week 1, sunday to tuesday

it occurred to me that if i were to ever do justice to the noble profession of blogging, this summer would be the best time. two months of new experiences, only one roommate to bother me at night, and no homework. perfect for end-of-the-day introspection.

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sunday:

relieved that getting to the apartment didn't take as much effort as i expected (travelling, i have learnt, is all about bursts of concentration and lucidity at the right place and time), i start unpacking.

my nervousness about the other yalies is put to rest as i run into various people just before dinner, and the conversation over dinner just flows. it is amazing how much we have in common just by living in the same little connecticut-ean city.

we happen to be living in these smallish and pretty average apartments (by my standards at least - apparently these are top-drawer stuff in hong kong?). but the view is fantastic.



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monday-tuesday:

to continue where i left off, we are staying here due to the generosity of nikki and jeanne ng, two singaporeans working in hong kong. they are a scaled-down version of the hiltons: they are hotel heiresses. they both went to yale, and the internship is their version of community service. they serve the yale community by offering us excuses to live in hong kong. since we had nowhere to stay for the first week, they offered us these apartments by the marina.

there is a point to all this.

the point is, i am getting treated really well here. i got posted to the gold coast hotel (the rest are in other departments like leasing, sales, property management etc.), which is right next to our apartments, and everyone here - even the bellboy i spoke to - knows that i am the "yale intern". everyone i meet goes out of their way to make sure i'm taken care of, probably in fear that i will report them to the ngs if something goes wrong. of course, the irony is that i don't know the ngs personally, or at all. still, it is pretty cool getting to meet all the hotshots and collecting their namecards.

the greater irony is that even though we are all walking around as sons of privilege, we are getting paid peanuts. ok, it's not peanuts, but rent accounts for 70% or more of our allowance. there is a difference between privilege and purchasing power.

which brings me to my next point.

the purchasing power of the hotel guests obviously far outstrips most of the hotel staff. the hotel is a physical symbol of the divide between haves and have-nots. there is the guest area (the places you normally see) and the staff area. the staff area is a maze-like complex where an army of laborers toils to ensure that every part of the hotel is just so. staff must enter the hotel by the staff entrance, use the staff elevators, eat in the staff canteen, and must never, never use the hotel facilities. it is going to take me a while to get used to being surrounded by luxury but not partaking of it. (i guess it's like working for a bank and not syphoning some excess funds into your personal account).