Huoya Chi
Roast Duck Wings
Overview of Hong Kong
Hong Kong as a highly developed and modern metropolitan
Hong Kong is widely considered to be one of the most international and developed cities in the world. It has a thriving economy, a highly educated workforce, and a well-established legal and financial system.
Fun Fact: Despite of Hong Kong's mountainous terrain, its buildings are very high. Chongqing and Hongkong are the only two mountainous metropolitans in China.
Image Hongkong is provided by Pablo Trincado under CC license CC BY 2.0
Hong Kong as a cultural city
Being a metropolitan doesn't mean Hongkong is lack of cultures. Instead, Hong Kong is known for its food, language, heritage and tourism.
Image Hongkong is provided by Joachim Quandt under CC license CC BY-SA 2.0
Hongkong as an international transportation hub
Hong Kong International Airport(HKG) is the main airport serving Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China located on the country's southeastern coast. HKG is one of the busiest airports in the world and serves as a major hub for airlines such as Cathay Pacific
Image Morning departure form HK Airport is provided by kinfung man under CC license CC BY 2.0
My Story with Hong Kong
The Dream Starts in Hong Kong in 2021
In 2021, it was my first year coming to the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic was severe at that time, and all direct flights between China and the United States were canceled. I had to purchase a more than 40-hour-long flight route from Beijing to Boston with layovers in Hong Kong and Dubai.
I couldn't have imagined returning to Hong Kong in this way in 2022.
In the summer of 2022, I needed to return to China urgently due to an emergency, but the Chinese government had implemented very strict controls on the pandemic and was experiencing almost the most severe outbreak in its history. Although some direct flight routes had resumed, if more than five people on a flight tested positive for COVID-19 upon landing, the flight would be suspended for four weeks. This was called a 'flight fuse.' Additionally, scalpers could only purchase direct flight tickets at a high markup. An economy class ticket cost around $7,000 USD. I was one of those who spent $7,000 USD on a flight ticket.
Operation Zhugan Hong
“Zhugan Hong" refers to the red color of pig liver and is a nickname for the red cover of the Chinese passport.
This strategy was invented by Chinese international students studying in the UK. At the time, there were no direct flights from the UK to China, and China did not allow international flights with layovers to enter the country. They found a loophole: Chinese passport holders are allowed to enter Hong Kong visa-free for up to 8 days, and Hong Kong has a different system than mainland China but is still considered part of China. Therefore, traveling from Hong Kong to mainland China does not count as an international flight. Additionally, there are direct flights from the UK to Hong Kong, and only a 7-day quarantine is required upon arrival in Hong Kong, making this a feasible option for returning to China.
So, they entered Hong Kong directly from the UK with their Chinese passports and were quarantined for 7 days. Then, on the last day of their visa-free stay in Hong Kong, they would board a flight back to mainland China within 24 hours. After arriving in China, they would undergo another 10-day quarantine before being able to return home When this method was first discovered, it only cost $2,000 USD to return from the UK to China. However, scalpers soon caught on to the method and monopolized Hong Kong quarantine hotels and flights back to the mainland, selling people at package prices averaging around $4,000 USD. Since my direct flight from the US to China was canceled, I had to purchase a flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong and a $4,000 USD package deal for the return from Hong Kong to Chengdu, China.
Boston → Los Angeles → Hong Kong → Chengdu → Home
Even worse, there are no direct flights from Boston to Hong Kong, so I have to go to Los Angeles two days earlier before the flight to Hong Kong for the Covid test. I can go to Hong Kong only when the Covid test result is negative.
Fortunately, NEGATIVE! Thanks to this flight, it gave me a chance to travel to Los Angeles. I spent one day visiting Beverly Hills and the University of California, Los Angeles!
By the way, LA is beautiful
Arrival in Hong Kong
I successfully arrived in Hong Kong on flight CX883 from Los Angeles. Upon landing, we were directed to follow a predetermined path and had to first take an antigen test. We had to wait for ten minutes at the testing site and could only proceed with airport procedures if the test result was negative. If the result was positive, we would be sent directly to the hospital
After we submitted our hotel booking and quarantine information, a few of us were ushered into a van. It was over 30 degrees Celsius outside, but due to quarantine protocols, the air conditioning and windows were not allowed to be turned on inside the van. It was too hot!🥵
We could only look at Victoria Harbour from a distance inside the hot van, but we were not allowed to get closer😭
You will never see such a cramped four-star hotel, except in Hong Kong where the hotel's ground cannot even accommodate a suitcase.
In Quarantine
During the quarantine period, we needed to test ourselves with an antigen kit every day and leave the used kit outside the door for the staff to collect. For the rest of the time, we could stay in the room and do whatever we wanted, except for going out or opening the window. So I spent the most carefree seven days of my life!
Quarantine Meal
During the quarantine period, staff delivered three meals to our doorstep every day. We were only allowed to open the door a little after the staff knocked and delivered the food. I was lucky to have found the quarantine meals delicious!
Local Food Delivery
The hotel even allowed us to order takeout, so I tried many local delicacies!
Chezai Mian
Noodles with Pig's Intestines
Changfen
Rice noodle roll
Shaola Fan
Roast meat rice
Released from quarantine
Because of the carefree life, these seven days passed quickly, and I was also released from quarantine. As I mentioned earlier, I had less than 24 hours to move around in Hong Kong after the quarantine ended. I was released at exactly midnight, and my flight to Mainland China would depart at 8:00 the next morning.
A Note from the Front Desk
However, I had to queue up to take a Covid test at the airport and wait for the result for five hours before I could board the plane. After I was released, I dragged my suitcase and walked alone to the Tsim Sha Tsui, where I took this beautiful photo of the harbour.
Back to Mainland and Enter Another Period of Quarantine
In the end, I successfully boarded the flight back to mainland China and underwent a 10-day quarantine, but that's another story. During the 20-day quarantine process, I took 15 nucleic acid tests and traveled to five cities. Any mistake in any of the processes could have prevented me from returning home successfully, but fortunately, I made it through the entire process myself without any problems and returned home safely. I am very grateful for the kindness shown to me by the Hong Kong government.This period of time may be the most painful but also the most precious time in my life so far.