Ka Chit Lo

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

I had longed for an overseas exchange since I first entered university. My dream finally came true in 2007 as I joined the University of Hong Kong (HKU) Worldwide Undergraduate Student Exchange Programme and was given the opportunity to spend a year in Adelaide and study at Flinders University in South Australia. So far, I have a lot of precious memories from this special year. My exchange journey is about to end this coming July and I can’t help feeling low whenever I count my remaining days in Adelaide.

I am an undergraduate from HKU. Life in Hong Kong is so different from that in Adelaide and this gave me quite a shock at the very beginning of my exchange. The pace of life in Hong Kong is very fast; people are always busy with their work; shops open till late everyday and are packed with people during public holidays. On the contrary, life in Adelaide is relaxing; people take time to enjoy the beauty of their surroundings; shops may close as early as 5pm and also during public holidays. In the first few months of my stay, I found it hard to adapt to the trading hours of shopping malls in Adelaide but now I have learned to do my shopping on Friday when there are extended trading hours. As an exchange student, I am here to explore new things and to experience a different lifestyle so I never take these cultural differences negatively though they sometimes cause me inconvenience. Throughout this year, I have learned to admire and adapt; to experience and enjoy; to learn and laugh.

I live my life to the fullest in Australia. I do not spend my time solely on studying, but also on making friends and traveling around. I went to Kangaroo Island to see the lovely kangaroos and koalas; to Barossa Valley for the famous South Australian wine; to Cairns, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sydney and Melbourne for vacation. All these widened my horizons and enriched my exchange experience. I am glad that I have had the opportunity to undertake an exchange to Australia, a beautiful country with lots of wildlife and natural wonders. The fresh air and the green environment are 2 things that I like most in Adelaide. They give me a foreign feeling because I could hardly embrace such natural beauty in Hong Kong, which is sometimes called a ‘concrete jungle’. I am sure that I will miss these when I return home. Considering my learning experience at Flinders University, the workload is just half the amount I had at my home university so I can handle it quite well. The courses here focus more on self-learning and students are required to read the course materials throughout the semester. After months of training, I am confident that my reading speed has improved a lot!

Studying abroad as an exchange student allows me to immerse myself deeply in another culture. This is a real-life experience and cannot to be learnt from books. The understanding of another culture is fundamental for developing a global vision. It is a time to explore the similarities and differences. It is a lesson about understanding, adaptation, endurance and self-realization. My exchange experience in Australia has truly become the most valuable memory in my life!

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