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Do you regret moving to Hong Kong?

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  1. #11

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    It's not that bad is it Giant? The pollution is of course pretty bad, but the majority of the children do NOT develop problems with their lungs/allergies/eczema here in Hong Kong. And studying till 10 pm...if you want to get into an Ivy League school in the US you will have a lot of long and hard studying to do as well, this is not just typical of Hong Kong. And it's hardly as if we are living in a third world country here either. So far I do not regret us moving here with two small children at all! We love it here for many reasons, see topic "Hong Kong the good" to get a general idea....


  2. #12

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    studying until 10pm is not just for secondary students preparing for university... it is also quite normal for primary/grade 1 students in hk!

    and, yes, it IS normal for hk students who attend local schools. maybe not for those attending international schools, but most definitely the norm for local schools.


  3. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by Molie:
    It's not that bad is it Giant? The pollution is of course pretty bad, but the majority of the children do NOT develop problems with their lungs/allergies/eczema here in Hong Kong. And studying till 10 pm...if you want to get into an Ivy League school in the US you will have a lot of long and hard studying to do as well, this is not just typical of Hong Kong. And it's hardly as if we are living in a third world country here either. So far I do not regret us moving here with two small children at all! We love it here for many reasons, see topic "Hong Kong the good" to get a general idea....
    I agree that HK is not always that bad. It's hardly perfect in many respects, but in some areas it can even be better then the West (superior and clean public transportation for instance). And I find it convenient to go hiking or taking a swim at the local beaches without having to drive for hours to do so.

    However, about local schooling, it's not simply a matter of the amount of studying, but the method and goal of studying. In the West, the aim of education is to produce a well-rounded individual able to contribute postively to society. In Hong Kong, they only focus on exams, and neglect the personal development of character in the student. They have no time to explore their interests or cultivate a broader education outside the classroom.

    So when they enter the workplace, they often find themselves ill-equipped to handle the different nature of a working environment, such as how to get along with your colleagues, bosses. That essential inter-personal relationship is often neglected in local education.
    Last edited by Watercooler; 16-11-2011 at 10:32 AM.

  4. #14

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    I love HK but if I had kids, I would definitely think twice about moving here. The pollution affects children worse than adults; the schools are either a) hard to get into or b) local and have bizarre practises as noted by the others above.

    We employ staff and we cannot find ANY educated here in Hk that we want to employ, because the schools and universities turn out such awful "rote learners" and nobody has any character to the ability to analyse a problem for themselves.


  5. #15

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    To answer the questions without reading any of the thread... I can't regret it that much because I know where the airport is, and yet I'm still here!

    I won't be staying here all (or even the majority of) my life though. Of that I'm fairly sure.


  6. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by justjoe86:
    To answer the questions without reading any of the thread... I can't regret it that much because I know where the airport is, and yet I'm still here!

    I won't be staying here all (or even the majority of) my life though. Of that I'm fairly sure.
    yeah, that's what i thought when i came in 1995 for a 1 week holiday.... almost 17 years later, i'm still here....


    as for knowing where the airport is, i, too, know where it is. but it isn't an easy decision to up and move, especially when kids are involved. i've been contemplating moving back "home" for about 15 years...yet, i'm still here....
    Morrison likes this.

  7. #17

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    That's absolutely true Watercooler and very sad. I think an important aspect would be if you move here, can you afford to pay for non-conservative international schools for your kids? If not, stay in Boston. If yes, I still think it is a pretty decent place to live and raise kids.


  8. #18

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    Molie, Hong Kong is not a fully-fledged developed world city, no. It still shines compared to the Mainland, but that's not saying much, is it? Compare HK to Japan or most places in the West and it falls far short. If someone is already in the US, as OP is, then moving to HK does represent a large and noticeable drop in one's standard of living.

    As for the pollution causing skin and respiratory issues, that's a very real problem. If you have children and yours have been lucky, ask other parents. Most parents I know are battling respiratory and skin issues w/re to their children. Some have become numbed to the constant colds/coughs and itchy flaky skin on their children. Others are still, understandably, concerned.

    Staying up late studying for exams (plus ridiculously overscheduling one's children) is the norm here but is not something that should be encouraged for small children. It ends with the kids becoming test-passing machines who struggle to think critically and can't solve real-world problems. How many times have you stumped adults here by asking them a question to which they had not memorized the answer or asking them to do something that is not specified in a rules book or manual? That's what HK-style schooling produces.

    The thread to which you refer seems to mostly be composed of people being given a seat on the MTR, having their wallets handed back with the cash missing but the credit cards still inside, and the like.


  9. #19

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    A buddhist monk once told me " no matter where you live, the amount of pain is the same just the components are different".


  10. #20

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    I understand your point Giant, we have only been here six months so I might have a different view on things in a few years' time. But I tend to be optimistic and flexible in my thinking. We just hope our family will still be enjoying Hong Kong as much in two or five years time as now. "Standard of living" is hard to define, or debatable perhaps. We are from The Netherlands, a very wealthy country with no real poverty among it's inhabitants. Still, I wouldn't necessarily say that my "standard of living" has dropped thát much here. Okay we went from big house to (relatively) small apartment, from three cars to no cars and from superior healthcare to "just good" healthcare etc. The thing is, it doesn't bother us, we don't care that much eventhough it took some adjusting the first two months. So many good things have replaced all this which make it all worthwhile for us. The excellent food and eating out opportunities, warm climate, beautiful countryside, bustling city "which never sleeps", great public transport, no major crime and feeling very safe all the time, excellent quality of international schools, our wonderful helper who has made life a lot easier for all of us...just to name a few things. We see our time here in Hong Kong as big adventure and wonderful learning opportunity for ourselves and our children, we are determined to enjoy and have a good time! I have lived in various countries and still have to come across the "perfect" place to live.....


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