While still in the midst of their study abroad experiences, students at Linfield College write reflective essays. Their essays address issues of cultural similarity and difference, compare lifestyles, mores, norms, and habits between their host countries and home, and examine changes in perceptions about their host countries and the United States. In this essay, Conner Pope describes his observations during his study abroad program at Hong Kong Baptist University in Hong Kong, China

Pope, Conner K.

English

DigitalCommons@Linfield

Linfield College DigitalCommons@Linfield 2015-16 Field Notes Field Notes from Abroad: Person to Person 11-16-2015 Person to Person in Hong Kong Conner K. Pope LInfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/intl_fieldnotes_1516 Recommended Citation Pope, Conner K., "Person to Person in Hong Kong" (2015). 2015-16 Field Notes. Essay. Submission 7. https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/intl_fieldnotes_1516/7 This Essay is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield, with permission from the rights-holder(s). Your use of this Essay must comply with the Terms of Use for material posted in DigitalCommons@Linfield, or with other stated terms (such as a Creative Commons license) indicated in the record and/or on the work itself. For more information, or if you have questions about permitted uses, please contact digitalcommons@linfield.edu. Conner	  Pope	  Hong	  Kong	  Baptist	  University	  November	  16th,	  2015	  The life of a “Hong Konger” 	   I	  decided	  to	  interview	  Kristen	  Chan,	  a	  classmate	  I’ve	  had	  the	  honor	  of	  working	  with	  on	  a	  number	  of	  group	  assignments.	  She’s	  a	  third	  year	  student	  at	  Hong	  Kong	  Baptist	  University,	  and	  a	  local	  “Hong	  Konger.”	  My	  interview	  with	  her	  ended	  up	  following	  the	  pull	  of	  my	  Anthropology	  major,	  as	  I	  began	  with	  asking	  about	  local	  family	  structures	  and	  religion,	  and	  our	  conversation	  concluded	  with	  an	  in-­‐depth	  discussion	  on	  local	  beliefs	  regarding	  luck	  and	  superstitions.	  	   My	  first	  questions	  had	  to	  do	  with	  describing	  the	  typical	  Hong	  Kong	  family.	  Kristen	  mentioned	  that	  the	  most	  traditional	  family	  home	  held	  3	  generations,	  including	  grandparents,	  most	  if	  not	  all	  of	  their	  children,	  and	  grandchildren.	  I	  asked	  her	  how	  often	  she	  tends	  to	  see	  this	  structure	  today,	  and	  she	  admitted	  that	  Hong	  Kong’s	  living/housing	  space	  issue	  has	  almost	  terminated	  this	  idea	  of	  the	  typical	  family.	  With	  housing	  costs	  up	  with	  the	  most	  expensive	  in	  the	  world,	  a	  family	  is	  “lucky”	  to	  live	  with	  grandparents,	  one	  married	  couple,	  and	  their	  children.	  Hong	  Kongers	  typically	  stay	  in	  Hong	  Kong	  to	  study	  and	  to	  work,	  unless	  a	  student	  fails	  the	  “public	  exam.”	  This	  exam,	  to	  be	  taken	  between	  the	  high	  school	  and	  university	  levels,	  acts	  like	  a	  ticket	  into	  a	  public	  university	  institution,	  at	  least	  with	  a	  good	  enough	  score.	  Kristen	  says	  that	  most	  study	  enough	  to	  do	  well	  on	  the	  exam,	  however	  those	  who	  fail	  may	  be	  sent	  to	  a	  foreign	  country	  to	  study	  -­‐	  with	  the	  help	  of	  government	  aid	  if	  their	  parents	  work	  for	  the	  government.	  I	  found	  this	  to	  be	  really	  interesting	  -­‐	  I	  couldn’t	  see	  the	  Federal	  Government	  helping	  me	  much	  if	  I	  wanted	  to	  study	  in	  a	  foreign	  country	  (without	  including	  semester	  abroad	  programs).	  This	  discussion	  led	  to	  the	  opinions	  on	  working	  for	  the	  government,	  which	  were	  positive.	  Government	  work	  pays	  very	  well,	  and	  a	  youth	  who	  decides	  to	  pursue	  the	  police	  force	  instead	  of	  university	  could	  begin	  making	  $20,000HK	  per	  month	  ($2580	  USD).	  	   We	  briefly	  discussed	  her	  parents’	  work,	  and	  other	  businesses	  her	  friends	  work	  for	  if	  they	  didn’t	  pursue	  university.	  Then	  I	  asked	  her	  to	  explain	  to	  me	  the	  small	  prayer	  shrines	  you	  find	  on	  every	  Hong	  Kong	  street.	  A	  small	  red	  gazebo	  the	  size	  of	  a	  mailbox	  sits	  near	  the	  steps	  to	  almost	  every	  restaurant,	  bar,	  market	  and	  business.	  Kristen	  tells	  me	  this	  is	  hard	  to	  explain,	  but	  she	  will	  try	  her	  best.	  She	  tells	  me	  it	  doesn’t	  have	  much	  of	  a	  religious	  connotation,	  but	  it	  is	  tradition.	  These	  shrines	  are	  mainly	  dedicated	  to	  ancestors	  and	  are	  tended	  to	  roughly	  3	  times	  a	  day.	  People	  will	  set	  fruit	  and	  burn	  3	  sticks	  of	  incense	  during	  meal	  times,	  every	  day.	  These	  rituals	  are	  supposed	  to	  “feed”	  ancestors,	  as	  well	  as	  bring	  good	  luck	  and	  prosperity	  to	  the	  other	  living	  family	  members	  in	  the	  establishment.	  Kristen	  mentioned	  that	  there’s	  another	  type	  of	  shrine	  you	  will	  see	  inside	  more	  often	  than	  outside,	  and	  I	  knew	  which	  she	  was	  talking	  about.	  These	  shrines	  I’ve	  seen	  in	  small	  handyman	  shops	  and	  local	  pubs	  are	  dedicated	  to	  a	  certain	  goddess,	  Guanyin,	  and	  are	  bigger	  and	  more	  detailed	  than	  the	  mailbox	  sized	  shrines	  outside.	  These	  Guanyin	  shrines	  may	  be	  as	  tall	  as	  myself,	  and	  as	  wide	  as	  my	  shoulders,	  usually	  complete	  with	  fruit	  and	  incense	  burning	  inside,	  in	  front	  of	  the	  peaceful	  feminine	  statue	  of	  Guanyin.	  The	  goddess	  is	  to	  bring	  luck	  and	  safety	  in	  particular	  to	  the	  establishment.	  	   Our	  most	  in-­‐depth	  and	  interactive	  subject	  was	  on	  local	  luck	  and	  superstitions.	  At	  first,	  Kristen	  wasn’t	  sure	  what	  I	  meant	  by	  superstition,	  so	  I	  gave	  her	  a	  few	  examples.	  I	  told	  her	  that	  breaking	  a	  mirror,	  opening	  an	  umbrella	  inside,	  walking	  under	  an	  open	  ladder,	  and	  watching	  a	  black	  cat	  cross	  your	  path	  are	  all	  signs	  for	  YEARS	  of	  bad	  luck.	  I	  also	  mentioned	  four	  leaf	  clovers	  and	  rabbit	  feet	  are	  considered	  good	  luck.	  She	  got	  the	  idea,	  and	  said	  that	  while	  she	  will	  laugh	  telling	  me	  about	  these	  superstitions,	  they’re	  actually	  considered	  quite	  scary.	  She	  blamed	  her	  laughter	  on	  the	  translation	  into	  English,	  and	  claimed	  that	  the	  stories	  are	  much	  scarier	  in	  Cantonese.	  In	  regards	  to	  lucky	  things,	  she	  told	  me	  rainbows	  are	  considered	  lucky,	  as	  is	  wearing	  red	  at	  events	  such	  as	  weddings,	  holidays,	  and	  other	  family	  gatherings.	  Next	  were	  bad	  luck	  examples.	  Seeing	  a	  crow	  in	  Hong	  Kong	  culture	  is	  considered	  a	  bad	  omen,	  and	  an	  even	  worse	  omen	  is	  getting	  bird	  poop	  on	  yourself.	  Apparently	  this	  is	  an	  example	  of	  some	  of	  the	  worst	  luck	  a	  person	  can	  have,	  unless	  it	  misses	  the	  person	  closely,	  in	  which	  case	  good	  luck	  is	  administered.	  Stepping	  on	  a	  rat	  is	  also	  considered	  very	  bad	  luck.	  When	  I	  laughed	  and	  said	  that	  could	  never	  happen,	  she	  claimed	  it	  happens	  all	  too	  often.	  The	  rats	  are	  so	  fast,	  they	  have	  run	  under	  her	  friends’	  feet	  before.	  	  	   The	  most	  interesting	  part	  of	  our	  conversation	  had	  to	  do	  roughly	  with	  the	  month	  of	  May	  on	  the	  Old	  Chinese	  Calendar.	  Kristen	  said	  this	  month	  is	  considered	  the	  Festival	  of	  the	  Ghosts.	  Some	  stipulations	  of	  the	  month	  include	  not	  picking	  up	  “lost	  items,”	  such	  as	  loose	  change	  or	  other	  small	  things	  you	  might	  find	  on	  the	  ground.	  These	  items	  may	  belong	  to	  a	  ghost,	  and	  this	  might	  anger	  it	  and	  convince	  it	  to	  follow	  you	  home.	  Certain	  colors	  of	  clothing	  are	  also	  important.	  While	  the	  white	  ghost	  is	  innocent,	  the	  red	  ghost	  cannot	  stand	  a	  living	  being	  wearing	  red,	  and	  it	  angers	  him/her.	  Wearing	  black	  puts	  the	  person	  in	  the	  “same	  magnetic	  field”	  as	  the	  ghost	  (I	  struggled	  with	  this	  translation,	  and	  almost	  want	  to	  call	  it	  an	  aura).	  Wearing	  yellow	  during	  the	  month	  is	  your	  safest	  choice,	  as	  it’s	  the	  same	  color	  of	  the	  paper	  that	  is	  burned	  to	  keep	  the	  ghosts	  away	  during	  rituals.	  Also,	  the	  sound	  of	  cutting	  fingernails	  after	  dark	  attracts	  the	  angry	  ghosts,	  and	  combing	  one’s	  hair	  after	  midnight	  is	  a	  bad	  omen	  waiting	  to	  happen.	  	   In	  terms	  of	  differences	  between	  Kristen’s	  culture	  and	  my	  own,	  it’s	  easy	  to	  see	  that	  luck	  and	  prosperity	  play	  a	  larger	  part	  in	  Hong	  Kong	  culture.	  While	  our	  superstitions	  are	  considered	  somewhat	  comical,	  the	  examples	  Kristen	  gave	  me	  were	  particularly	  scary	  as	  she	  mentioned.	  I	  wish	  I	  asked	  her	  how	  prominent	  these	  beliefs,	  particularly	  the	  ones	  involving	  shrines,	  are	  in	  the	  higher-­‐class	  business	  world.	  I	  wonder	  if	  the	  executive	  bankers	  and	  stockbrokers	  have	  suits	  that	  smell	  like	  incense,	  and	  bring	  extra	  fruit	  in	  their	  lunch	  for	  their	  relatives.	  	  	  

Person to Person in Hong Kong

Name not available

https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&amp;context=intl_fieldnotes_1516

Person to Person in Hong Kong

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

DigitalCommons@Linfield

Name not available