HONG KONG may be a city built on great parties - but great manners? Absolutely not. At least that is what professional party organisers and private hosts say.
Every day, thousands of invitations are sent out to cocktail receptions, dinner parties, gallery exhibitions, restaurant openings and PR 'events'. And while most of the information is noted down - who, where and why - four initials in the corner are pretty well ignored.
RSVP - repondez s'il vous plait - seems to be considered something of a quaint anomaly for many party-goers: a requirement that is formal, contrived and unnecessary.
Given that parties are used by regulars as a vehicle to publicise themselves, network, and perhaps get invited to even more, those on the social circuit are remiss about ignoring RSVP.
And the bigger the party appears to be, the less inclined they are to call and say if they are coming or not.
'It's a total lack of efficiency and politeness and it's typically Hong Kong,' said Elisabeth Cassegrain, general manager in Hong Kong for a London-based luxury jewellery company and the host of a number of social and corporate events.