11-1-18 Mysterious Man

Things are starting to fall into a routine here – wake up, go to class, eat, go somewhere, read, sleep. However, everything still feels so new to me. Professor Wie’s lecture briefed us about the Hong Kong economy, it’s links to the west and China and specific problems that it faces in comparison to the other “Asian Tigers.” After the lecture we went somewhere to eat and the food was delicious as usual. The unusual parts came in the afternoon. I went off on my own to go deposit some money in my bank account on Hong Kong Island. Upon arriving I realized that I only brought enough money to make it to Tsim Sha Tsui and back – I miscalculated horribly. So there I was on one side of the harbor staring at my bank on the other side. I resolved myself to not make the trip a waste by staying and walking the streets of Tsim Sha Tsui until I felt that I had enough. I walked and walked down the endless sea of people shifting in and out of jewelry stores, restaurants and MTR buses. Eventually I came upon “Kowloon Park.” In Kowloon Park I wandered around and visited the tropical birds and trees before finding my way to the highest point in the park – a small stone circle with several flights of stairs leading to it. I sat there for a while alone, marveling at the park and the cityscape around me. Unbeknownst to me a man had climbed the stairs and was looking at me for I have no idea how long. When I turned around I was surprised and he kindly smiled and said “here” then some words in Cantonese that I couldn’t understand. He beckoned me to follow him down the stairs where he pointed to a troop of wild kitties playing amongst the trees. After standing around for a while he left just as mysteriously as he arrived and I was left wandering the park wondering what just happened. My legs became tired after walking for so long so I sat down and about thirty minutes later the man appeared along the walkway I was on and beckoned to me “there is more everywhere” before shuffling away again. Now I don’t know if he was just crazy or some kind of wise old man, but the phrase “There is more everywhere” struck me a profound. And as I made my way back to campus with just enough money I couldn’t shake it from my mind.