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Since I left Hong Kong in 2018 to study in the UK, I don't know it's been two years! Looking back over the past two years from Hong Kong to the UK, I discovered that I had really grown quite a bit. From a city full of high-rise buildings to a casual rural town, I feel the difference between the two places even more. In addition to the very different lifestyle and rhythm, today I'd like to share with you the five major differences between the UK and Hong Kong. If you have a desire to study abroad, you can also refer to it!
1) Price differences
First, the prices here are quite different from Hong Kong. When shopping in supermarkets, you can see that all kinds of ingredients and daily necessities are relatively cheap. For example, a £3 chunk of steak (about HKD$30), or a large bucket of ice cream at 90P (about HKD$9) is really a great deal. Of course, most of these cheap East and West brands are supermarket brands. Despite this, they also allow our international students to save even more on their daily expenses. Not enough, with the exception of supermarkets, everyday transportation and meals out are quite expensive. In my city, a bus ride already costs £2.2 (around HKD$22). When it comes to eating out, the cheapest is around £7-8 (around HKD$70-80), and there is only the main course, not including drinks. Therefore, most of the time, we also just buy ingredients at the supermarket and go back to the dorm room to cook them ourselves.
2) Transportation inconvenience
Second, the most commonly used means of public transport in the UK are buses and trains. Buses usually run within the city, and trains can take you to every city in the UK. However, they all have one thing in common — they are often late or even cancelled. Although it's not surprising that I'm used to it now, it was really annoying when I first came here. The town I live in is only a 15-minute drive from the city center, yet it takes 40 minutes to get there by bus, so there's no more convenient transportation other than Uber. This store isn't as convenient as Hong Kong. We often need to visit other cities to buy the East and West we want, so trains are also a common means of public transportation for our international students. Please use Trainline only when you are on the train here (click here for detailshere) Check if the itinerary has been cancelled or re-routed.
Although the public transportation facilities here are not as convenient as in Hong Kong, it is also because the transportation network here is quite complicated and old, so there are plenty of spaces where you can move forward. In the past two years, some routes have been improved. You can easily reach most British cities by train, making it a great choice for domestic travel.
3) Types of restaurants
There aren't many restaurants to choose from in the UK. Not like Hong Kong. You can find Italian, Thai, Vietnamese, American, and Chinese cuisines in a small shopping mall. In the city where I live, there are only a few Asian food choices (and there are a lot of special Indian restaurants). Fortunately, there weren't many choices, which greatly reduced our desire to eat out, and allowed us to train our cooking skills in the dorm room.
4)Travel choices
In Hong Kong, flights to neighboring Taiwan or Japan cost more than $1000. If you go on a trip to the UK and take a cheap flight, you can reach many European cities in just a few hundred yuan. This is also one of the reasons why I was able to visit so many places during my study abroad period. Furthermore, every city in the UK can be reached by train, so there are many more possibilities for a day trip within the country.
5) Cultural diversity
Lastly, what I enjoyed the most was the cultural diversity of the UK. In addition to seeing people from various countries in the school, most people respect the culture and clothing of each country. I really love that everyone here can see merit and praise you without the habit of criticizing rare things. I participated in the Diwali party in India here, and I also spent time with friends of various nationalities, which gave me a deeper understanding of the cultures of different countries during this time.
All in all, these two years of study abroad were very memorable. After living in Hong Kong for 17 years, I came alone to an unfamiliar country and stepped out of my comfort zone. If you want to know more about my unforgettable experiences and growth during this time, you can clickhereKeep watching.
