Confessions of an HK Party Animal

Ah, partying in Hong Kong.  I write those words with a twinkle in my eye, and a longing in my heart.  I will admit it…

Hello. My name is VCarr.  And I am an HK party animal.

Suffice it to say that Hong Kong will bring out the party animal in anyone.  Many of you reading this will say, “but VCarr, you, a party animal? NOooo!” And all I can say is, yes, Yes, YES! While studying here in Hong Kong, I have become well versed in the ways of the crazy expat party animals. And I am going to share those with you now.

Location: LKF

Lan Kwai Fong, better known as LKF, is the Disneyland of partying. Within a three block radius is a land of bars, pubs, and clubs. From beer to jello shots, and martinis, to hefty 7-11 paper bags, everyone finds their drink of choice here. The heart of LKF, D’Aguliar Street, is lined with open terrace bars where people spill out into what looks like one big block party. And party do they! Music floods the streets and fills your soul as you approach this Ex-pat party zone. People of all ages and walks of life will be there, but most locals steer clear of the crazy foreigners and their “I’m on vacation” behavior.

Timing: ‘til sunrise

LKF is 24-7. You can party there “Monday. Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday. Friday. Saturday. Saturday and Sunday.”  An early night ends at 1am, and a great night has you in the diner eating HK style French toast by 5am.  If you haven’t shut down at least 2 places before you head home, you’ve doing something wrong. The beauty of LKF is that bars are literally next door to each other. So answering the question “where to next?” is easy. Just roll next door.

Music: Tonight’s Gonna Be a good night

LKF music might be stuck on repeat (and stuck in ‘09), but that doesn’t stop a party animal from dancing it up.  Here is a short list of all the songs one must hear AND DANCE TO in order for it to be a “good night”…

Empire State of Mind, Alicia Keys & Jay-Z

You Know You Want Me, Pitbull

I Gotta Felling, Black Eyed Peas (HK MBA Exchange Anthem)

Single Ladies, Beyonce (my personal favorite)

Bad Romance, Lady Ga Ga

Poker Face, Lady Ga Ga

If you didn’t hear ALL those songs when you were out, then you weren’t partying HK-style.

Dancing: You gotta!

I believe there are two types of people in HK, and in the world: those that dance and those that won’t. I try to be the former. And for those of you that “don’t know how,” here’s a little secret… none of us know how. But an HK party animal knows that dancing is just waaay more fun! “So just dance. It will be ok… ”

One does not Equal One

This lesson usually takes trial and error to discover, but let me spare you the pain with this piece of advice: there is no such thing as “just one drink” in HK.  One drink will always lead to more, and more… so beforewarned.

Friends by day; Party People by night

No one likes to party alone.  And in HK you are never alone.  It is a prerequisite that you have some sort of “crew” when partying here. And an MBA exchange provides an instant crew of friends and rebel rousers.  The beauty of HK partying is that it can accommodate a small twosome or a large lumbering group. The more the merrier, I say. And LKF’s small size means if you need to split up you can always meet up later.

Within one’s crew of friends there are some key party animal players needed for a fun night out:

• The Camera Snapper: usually there is more than one of these documenting the evening from first drink to last call. Their camera-ing ability tends to decline over the evening moving from smiling group shots to blurry photos of unsuspecting rear ends and the like. A necessary evil for how else would we relive the night on facebook? (Thank you photographers!)
• The Baller: usually the friend of a friend of a friend who likes to buy everyone shots. (And they usually know a lot about the HK “bottles and models” scene). We like them!
• The Hook-up: there is always someone who knows someone who can get you in somewhere. An important skill when you want to hit a club and avoid the annoyingness that is rude bouncers and long lines.
• The Girl/Guy that gets all the Guys/Girls: you always find this friend off dancing with some new person. You just hope you can find her/him at the end of the night. (wink wink, nudge nudge).
• The Never-go-outer: there is always one of them: the friend that only makes an appearance once in a blue moon.  And we are always glad they came.
•  The Last Man/Woman Standing: the friend that won’t be out partied by anyone and will stay out until the break of dawn or the music gets bad, which ever comes first.

There might be variety in types of party animals, but they all abide by one golden rule: a place doesn’t make the party, you do! So bring the party wherever you go!

Secrets secrets are no fun… but gossip is!

As previously stated, LKF is small. And people run into each other over and over. So when party animals have a love connection, however fleeting, they know that unless that special someone is getting on a plane the next morning, they will be seen again. And friends will always make sure to point out the suspect in question when spotted in LKF. Why? Because everyone’s a chatty cathy when it comes to affairs of the heart… especially party animals.

So, my friends, there you have it: all that I have learned and observed. I hope these words were encouraging, so that you, too can party like a rockstar in Hong Kong or where ever you are!