Tour leader keeps customers satisfied
Our trip was a lot more appealing because of our lively tour leader.
Willy Fung Sun Cheung, 53, is helpful and informative, keeping the trip rolling along with stories from his colorful life.
Cheung was born and grew up in Malang, East Java, before his parents moved to China around 1962.
"It's never clear what the reason was," he said in perfect Indonesian despite having lived in the former British colony for the past 41 years.
The move probably had something to do with the events of 1958 when the People's Republic of China claimed that every ethnic Chinese in the world was a Chinese citizen, which led the Indonesian government to give those of Chinese descent an option over their citizenship.
Cheung tried his luck in Hong Kong, doing various jobs, from working in tunnels to performing with a Hank William-esque yodel, before landing in the tourism-field 15 years ago.
From the moment we met him upon our arrival at Hong Kong International Airport, he filled us in on his cache of interesting stories, such as the under-ocean tunnels, how Hong Kong will have its own Disneyland in 2005 ("much bigger than Tokyo"), to the vagaries of local transportation.
Our favorites were about Indonesian tourists, especially government and military officers, relatives of former president Soeharto and celebrities.
"Indonesian tourists are the most difficult to handle. They make local tour leaders here muntah darah (vomit blood)," Cheung said, chuckling.
Lack of discipline, a relentless zeal for shopping and little interest in local culture are only a few of the less desirable characteristics of the Indonesian tourist, he said.
"An important person insisted on driving in a limousine instead of joining our bus tour. I was also blasted by a military general, who refused to walk some 10 meters in drizzle."
Through his rich knowledge and excellent numerical ability, we got to know about more than just the best places to shop and dine and how cigarettes are deadly expensive (at least HK$23, with a government warning that is chillingly simple, "Smoking Kills").
We also got deeper into the life of Hong Kongers, and how they suffered from the double whammy of the economic crisis and, most recently, SARS.
"I myself have been barely working the past three months, only accompanying business visitors once in a while. Hopefully the situation will get better," Cheung said.
Limited space and high living costs force Hong Kongers to live in tiny apartments but pay a king's ransom.
"Many employees can't afford an apartment, so they sleep in the lobby of the Star Ferry Harbor. They're not laborers, you know, they work at offices," he said.
The likes of security officers even prefer to commute between Hong Kong and nearby Shenzhen in mainland China, which has much cheaper accommodation available.
Cheung said Hong Kongers were hard workers, because they had to be. Its rocky landscape means it has to import 70 percent of its water needs, with the rest supplied by water catchment.
Cheung is a hard worker himself, earning enough to send his son, Alex Fung, of whom he is very proud, to Boston's Berklee College of Music.
Cheung plans to retire within the next one to two years.
"After that, I will go back to China, and back to the stage again," he laughed, before doing his famous yodeling routine for us one more time. -- Hera Diani