Dear Hong Kong,

You are crowded. You are smelly. You are polluted. You hang horrific slabs of red meat and hang yellow baby chickens from the neck. Your people do not know how to walk in the streets (haven't they lived here their whole lives? haven't they had enough practice?). Your sidewalks are too narrow for your over-populated city. Your people do not know how to wait in lines. Your people do not know how to use the MTR efficiently. You have too many McDonald's, and not enough Starbucks. The tap water is not drinkable, and when it is, it tastes like shit. Your sense of style seems like it has been frozen since the late 90's. The only reasonably nice clothes are the one's that I (and 90% of the population) could never afford. You insist on constructing skyscrapers at 9 AM right outside of my window- every morning (even on Saturdays). Your elevators are insanely slow. You pay pennies for editorials (even less than everywhere else). You are extremely loud and frustrating. You have too many tempting bakeries, at ridiculously low prices (you tease). You have the scariest thunderstorms (along with cyclones and typhoons) I have ever encountered. You have made me miss fall, and replaced it with humid, sticky afternoons.

But don't worry, Hong Kong, you also have many redeeming qualities. You have the best nightlife district I have ever laid eyes on (and I have seen one too many). You have more culture than any other country in the world. You have the most amazing skyline, drawing locals and tourists alike. You have beautiful, fresh, juicy exotic fruits for 3 dollars a dozen. You are the master of imported goods (especially those international grocery stores that could put any Whole Foods to shame). You have enchanting cobble stone streets lined with red paper lanterns, where the smell of incense wafts between tea shops and tiny flower shops. You are 100% prepared for any kind of tropical weather monstrosities coming our way. You have beautiful temples scattered around a city filled with luxury department stores. Your alcohol is cheap, along with your Lucky Strikes and Marlboros. Your currency makes me think I am spending too much money, when really, I'm hardly spending anything. Your traditional coffee wakes me up for eight hours straight. Elgin street makes me want to stay with you forever. Your wonderful escalators in Central (how nice of you to not make us trek up and up in our six inch heels). Your fantasticly organized and dirt cheap subway system - and your epic ''Octopus Card''. Your 24/7 convenience stores on every corner. Your sleep-friendly work (and casting) hours.

I guess you're alright in my books, after all, Hong Kong.