Opinion | Protect Hong Kong tourism from the stigma of bad manners
Kelly Yang's mainland holiday convinced her of the need to keep tourism in HK civilised - and that means no peeing in public, for a start
When the story of a mainland toddler urinating in a Hong Kong street went viral online, I was on a flight back to the city from a holiday in Hainan.
My first reaction was relief; it was a pleasant reminder that I was heading home. In other parts of China, a toddler urinating in the street is nothing; here, it's front-page news.
I read with great interest the many facets of the story - the young mother wandering the busy streets of Mong Kok and her crying two-year-old shrieking that he might burst. All this culminated in his mother's decision to let him drop his trousers on the street.
As he peed, a Hong Kong crowd gathered, who alternatively filmed and gasped. It was like a scene in a movie. Except that it was reality, and it had been my reality, too, for my holiday on the mainland.
While I did not see any children pee in the street on my trip, I saw plenty of children - and adults - peeing in the pool
While I did not see any children pee in the street on my trip, I saw plenty of children - and adults - peeing in the pool. In fact, I felt them pee. I was sitting beside them in the pool and I felt a warm gush of liquid ripple my way.