Sneaky sleepers: on the bus, at work or even while shopping — stressed-out, dog-tired Hongkongers cannot resist a nap in public
- In a city always on the go, Hong Kong people will even pay to take trips on public transport just to grab some shut-eye
- Experts warn that lack of sleep can lead to mental health problems and in chronic cases, even suicide
A photo circulating online showing a woman curled up on a display couch in an Ikea showroom in Hong Kong, surrounded by Christmas decorations, has captured how many people feel during the festive season: fatigued and stressed.
But it is not uncommon to see Hongkongers taking naps in public at any time of the year. Nodding off on trains and buses is a popular pastime, but it is not just on public transport that people try to catch up on lost z’s.
Earlier this year, a video of a male police officer sleeping while sprawled across three chairs arranged into a makeshift bed went viral.
It is understood the video was filmed in the break room of the temporary base for Beijing’s Office for Safeguarding National Security in Hong Kong.
What made the image extra worrying was that the officer, who was wearing an eye mask and had removed his shoes, had left his gear duty belt, loaded gun and a baton, on another nearby chair.
While scenes of people napping might seem funny on the surface, they also paint a more depressing picture: that Hong Kong is a city that is stressed out and sleep deprived.