First full day in HK- Monday, August 18

I woke up really early (despite extreme jet lag) to get a head start on my "to do" list. Suk Yee showed me how to take the #22 bus to HKU's campus and taught me how to say "stop", "next stop" and "thank you" in Cantonese. (Sounds like Bah-cee sum yow lok, m goy... I'd love to hear you try it). Before heading to the university we hiked a short distance to the nearest HSBC branch (Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation) to set up a local account. Rotary asked me to set up the account so they can wire me my scholarship money, and I thought it was a pretty good idea in general. Everything went smoothly and I walked out of the bank 30 minutes later with a checking and savings account. I'm really thankful that Suk Yee was with me because the bank representative's English was difficult to understand at times and they were able to speak in Cantonese before relaying the information to me. It actually makes me wonder how I could have possible done this on my own.

Our next stop was HKU so I could turn in my registration paperwork. OH...MY...GOODNESS! The university buildings are spread out along the side of a mountain! To make matters worse we got completely lost and must have asked at least 20 strangers for directions before FINALLY finding the office I needed, which conveniently was at the VERY TOP of the mountain. It was like hiking Everest (never done it, only assuming) in 90 degrees with 100% humidity. I was not only drenched upon arriving at the top, but I've also never been more aware of how out of shape I am. I have a feeling that won't last long though. We must have climbed at least 300+ stairs, not including the upward sloping walkways. The journalism school is right next door so I get to enjoy this trek on a daily basis starting next week. Phew... it makes me tired just thinking about it.

While at the school I also stopped by CEDARS, which is the office that deals primarily with international students. I was told they could help with housing, but when I showed up the woman at the front desk said they don't help graduate students because we're supposed to know how to do this stuff on our own by now. Hmm...even if this is only our FIRST DAY in the country!? It doesn't seem right, but she did direct us to a list of apartment options hanging on the wall at the entrance. Suk Yee and I jotted a few potentials down and then set out to take a look. The two located closest to the university in the Western District did not look very appealing to me. They were extremely old and slightly dilapidated, and the neighborhood also looked pretty rough. Finding a place to live in a foreign country is stressful!

We accomplished all of this before 12 o'clock. By 12:15 p.m. Suk Yee and I were in a taxi headed for Central (the main business and commercial district of HK). I had to be at my first Rotary function at 12:50 p.m. on the Kowloon side of HK. Sue Yee showed me how to take the MTR (subway) from the Central station to Tsim Sha Tsui where my Rotary luncheon was being held in the Hotel Miramar. It was my first time riding the MTR, but I found it very easy to navigate.

By 4 p.m. I crashed. Suk Yee woke me up for dinner at 8 p.m. and we had leftovers from the night before... still "ho may."