9-1-18 Mahjong and O’Connor

I woke up today early in the morning greeted by the sweet sweet sounds of strangers yelling and shaking their Mahjong board in the room down the hall. As I laid in my bed trying to get a little more sleep I realized it was hopeless and went to knock on my neighbors door. I was absolutely struck when they neither quieted down nor answered the door. Zihan was deep into a Melatonin induced slumber and I was stuck looking at the ceiling in the dark as the first inking of Hong Kong’s “wet cold” seemed to penetrate my sheets and sink into my bones. Eventually I became so frustrated that I waited out my neighbors until they exited and then asked them to be quiet in the future. In the end I don’t think there will be any more problems with them and they even invited to play Mahjong with them next time(quietly though.) Aside from the morning, today’s lecture from professor O’Connor was clear, straightforward and engaging. While his reading was rather cryptic, he did a very good job of explaining the competing characterizations of Hong Kong as a city. Through the lens of Hong Kong as a Migrant, Vertical, Global, Protest and Hybrid City) O’Connor clearly highlighted the reasons and mystery of several aspects of Hong Kong that are immediately visible – and unique – about Hong Kong. Touching on points from the situation of Hong Kong as a point of flux between East and West or something as seemingly simple as the layout and unique interconnectedness  of buildings O’Connor helped to bring some much needed perspectives to my view of Hong Kong as an outsider.