The clock’s fast running out on 2018, and that means we here at Coconuts HK are quite naturally reminiscing about the year in stories from Hong Kong.
Some that immediately leap to mind involved bizarre fire department mascots, elections, self-censorship, the non-renewal of a journalist’s visa, and a domestic worker who endured unspeakable abuse graduating with top honors.
We also gave you deep dives on everything from illegal logging, to the world of Hong Kong’s embattled Uber drivers, to real estate agents who literally brawl over customers.
These stories, however, are not those. No, dear readers. What follows are the most-read of 2018. We’re talking simple click arithmetic. And if you’re as bright as we know you are, you’ll realize that means it’s time to gird your loins for some sex and good ol’ fashioned outrage (and at least one hurricane).
So without further adieu, here are just a few stories that made us laugh, cringe, and go “are you for real?” in 2018:
The most-read story of 2018 was about a viral video in which a local woman could be seen unleashing a torrent of verbal abuse at a domestic worker who’s trying to look after a crying child and two dogs. Shouting “go back to the Philippines” and “you’re just a helper,” the local woman’s grotesque tirade trained an uncomfortable spotlight on just how poorly some in our city treat the people they bring from hundreds or thousands of miles away to perform the daily tasks they don’t want to.
Public bench passion: HK couple’s nighttime nookie raises eyebrows online
Finding a place to get it on in Hong Kong can be tricky. Many here either live with their parents or in apartments so small it’s impossible to find a place to well … y’know. One solution? Taking your lovemaking public, which is precisely what these two lovebirds decided to do on a bench near Mui Wo Ferry Pier back in July.
Yep. Another disturbing story in which a domestic worker is forced to endure insane abuse — this time physical as well as verbal. If you don’t live here in Hong Kong, you may not be aware that domestic workers are required by law to live with their employers, a fact that was underscored when the High Court this year quashed a legal challenge against the requirement. This story, in which a worker live-streamed her employer marching into her bedroom then slapping and screaming at her, is enough to make us wonder if yet another look at that rule is in order.
Hongkongers are famously passionate about food, from fine-dining Michelin institutions to greasy cha chaan tengs. But there was one food-related story that sent Hongkongers into a panic at the end of November, the one about a certain California-based food producer filing for bankruptcy protection.
You see, Zacky Farms distributes the Valley Chef brand chicken frank sausages, and Valley Chef brand chicken franks have been a staple of Hongkongers’ breakfasts, hotpots, barbecues, and afternoon teas for decades. News of the bankruptcy filing led to many commenting that it was the end of the world, and even panic-buying of franks.
Dramatic videos, images as Severe Typhoon Mangkhut slams into Hong Kong
You probably remember exactly where you were on Sept. 16, that was the day that Typhoon Mangkhut slammed into the city, prompting the Hong Kong Observatory to issue their highest (and rarely used) storm signal: T10.
Images and video of the destruction wrought by the superstorm that Sunday were flying around WhatsApp groups, and your humble Coconuts crew kept publishing stories throughout the day letting you know exactly what was happening (and occasionally what wasn’t happening).
You might have thought that given the massive clean-up job at hand, the Hong Kong government would have declared the morning after a citywide day off. You’d have thought wrong. The fact that Hongkongers were made to somehow get into work despite felled trees and shattered glass across the city led to scenes of overcrowding at MTR stations and bus stops, and widespread delays across the city’s public transportation network.
Crowd gathers in Sheung Wan to watch two men having sex
Remember how we mentioned that sometimes it can be difficult to find a place to have sex in Hong Kong? These guys didn’t have that problem, they did, however, have a problem of their own making when they decided to do the deed directly against an open window in Sheung Wan. What followed was a slowly growing crowd of gawkers who helpfully videotaped the entire thing, complete with ribald color commentary.
‘We’ve been homeless for a month’: Jackie Chan’s daughter posts YouTube video in cry for help
It was a tumultuous year for Jackie Chan’s estranged daughter, Etta Ng, and her now-wife Andi Autumn. There were concerns for Ng’s well-being after she and Autumn posted a YouTube video, which has since been deleted, saying that they were homeless in Canada and needed help. The couple returned to Hong Kong last month, and revealed on social media that they had tied the knot in Canada. They then gave a rare interview where Ng said she wants nothing to do with her celebrity father.
‘Influencer’ deletes 95 Instagram posts after followers discover they came from Google image search
Social media “influencers” have a hard life, one that mostly seems to consist of taking pictures of themselves. Or things. Of course, sometimes even taking pictures of things proves too difficult, and in those desperate hours, there’s only one logical solution — steal someone else’s. One influencer caught doing just that was Sadelle Yeung, who hurriedly removed about 95 images from her Instagram account after it emerged that some of her photos of avocado toast, brick walls, blues skies, sunflowers, and holiday snaps had been pinched from other sources.
Video of man shouting at woman taking up a row of seats on AirAsia flight goes viral
With their tendency to squeeze in passengers while squeezing out dollars, flying budget carriers can occasionally get tense. Sometimes, cabin pressure (of the metaphorical kind) boils over into anger. That was the case in July when a female passenger on board an AirAsia flight from KL to Hong Kong drew the ire of a male passenger for repeatedly ignoring the orders of a flight attendant by camping out in a row of empty seats.
The woman had been repeatedly told by cabin crew to return to her actual seat. The woman, however, was persistent and several times throughout the flight returned to the open row (reserved for upgraders, naturally) to kick back when the flight attendant wasn’t looking. The cat and mouse game continued until the male passenger finally lost it.
Hotel calls police after videos of people having sex in room posted online
Twenty One Whitfield is a Tin Hau-based hotel that boasts some pretty nice views of Victoria Harbour. At the start of this year, however, it sadly found out that views work both ways as it became the target of peeping Toms. Photos taken from across the street of guests taking nude selfies or having sex soon made their way online, prompting the hotel to call the police.
