nick’s (n)-line life

After several months living in limbo at my parents place I’m finally back in Hong Kong. It’s nearly a year since I was last here but things carry on much the same. So it is that I find in a down-trodden Jordan room, cigarette in-hand, with Nathan Road’s traffic-noise providing the background ambiance.

This entry is rather over-due, however I can’t think of a better setting in which to be writing it. My lack of writing this past year is due to how busy I’ve been. I didn’t quite appreciate how complicated it would prove to be to make the necessary preparations for coming to Hong Kong while studying and holding down a part-time job. It’s certainly been an interesting year however and, on the whole, very enjoyable. It was, of course, the first year of my Chinese Masters degree. Living in Edinburgh was fairly insightful and I worked reasonably well and learnt a fair deal in terms of both language and the social sciences. I think the best thing about the Edinburgh course is its very cross-disciplinary nature. I like Scotland too, particularly when the Scottish component of my heritage was brought to my attention. Anyway, I’ll be coming back to the masters next June when I’ve completed the PCLL course so it’s shelved for now (with the exception of Mandarin of course).

Anyway, back to Hong Kong! If things go well then I’ll be here for the next year studying for the PCLL. Although I’ve been planning this for a long time I’ve delayed blogging to this effect. I had wanted to get everything finalized and confirm my PCLL place before doing so, however things haven’t eventuated themselves in this way. It’s a pity but what can I do? I just need to wait and hope that things do work out with the PCLL because if it doesn’t come through I’m not entirely sure what I’ll spend the next year doing! Of course I have a training contract with a firm, and I just need to trust in the fact that this final hurdle will be overcome in the end. So far 128 of 280 places have been allocated so it’s still more than hopeful that it will work out . One way or another I’ll know before the end of August.

Despite this anxieties, I’m in high spirits to be back in Hong Kong. My Mandarin has improved markedly since I was here last year and it was greatly rewarding to meet my old landlord and converse and negotiate relatively painlessly. Reading street-signs is also a good quasi-study activity (oh yes, how easily pleased I am!). On the other hand my reading/writing have atrophied somewhat with the break from studying and I’m going to have to get straight back to it as soon as possible to prevent myself regressing too far; after all I’ll be back to the Mandarin full time next June and can’t afford to slip too far!

Somehow, it’s still a bit weird to finally be in Hong Kong. In the last two months I’ve spent so long meticulously planning and preparing the fine details and worryingly over trivial contingencies. In the end, however, everything just fell into place. No problems with BA, no fuss over my overweight bags (well I’m here for a year and a half after all!), no fuss with visas; in fact not too much bother with anything (with the possible exception of the fairly immense airline security measures, delays, and frisking:- what a nightmare!). The anticlimax, coupled with the familiarity of the places, has left me slightly unconvinced I’ve come through it all unscathed and really am in Hong Kong at last. I even tried saying it out loud to myself yesterday but without much self-impact. I’m sure it will sink in eventually!

Overall, I really am delighted to be back. I’m here for best part of the next four years with only a few months back in the UK in between, and will likely be here indefinitely after that. There’s a real sense of hope and excitement. In some ways it’s like I never left, of having been away for just a couple of weeks and then come back to my old haunts and fallen into old habits again. It’s particularly good to be able to catch up with my old friends. Today’s task is to find somewhere more permanent to live. I’m going to check out the university district first I think and try and find something cheap and cheerful nearby, ideally with some form of net access. Failing that I’ll be trying Causeway Bay as I’d like something HK-side if possible. Failing these options I guess I’ll fall back to Jordan, my friendly landlord has offered me my old room for $3100/month if I want it.

For those around in HK: I’ve put my new mobile number up on facebook so do give me a shout; I’d be delighted to catch up. I’m also going to be doing my best to remedy my blogging-laziness, particularly now that I’ve got my new shiny laptop to compose offline and, with any luck, I’ll have some interesting entries to post in the next few weeks as I get things set up in Hong Kong. For now I’d best repack and get ready to roll out and find somewhere to live…

This offline-entry has been backdated to match the time it was originally written.