I feel proud to have done the right thing, but I must be honest about my biggest motivation for getting the jab. Being thrown out of the Captain’s Bar at midnight and having then to drink outside a shady 7-11 has started to get a bit tiresome.
With my jabs done, I’ll soon be free to carry on in my favourite watering hole well after midnight — with the government’s blessing, as the authorities try to entice people to get vaccinated with promises of longer drinking hours and larger group gatherings.
Hong Kong has vaccinated a fifth of its population, probably all alcohol lovers like me. But when it comes to incentivising the rest, free goodies may have to do the trick.
Instead of promises of looser social distancing measures and travel bubbles that could easily burst, my friends and colleagues in China have received vaccine incentives in the form of physical goods.
Who wouldn't want to take home a dozen cartons of milk after getting a jab? Or a free wireless mouse to pair with your laptop? Some have also received a gift of a travel tumbler or a flask — something that would come in handy for my daily tipple. And if you are in the right place at the right time, you can even participate in a lucky draw and win an electric scooter to save yourself the bother of public transport.
So, dear readers, if you happen to be in Shanghai’s Lujiazui financial district, have a wander about on a Friday afternoon. People carrying what appear to be groceries didn’t necessarily go to the supermarket during their lunch break. Chances are, they just got themselves vaccinated.