Beginning of this year, prior to stepping on the plane to Hong Kong, I was full of excitement, full of anticipation. I was looking forward to a good time in Hong Kong, albeit prepared to still study because of Hong Kong’s reputation in education. But I was still pretty sure I would have a good time. Because, hey, it’s pass/fail. And I’m on foreign land, which meant explorations were in place.
Fast forward 3 months later, I’m drained. On its own, the school work is not too bad – as long as I learn not to use the same yardsticks as the ones at home to measure my abilities, since it’s pass/fail basis here, and studying isn’t my topmost priority. I’ve lab on four Saturdays, which honestly was quite a dumb choice, but it’s not as if I was left with any at the point of choosing my courses. The experience here has honestly been very draining ironically because of the people I’m supposed to be most comfortable with. I think my introverted nature is feeling the pressure, because I’m struggling to find release here. So much has happened and so many things have changed since our first month here, I’m still left wondering what in the world led to all these outcomes.
That’s why I’m glad to have found the netball club here at HKU. Their club training is a great social activity – nothing too competitive, and even an opportunity to join the mixed league here. Even though I’ll be paying for the whole experience despite only getting to experience half, I think it’s worth the buck. It will allow me to interact more with the full-time students here, and I once again, believe that sports is really one of the best ways to bring people together. At least, on court, I’m able to forget everything that’s happening and forget about all my worries, and just focus on having a good time.
I’ve booked my flight home and honestly can’t wait to be back with my family. My mum’s coming next week, which is a great reprieve for me, and I’m really looking forward to it. Hong Kong is actually not bad a place to be in, and the food and shopping has more or less been to my tastes. It’s just a series of unfortunate events and general friction that has led to things being rougher than expected. And honestly, it takes more than just being courteous and polite for so many people to coexist in a small environment for a period of a few months. The honeymoon period passes, stress from various areas come in, and poof, you get a full out explosion.
Thinking back, a lot of it has been really dumb, but there’s nothing I can do to reverse it now. I feel quite helpless in certain situations and I have come to the point where I just can’t be bothered to be nice. Being nice is tiring when all you want to do is snap at someone.
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