Travel Quote, and an Odd Experience

In Hong Kong, the skyscrapers reach for the heavens, while the ancient traditions anchor its soul to the earth. Xu Xi

An old snapshot of Hong Kong.

I read The Hungry Travellers post this morning about Hong Kong and it reminded me of an odd experience I had while there, years ago. I went to meet up with theTravelsketcher who was there on business, and my mom who just happened to be there too, on vacation. One day, while theTravelsketcher was working, my mom and I were sightseeing. It was a hot and humid day, so we stopped to rest on a park bench for a few minutes. An elderly Chinese lady came up to us, and with her face very close to ours, gave us a very severe scolding in Chinese, which continued for several minutes. When she finished berating us, she looked quite pleased with herself, and slowly, confidently, strolled away. Mom and I were quite shocked, but also relieved we couldn’t understand her.

We had several other experiences while there which made us feel not very welcome. However, maybe we’ll visit again someday and give it another try. After reading the above mentioned post, and Leighton Travels! recent post about Yangshou, it sounds quite interesting.

I’m sharing this today since we’re leaving in a few weeks for an extended vacation in Europe, including stops in Finland, Estonia, Czechia, Montenegro and bien sûr, France. Because of the current political situation, and the extreme problems the current “administration” has caused around the globe, we’re a little concerned about the type of reception we’ll receive.

Have you experienced situations like this while traveling? As always, I would be interested to hear about them, so leave a message if you’d like.

Tricia

32 thoughts on “Travel Quote, and an Odd Experience”

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  2. That’s a very strange encounter you had; I’ve been told that Hong Kong locals aren’t always the friendliest, and I guess your situation confirmed that. Even of you spoke Cantonese/understood what she was saying, I don’t know if that’d make a difference, since you’re not from HK. All the same, it’s these strange moments in travel which make stories to tell later on!

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  3. To be completely straight, I didn’t care much for HK. I visited 20 years ago and commented to the Hungry Travellers that I found the food mostly disappointing but as a non-Asian person I additionally felt uncomfortable there, too. Nothing specific occurred but there seemed to be something of an “attitude” which my travel companion noted also. I decided not to return. Your encounter with the elderly lady was quite something! I’ll be looking forward to reading about your European visit. Cheers.

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  4. When my husband and I went to HK this year, we stayed in an inn located on the 23rd floor. On day, we went down to grab some food when I left my phone in the room. When the elevator reached the ground floor, I stayed to go back up when an old local man entered and pressed the 21st floor. From the moment he entered, he kept on looking at me (like a disgusted look). I didn’t even talk to him, lol. He kept on staring until I asked him, “What?” He looked away then. It was creepy

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  5. I am truly surprised to read some of these comments! I first visited HK in 1960 and have done so dozens of times (admittedly not lately) . . . have never ever experienced anything except absolute Eastern courtesy. Love the city – absolutely love the food – used to go there for 7-10 day quiet respites just to eat. Glad you are going to my birth country of Estonia – it does have a very different vibe to the States: people being a lot more reserved (but by no means unfriendly!) if they do not know you 🙂 !

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    1. It’s good to hear that you have had multiple good experiences in HK. I didn’t mention this in my post, but my brother was there on business and absolutely loved his time there. His recommendations were one of the main reasons I went. Oh my; what a coincidence! We’re so looking forward to visiting Estonia, and our other destinations. After living in France for nearly 3 years, we are far more comfortable with the European vibe than what’s here at the moment. Thanks for sharing.

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  6. I didn’t experience anything like that in HK, but I have in other areas. Since I can’t understand what these little old ladies are saying, and it seems as though spit is streaming from their words, I often tell Richard that I think they’re putting a hex on us. 😊 It actually just recently happened here in Egypt, but has happened in many countries. Always little old ladies, and often beggars.

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  7. Thank you for the plug 😁. I had an opposite experience (of sorts) with a group of Chinese ladies in Pisa, Italy, who clearly mistook me for some celebrity or other, pointed and giggled for a while and then clamoured round for a series of photographs. I just went along with it – I have no idea who they thought I was but I thought I’d enjoy my five minutes of fame 😂

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  9. I was once talked to scathingly (because my accent gave away my Americanism) while traveling, but it was from an Englishman in London, so I understood every word. I’m a little worried about my reception in Denmark and Sweden in a few weeks. I’m glad the inflammatory Greenland talk has died down a bit.

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  11. It often happened on our overseas travels that people were surprised to hear we were from South Africa, because it seemed they thought only black people live in South Africa. In Egypt, we had a bad experience where one of the locals, when they heard we are from South Africa, said we should go back to Europe because we cannot be classified as Africans since we’re white. I think this is probably the remark that has still upset me the most on our travels.
    Enjoy your European holiday – I’m sure you’ll have a blast!

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    1. I’m saddened to hear, Corna, that you experienced this type of negativity; that’s just sad, and I can completely understand how that would be so upsetting. We hope the future will bring a more unified and accepting world, with no prejudice and ignorance. Thank you, Corna!

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  12. I hope you have a wonderful trip to Europe. I’m sure as considerate, kind and culturally aware travellers you will receive nothing but a nice reception – I don’t think anyone here blames anyone other than the people at the top. I’m sorry you had that experience in HK, we felt very welcome there back in 2022! 🙂

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    1. Thanks so much, Hannah, for your kind words. I hope that’s the case. I’m glad to hear you had a good experience in HK. I doubt we’ll go back, but given the opportunity, we would give it another try. We’re looking forward to going back to Europe!

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  13. Have a wonderful trip, Tricia. I do hope that you won’t have any bad experiences. I’ve never had any bad experiences in Hong Kong or China – people were always very welcoming and warm. I had a similar barrage of negativity thrown at me many years ago in India – also from an old woman to whom I, being young and foolish, wished good morning.

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  16. When I was having lunch in Basel, Switzerland alone (I relish my eating-alone-time), I was at a sweet restaurant, sitting at a table-for-two with a pretty view. There were plenty of other tables, half of which were empty. I was in the middle of my meal and Vanity Fair magazine article when a well dressed elderly Swiss woman came up to my table, pulled out the opposite chair, and sat down, smiling politely. And not budging. She placed her order, smiled and nodded at me, seeming to acknowledge we had a language barrier, and stayed. I have NO idea what it was all about. Was I sitting at her regular table? Was that the tradition of this restaurant? (Although looking about, it didn’t seem to be.) Or was this little old lady a tad crazy? Or lonely? Sigh. Man thinking about her now, I realize she probably passed away 15 years ago.

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