Shirlee Hermocilla

Monash University, Australia
Exchange to The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

I will never forget the wonderful memories I have of my 4-month exchange to Hong Kong. The friendships I made, the interesting cultures I came across, the amazing city I saw, the delicious food I ate, and the Chinese I learnt – I had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do all these things and to find out for myself how truly amazing and unique the city is, and it was thanks to the Cheung Kong Scholarship Programme that made all this possible.

I was living on Hong Kong Island, the south part of Hong Kong. It was a quiet area, but close to the beach, the university and only a bus ride away from Central. I lived in a Hall with other local and exchange students at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). One of the highlights of being on exchange is that you meet so many wonderful people. My roommate and I became good friends, and up until now, we still keep in contact. I met an exchange student also from Melbourne and since, we’ve become the closest friends here in Australia. The locals were really friendly and always open to conversation, willing to tell me about Hong Kong life, one reason why I always loved to talk to them. There was no language barrier as English is their second language. The exchange students came from all over the world, and it was nice to mingle with people from different backgrounds. As Australia is diverse and multicultural in so many ways and the Hong Kong locals always made me feel at home, I did not feel a “culture shock” to my system.

Another highlight definitely had to be the activities I did. HKU offers one of the biggest co-curricular programmes, including Inter-Hall Sport Competitions, Singing Competitions, Magic Club, Sports Clubs, Debating Club, and a huge array of others. I joined the Magic Club and Dancing Club, one that I really enjoyed. Initially, I was not used to the university’s high expectations towards commitment and hard work in its co-curricular programme and Hall-life, because honestly for me joining was just for fun. Many of the locals told me that if you want to join a club, you have to commit yourself 100%, and there may be sleepless nights. The dance training sessions were 8 hours a week, leading up to a final performance in front of all the universities in Hong Kong. It was tough at times, as the majority of the dance instructions were in Cantonese, me being one of only 3 exchange students at the club, and the training was quite intense. However, it was a challenge I was willing to overcome and learn from whilst being on exchange because I really wanted to be a part of Hong Kong’s culture, and live it.

There were many other activities I did outside of HKU. The top 10 were staying up talking to my roommate for hours, clubbing and singing karaoke until 6am in the well-known street of Lan Kwai Fong twice a week, Yum Cha at 3am, brand shopping in Central, cheap shopping in Mong Kok until 12am, island hopping to Cheung Chau, stuffing my face with local food everyday, and last but not least – bungee jumping off the tallest tower in the world, watching Chris Brown in concert and gambling on a couple weekend trips to Macau – just a 1 hour boat ride away! It taught me one thing - that Hong Kong never sleeps! Even before and after the exchange, myself, along with many others, had the opportunity to travel to other parts of Asia, because Hong Kong is central to all of it. The countries I managed to visit were India, Korea, Japan, China and the Philippines. The diverse culture, the amazing people, the extraordinary scenery, the different seasons, the busy and quiet streets, and the different languages spoken, was at times a culture shock, but very rewarding. I would love to do it all over again, without a doubt. Another thing I learnt whilst overseas was to become more independent. Since the exchange, I have become more self-reliant, and have discovered a lot more about myself.

To all those who made this rewarding journey possible, thank you. You made my experiences truly amazing. I have a passion for adventure and embracing culture, and I can say from my experiences, that even though Hong Kong is a small part of China, it is HUGE in reality. The place has so much to offer, and living there is very different to a 3-day long weekend trip away. I learnt many things, and one of the most important being that everybody is different. I came back to Australia and thought that “I should not really worry about what others are doing. If I’m happy with what I’m doing now, or if I have always wanted to do it – even if it seems different or out of the norm - just do it! It’s totally rewarding.” Going on exchange and being a part of this Cheung Kong Scholarship Programme is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I encourage all of us to do while we’re still young. Be different and just go for it!

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