Week 6 – Hong Kong part 2 and Back to the Mainland

Our last day in Hong Kong was one of the quieter ones, we spent most of the day getting ready to leave and happily vacating the hostel we were in for the duration - it was not until the final night that we finally got the room we booked and Lloyd and I no longer had to share a bed – cosy as that was!

There were, of course, some final things that had to be done before we left this Westernised haven. The main one being a long anticipated trip to Marks and Spenser to attempt to stock up on enough “normal food” to last us until we got home – on my part, this was Percy Pigs and energy drinks (so healthy).

Jayne and Lloyd enjoying a "normal" lunch

The train journey back to Guangzhou allowed for some reflection time. I still find it very hard to believe that somewhere so close and technically part of the same country could be so different. I also found myself missing China at times – something I did not expect. Hong Kong is great but it is very fast moving, I feel that I have grown attached to the simpler, slower pace of the Mainland. Simple things like walking around campus in the early morning to see the elderly women doing Tai Chi for hours on end or the young children who sit outside learning to play the Guard Flute really set the tone for the country. It has it’s downsides – it is less modern, a little dirtier, rougher around the edges and people have by and large yet to fully grasp what manners are but I think it’s kind of like all of the rain in Northern Ireland – we complain about it all the time and long for the sun but the rain is part of who we are, it’s part of our home. Lyrics from a Belfast band “The Emerald Armada” spring to mind as they sing about NI:

“I’m coming home to the place I know, to see those light and to feel that cold, it’s comforting and I don’t know why; when I look up I see that great grey sky”

I know our Hong Kong friends felt the same when they came up here, I just didn’t expect myself to miss Guangzhou.

Jayne - Missing Hong Kong

This guy, on the other hand, buzzing to have me back!

The remainder of the week moved slowly enough when wesa returned with classes progressing and preparing for our final week next week before teaching practice. This week, we decided to take our Mandarin teacher, Mei, out for a meal as she was very friendly and had been very patient and creative in her teaching styles.

The week rounded up with my new language partner, Kelvin, who I have been meeting for the past week. I teach him English for 30 minutes and he teaches me Mandarin for 30 minutes. I personally find these sessions so helpful as a reinforcement of what I have learned, however, we cannot always convey what we mean and so, have gotten excellent at charades. 

All the best and thanks for reading,

Adams