FEELING HOME IN HONG KONG

MA XUANLIN (FS 2022/23, RENMIN UNIVERSITY OF CHINA)

After a long day of study, I returned to my dormitory. I felt happy and at peace, knowing that the next day I could join my friends on a trip to Stanley organised by the Victor and William Fung Foundation. It is not a common feeling for an exchange student who leaves mainland China to study at The University of Hong Kong and lives 1651 kilometres away from home.

shopping street, enjoying the view and chatting. There were couples taking wedding photos, children playing football and tourists eating at the snack bar. I felt the vibe of life. After the epidemic has taken so much from us, we can finally get together with a large group of friends again.

An impressive feature of Hong Kong is its multiculturalism. However, as I immersed myself in the local culture by talking to different people and doing different things along the Stanley trip, I realised that it would be too reductionist to understand “multiculturalism” merely as “cultural differences”.

On the Friday afternoon we departed from Central Station, to Stanley, “we” – friends from the Victor and William Fung Foundation and friends from universities in mainland China, were all chatting excitedly on the coach like a group of school children on a spring trip.

The view in Stanley was healing and there was a district library along the shopping street. I was told that every district in Hong Kong has a library. This gave me one more reason to love Hong Kong: libraries available in tourist and commercial areas.

We walked along the reef coast across the

We walked through Stanley Main Street and arrived at the Murray House, a Victorian building originally built in the present-day business district of Central in 1846. We reached the top of this building and enjoyed the sea view. After that, we went to dinner and had an exotic meal.

The most memorable part during the whole trip was the unexpected rain. There was a sudden heavy rain while we were on our way to the bus station. We huddled under the umbrella waiting for the bus and chatted a lot. We chatted about everything, from our home universities to the plans for the future. The rain was cold, but in such a difficult situation, we felt closer to each other.

The trip organised by the Victor and William Fung Foundation does give me a lot of emotional support. It cured my exhaustion and gave me the energy to tackle the university examinations in the final week. More importantly, it makes me feel at home. Although I was far from my familiar surroundings, I did not feel alone. I met a lot of people with similar backgrounds and made a lot of local friends. I am very grateful to the Fung Foundation.