I recently visited Hong Kong for the first time in years. Even on my last visit in late-2019, when protesters were still out in full force, it was clear the city was dying - gradually being deformed from a bastion of freedom into ‘just another city in China’.  

I grew up in HK in the 90s before my mother moved us to New Zealand. I would return every year to my visit my father, and spent my gap year and college summers there as well. The city had an incredible energy, and the sense of freedom was unlike anywhere else. 

It’s sad that those who didn’t know it during that time have no point of reference, and can’t see what was lost. They just see what it is today: Shenzhen + the ability to use google without a VPN. For those that do know the Hong Kong of old, visiting today feels like watching one of those horror films where the murderer wears the face of their victim. Things superficially look the same, but soul is gone. 

I had hoped to revisit some of my old haunts, including doing the Victoria Harbour Ferry Zig-Zag that leo@lightning.engineering charted out in a blog post: https://blog.liongrass.hk/2020/05/04/victoria-harbour-ferry-zigzag/#more-916. I found I had very little motivation, though. The weather and pollution were also abysmal, which mirrored my spirits and seemed appropriately funereal.