Hong Kong Feet

I have Hong Kong feet.

No, people from Hong Kong, I don’t have athletes’ foot (yeah, don’t ask me why in Hong Kong athletes’ foot is called Hong Kong feet).

This morning, I was about 2 minutes “late” for work (“late” is in quotes because I’m supposed to get to work at 8 am, but since I had the keys, I had to get there at 7 am…very long story). So I was automatically walking faster. And suddenly, I realised I was walking past everyone else on the street. I was cruising by, Hong Kong style (if you have a chance to go to Hong Kong, I would suggest one of my favourite places – the walk from one side of the Central MTR (underground metro) station to the other, through this long, white corridor. During rush hour, the marching sound of all the business people going to/coming from work is amazing. It’s so Hong Kong).

Now you see, in Vancouver, this wouldn’t normally cause any kind of concern for me. I walk fast, therefore I pass people; simple. But here, it seems like, walking fast almost has a bad connotation. I’m told by Ms. Research Assistant that only mzungus (white people/foreigners/correct plural = wazungu) walk fast and don’t say greetings. If she, or any Tanzanian, walks like mzungus, people would point and say she’s trying to be foreign. I also noticed that when I walk fast, people don’t greet me as much – I’m probably being too mzungu.

Or more precisely, I have Hong Kong feet.