Snow White (Part I)

I was surprised to find found out last night that my (new & current) local HK roommate actually likes to tan!  I emphasize local because I have yet to meet a local Hong Kong girl who likes to tan. Considering she does, I have to explain that she isn't a totally typical HKer.  She told me that her parents are not 100% Chinese, as she is a mix of Chinese, Indonesian, and even a very tiny percentage of European blood, so she was born tan anyway and has taken it upon herself to embrace it.

The majority of women here, as in most of Asia, like to be "bak," which means white in Canto.  Of course, there are some who don't mind being "huk" (or dark) during the summer, but they equal a small portion of the female population.  My cousin mentioned that being a bit tan for summer is good, but they quickly revert back to whiteness when fall comes around.  What's funny though, is that it's acceptable/good for guys to be tan.

Everywhere from drugstores to cosmetic counters, whitening creams, masks, lotions, etc. etc. cover the shelves and women clamour to get a hold them.  It's pretty much equivalent to tanning oils, lotions, sprays, and salons that are everywhere in California.

As I learned in my Body, Beauty, Fashion course back in first semester at HKU, this whole skin color issue stems from notions of class centuries ago.  In China, people who worked outside (i.e. farmers) became tan, while those who were rich didn't have to work and remained inside, thus fair skinned.  As for Americans/Europeans, those who were wealthy enough could go on leisure cruises and beaches to faraway places where they could lie around under the sun and tan.  There are many other issues, but I'll leave it at that.

Having grown up in California, I've always liked being tan especially when summertime came around, which wasn't too difficult considering I can tan very easily.  All of my friends also liked to tan as we'd go to the beach or chill poolside.  Also, back in high school, being on the swim team caused me to be seriously dark.  This was something I never minded...until I came to Hong Kong.      

I have never once in my life wanted to be "whiter."  I always knew Asians liked to be fair and use whitening creams, but I scoffed at it.  The thought or "issue" never crossed my mind until this past year living in and being surrounded by Hong Kong culture.

Apparently, I wasn't alone either.