Secret smiles, hidden tears.

We wake up each morning expecting life to continue that day just as it was when we went to sleep the night before, and most of the times it seems that is exactly what happens. However, what we remain completely unaware of is how for someone else, their life has completely changed. A day in between the last time we talked to them to the current moment- their life may have changed forever. A day before would be a day they remembered without end, forever etched into their memory- whether it be good or bad.

When we ask people the age-old question "How are you?", do we really expect them to launch into a story of how they are feeling at that exact moment and what's been on their mind? In an episode of Sex and the City that I watched over the weekend, Charlotte is asked at a fancy afternoon gathering by a similarly over-the-top dressed woman how she and her husband are doing. She proceeds to launch into what seems like a lengthy description and explanation of their problems, but in reality I'm guessing it wasn't that long- maybe 15 seconds. The OTT dressed woman promptly walks away and stage whispers to the next woman "Don't talk to her". Fifteen seconds isn't too much to give to listen to someone else, but maybe it was 14 seconds too long- after all, it only takes one second to reply "I'm good, thanks".

The thing is though, if it was good, we'd most likely hear about it, but even if we didnt, life goes on. What is more significant is that if it was bad and they chose to keep it to themselves, we are likely to never have any idea. And so we continue to live in our happy yet bittersweet little state of oblivion.

Those eight letters.

I'm not talking about I love you.

I'm talking about shopping!

Hong Kong is world renowned for cheap shopping (Hong Kong also has 8 letters... coincidence? I think not). Even with economic crisis & the extremely weak AUD causing the exchange rate to be 1AUD:5HKD, pretty much nearly everything in HK is cheaper. Anything from clothes to shoes to bags to stationery to electronics to DVDs to food to Swarovski to brand names to fake brand names.... okay maybe that's not everything but I don't have a huge amount of interest in things beyond those so I don't know their prices. I can only wish for a year ago when the AUD was strong and the exchange rate was 1AUD:7HKD! On top of the cheap prices, there's also so, so, so, much more STUFF to choose from! Maybe I've gone to heaven and this is a blog post coming from above the clouds (insert some ramble about ignoring that and further ramble about Charles Darwin).

HK shopping is very different from say, shopping in Perth. The biggest difference (asides from the price difference) is probably that in HK you are expected to engage in haggling. The best shopping (in my opinion) in HK is at the street markets (Mong Kok shopping - O.M.G. a defs place to go to if you're visiting HK, set side at least two whole days!). However, haggling is very annoying. In HK, the opening price is usually about 120% of what they expect you to pay (in China it can be 300% easy). Once I speak in Cantonese for a sentence of more than like five words, everyone can tell I don't live in HK. Aha, foreigner! they think. And raise their opening price even more :(. I was able to get a bag with an opening price of $250HKD down to $120HKD in Mong Kok, and even then it was still above the shop owner's lowest tolerable sale price (if you're not walking out the shop with them calling out after you, you're above).

The second biggest difference is the large amount of crowding and lack of space due to both people and all the stalls being very close to each other. HK has over 3x the population of W.A. and is like 100x more densely populated (no such thing as personal space in HK). At the street markets, it can get so crowded it's impossible to move, to the extent where it's no longer yourself walking where you want, but walking when the crowd walks and trying to shove your way towards stalls and past people (no room for courtesy here).

Another big difference is that the shops are open past five! In fact, shopping malls remain open til about 10-11pm ish and street markets are open til whenever they want (usually 1am). AND they're open on Sunday! Sunday is actually the busiest day in terms of shopping due to the fact that all HK'ers are extremely hard working and work crazy hours (it isn't uncommon to work through the night til 3am, then have to wake up for work at 8am).

Hong Kong by day

Hong Kong by night

Well, that's my summary of shopping in Hong Kong. And so to answer the two questions that everyone is asking me:

How's the shopping in HK? It's AWESOME :D

Did you buy much? HELL YES :P

Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping. Haha kidding! I'm not a shopaholic :)