At a Turkish Restaurant where we were ordering some take-out, a friendly Lammanite joked that Aaron’s accent was pretty thick. He asked “So what is an American doing on Lamma?”
Why would an American presence on Lamma surprise someone? It’s true that there is a heavy British influence on our fair island. Before the hand-over I’ve heard from local shopkeepers that 70% of Lammanites were British. Now it’s only a meager 20%. I’m slowly talking to more and more people on the ferry to and from work. I also listen in on conversations to decipher accents. It’s rare that anyone sounds American. They are usually British, Australian, New Zealand, South African, Irish, and the list goes on.
Lamma’s website recently posted a neat article about the island’s diversity. Apparently someone is trying to get Lamma into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most cosmopolitan village. Isn’t that an oxymoron? One Lammanite boasts a circle of friends that includes people from 49 different nations. Our little island has less than 6 thousand residents.
So, where are all the Americans? Lamma’s website contains a forum where it is popular to bash a Hong Kong community called Discovery Bay, which in many ways is opposite to a Lamma lifestyle. You see, Lamma is an artsy island with lots of writers and musicians who sometimes daylight as English teachers. Lamma folk love the quiet hikes, sense of community, and of course the cheap rent. On the other hand, Discovery Bay is commonly known as Hong Kong’s suburbia. People say it has a Disney Land feel. (Well, it is right next door to the amusement park.) I can’t say much about it because I’ve never been there. But it’s a rich expat kind of place and I’m guessing that is where most of the Americans are.
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