Please, I don't speak Chinese...

Well, I'm here in Hong Kong. My team and I have been here for 3 days and I type this in between the halves of the World Cup Finale.

So, without any further delay...

Things I love about Hong Kong

1. Immigration. I was expecting to have some lengthy talk about crap like vaccinations and places that I'll be traveling. I was wrong. I never said a word to the guy. It was dope.

2. Customs. They break it down like this... The red line is for people who have items to declare. The green line is for people with nothing to declare. The green line is more of a wide aisle. You walk down the aisle, maybe nod at the nice customs official, but that's certainly not manditory.

3. The MTR. This is Hong Kong's subway system. It probably deserves a post of its own, but that's not something that I can live up to. So, I'm going to keep this short and sweet. It's super easy to figure out where you're going and how to get there. And it's super clean. I mean clean, like the FDA would probably let me cook and serve a meal right next to the escalator. That's friggin' clean.

4. The "Octopus Pass." This is a pre-paid, rechargable card that works with nearly every form of public transportation in Hong Kong. AND you can recharge it at any 7/11 convenience store (which also happens to be the most convenient thing I've ever seen in a 7/11). AND it's a magnetic card, so you don't have to swipe it. If you're really good at it, you don't even have to take the thing out of your pocket. I'll let you know when I've reached that level of public-transportation-awesomeness.

5. The "Escalator Safety Officers" in the MTR stations. These mid-pubescent man-children stand on either end of the escalator wearing a yellow shirt and cap and wielding nothing less than a giant yellow megaphone. I've never actually seen them use the megaphone. Come to think of it, I haven't ever seen them but stand there. Still, these guys are paid to reach new levels of dorkiness that I've never comprehended before. They make me feel wonderful about myself. And safe. They make me feel safe... maybe.

OK, OK. The ESO's don't do a d**n thing but help my fragile ego. But that's cool, for me at least.

Well, that's all I've got for now. The second half has started and people are screaming around me.

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Daily Ditty:
KT Tunstall - Suddenly I See