attraction such as the Chinese flag hanging slightly above the flag of Hong Kong, and the great wall enclosing the ever blooming flower, apparently a sign of the greatness of the motherland, to me it looks suspiciously like a reminder of who‘s really in charge.

A quick walk through the exhibition centre and we hop on a tram which brings us through the working class area of Kennedy town with it’s older buildings and countless dried fish shops, this served as a welcome break from the tourists before we arrived in Stanley. This seaside area has a very Mediterranean feel to it with high rise buildings kept to a minimum and the streets awash with pubs and restaurants all jostling for your custom. A swim on the beach here provided some much welcome refuge from the heat that day !

Following a quick shower in the hotel, I met Amy and Charmaine in the hotel lobby. Tonight was scheduled as a home visit, where we would have an opportunity to see how Hong Kongers lived, hear a family’s views on life in the city and of course, enjoy some “dim sum”. Amy and I had the pleasure of being welcomed into Charmaine’s beautiful home which overlooked the Sha Tin river. Greeted with warm welcome by the parents, I presented Charmaine’s father, Victor, with a Waterford Crystal hands of friendship piece. As I conversed more with Victor, the pride in his voice as he talked about his city was palpable. “The food here is the best, the shopping is the best, the public transport, the people, the wine, are of course, the best”. His audacious love for his city was completely understandable I concluded, after all, Hong Kong IS the best.

Day 7- Monday proved a strange day. The itinerary read like this: Bus from the city gate to giant Buddha monastery, dinner back at city gate following a visit to Tai O. My presumptions read like this: The city gate is a huge gated wall built to keep northern invaders out during some distant era, I will be awestruck by the scale and serenity of the monastery, dinner will be great as always and Tai O(which my research had toldme was called the Venice of China because of it’s stilted houses) will most probably be a shopping district. Again my preconceptions were wrong, very, very wrong.

I was woken by the jolting of the bus as it came to a stop outside the City Gate. Bleary eyed ,I glanced out my window. Staring back at me in huge gold letters was CITY GATE OUTLET MALL. Ok so it wasn’t an ancient stronghold I observed with a laugh, time to catch the bus to the monastery. `

If only I was awake enough to fully appreciate and photograph some of the views on the journey up the mountains to the Giant Buddha. It was truly remarkable, stunning at times. If only the same could be said for the monastery itself. After a quick canvas of the area it felt strange. Teeming with tourists and signage for various souvenir shops which occupied the newly constructed “shopping village”, I began to doubt if it was possible for the famous Buddhist spirituality to co-exist with such gimmickry. I meandered my way through the ongoing construction works and the endless tourists to the 300 odd steps that ascended towards the happy looking Buddha perched on top of the mountain. It was an impressive sight, spoiled somewhat by the swarm of woman offering to sell me coupons for an ice-cream and a coke upon reaching the top! The Buddha museum confirmed that the whole site emerged during the 90’s and when I asked Damon what the Chinese carvings on the side of the monument meant, I was told they were names of sponsors of the project. Time to get out of there.

A quick bus ride to the fishing village of Tai O, and we were clambering on board a humble boat that would bring us out into the sea in search of the rare pink dolphins! Refreshingly breezy, the twenty minute ride was very enjoyable and spotting the dolphins head surfacing on two occasions gave us a sense of achievement as we strolled through the impoverished village. The people here are far removed from the tourists who come on the buses, board the boats, see their dolphins and leave again. Several gnarly dogs roam the streets alongside hard faced fishermen and the smell of dried fish was staunch. Here in Tai O I visited War God Temple which has existed since the Ming Dynasty. As modest as it is, it done much more to satisfy my apatite for cultural exposure then the Big Buddha.

Day 8- Our last full day in the city began with a visit to a YMCA secondary school. We were all warmed by the welcome the students here gave us (which included a large welcome sign outside the main doors). Photos flashed as we entered a conference room with 50 or so students who had taken time from their summer holidays and donned their uniforms to give us a presentation about the education system in Hong Kong and a tour of their school which boasted some impressive features such as video conferencing facilities and a well equipped music room. Our goodbyes said and face book addresses exchanged we left for lunch at a steak house and set about preparing for the farewell dinner.

Another huge dinner was followed by farewell speeches and performances. Both Niamh and Jacqueline blasted out a tune on the tin whistle whilst Sarah performed an Irish dance. Daniel recited a poem as Gaelige and the group performed rousing renditions of The Fields of Athenry and our national anthem. The Hong Kong delegation followed suit in performing a friends forever song, video evidence of which can be seen on youtube! After approximately 4000 pictures were taken, we headed to a bar in Knutsgrove Terrace and continued the party back in the hotel.

Day 9- Reluctant goodbyes were said at the airport as we boarded our long haul flight back to the Irish rain. Already, plans were being hatched for of the Hong Kong delegation who will complete the exchange by visiting Cork and Kerry on the 30th of August, I just hope they can have as amazing an experience in Ireland as we had with them out there!