It's funny to me how I have adapted to life in Hong Kong. It seems that you learn to live in a different culture right before you leave it, or that's how my life goes. Everyday is no longer a struggle, I do grimace having to climb nearly 300 steps each morning just to leave my dorm, and the continued climb up the side of a mountain to reach an elevator that will take me to the top of the mountain so I can descend to the other side, but instead of seeing it as a grueling task, its now part of my life.
Who would have thought that I would be eating a bbq pork bun (a type of dim sum bun) while writing this sitting by the campus's outdoor swimming pool watching little Chinese students in speedos swim. I never would have pictured myself liking Hong Kong more than Copenhagen, but its true. I think the main difference is in there's a sense of adventure being in Asia, constantly exploring foreign things and the cities here are just developing and booming, its pretty exciting. Europe is old, it has a lot of history and if you love a more laid back slow pace, then you will love Europe. Sometimes I even miss sipping coffee in a cute cafe while nibbling on the biscuit (cookie) they serve with every cup. But it's a very different way of life, more conservative in some ways, your private life is very hush-hush, people are more closed off, they have their friends and family and are not looking to make more (true at least for Denmark). Hong Kong the people and society are more conservative, hush-hush on many subjects, but being a white western, I have no possibility of integrating into their society--they look at me like a circus animal, and take pictures when they think I'm not paying attention. There is another culture within Hong Kong and other parts of Asia, there is the local culture and then the "ex-pat" culture, the sub-western culture that co-exists. The people are generally friendly in Asian countries, but they know you are different, don't know what to expect of you and treat you differently because of it. Sometimes it works in your favor, nothing you do will overly shock them because they think you're weird anyway. Whereas in Europe anything you did would be judgded and you could be socially ostrized for committing any social faux pas even if you were not aware of it.
My time in Hong Kong is ending soon, I have study trips to Beijing and Tokyo, and then a day in Hong Kong before flying home. Well not really home, I will be back in the US, a place I haven't seen in 10 months, but I will be staying in New York for 11 weeks. Which means I will be returning to NC exactly one year since I left, August 15th. We'll see what happens there whether I can make it or come back home with my tail between my legs. It's a bit nerve racking, I have an unpaid internship and have to find a paid job to support myself for the summer. I have to admit despite the uncertainty I'm excited. Who wouldn't be? I'm living on 5th Avenue, which despite the shared room and no a/c thing is pretty awesome. How many people can say they lived on 5th avenue. One of the main reasons I pushed so hard to be in New York this summer was based on a gut feeling that that's where I should be. Sometimes I have those feelings and try to trust them. When trying to decide between UNC and another university that gave me a nice four year scholarship, I chose UNC, just off a gut feeling of that's where I should be. Let's hope that following my gut feelings takes me somewhere great.
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