Back on the Chain Gang

It’s Day 3 of my new work life and I’ve lived to tell the tale!

After a three-month hiatus, I had wondered if working an eight-hour day would be a shock to my system, but I’m back in the groove. And editing seems more like play than like work.

Our office is in a sparkling glass highrise with flower arranagements in each elevator. How’s that for elegance?

The newsroom has about 30 people and it is filled with cubicles that have low walls, so there’s minimal privacy – in other words, your typical newsroom. And let me tell you, it’s a real hardship looking up from the computer to see picturesque Victoria Harbour with its cruise ships, freighters and fishing boats!

I’ve also moved into my apartment -- an adventure in itself. The taxi driver who took me from the hotel to the apartment was convinced that I wanted to go to Yee Wo Street, a larger, better-known street in Causeway Bay than my Yiu Wah Street – and they sound similar. By the time I realized his mistake, I was standing on the sidewalk six blocks from the apartment building with 70 pounds of luggage to shlep. By the time I arrived, sweat was streaming from every pore in my body! Thank heavens for the building manager and the cleaner. They helped me carry my suitcase up the three flights to my walk-up.

Although my street is fairly quiet – a relative term in Hong Kong – the nearby shopping streets are crazy-busy. Yesterday, I exited the subway at a different spot and saw an entire wave of people moving towards me-- never, not even in NYC, have I seen such a mass of humanity flowing. A colleague of mine visited New York last year for the first time and said that he wondered where all the people were! It’s all in your perspective.

I’ve already located a local restaurant that makes my favourite Singapore noodles, so you know what my default meal will be! It’s a tiny place that also specializes in congee, the rice gruel that is so popular here. I did try it, but neither the taste nor the texture appeal, so I’ll stick with noodles, thank you! And I’m sure I’ll try lots of other interesting dishes as time marches on. Scallion pancakes, anyone?