In HK Magazine’s 20-year history, we’ve been fortunate to talk to some of the best-known and most influential people in Hong Kong. Whether their background is in media, politics or business, many of them have led fascinating lives, and all have a unique take on their city. Read on for some of our favorite moments.

Hatin’ on Hong Kong

Common complaints about the cıty we live in

• “Hong Kong is like a hotel to most people, not a home. Everyone fled with their cash before 1997, came back again when Hong Kong looked fine and fled with their cash again when SARS broke out.” - Jackie Chan, martial arts star.
• “The system [in Hong Kong] allows a few property tycoons to control all the wealth. The cutthroat greed is worse than Wall Street, and I find it disgusting.” - Michael Chugani, columnist and talk show presenter.
• “I used to love Hong Kong. I had hopes for it, and that’s why I was constantly critical. Now I just hate it. I look at the younger generation, young couples hugging teddy bears in the street—what hope do we have?” - Anthony Wong, actor.
• “We live in a big city, but the land area is small. Things get really oversaturated and greasy. Real greasy. It’s almost like a jail, a very competitive jail. And we’re running out of cigarettes.” - Gold Mountain, MC.

Sex and Zen

Love, lust and personal philosophies

• “I thought of giving up at first, but a tiny shrimp bounced up on my board and kept struggling to get back into the sea. If a little shrimp had such willpower, I decided, then I had to.” - Lee Lai-san.
  Champion windsurfer who won a gold medal in 1996 at the Olympics in Atlanta. Fondly known as “San-San,” the medal is Hong Kong’s first and only gold won at an Olympic event.
• “When I was 12, my father told me, ‘The most powerful force in the world is sex.’ Actually, I don’t agree. I think it’s love.” - Decima, dominatrix and former owner of Fetish Fashion.
  Remember Fetish Fashion? One of Hong Kong’s pioneering purveyors of kink, Fetish Fashion blazed a trail in our conservative city, selling bondage gear, sex toys and lingerie out of its shop on Cochrane Street. Owned and run by the dominatrix Decima from 1998, Fetish Fashion closed in 2005 after being plagued by legal troubles following a police raid on its “play rooms,” where they arrested kinksters participating in a BDSM party. The subsequent trial—in which the owners of Fetish Fashion pleaded not guilty and all charges were dropped—raised many questions about the use of police power and the right to privacy.
• “Monogamy is a barbaric system. It was set up by people who have weaker genes to protect their own interests.” - Chua Lam, food connoisseur and TV host.
• “Lung King Heen is ‘home’ to many celebrities and tycoons, but I can’t disclose who our frequent customers are—it’s a privacy issue and, you know, they might come in with their boyfriend or girlfriend, rather than their husband or wife.” - Chan Yan-tak, executive chef at three Michelin-starred restaurant Lung King Heen.
• “Always aim for first class. You might not get it, but you might get business.” - Allan Zeman, entrepreneur.
• “Weather is like life. There are principles, but there is no absolute certainty.” - Lam Choi-ying, former head of the Hong Kong Observatory.
• “Why is it bad if people use their beauty to help further their career? The pretty ones have to work hard to get what they want, too.” - Teresa Fu, singer.
• “I believe that all humans are born good. We should never celebrate anyone’s death, not even Osama Bin Laden’s.” - Heiward Mak, filmmaker.
• “Ten out of 10 men would like to have an affair—it’s just that not all of them have the courage to cheat.” - Mak Ling-ling, one of Hong Kong’s best-known fortune tellers.