Hong Kong Phallus

(Hong Kong Phallus: A statue of red, inflamed male genital erects in silence and solemnity, probably on the blink of ejaculation, on the harbour front echoing the tallest building, International Financial Centre [IFC] building on the Hong Kong Island. The IFC on the Hong Kong Island is like Yao Ming standing incompatibly among the beauty pageant contestants.)

At the sight of the giant phallus, for a second of two, I stood speechless. Then I whispered, “What the (s)ell!”

I had no idea until recently that there is now a better thing than the Victoria Harbour to flaunt about Hong Kong to visitors: the shock given by the Hong Kong Phallus (commonly known as penis) erecting solemnly on the waterfront promenade

The hellish phallus is a challenge to my belief of decades: If there is one thing to flaunt to allure visitors to Hong Kong, it must be the beauty of the Victoria Harbour:

(Harbour Glitters: A view to the Victoria Harbour at night from Tsim Sha Tsui East along the waterfront promenade which leads to the Ocean Terminal shopping arcade in Tsim Sha Tsui proper. The brighter spot and the one less so in the sky are Venus and Jupiter that would make up the cosmic smiley with the moon a few days later. This was taken with the GX200 on a tripod.)

The discovery was made the week before the last when I had a chance to stroll along the promenade by the Victoria Harbour on a breezy evening. The best view to the harbour can be caught along my route starting from Tsim Sha Tsui East along the waterfront promenade on an autumn evening around 5:30 p.m. when the sun is going low over the sea level. (The promenade starts from Tsim Sha Tsui East and snakes around the coast of the southern tip of the Kowloon to a cruise terminus at the Ocean Centre) Rarely seen sky hues embroidered all things on earth as the sun was setting low in autumn, while the harbour gradually became aglow with a motley of neon shades when the sky grew darker. There were the best of both the natural and artificial colours.

It is especially so from Christmas time to the Chinese New Year in February when most commercial buildings are adorned with festive decorations lined with light bulbs. A great season to take photos even for some photo contest.

(Nathan Road decorated with colours)

So, along the promenade having great fun taking photos of passers-by, the Victoria Harbour and the vessels big or small, I was awestruck by the surreal vista revealing before my eyes: first, the less glittering lower buildings on the left side of the Hong Kong Island, then the brighter modern ones in the middle and finally the futuristic skyscrapers winkling in colourful light bulbs. They blended with the reflections in the waters to play a symphony of colours. Then, in some half an hour, when I came to a darker section of the promenade, a huge, red tainted thing in the shape of something embarrassing to say caught my gaze.

It was standing there alone, next to nothing, on a piece of land away from the more lively and illuminated sections. I was afraid but unsure if the thing was actually on fire. When I walked closer, I found that the red thing was actually lighted by some red flashlights. Puzzled with curiosity, I stuck my head beyond the cordon of two layers of flower pots with some plants of no names.

(Man-made Trees in glaring blue lights for Christmas)

“Oh, my!” I was awestruck in disbelief this time.

For a second of two, I stood speechless. Then I whispered, “What the sell!”

The red thing was an oversized statute in the shape of the torch used for the Beijing Olympics torch relay. Why is it erected on a harbour-front location than in a sports stadium? Why is it cordoned off with two layers of flower pots? Why is it illuminated with red flashlights (you know, the torch is basically red in colour and the shape is, pardon me, so similar to an erected phallus)?

(Festive Colours: Decorative lights are everywhere in Hong Kong from Christmas time to the Chinese New Year in February. The tradition of adoring buildings with decorative lights was left by the British. Will the Hong Kong phallus surrounded by flower pots be the heritage for the generations to come? )

My explanation is: Hong Kong is drifting towards the oriental influence of China, which is a common query thrown to me whenever I meet someone from outside Hong Kong. A professor in Beijing once told me that the mainland Chinese (Chinese living in the mainland of China) had a culture to flaunt anything big in prominent places. This is fine because there are also countless big statues in London or Paris. But the governments do not cordoned them off, at least not with two layers of china clay flower pots. If it is to be cordoned off, do it probably. This dutiful, half-hearted, obstentious and window-dressing way of doing things is a common sight in China which is being adopted by the Hong Kong government to a wider extent.