I met up this evening with a friend visiting from abroad who was last in Hong Kong in July 2019. She told me she had hesitated to visit -- not only because of the pandemic but, also, the national security law but ultimately decided that there was an annual event being held in Hong Kong this month that she simply didn't want to miss for five years running. She also had feared that the Hong Kong she knew (she's been visiting Hong Kong regularly for decades) no longer existed.
On the eve of her departure, her assessment is that Hong Kong has noticeably changed but much of what she remembered and loved about Hong Kong also still exists. With regards to the latter: more friends have remained than she expected. With regards to the former: it's not just that her favourite cha chaan teng has closed down but also what she described as "a general feel". And than there are the noticeable physical changes -- with the following being the kind of things that did not exist back in July 2019 -- or, at least, one month earlier:
when I first smelt spray paint and saw someone spray painting
a message onto a wall: August 24th, 2019
on the road
be pretty normal eateries, coffee shops and other shops
(i.e., members of the Yellow Economic Circle)
Wire fencing on the sides of many an overhead bridge
that makes them look and feel akin to giant cages
(New) political graffiti -- this one being the Chinese
characters for "freedom" -- that's not (yet) been covered up
just being a lot more China and Hong Kong flags everywhere
(still, some one and a half weeks into October)!
And, of course, a far greater police presence
(and variety of police vehicles) than before!
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