Well, I think the reason why the attitude that the HK locals have about foreigners, mainly 'gweilos' (round eyes, it's like calling someone a honky, or whitey), is because they want to have the advantage over you. It seems they want to have the control, and the way that is achieved is through language. It's like their weapon.
Granted, Classical Cantonese has 9 tones, and Modern Cantonese has 5-7 tones, depending on who you talk to. What this means: a word can have up to 5-7 meanings. The language is not precise, a lot of words used are compound words, and abstract. For example: din si, is the word for TV, or 'air box'; din wah, or mobile/cell, or 'air talk'. The literal translation for the word train is 'fire wagon', because trains used to be powered by steam. So it can be daunting, and people use the excuse 'Mandarin is easier to learn'. Yes it is, but it's not the language of the people I have to deal with on a daily basis.
So, here's Parts 1 and 2:
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