Last day in HK~

Finally closing a chapter of my life... and a pretty long chapter at 5 years 4 months. I'm humbled by the display of generiosity and love by all my friends here in HK. Part of the reason why I've not been able to write during the past few weeks is because of the number of farewell dinners I've been attending~

Staffs who left the company made the effort to join our little farewell karaoke dinner. A staff from Shenzhen who made the way to East TST for the said karaoke session after work and returned straight to Shenzhen after that. And not to mention I had a meal with nearly every department in the company separately.

And then there's my classmates from HKUST. Friends who I've known for slightly longer than a year although we had only really started knowing each other better in the last 8 months. They organised a bowling session and then last night a little post-X'mas and farewell party for me. A really big THANKS to you guys for making the time and effort to organise everything.

HK was great during the 1st and 2nd years. Everything was new, money was good, streets were less crowded, and I didn't really notice the pollution. Unfortunately the last 2 years were pretty tough. Especially the money part... In 2005 the exchange rate was something like 1SGD to 4.6HKD. Last I checked it was 1SGD to 6.0HKD. Not a smart thing staying here in HK if I'll be servicing mortgages for 2 apartments in Singapore...

To all my fellow bloggers/commentators/readers here in HK, its been a pleasure knowing you online. Although this blogger will be based in Singapore from tonight, hopefully you will continue to read my blog and do write something from time to time.

Till my next post, have a good 2011~

Whitedusk@HK signing off...

So what's next?

I finished the last 2 papers of my MSc studies on Saturday. Prior to the exams I had many scenarios running thru my brain about how I will react once I leave the exam hall. Will I shout out a celebratory YEAH or throw my fists into the air like a crazy Orang Utan? Well none of that happened... all I could muster was a congratulatory yeah to myself...

I was the first to leave the exam hall and was rushing home to feed my tribe. By the time I reached the bus-stop, a few of my faster classmates had already updated their status on Facebook. It wasn't "WOOHOO!" or the "ALRIGHT LET'S PARTY" kind of messages I'd expected. Most of them were like "Feeling empty" and "What's next?" kind of messages...

Are we insecure creatures or just hungry for knowledge? Or we are just too used to spending our Saturdays in UST that we've forgotten how interesting Saturdays can be? I can't really answer that... I'm still wondering the cause of that emptiness myself...

It's a chore waking up and making my way to UST every Saturday. But everything has been more or less routine. Schedules for classes, schedules for projects, presentations and then exams. But at least it is routine. And now that I'm going to lose a routine component I guess the disarray and adjustment will inevitably cause a slight shift in mentality.

Anyway... I'd better start filling up my Saturdays with activities... learn guitar/drums? Start running? Start basketball? Karaoke? Walk the dogs? Volunteer work? I should try all of the above... at least before the baby arrives~

Tsim Sha Tsui vs Tung Chung

13 more work days to be exact~ before I board my SQ flight to Singapore. I've been staying in a service apartment in TST since exactly 1 month ago. Significant differences between the 2 places...

Tung Chung - quiet (relatively), fresh air (polluted or not i'm not sure but definitely smells better), spacious...

Tsim Sha Tsui - noisy, choking with cigarette smoke and crowded...

But I like staying in TST. For one, it's a 5-minute walk to my office. Transport-wise its in the middle of virtually everywhere. I can find Cha Chaan Tng around every corner and if I feel generous there's always iSquare just across the road. Staying in a service apartment is nice since I don't have to clean up after myself. Its just like staying in a hotel. Of course that also means that the feeling of home is not really there although I'm starting to feel more at home the longer I stay here.

So here I am smack back in Kowloon. The 1 year spent in Tung Chung was a valuable experience for me. It showed me a side of HK where I ever only had the chance to pass by thru the Airport Express or taxi rides to and fro the airport.

It also proved to me that people will have their own opinion about a place even though they've never lived (or even been) in a place. I've heard so many friends and colleagues remark about how Tung Chung differs from their expectations. They never expected the place to be so spacious, comfortable and clean. I had that impression myself before I visited M at his new place in TC. Once again reminding me to think twice about what I hear from people with lots to say but have never done anything themselves...

Been there done that... its about time I go back to Singapore...