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I am leaving HK tomorrow. There has been a lot that I’ve done, a lot that I’ve seen, and a bunch of places and people I haven’t seen. “Part 7: Final Four” is now uploaded, but no new videos have been uploaded, I think. In this album, you can see some more of HK McDonald’s feats and triumphs over North American McD, as well as a brief shot of a dinner at Gold Coast. Part 7 is definitely the smallest album, weighing in at 77 pictures.

Faith in HK

Before coming to HK, I had been praying and hoping for a chance to experience the ministry. However, as I’ve found during my time here, something has been preventing me from attending a single service at any of the churches I’ve researched. For example, The Vine. The Vine is located on HK Island, and I live in HK every weekend…but I never attended a single service! In order to get to where I stay on the weekends, and in order to cross the harbour back to Kowloon, I have to pass by The Vine! Yet, each time I near The Vine, I never get off the tram and actually go up. In fact, each time we walk close to The Vine, the thought of actually going up doesn’t appear in my mind.

Before coming to HK, I had also been praying for a chance to perhaps evangelize to my grandparents. Grandpa Lee is attending Sunday services, but I think he is apathetic to the Gospel… Grandpa and Grandma Lam have both been evangelized to by their own children before, but they heavily reject the Gospel. I wonder if it was just another one of my selfish dreams to be able to communicate the gospel to them, to give them a chance to maybe hear the gospel from a younger perspective? I am actually afraid of what might be said by Grandpa Lam if I try to evangelize tonight at dinner…maybe its not even a good idea.

Despite all these “letdowns” though, I still believe God’s presence was around us during our stay in HK. Perhaps the best example is the Ngong Ping 360 cable car incident. Although we had heard scary stories about it, we still planned to go on it to experience it, since we’re already here! For almost two weeks when we touched down, it was raining or had high winds - both of these cause 360 to be closed. Around 2 days ago, a cable car fell down when 360 was closed for the night, after almost a week of maintenance was performed on it. So…we took this with a grain of salt that we were not destined to ride the 360.

HK After 6 Years

So last time I visited HK was 6 years ago (9/11 happened after I got back). This time back, I was able to appreciate a bit more of what I experienced - not to say, I could take more pictures with a digital camera now. Some things that I will definitely miss, once I get back to Toronto, will be the MTR, the conveniences of the Octopus card, the superior fast food varieties, the exceptional customer service…

Why did Toronto’s version of the Octopus card fail so miserably? For starters…Canada as a whole is very fragmented, broad and vast. In fact, Toronto itself is incredibly big, compared with HK. Since HK is so jam-packed, mass/public transit is much more reliable and efficient than driving your own auto. HK culture is very fast-paced and as I’ve said before…very temporary - everybody wants everything QUICKLY, and everything is at fingertip reach. In comparison, although many people in Toronto depend on the incredibly crappy TTC, the majority DRIVE. Most people in Toronto also have a place to PARK their hunk of metal and rubber, whereas most HK people DON’T have that luxury. When HK people buy groceries, they buy for only a day or two’s worth - whatever they buy, they almost immediately consume for dinner or lunch later in the day. In comparison, Canadian…albeit Toronto residents usually buy for the entire week, or even stockpile at Costco/Sam’s Club and pile up their deep freezers/freezer rooms. So, mainly because of how much space Toronto has for, well…everything, an Octopus system is DOOMED for failure - you’d probably only have those living in the Cores using the system! One final point: HK’s Octopus system has almost been around for a decade - it had a slow start in the beginning, the initial user count was low, and the initial service partners were limited. However after 10 years or so, almost all of HK uses this elaborate, yet sophisticated, system…and you can do almost everything with the Octopus card. You can pay your bank bills, set up your card so that it deducts from your bank account, pay for groceries at the supermarkets, pay for food at major fast-food joints, refill your balance at a 7-Eleven, pay for your bus-fare/MTR fare/tram fare, pay for your parking meter…

Well HK…I’ll see you again in another 5 years or so. Let’s see what new things you have to show me, and let’s hope global warming doesn’t cause you to get hot (ie. 35+) in late May/early June next time. Let’s part with good memories, and not bitter curses…and let us return to each other due to good events, rather than bad ones.