A young couple--libertarians and business and creative geniuses--just visited Asia for the first time, and sent some great reports. Here's the first:
"Oscar Wilde wrote that when good Americans die, they go to Paris. In the event we don't make the cut, we're hoping the "others" get sent to Hong Kong.
"Imagine, by way of crude analogy, New York, but much cleaner, with immaculate subways, more international in flavor, better views, better stores, more elegant restaurants and bars, no sales taxes, and most importantly, sans Long Island and New Jersey accents. That's Hong Kong, Pearl of the Orient. If you want to visit museums, go to Europe. For all else, this city is a needs-meeting tour de force.
"Hong Kong is known for having the world's most liberal economy. Entrepreneurial spirit courses through its streets. Ludwig von Mises observed, 'The standard of living of the common man is highest in those countries which have the greatest number of wealthy entrepreneurs.' It shouldn't be surprising, then, that 17 billionaires call this place home. Hong Kong is by far the richest region of China with the highest GDP per capita. Fortunately for Hong Kong, it maintains its own legal system, currency, customs policies, and immigration laws.
"The shopping here is enough to make an Amex Centurion card blanch. Ultra high end malls (it's what they call them but not what Americans know as malls) just go on and on, and then on and on some more. If Hong Kong doesn't have it, you don't want it.
"We're staying at The Mandarin Oriental, which is easily the finest hotel we've sampled in our travels. A young lady named Nicole was waiting for us outside as our car pulled up. She opened the door to our room, and we began to suspect that secret Mandarin Oriental agents had spied on us at home to see how we lived. Classical music was playing, hi-res photos were cycling on a large flat panel TV (the same brand we have), and a big bowl of exotic fruit with jasmine tea service was on the living room table. Nicole showed us into the bathroom, which featured a gargantuan bathtub and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Victoria Harbor.
"Yesterday morning we had a Tai Chi lesson from a 70 year old master. To say he moved with grace and control is like saying Mount Fuji is big and tall. It was a revelation. So we took another lesson today. This time he brought along his wife, who is also a master. She gave us a demonstration with a fan that was spectacular, in the scary sense of the word. Turns out a fan can be used as a deadly weapon, at least in her hands. Her English name is Pandora, to give you an idea...
"The food here is an all-out orgy of sensations. Every place we go stuns us in one way or another. Quick words on two restaurants anybody headed to Hong Kong would be wise to patronize: Hutong and FINDS.
"Hutong: Spicy lobster, tangerine and kumquat shrimp, a lychee cocktail served in clay bowls.... All unreal. It started to rain towards the end of dinner, and as we headed for the elevator, a hostess came running over and gave us an umbrella as a gift. The view was so glorious it was hard to believe. The entire skyline was illuminated by skyscrapers, several engaged in what can only be described as a virtual laser duel.
"FINDS: Stands for Finland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden. All these cuisines were wrapped into the most hip restaurant we've ever seen. The manager was an incredibly nice Swiss fellow who kept bringing us what were the finest and most creative cocktails we've ever had, on the house -- six over a 2-hour lunch! The Hot Ginger Martini was our favorite, the After 8 Martini a close second. The food was phenomenal and unlike any cuisine we'd ever had. Simply the most fun we can remember having at a restaurant."
