First person

Jerome Ip Tsun-shung, is manager of Starliner Diner, the giant American-style fast-food restaurant at Hong Kong Disneyland, which opens in less than a fortnight. It will be the biggest fast-food restaurant in Hong Kong.

I was nine or 10 years old when I first visited a Disney theme park. I grew up in London but I had cousins who lived in California and I visited them for my holidays. That was where I got the chance to visit Disneyland.

The experience really stuck in my mind. As a kid, you always hear about Disneyland. In schools in the UK, everyone would talk about going to Disneyland but to go there was something very special. If you actually went to Disneyland, it was really cool.

The reaction from school friends in London after I had been was, 'Wow, cool' and 'What did you do, what rides did you go on'. You always heard about the roller coasters back then. People wanted to see pictures to prove you had really been there.

The ride that I remember most was the Space Mountain. Everyone knew all about it. My cousins said: 'You have got to go to Space Mountain', and my uncle told me later I was so anxious in the queue that I kept kicking the heels of the man in front of me. He was really big and he kept turning around and thinking it was my uncle. The queue was really long but I remember lining up for over an hour - but it was worth it.

I have been back in Hong Kong for over 12 years. I first heard about the Hong Kong theme park because my wife was with the company at the time - she works for the Buena Vista legal department, the movie side of Disney - and she kept me in the loop about the park.

When I heard Disney was going to open the first theme park in China here in Hong Kong, I knew it was a special, unique opportunity. There aren't many Disneylands around the world. Friends would ask me 'When are you opening a restaurant in Disneyland?' I had thought about it way back then.