I came across an interesting article by the NewScientist which discusses the "walking speed" of some of the top cities of the world. People from 32 countries were timed walking a length of 18m. To my surprise, London is ranked at top 12 only, at 12.17secs. ... Hong Kong wasn't even a candidate but I believe it would've made a tie with Taipei at number 23, with 14secs.
While writing my dissertation, I've tried to retrace my roots in my interest in the topic of "Time". Having briefly discussed this during one of the mentoring sessions last term, I realized that my sensitivity to Time probably originated from having lived in two different countries. Having been away from Hong Kong for the past 3 years (although with visits back home for 6-10 weeks/year), I've really come to notice the difference in speed in different cultures.
London may have the 12th fastest walking pace in the world, but it doesn't necessarily mean the city itself functions at the same rate. In fact, I realized that my walking pace does increase in London compared to when I'm in Hong Kong. And yet I still feel that Hong Kong functions so much faster. Whether it is transportation, service or simply immediate gratification of your demands... Hong Kong is truly unbeatable!
(original article on "walking speed":
http://www.newscientist.com/blog/shortsharpscience/labels/walk.html)
Something i wrote in the beginning of the year, though you might find it interesting...
ReplyDeletehttp://fondofcobb.blogspot.com/2010/10/walking.html
I believe because things function faster in Hong Kong people don't need to walk quicker to catch things by a certain time. In London everyone is in a rush because you know things take time; waiting for the next train, avoiding the queue etc. The gap is much larger than in Hong Kong, meaning catching a certain train or bus can be the difference between being late or being on time.
ReplyDelete