Buying photographic equipment in Hong Kong
Nearly 15 years since the handover from the UK, Hong Kong still enjoys a special status in China and among other things it is a tax-free territory. This means that swarms of affluent Chinese visitors come to buy what is reputedly cheaper or else more difficult to come by in mainland China.
Hong Kong has therefore become replete with an astounding array of shopping centres and world fashion stores. Large parts of the Kowloon peninsula and the central district of the facing Hong Kong island have been converted into the biggest shopping district ever seen, an open air temple to consumerism and a testimony to the present-day Chinese infatuation for brand names.
As an Italian I couldn’t but feel flattered that so many fashion houses from my country have broken into the hearts of this vain lot. Although I can’t ruefully consider myself completely untouched by the conditioning of the fashion world, I don’t too much toe the line set by the latest trends, especially when they pander to the fatuous man’s craving to show his status and apparent wealth by wearing a brand, often too showy to be considered in good taste.
Stepping out of the shop, I felt sure of myself and happy to have exposed the plot, but discouraged at the prospect of having to start looking for another place again. I had indeed learned that knock-off prices are just a lure for the dupes, but that didn’t exempt me from starting the search from scratch in the jam-packed streets of the central districts, rather than retreat to remote parts of Hong Kong for a peaceful hike. The only comfort was that the weather was terribly muggy and wouldn’t have made very pleasant hiking.
The sky looked fantastic as the plane slowly lowered for landing at Hong Kong airport. Still hovering in the air, I could see streaks of white clouds like wisps of whipped cream strewn around an aerial worktop by a sloppy confectioner. All around, the sky was livid and the ocean waters underneath also formed a rather dim backdrop. What looked like an impenetrable layer of clouds from above, was soon pierced by the bulk of the aircraft to reveal another more earthly and familiar landscape, but not half as fairylike. The city loomed in sight, in a weather that seemed stormy.
I have one picture of Hong Kong in my memory, and it dates back to my childhood. My cousin’s bedroom, where I was living for one summer while her family were on holiday, had a white desk. On one of the drawers she had stuck a notice that read "Please don’t open". I must have hesitated before doing so, or maybe I impudently didn’t too much, but after a few days I resolved that the drawer had to be inspected. I didn’t make any important discovery, but I remember a geography book that I leafed through and engrossed me. I thought geography must be such an interesting subject to study, without fully realising that it was probably not so much the description of far away countries that really captivated my imagination, but rather the exotic places themselves.
Yesterday I was asked about my home town and I set about describing its general features, starting by size. I must confess I unconsciously took on a guilty tone of voice as if currently being in metropolis like Hong Kong made me feel in need of tendering an apologetic justification for living in what suddenly seemed to me as an uninteresting anonymous place unknown to everybody.