hk#1

WELL i guess i'm finally getting around to posting about hk adventure. first of all though. i must give some props to pilots (i was thinking about josh and his aviation friends!) because it seems really scary to fly a plane. especially one with a lot of people on board. the pressure alone would kill me! the flight was so turbulent at some points and the girl behind me was so scared =( buuut as you now see we have landed and the landing was so smooth!

um so far i haven't been doing much. i came two years ago so i hardly feel excited and also i haven't been taking many pictures surprisingly! pretty much only 1 since landing... but i guess cause i've seen a lot of the things before and i want to kind of take in the beauty and not be caught up in capturing it because there's.. really no way to capture it except for just being in the moment? :P but yeah i've gone shopping a bit (with manika and amy!) and had frosh chillage already. and seen esther and judith as well =D so it's okaay i guess i'm feeling more like a regular hong kong person this time rather than a tourist lol but i still have really bad chinese...

anyways i'm glad in hk there's no shame of eating by yourself.. so i ate by myself XD at dai ga lok and it was very yummy. it gave me a really good time to reflect on my time so far. there were these old ladies there that just walked around waiting to collect your tray and your bowl and everything and ... i felt SO BAD.. cause they're old right so it must be extra tiring to be walking around the whole place waiting for people to finish and it must be realllly tiring and i wanted to express how thankful i was that they were doing what they were doing but all i could say was "mm goy sai" >__< which totally doesn't convey how thankful i am and i want them to feel appreciated!! anyways that's what got me thinking about hk.. i found out today that people get paid really little here (like i mean menial jobs not those business people) and so i think christine was saying how like all the clothes seem super cheap for us because we're pretty well off and stuff but for them those cheap shirts are actually kinda normal? idunnooo i know i don't know the whole picture... but it's so sad >_< like someone else was saying how all hong kong people care about are getting rich but i mean that's because in toronto .. being well off is kind of standard for MOST people. like most poeple are okay and can splurge every now and then like your middle class family? so we don't really think bout money so much.. but i think in hong kong it's very different.. not saying everyone is poor but many people who are deemed middle class might be on the lower end of our middle class standard? I'M NOT REALLY SURE. but i know my heart really broke when i saw a popo selling something on the side of the street (some food i have nooo idea) and like we all just walk past her and she's just like yelling out asking if anyone wants to buy some... it's so sad i suppose because she's so old and she's prob been doing stuff like this her entire life just trying to make a living and still when she's old. so i really hope that she has good business >_< and we went to "ladies street" today and like how some people are trying so hard to get people to buy things... idunno how poor these people are but like they seem to have lost all shame of holding on to people and offering lower prices and trying to convince them to buy it... and like i don't even want to bargain any more >_< because what is a few dollars more for me would be a lot for them >_< and it's already cheaper than what i would normally get anyway. and so often we look down on these people because it's so shameful or they are so annoying or something but i mean the culture is very different but we shouldn't look down on them because their work is so difficult too. and like AHHH they hold money sooo highly. and sometimes it's hard to blame them because i see people work on the street right.. like so much menial work.. mostly moving/lugging heavy things .. these people work SO HARD for their money and so many people don't get to..retire... they need to do it. and sometimes i see old people doing it and i wish i could help them carry things but i suck and i don't know how to approach them. i wish they could see that money isn't everything but that's really hard to show to someone who sees that money will bring an end to this hard life? idunno maybe i see this esp because i live with my guma who isn't very well off and i recently found out my dad has been trying to lend her money but she said she doesn't want to take it.

i hope God is able to work through me while i'm here in hong kong during may to serve these people, to lessen their burdens, to just show some more love in a city which feels like everyone seems so untrustful of others and so ... pessismistic? living for themselves? i'm not sure how to describe in one word the way people seem to view others here... or what i've sseen so far anyway

yah anyway that's what i've been thinking about recently :) kinda a long and messy blurb but i felt very convicted today and reminded to be humble and not look down on these people but to try to understand them and the culture and also to love!