Taiwanese Woman in Hong Kong Spends All Her Money, Sells Her Belongings on the Street

Two weeks ago, a 27-year-old Taiwanese woman surnamed Wu (吳) travelled to Hong Kong, but during her stay in the city she spent all of her money, that is HK$2000 (approximately 200 Euros, or 7800 NT$).

Yesterday (September 10) her friends took her to Kwai Hing, near Kwai Chung Road, where she basically "settled down" in the middle of the street. She took off her jeans, sitting and walking around in her panties; she washed her hair in public; she began selling what she had in her suitcase, mostly beauty products; and she offered "beauty treatment" to passers-by, charging HK$50.

Her behaviour and looks astonished the passers-by, some of whom called the police.

View of Kwai Hing, Hong Kong (source)

When they arrived on the spot, the police officers found the scantily dressed woman next to her improvised vendor's stall, consisting of her suitcase and a number of objects scattered around it. She claimed to be Taiwanese and to have come to Hong Kong two weeks ago for leisure and visiting friends, but had run out of money and decided to sell her stuff. She stated that she is a beautician by profession. The police helped her contact the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Hong Kong, the quasi-embassy of Taiwan in the HKSAR.

As often happens in Taiwan's vibrant internet community, the news and the pictures of the girl spread quickly. Some netizens, however, doubted whether she was really Taiwanese, saying that she probably came from China and should "stop pretending to be Taiwanese" (in the past I already wrote and had lengthy discussions about this typical reaction). However, journalists checked the woman's Facebook profile and apparently found out that she is really Taiwanese (although she has a Cantonese name, which is puzzling).

According to reports, later that day she quarrelled with a driver and once again someone called the police. They found the woman speaking incoherently and, believing that she suffered from mental disorder, took her to a hospital.

Meanwhile, some netizens appealed to Taiwan's Foreign Ministry to help the woman return home.

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