Hong Kong and the Lion Rock Spirit – Toby S.
What is Hong Kong? A place somewhere in China. RHS students who are mainly British see Hong Kong with the eyes of foreigners. This article will inform you what it is, why I like Hong Kong as a local and how I think it could restore its former glory.
Hong Kong was a part of Britain, but it was returned to China in 1997. We are Chinese, but a combination of the diligence of the Chinese and the (free) thinking spirits of the British. The combination of these two different cultures results in a Global Financial Centre, like London and New York.
Hong Kong is international: people from different countries come and bring different cultures to Hong Kong. These immigrants bring food from different cultures to Hong Kong which makes it very easy to try different cuisines from around the world. Moreover, there are also lots of fusion dishes. For example, curry fish ball is a combination of curry from India and fish ball from China. It is a delicious, affordable and famous dish, which you will probably find in every street food store.
Furthermore, Hong Kong was influenced by western movies, and the Hong Kong film industry developed their own style of movies. Bruce Lee is undoubtedly a legend; he played in many action films and made the word ‘Kungfu’ famous across the globe. After him many movie stars were discovered, like Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung and Donald Chow, and some popular movies were made, like the God of Gamblers series which is one of the “classics”.
Finally, one of the most important values for the people in Hong Kong was the spirit of fighting. We were basically fighters, we were fighting against life. The so called ‘Lion Rock Spirit’ was the core value in Hong Kong, which tells you not to give up, be diligent and fight for a better tomorrow. The ‘Lion Rock Spirit’ inspired me a lot, but not all of the Hongkongers were inspired. In my opinion this value has already lost its significance, no one is mentioning it anymore, but I will always keep it in my mind and restart my journey.
Hong Kong was a definitely wonderful place in the past, a financial centre. However, Hong Kong has fallen in line with the ‘Lion Rock Spirit’. The food hasn’t changed at all, but there are no more ‘classics’ produced. But why? Because Hongkongers have forgotten the Lion Rock Spirit; they have become spiritless working machines rather than working individuals. I believe if the Lion Rock Spirit is restored, the people may wake, and the glory of Hong Kong will return.
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