VIVIENNE.CHOW@SCMP.COM
PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 17 November, 2015, 7:02am
UPDATED : Tuesday, 17 November, 2015, 7:02am
A woman prays among floral tributes to the victims of the terrorist attacks in Paris. Photo: AP
Hongkongers living in Paris are determined to stay – despite warnings of more possible attacks in the French capital.
For Nancy Li, a translator, leaving Paris permanently is not an option. Although she will return to Hong Kong on Thursday, it will only be a business trip until the end of the month.
“I have residency in France and I’m happy here. I have no plans to leave Paris. It was the city I chose to live in when I was in my early 20s,” Li, 59, told the South China Morning Post.
Li said she went downtown on Monday as usual, and observed that people were trying to live their normal lives, despite Friday night’s terrorist attacks that killed more than 130 people. “Good life, [people] stayed happy, and there was a man who made me laugh,” she said.
She said her husband went to the 10th and 11th districts, where some of the attacks took place, and the sites were crowded with people laying flowers as a mark of respect to the victims.
For younger Hongkongers, Paris is still a place for them to realise their dreams. Photographer and student Jack Hui, 20, pledged to stay. “I can’t give up my dreams just because of some ridiculous terrorist attacks,” he said.
Florence Lai, a 28-year-old literature student, also planned to stay. “We are not tourists coming here for travelling. The attacks won’t be a cause for our decision,” she said.
However, her friend, who is a political activist from Hong Kong, has left Paris, fearing for her safety.
Package tours travelling to Paris have yet to be affected. Joseph Tung Yao-chung, chief executive of the Travel Industry Council, said about a dozen Europe tours go to Paris, an important tour hub. He said that, as of the end of this month, more than 30 tours with 600 to 700 tourists are expected to depart to Europe.
Tung said tour guides would, however, take some precautions. “For safety reasons, tour guides won’t take tourists out at night. They are advised to stay at hotels at night,” he said.
Cathay Pacific and Air France said flights between Hong Kong and Paris were running as normal. Air France, which operates one flight per day between the city and Paris, said there may be delays due to tightened security controls but the airline had yet to observe any impact or cancellation of bookings since Saturday.
Cathay, which operates 10 flights between Hong Kong and Paris each week, said changes to passengers’ travel plans were observed over the last few days but so far there had been no significant impact.
“We continue to operate our flights between Hong Kong and Paris as scheduled,” said the airline’s spokesman, who advised travellers to check the airline’s website for updated flight details.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1879663/hongkongers-living-paris-vow-stay-despite-terror-threat
