Flew into Hong Kong on Tuesday night. It seems I was one of 757,761 residents returning to the city at the end of the five-day weekend. That’s one in 10 of the population.
Melbourne is a genuinely impressive city: a distinctive gold-rush history and heritage, visible in plentiful older architecture; amazing Italian, Greek, Hunanese, etc food; cockatoos everywhere; a pleasing, slightly provincial buzz coexisting with a surprisingly cosmopolitan population; some grittiness but lots of quality of life. At ease with itself and not having to try. Unlike the poor erstwhile Pearl of the Orient, run by people desperately erasing its identity and installing a fake one in its place.
Locals complain that Melbourne is expensive. And they are basically right: rents and restaurant meals typically cost a mere 30% less than in Hong Kong (compared with Tokyo or Taipei at 50% less, and Shenzhen at 75% less). But public transport is free throughout the state of Victoria for the whole of April.
Welcome back, Hemlock. You were missed.