In my very first post, I wrote about a few of my friends who attended a dialogue of civilizations in China and Hong Kong. They talked about how amazing the experience was but specifically told me to take everything I think I will need with me; shoes and clothing specifically. To be honest, I thought they were exaggerating. But then, my aunt said the same thing. She made it a point to take me shopping and made sure that I had all the clothes I needed… even winter jackets. Hong Kong winters are nothing like Boston winters; so I promise, there is nothing to be worried about.
Needless to say, I did not follow my friends advice, I brought the items that I thought were super important and figured that when the time came, I will sort the rest out. I have always believed that if you looked hard enough, you would find whatever it is you needed to find. When I got here, I realized that was not always the case.
I arrived Hong Kong late on a Thursday evening and as soon as I stepped out into the intense humidity, I knew there was something I hadn’t packed and needed to buy… Sandals. In the US, the weather is almost always appropriate for my trusted Old Skool Vans or Adidas Superstars. But after feeling the intensity of the heat and denseness of the air, I knew my casual trainers were not going to cut it. I was angry at myself and grateful to my friends and family because the advice they gave was definitely needed. So, I started to ask around and began my search for sandals the very next day.
I am a US size 11 (in desperate times a US size 10) so even back home, finding my shoe size is a struggle. I am so used to the little frown and shake of the head from store attendants when I ask for my size; Because of this, I almost never ask. As bad that is, I had never actually had an attendant laugh at me until I got to HK. The kind of laugh that starts deep in your belly but it rolls out any way.
Yup! You read that right…that kind of laugh.
In majority of the stores I asked for my shoe size, I got the little frown and slight shake of the head. Others asked if I was talking about male sizes but the surprising of all responses…was that laugh. After that experience, I realized finding my shoe size in the market, mall or road side stalls was just not going to happen. So, I took to the web. That did not work either as none of the Hong Kong shoe stores had my size online. All I had left was good old Amazon.
I have an Amazon Prime account, so I figured at the very least, shipping would be free. Imagine my surprise when I realized that not only did free shipping not apply in Hong Kong, I was going to have to wait over a month for my package to arrive. I was frustrated to say the least. But I promise there’s light at the end of this very dark tunnel.
I heard from a friend that Asos has free shipping for students to Hong Kong. Best believe, I got online and found the one pair of sandals they had in my size. It still took 2 weeks to arrive, but it was better than nothing.
It took over a month and a half of searching before I got sandals in my size. As of the day of its arrival those sandals were added to my list of precious belongings.
For someone that is not the typical Asian size, shopping in Hong Kong is extremely difficult. It is even more depressing for me because I love the way females in Hong Kong dress. There is a sophisticated ease to their sense of style that intrigues me. Unfortunately, nothing here comes in Debbie’s size. Even shoes! Determined not to let that stop me, I decided to buy gifts for everyone I knew the HK style will work for. The best (worst) part is that markets in Hong Kong and all over Asia have the best cheapest clothes one could ever ask for. So, I sucked it up and bought as much as my bank account could afford. On the bright side, whenever I see one of them wearing something I bought. I will know the exact store or market it was bought from.
I love Hong Kong and its little quirks but I will definitely love this place even more than I do now if I could find clothes in my size. As for those sandals, best believe I am going to keep them for as long as possible. So when people ask where and how I got them, there is always a story to tell.
Shopping around Asia
I also made it a point to look for clothes in every country I visited. In majority of them, I was not successful. However, In Taiwan, I got the most beautiful Fall coat and In Vietnam, a custom made ao dai. An Ao dai is a tight fitting tunic worn over trousers. I had heard from friends that in Vietnam, people go into street markets, pick a material, have a tailor measure and deliver outfits before the end of the day. So I did just that. I picked the most traditional Vietnamese material that I had ever seen, got myself measured and my dress was delivered in less than 24 hours; a perfect fit. If you ever get a chance to visit Vietnam or Thailand, these dresses are beautiful and are almost always less than $20… so be sure to get one.
