Bonkers for Honkers

I arrived in Hong Kong almost three weeks ago and have fallen in love with this fabulous, sweaty city. I’m here for a semester of study at City U in Kowloon-Tong.

City U pool

Campus

Initially, I was disappointed that the campus where I am staying appears to be deep in Kowloon, as opposed to on the island. After being here a couple of weeks, you come to realise that Hong Kong is very small and nowhere is ever very far away. Not only this, but I am growing to love Kowloon and its bustling suburbs and fantastic, cheap restaurants and shopping.

One of the things that has taken some getting used to, coming from Sydney, which is by no means a small city, is how densely populated Hong Kong is. Moving around the island and parts of Mong Kok feels like you’re floating in a sea of people.

From what I have experienced so far, I have thoroughly enjoyed the food, night life and culture of Hong Kong. Hong Kong has an incredible contemporary art scene, and while the limited space means that galleries are often quite small, the island and Kowloon are peppered with well known international galleries (like White Cube and Gagosian), as well as loads of smaller independent galleries.

Another great thing about Hong Kong as an exchange destination is the fact that it is a hub for travel within asia, meaning you can get cheap (and short!) flights for long weekends away to explore other countries and cities in the region. I’m planning to visit Japan, Taiwan, Myanmar and Vietnam while I’m here, as well as seeing a bit of mainland China.

Because of the lack of space, there are hardly any historic buildings which is quite different to lots of other places that I have visited. One of the coolest things about Hong Kong is the obvious focus on contemporary architecture, which makes for a truly impressive skyline. I can’t wait to explore more.

Katerina Lonergan 11465729