Considering the poor viability these last few days due to fog the ferry company has done well to manage to keep the service running with only some understandable delays. Monday night the visibility was down to zero but the service still kept running so we could get back to Lamma.

So……. I and my wife were shocked last night (Tuesday) to see a quite tall, slim, short fair hair man in his late 30's, wearing gold frame glasses and a grey suit, speaking with a possible English accent having a real go (complaining) at one of the girl staff at the central pier. Shouting at her “The 7:30 ferry should run at f******* 7:30”; as it was only 7:35 his rude attitude was unbelievable. Not content with just shouting at the girl he went back and started to have a go at the office staff.

A lot of us are guests in this country so can we all please try to remember it! If this guy is British then the transport here is far superior to what he has to travel on in England which is very expensive, inconvenient, can be very dirt, vandalized and unsafe late at night. If he spoke with the same attitude there he would have been throw off or out the station. Where does he get off??

"bad attitude from foreigners"

As far as I can see, it's one specific "foreigner" you are complaining about.

So why turn this into an attack on "foreigners"?

Complain about someone being a jerk, but don't generalise from that and start lecturing everyone who happens to be of the same ethnicity.

and how is it relevant that the person might have been a 'foreigner'?
I should think that all persons ought to treat the ferry staff with due respect.

how do you know the person was a foreigner? Did you mean that the person was non-Chinese? I personally don't like this categorisation but I realise that it's so prevalent it's almost impossible to resist. 'Foreign,' to me, contains the connotation of 'outsider' and in some sense - not belonging. If I'm right in my feeling then it's quite unfortunate for persons who are ethnically non-Chinese but who have lived here many years, perhaps raised their family here, made a life-long committment to HK and may even have been born here. To be forever branded as 'outsiders' doesn't seem quite right. If you really get right down to it, humans have been migrating around the globe since the dawn of time - who is NOT a foreigner? Certainly there were people here before the 4 big families (香港四大家族) immigrated in the 1800's!

_________________
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
----- Margaret Mead

A Chinese woman was really rude to me the other day. Luckily I managed to rise above it using my stiff upper lip.

_________________
wooooooooooooooooh

it was indeed very unfortunate weather, however, i do not like to board the small ferries and when my friend asked one of the ferry ladies when the next large boat would be, she was told the next one. Just to make sure we then asked another employee who then told us that there would be no more large boats for that evening. Fair enough. But after reporting this info back and asking the lady why she fed us incorrect info. the girl just shrugged without giving a s***.. Quite a bad attitude although we didn't get rude about it. I am 'Western' so please don't post these sweeping generalisations.

Some of my best friends are foreign

A lot of these people came to HK in the mid 90s to deal drugs and build the airport. They have since got gold rimmed glasses and suits and now work in sales or recruitment. They all have numbers tattooed on the back of their necks - if you ever see them shouting in public again write this number down and report it to the British Embassy. Normally they are wanted for car-thieving crimes in England and will be deported.

Hahaha Fortune's being funny for once (ps I left a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on the 12.30 ferry last night - anybody find them?)

How awful...... the ferry can't answer back

_________________
@ /\ B
@

tavis ,excuse my ignorance ,who were the big 4
funnily enough there are many nations around the world which have the same ,outsider translation for foreigner

It should have not been too difficult to see I was directing comments at one person with rude behavior. When I said foreigners I was trying to give a description so why the attack and twisting at something that was not aimed at everyone in general. I was not born in Hong Kong so I consider myself as a foreigner as well, it does not mean anything to me. He was WHITE, is it wrong of me to write that as well cause a lot of Asian people have white skin as well. Maybe I wrote foreigners as it was in the back of mind that I have seen on a number of different occasions non-Chinese behaving in an unacceptable way but have not noticed it from Chinese people.

Next time I want to post a comment I better consult the Race Discrimination office first incase a slip of an 's' leads me to getting sued.

The ferry staff have always been alright to me and if they appear not to give a S**** it could be due to that they don't all speak English or understand that well. Hong Kong people can get quite embarrassed when they don't understand and will give short abrupt answers due to this. Some of the staff have been very pleasant to me and helpful, a number will always say hello to me.

I will not bother to write anymore thread that were actually meant out of concern as I going to get on the ferry and rip the seats with a knife, write a lot of bullshit on the seats in tipex, charge through the gates and ignore the staff when the ferry is closing its gangway (happened last year) , step in dog poo and then put my shoes on the seats (locals do this as well) so the next person can share it and spread it around on their IKEA sofa. If I can’t get on the ferry I am going to go around and spray Welcome to Lamma everywhere.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_big_f ... _Hong_Kong

_________________
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
----- Margaret Mead

Not "everyone in general", just those of us who happen to be "foreigners".

You're the one who made it all about "foreigners".
You even put it in the headline.

So don't whine about being misinterpreted.



Maybe that's what you've noticed, but I've seen verbal abuse and once violence directed at ferry staff by a disgruntled (Chinese) passenger. But I don't feel it necessary or helpful to highlight them being "Chinese" or "foreigner".

And I also found the idea that non-Chinese residents should not to speak up or express opinions to be rather offensive. I am a permanent resident, I have an ID card, I pay tax, I can vote. Don't tell me that I'm not allowed to have an opinion because I'm a "foreigner".

Which I'm sure you will say you did not intend, but that was the message your original post (now edited) put across, and probably why so many took offence.

I am a foreigner too with a HK ID card, so was I implying that I am rude as well?

It was a slip of an 's' as the general thread was direct at one person, I appologies if everyone took it offensive the thread was started at concern of abuse being directed at local ferry staff.

I find the wording "attacks at foreigners" a little offensive too as that was not my attention...........

I am still not sure exactly what your point is.

You witnessed a person being rude to someone who works for the ferry company.

So what?

In England he wouldn't be earning $20 an hour, neither would the staff.
Generally this comment is very general, I think staff in UK are used to swearing.

When they say "There's no need to swear", they're often wrong. It's what swearing's for, actually.

_________________
My real name isn't Harry.
Slurp my bean juice.