Because you have to start somewhere...

I was reading an article about Tony Parsons and he made a comment about Hong Kong that rings true for many people who find themselves here:  There's a sense of possibility here, a sense of reinvention - people become who they want to be.

I've been asked many times why I chose Hong Kong.  I could have moved anywhere.  I dreamed of moving everywhere but Hong Kong.  People are still shocked that I ended up here.  But it was the easiest route to an adventure.  I was young, I was a coward and I had enough gumption to know that I needed out of where I was.  So I left and came to Hong Kong.

Now I'm older and Hong Kong has grown on me.  Some move here and adapt to the lifestyle right away.  Others never really do and move away.  I think I'm somewhere in the middle.  Life here still makes me take pause.  I don't understand half the things that happen here (and in my life and learnings, I need to know why things happen.)  I can't stand the weather.  I find it too hot in the summers, too cold in the winters and too wet and rainy the rest of the time.  It's too crowded but this I blame myself because I did choose to live in the most populate area of the territory.

So why do I stay?

It's exactly like what Parsons said.  You feel that opportunities abound.  In Hong Kong, never take "no" for an answer.  If you have an idea, peddle it to everyone you meet.  I mean, everyone.  Tell your friends, your co-workers, your relatives, your friends' relatives, acquaintances, the grocery store check-out lady.  Eventually, someone in Hong Kong will say "yes."

This is a "yes" city where you can be rubbing elbows with princes and CEOs or just plain folk like you who were trying to get out and have an adventure.