• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
GO TO EXPAT LIVING SINGAPORE
GET OUR NEWSLETTER

Expat Living Hong Kong HomepageExpat Living Hong Kong

Moving to Hong Kong and not sure where to start? Expat Living is the essential lifestyle guide to living in Hong Kong.

Menu
  • Living In Hong Kong
      • Living Here
      • Where To Live
      • Schools
      • For Guys
        • Sailing in Hong Kong - inclusive sailing courses by charity SailabilityMaking sailing accessible to everyone
        • We chat with two GSIS families
        • 6 super reasons to visit sky100
        • A New Home in The New Territories
      • View all
    Close
  • Things To Do
      • Things To Do
      • What’s On/Calendar
      • Competitions & Offers
        • Reclusive Means Exhibition at Pearl Lam Galleries Hong KongTop 35 Best Things To Do In Hong Kong This Weekend
        • 6 super reasons to visit sky100
        • Best playgrounds & parks for the kids
        • What to watch this month – Netflix & more!
      • View all
    Close
  • Kids
      • Activities & Things To Do
      • Education & Enrichment
      • Health & Wellness
      • Mums & Babies
      • Podcasts
        • We chat with two GSIS families
        • A boarding school with wildlife on the doorstep!
        • Children's teeth and bracesKids and braces – all you need to know
        • Child reading for web article on Books and Brains - helping children with reading and phonicsHelp for children struggling with reading
      • View all
    Close
  • Homes
      • Home Décor
      • Readers Homes
        • A New Home in The New Territories
        • Transforming an old Hong Kong junk
        • Image of Altfield home furnishings showroomWhere to get designer home furnishings
        • Hong Kong People: Meet Laura Pezza
      • View all
    Close
  • Travel
      • Short Breaks
      • Further Afield
      • Travel News & Offers
        • Mount KinabuluClimbing Mount Kinabalu in Sabah
        • Son Doong CaveJourney into the world’s largest cave
        • Famous movie locations in Asia - Hong Kong - Gage Street8 Famous Movie Locations in Asia
        • Gaining access to an EU passport
      • View all
    Close
  • Wine & Dine
      • Recipes & Groceries
      • Bars & Restaurants
        • 6 super reasons to visit sky100
        • Popcorn Shrimp with Spicy Honey Mayo
        • Indulgent chocolate cake - recipeRecipe: Indulgent Chocolate Cake
        • Spicy Asian Coleslaw - recipeRecipe: Spicy Asian Coleslaw
      • View all
    Close
  • Style & Beauty
      • Fashion
      • Hair & Beauty
        • where to get botox in hong kongBotox in Hong Kong – All you need to know
        • Where to buy (and sell!) watches
        • Face masks, spa products, body scrubsWe test body scrubs, creams, masks & more!
        • Hong Kong Spas - Spa at Four Seasons Hong Kong - facial and body treatmentTried and Tested: 2 Luxury Spa Treatments
      • View all
    Close
  • Health & Fitness
      • Medical & Dental
      • Fitness
      • Wellness
        • family dental clinics and dentists in Hong KongFamily Dental Clinics and Dentists in HK
        • Children's teeth and bracesKids and braces – all you need to know
        • Safe & healthy eating during pregnancy
        • Couples therapy for divorce and separation, MindNLife Hong KongDivorce: how to break up with dignity
      • View all
    Close
  • Shop
    • Magazine
    • Advertise With Us
    • Close

What it’s like to leave Hong Kong

26 October, 2017 by Expat Living 3 Min Read

https://expatliving.hk/leaving-hong-kong/

As odd as it sounds, right near the top of the long list of things I’ll miss most about Hong Kong is driving. Coasting by a mountainside road with dramatic ocean views or zipping past gleaming buildings side-by-side with colourfully restored tenements in the canyons of Wan Chai and Central has never failed to delight.

Are you ready to leave Hong Kong?
Are you considering leaving Hong Kong?

RELATED: Is moving overseas the right choice for your family?

Manoeuvring through stop-and-go traffic, deciphering obscure Hong Kong traffic signage and rules, dodging old women pushing carts loaded with recycled boxes and men on bikes balancing an office-worth of lunches on the handlebars make this place a thrilling – and maddening – place to drive.

We are leaving Hong Kong in just a few days, packing up with heavy hearts. It’s only been three years since our family of five arrived – a short stint compared to some, but a huge three years for each of us. We came in hot – literally and figuratively – and to say our world had been turned upside down would be an understatement. We arrived from the US, a place where driving is de rigueur. Driving here, upon arrival, seemed an impossible, downright terrifying, prospect.

The moment the keys of our expat-Volvo were handed to me, I was gripped by an unfamiliar anxiety: could I even make it home? Away I went, through the narrow streets of Wan Chai, sweat forming on my brow, white-knuckling it as I drove through wet markets, up Blue Pool Road in bumper-to-bumper traffic, and finally, gleefully, coasting down Island Road – clearly not the most direct route to the south side, but I had wheels; I had freedom.

Three years, two schools, two flats, and roughly 15,000km later, our family has grown to love this place so very far from our home. The magic of living here has been the opportunity to explore an entirely new city with a child-like sense of adventure, to be open to people from all over the world, and reconnect with my sense of self. Weird as it sounds, becoming a Hong Kong driver, taking to roads and streets in traffic that can sometimes resemble a manic video game, has been a big part of that.

Over the years, I’ve burned up the clicks between home and school, uncovering random carparks – some dodgy, others clean enough to have a picnic on – across Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. I’ve found short-cuts through Central, became savvy about taking the Aberdeen Tunnel versus Stubbs Road or a Chai Wan end-around. I’ve mastered the reverse park and made airport runs, always keeping the Octopus card loaded. I’ve loved the conversations and time with friends on longer drives to Shek O’s beaches or remote hiking spots, and still giggle when my front-seat passenger struggles with the unrelenting seatbelt. Driving our minions to rugby, which took over our Sundays and took root in our hearts, became an extension of our weekend adventures.

I remember fellow expats telling me that, by end of our first year, our children would call this place “home”. I scoffed at the thought of it. But I was wrong. After returning from vacation last August, our middle son – the most reluctant to move abroad – announced, “It’s good to be back home.” Remarkable, I thought with a smile on my face, as I packed our family in our well-used car and drove us back to the south side.

Now, as we prepare to be driven to the airport, my stomach tightens. We will desperately miss the friends we’ve made over the past three years. We will miss the sense of adventure that Hong Kong offers, sometimes on a daily basis, with myriad opportunities to explore new streets, neighbourhoods, countries and cultures. We will miss the newfound familiarity of this place we call home.

Tell us a tale and win HK$1500

Here’s your chance to get published – and make some money at the same time. We’re looking for 500-word written contributions on any funny, poignant, practical or even controversial topic that touches on expat life in Hong Kong. Simply email your stories in a Word document to editor@expatliving.hk and we’ll consider them for inclusion in an upcoming issue.

This article first appeared in the August/September 2017 issue of Expat Living magazine. Subscribe now so you never miss an issue.

Categories: Living Here Living In Hong Kong Tags: Expat expat life Hong Kong

Get the latest events, stories and special offers
sent to your inbox.

By signing up, you'll receive our bimonthly newsletters and offers, which you can unsubscribe to anytime.

You May Also Like

Sailing in Hong Kong - inclusive sailing courses by charity Sailability

Making sailing accessible to everyone

A New Home in The New Territories

International Women’s Day: Nominate Someone Special

Primary Sidebar

  • COMPETITIONS & OFFERS
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Subscribe

© 2023 Expat Living Hong Kong, All Rights Reserved.