As I mentioned before, I recently studied away in Hong Kong and Singapore. My time there was amazing and it was the exact reason why I chose to take this class over seas. Now with our current pandemic, I feel to reminisce on some of the new experiences we may be missing out on. One thing I missed most about traveling to the new country is how that first step into the terminal of the airport feels. You get a sense of different cultures and lives all around you. Now I do notice that there are differences in technology and services from America. They utilize more than one language on almost all signs within the country, most citizens who live there can speak multiple languages, and their businesses and commuting life is way more hectic.
One thing with my SRC I noticed was how I was in a slower pace than most in that culture. Meals and social gatherings also felt different. You felt more like a family style portions where all the food on the table is for everyone. One bizarre moment we had in Hon Kong reminds me of someone who is opposite of ethnocentric. We met a man at his restaurant for some local dishes and free beer ( his business actually gave out free beer with your meal). Boy was this guy nuts though. He couldn’t stop saying how much better America was in his eyes and why Trump was the best. Next thing you know, he was screaming that he hates China. It’s easy to say he may of been a bit crazy but it definitely stuck out because he couldn’t stop saying how much he hated his home country and wanted to live in America.