My First Few Days in Hong Kong!
When I first landed, I could not stop grinning. The moment I stepped off the airplane and saw the mountains in the evening haze, my first thought was: I’m so glad I chose Hong Kong.
I was worried before I left, of course. Will I make lots of friends? Will the classes be hard? Will I enjoy two entire months in another country? And, yeah, I still don’t necessarily know the answers to those questions, but I’d never felt as excited for something– even in the wake of those doubts– as I did when I first arrived.
The trip to the university was incredibly easy, all thanks to my HKUST buddy. He picked up me and another student from UMich who flew in with me, guiding us through the bus (double-decker, by the way) routes and taking us to eat at an authentic street restaurant. Unfortunately, I did fall prey to the tourist stereotype and took too many photos, awed by the city with its enormous buildings and bustling streets. So, enjoy!
The dorm is pretty standard with lots of storage space, a full length mirror, desk, and in room sink. Two of these rooms are connected to a very small hallway that contains a shower in one room, and a toilet in the other, all of which are behind a locked door. The best part, besides my lovely roommate, of the dorms would have to be the ocean view.
The following day, I caught breakfast with my roommate, in one of HKUST’s many canteens. They have a variety of options, within the food they serve, ordered through a kiosk– which are helpful as most of the staff at HKUST only speak Cantonese.
We then joined up with some other students for a campus tour, sponsored by the university, along with an orientation lecture, and a welcome reception. The welcome reception was for students to mingle and get some snacks and drinks. In that hour alone, I met so many people from so many different countries and even states within the US, all so incredibly friendly.
For students who needed bedding or other home supplies, HKUST provided a trip following the reception to IKEA. The mall the IKEA was in was 17 floors, and, yes, I went to every single one of them– of course after exploring to see the differences in HK IKEA versus US IKEA (besides the food options, there was none). Within the mall was– amazingly– an ice rink, an arcade, bumper cars, a large supermarket, and much more.
My favorite part so far has to be the tour HKUST took us on today. We went to Tai O, a fishing village, and took a boat trip where I saw a pink dolphin (it’s an endangered species so seeing one is very rare)!! Afterwards, we got to explore by ourselves in the town’s shopping market, where I got mango mochi (yum). Then, we were given a traditional Cantonese vegetarian lunch, and allowed to climb up the stairs to the Big Buddha and explore even more shops in Ngong Ping Village. It was raining, and I, unfortunately, got soaked, but the fog made for some incredible photos.
I do feel the need to gently warn you. The temperature and humidity both are very high, so it’s important to pack lighter fabric clothing. Although it’s cloudy, raining, or night, the heat is persistent, though the buildings sometimes do have AC.
Regardless, within just a few days, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed both the views and the people I’ve got to meet. Though I mourn TikTok, the atmosphere of Hong Kong is just as addicting– I want to see more, I want to do more.
So, I have to reiterate: I’m so glad I chose Hong Kong.
Dvita Kini
Aerospace Engineering
IPE Engineering at HKUST Summer