It's sad to realize that after the hard work KFC staff puts into a single working day, some of them are only paid HK$16 per hour, not even enough to pay a decent chicken meal, according to an article from SCMP.
I have come across search queries leading to my blog posts using terms like "singapore vs hong kong". Inevitably, these tiger economies have always been compared. They hold considerable significance in terms of trade, finance and certain aspects of education, tourism and even the land area. I live in Hong Kong the past 8 years and have been to Singapore a few times. Everytime I visit Lion City, I am always very impressed by the attractions, infrastructure and people. But I'm not sure that says it all.YOU KNOW YOU'RE A FRUSTRATED HUMAN IN SINGAPORE WHEN:
1 You are watching TTN (The Tourism Network) for ideas about what to do in Singapore and laugh about how the cultural section gets approximately 15 seconds airplay before they spend the next 30 minutes urging you to go shopping and eat.
2 You go out and realise that TTN goes on and on about shopping and eating because really that’s all anyone ever does. It's a hell of a way to prop up an economy.
3 You are frustrated because the shopping is actually no cheaper than you can get back home, and all in all a little disappointing.
4 The food, while there is lots of it at hawker centres everywhere and Singaporeans pride themselves on it, is seriously overrated.
5 The eating, so famed by Singapore, is, for your average Australian, resident of San Francisco, New York, South of France etc I could go on, seriously average. Food courts and hawker centres continue to serve up meals that underwhelm. It’s like eating in the foodcourt of your most dirty shopping centre every day, full with people who chew with their mouths open and audibly suck in snot balls. Yuk really.
6 So you decide to do what you do back home a few times a week or more, go out for dinner. You quickly realise, to get a nice meal out with tablecloths will cost you a bomb.
7 To go out to a restaurant (to get a table cloth and wine glasses) you'll be paying at least $30-95 Sing dollars for a main course and $60-$OMG for a bottle of cheap wine you buy at home for $7 and wouldn't serve to your inlaws. Get real people.
8 And don't forget the plus plus. It's the final insult you always forget about. Take me back to Melbourne somebody!
9 For a country who considers itself so advanced, what the hell are you doing wrapping everything in plastic? Magazines in plastic, books in plastic, hey, I go to the bakery and unless I specify NO PLASTIC, I will get one bag for each item, then these little plastic bags will go inside more carry bags. On that note, try asking for no bag. It will take you two or three goes, because they just don't get it.
10 Once you've been here for about, hmmmm, one day, you swear every Singaporean has had a full lobotomy and spend the rest of the time trying to be decent, patient human being, convincing yourself that no, they can't all be like this. There must be someone with a brain out there... when no, it's happened again. AAARGH!!! INCOMPETENCE. RIFE. EVERYWHERE. HELP.
11 You read in the local paper that the international school debating team blew the local Singaporean debating team out of the water, approximately 140-30. What was that? You expect me to express an opinion or respond to a question all on my own? Am I allowed to say something negative? Why don't you just tell me what to say and think? It'd be a lot easier. Do local Singaporeans think this is a problem, or is this the way prime minister Lee likes his people?
12 Try asking a question of your friendly sales assistant, waiter, employee, I dare you. You will either be met with a blank stare, or they will find someone else, who will find someone else, who will ask the manager, who brings everyone over to see what the problem is. Repeat.
13 You encounter the other extreme often, where sales assistants walk up to you and stare. If you ask a question, you know they will not be able to help you. So do what I do and simply try staring back. I like this game.
14 You have just used sarcasm. You have been met with a blank stare or fake laughter. They just don't get it.
15 After you have visited the manky theme park Sentosa for about 30 minutes in 30+ degree heat you are wondering what the hell you are doing there - and promptly get a taxi the hell out.
16 By now you understand how things work (or don't) here, so there is no way in hell you are going to the Jurong Bird park. You understand the severity of Bird Flu, and no amount of positive PR about rigorous prevention measures undertaken by their fully trained, on-the-ball, competent and forward thinking, risk managing staff will get you there.
17 You are seriously over not being able to understand what the hell they are saying. No-one seems to speak any one language well. Their English, often as a first language, is broken and they all have the weirdest accents. Lots of them speak Malaysian, or something they call “Singlish” which is like pigeon English and every sentence ends with ‘lah’. You think about how it can get this way. You realise that learning is passed from generation to generation. You think about what it must be like trying to learn English as a first language from a Singaporean. You sigh.
18 Singaporeans are seriously patriotic and LOOOOVE Singapore because compared to the rest of Asia, yes, they are fairly advanced. But on a world standard, they are still a little (..read quite a bit) backward. They need to get out more. This annoys you.
19 In fact, the way Singaporeans go on about how great they are – all the time- gets you seriously uptight.
20 You are amazed that while George Bush earns approximately $400K and John Howard $300, Singapore's Prime Minister earns a crazy $3.4 million (yes, million) dollars a year and he justifies this by aligning his position/rank and file to a CEO running a private company. No one complains or seems to care. Never mind it’s tax payers money they are using, Singaporeans do what they are told. This annoys you.
21 You think he probably needs the money so he can get paid enough to eat out in this place.
22 The Prime Minister keeps telling everyone how great Singapore is, how proud they should be, that what they have is envied by the rest of the world, that tourists flock here because it is "The Pearl of the Orient" and that he is the sole entity keeping Singapore afloat. He says, "You pay peanuts, and you’ll get monkeys. Would you risk this glorious city with a monkey?" You think, you all need to get out more.
23 You rest assured in knowing that the only reason people generally come here is because they have been forced to come here for work, are passing through Changi Airport or stopping over on the way to somewhere else more exciting.
I've been a Now TV subscriber since 2005. From an inclination to BBC News, my subscription grew to ESPN/Star Sports, Star Movies and National Geographic. Subscriptions also feature free channels such as the German DW TV, Bloomberg (free at local channels anyway) and Al Jazeera. As my subscription ends early next month, I am keen on not renewing my subscription.Hong Kong pop star Jill Vidal, given a suspended two-year jail sentence in Japan for heroin possession, arrived home to a media scrum Saturday. Around 100 reporters and photographers were at Hong Kong International Airport to see Vidal, 26, also known as Wei Si, arrive home after two months in custody.
In chaotic scenes, she smiled at journalists and posed briefly for photographers but did not respond to questions shouted at her as she walked through the arrivals hall.
At a court hearing in Tokyo on Friday, Vidal was given a two-year jail term, suspended for three years, after pleading guilty to possession of heroin.
Vidal was arrested with fellow Hong Kong pop star Kelvin Kwan, who was later released without being charged, on suspicion of possessing cannabis. Police later found packets of heroin in her hotel room.
The two performers were arrested in a Tokyo shopping centre on February 24 when shopkeepers claimed a foreign man was shoplifting.
A police search allegedly found a small quantity of cannabis in a packet of cigarettes Kwan, 25, was carrying and the two were taken into custody.
Ironically, before their arrest in Tokyo, both stars took part in anti-drug campaigns in Hong Kong aimed at stopping youngsters from using drug.
Kwan, who holds a Canadian passport, told Tokyo police he brought the cannabis with him from Hong Kong for his own personal use. He was released without charge and returned to Hong Kong.
The pair are among a host of young pop stars from Hong Kong whose Canto-pop music is hugely popular with audiences in mainland China, Taiwan and overseas Chinese communities.
There is a news about a Kwun Tong mother from Mainland China who beat her 10-year-old son with a hammer, a wooden stool and a boot in a 15-minute rampage that left the kid with a swollen eye. The mother was acting irrationally and had an intention to cause injury to the child upon learning that her husband who works in China had affairs with another woman. For her, the helpless child became the perfect 
Hong Kong is a city where the rich can refer to as heaven, where money can buy almost everything like latest electronic gadgets, luxury watches and jewelry
You may have witnessed someone casually walking in the road and asked by the police to provide identification. You may have been subjected to this yourself. I have been several times.
Police officers are empowered under Section 17C of the Immigration Ordinance, Cap.115, to demand and inspect proof of identity from every person who has attained 15 years of age and who is the holder of an ID card, or who is required to apply for registration under the Registration of Persons Ordinance, Cap.177.
There are so many restaurant reviews, and some of these reviews offer questionable rankings and equally questionable criteria. Even the renowned Michelin restaurant ratings got negative impressions and worse, had to shut down temporarily for food poisoning. But a British magazine Restaurant, which just released its top ranked restaurants in the planet, has quite a reputation that "makes or breaks a chef" according to a report from SCMP. The ranking system was decided by more than 800 chefs, critics and industry insiders. A rumour recently circulated over the Internet, claiming that a tsunami would occur during the solar eclipse on 22nd July 2009 and asking recipients to stay away from beaches. There is no scientific evidence substantiating that solar eclipses would cause tsunamis.
With the current scientific and technological capability, there is no reliable method to predict the occurrence of an earthquake, nor the occurrence of a tsunami in the event of an earthquake. Please do not believe in such a rumour and make unnecessary speculations.
I happen to be at Dolphy@80, a world tour concert/show featuring Dolphy, the King of Philippine Comedy as he celebrates a new milestone of his life: reaching the age of 80. 
Many acknowledge that transportation in Hong Kong is structured efficiently. We see bus feeders located near Star Ferry terminals and bus stations located near some MTR stations. But one big challenge for newcomers in Hong Kong is how to get from one point to another, especially if the two are far from each other and no direct transport means connect them. It's fine for us long time residents. For example, it takes four methods to get to Central from my place (bus 2, bus M722, tram, and MTR). We who seem to know to go about the city. Or so I thought. How about longer routes?
Hong Kong is indeed a mobile phone territory, as the Office of the Telecommunications Authority released statistics recently.
A few months ago, my friend Carrie shared the news about Noah's Ark being built next to the Tsing Ma bridge in Tsing Yi. I initially found it unusual in Hong Kong, where landmarks were built with futuristic minds, and not with historical themes. It was not unsurprising to see a modern ship constructed Hung Hom's Whampoa Garden instead of a replica of Noah's ark.
I read with interest John Goodman's article whose title asks how do we describe Hong Kong, a consistent title bearer as the freest economy in the world.
I've never tried yoga or any variations of it, but I am interested on finding out how people react on the numerous yoga shops or wannabes that put Hong Kong yoga standards in question.
1) Phony yoga classes (I'm sorry, but Yoga Combat, Yoga Punch, etc. are not yoga classes, they are just aerobics/taebo -ish classes!!) You can't just attach the word 'yoga' to anything, geez.
2) Over-emphasis on INDIAN instructors. Planet Yoga loves to tell prospective customers "Over 80% of our instructors are REAL INDIANS!!" But, just cuz they're Indian doesn't mean they are the best Yoga instructors. In fact, their English is quite bad, so instead of hearing inspiring words of encouragement during ur practice, you just get, "Up, breathe, more down, 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1" repeated a gazillion times, making you feel absolutely BORED AS H*LL.You don't need to be a member of Planet Yoga to notice this one. You can simply go to Lan Kwai Fong and observe the ad (unless their time is up, and have to be taken off).
For obvious reasons, I haven't tried using broadband Internet services of hotels here in Hong Kong. But on overseas trips I did. Unsurprisingly, these hotels have something in common: they charge hotel guests unreasonably high Internet rates. 
I read a report that 20,000 large power consumers of Hongkong Electric will have their meter readers replaced with a more sophisticated one. The replacement allows these consumers to check their consumption online.
It's close to summer and girls who are fond of wearing skimpy skirts should watch out because the number of cases involving peeping toms prowling within the MTR stations is on the rise. The bad news is that in 2007 there were 88 cases of men taking photos and that has risen to 117 last year. The good news is that 90 per cent of reported cases (104) last year were solved as the peeping tom culprits were nabbed.
I learned that the recent Earth Hour event in Hong Kong has cut electricity use by about 5%. That's because 2.9 million (count me in!) out of 7 million total Hong Kong population joined the move to address global warming, according to WWF Hong Kong.
Secretary for Food and Health York Chow Yat-ngok unveiled plans that Hong Kong aims to be a regional specialist medical center. That's something ambitious, but at the same time realistic. 
I am planning to move out of my small dwelling within the next month or two so I am on a lookout for a slightly bigger one in preparation for married life later in the year. :)
For those who have bowel or urinary problems and are desperately searching for toilets in Causeway Bay, you can try your luck at JP Plaza at Patterson Street. Please avoid embarrassment by adhering to the above.
Typical Hong Kong residents are not aware Hong Kong is hosting a big sporting event by the end of the year. Yes, Hong Kong is hosting the 2009 East Asian Games on December 5-13. Organizers can't blame them because they have done a poor job in disseminating information to every one. I guess very few people know about the Games mascots Ami and Dony, other than sports enthusiasts and relatives/friends of HK athletes. 
It appears that Hong Kong recession means good news to some restaurants. As mentioned before, low-cost dining places like Maxims, Cafe de Coral, Fairwood, Yoshinoya and maybe McDonald's and KFC are generating more income and plan on expansions because a certain segment of consumers have shifted their preferences away from fine dining and towards these twenty- or thirty-something dollar dishes.
Recession brings good news and bad news for travelers planning to visit Hong Kong. Bad news is of course, everyone wants to cut on expenditures as job security becomes more shaky and pink slips could be served anytime soon. The good news is that Hong Kong recession means lower occupancy rates on hotels and discounted deals on airfares. That should inspire some of us to pursue plans to come over.
Following the steps of his bosses, Chip Tsao, the man in the middle of a controversy (whether he is a satirist or racist, is a subject of another debate) has offered his apology. With style. He did it in Spanish.
A todos los hermanos y todas las hermanas filipinos: Lo siento mucho. Vamos a vivir en paz.
To all Filipino brothers and sisters, I am very sorry. We should live in peace.
Hi there! I totally agree with this faggot (author of the Indolent Indio blog post). Not!!! China and Chinese people are a disease, period. One of the most backward countries in the world. Your current economic status will be shortlived because it was not built from the foundations of education but from cheap, hard, underaged labor and piracy. You are a bunch of no good people. And for those pro Chinese people, y\’all can die of SARS. Peace!
kung ang pilipinas ay tatawaging bayan ng abogado o doktor, malamang wlang pagtatalunan.kung anak ako ng katulong at nagtatrabaho ang nanay ko s hongkong para makapasok ako s kolehiyo, hindi ko ikakahiyang sabihin n alipin ang ina ko. kung iyon man ang tingin nila s pilipinas, wla iyong pinagkaiba kung tawagin man ntin ang china bilang bayan ng mamamatay sanggol.aminin n ntin, mas maraming ofw ang ngtatrabaho bilang alipin s ibang bansa, at sila ang nag-aakyat ng pera s pinas.ngayon, kung tambay k lng at wlang ginawa kundi magreklamo, mas dapat kng mahiya.
If the Philippines is called a country of lawyers and doctors (in an article), probably nobody will dispute the claim. If I am a son of a domestic helper in Hong Kong who work hard to get me to college, I won't be ashamed to tell everyone about her work. If that is what they think of the Philippines, it's similar to our thinking that China kills babies (due to one-child policy perhaps?). Many Overseas Filipino Workers work overseas and they bring money to the country. Now, if you're a slothful and lazy jobless person in the country who does nothing but complain, it's you who should be ashamed.
