I AM A NERD!!! - How being a nerd affects how I experience the world. (2014 April 12)

Finally after all of the chaos of mid-terms in Hong Kong, I have enjoyed a calm week of classes. In the meantime, students are already leaving campus to enjoy the mid-term break that will start this upcoming Wednesday.

That all being said aside, this calm time gave me the luxury to meet up with a fellow exchange friend I have made during my time here in Hong Kong, Stephan Musser. A Floridian from America, we had an amazing time sharing our experiences that we have had so far in Hong Kong.

A major reason that sharing our experiences was enjoyable was due to the fact that we are both nerds. Not geek "nerd", but definition of nerd - Nerd.

In the standard Merriam-Webster dictionary, nerd is defined as: 1. a person slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits and 2. a person with strong intellectual interests. By this definition, nerds are geeks, but the symmetric case is not exactly true (you needed an understanding of math equivalency logic to understand that last statement; a nerdy topic). While this definition does define the stereotypical nerd, there are many other components of being a nerd that gives nerds their special social practices.

I would say that being a nerd gave us a different view of our experiences as compared to other exchange students we have spent time with. For instance, we talked for a period of time how hard it is to write about our experiences in Hong Kong without sounding negative, since as nerds, we naturally recognize inefficiencies in systems and talk about them without malevolent intent. This reason has greatly limited the amount of writing that I have made during my experience as I fear that some of the realizations I made during my time here would appear extremely negative to many local and non-local individuals, so I rather abstain than incur a misunderstanding of my connotation.

At the same point, this revelation has also given me wits about what I should write about. Many exchange students in Hong Kong limit their experiences to the Central and Tsim Sha Tsui, the two most iconic places in Hong Kong for its extreme metropolitan development. As an effect, many of these people do not experience the south side and outskirts of Hong Kong like I had. I feel that these places are a better representation of Hong Kong, and I always look forward to experiencing more of this culture to share.

Well, rant's done, so I will enjoy this weekend!!!

Globalization: A Story of the Successful? (2014 April 1)

Finally, April 1st is coming to a close worldwide, and we can finally "trust" what we read on the internet again. In light of the start of the second quarter of the year, I feel that this is the best time to talk about globalization.

Being a global center of commerce, Hong Kong should be the most globalized society in the world, but I would argue that Hong Kong is in fact less globalized than many other countries because of its economy. I have had many great experiences in Hong Kong, but in all of these experiences, I sense a homogeneity that I could only compare to my limited experience with Japan and China. That being said, I would not say that this homogeneity is an absolutely negative of Hong Kong, but a small stepping stone that needs to be past over in order for Hong Kong to attain a higher level of global awareness as a society.

Now, don't misunderstand me. I am talking about Hong Kong's culture, rather than Hong Kong's national platform on the international stage, which I would consider different from one another. If you read the news, you will often see Hong Kong as a major proponent of major international business deals and the like. This has created large amounts of wealth for Hong Kong on a regional level (can't say national, since Hong Kong is technically a part of China). Even though there is this large amount of wealth, I would not consider there is a lot of cultural importing like I have experienced in America.

Finally I can talk about globalization. I would say this process that is happening to our world is the best thing to happen since nations came together to construct the International Space Station. With the complete globalization of the world, we would be able to abolish many modern problems that plague our world such as extreme poverty and segregation. This process is also arduous, which is what I would consider the major cause for the relatively isolated amounts of globalization that is currently occurring at the moment.

The problem with globalization being a resource and psychologically intensive process is that many of today's population, especially the population over the age of around 30, is relatively averted to as they have not grown in a world that was as interconnected as people around my age. I am not saying that they do not want globalization to occur, but are rather uncomfortable with some of the changes globalization would incur on their lifestyle. This population, though, is the population still running the majority of society understandably, so there is still a strong sense of isolationism occurring in governments and other leading bodies.

That being said, businesses are becoming a large proponent of globalization, as this allows them to serve a larger audience, and thus a larger profit. This globalization is limited though, as again, businesses are often focused of profit. This leads to many alteration of products to suit a society, which is what I would consider counter-intuitive to globalization. For example, Starbucks in Hong Kong is different from Starbucks in America as HK Starbucks serve drastically smaller sizes at a cheaper price with an altered image of "quality" coffee rather than the relaxing creative environment we often see in America. This is that I would consider highlights the problem of globalization; only the "successful" are currently able to partake in globalization and is thus still a luxury for the majority of society, and this should be changed so that globalization is available to all individuals.

Well, I have rambled long enough. I guess what I want to highlight in writing this is that even though Hong Kong might be a global identity in the economic realm, culturally, Hong Kong is just as novel as every other place in the world, with its own deficiencies and assets like every other society. This also showed me how much farther we must go as a human race to achieve globalization, and the effort that is require out of all of us to achieve this goal that will be a solution to many of today's modern dilemmas.

I am stressed in Hong Kong (and this might be good)! (2014 March 12)

*sigh*

So I finally finished a week of action packed school work! For the first time in over 7 months, I am stressed with school work yet again! This gets me thinking two things - first, I am out of academic shape, but more importantly, Hong Kong education is different from American education in a few distinct, but very important ways. These differences are affecting the way I learn here.

Now before I start comparing these two systems, I by no mean to disrespect or make superior either of these systems. Education is very different to each person and each individuals learns concepts in very different manners.

With that out of the way, let's start.

The first thing I noticed when talking about college studies in Hong Kong was how differently engineering was received in Hong Kong. While engineering is respected in Hong Kong like other cultures, engineering as a career is sidelined by financial and business in the financial center of the world. From my experience, engineering appears to be imported from around the world, rather than home grown.

As a result of this, the "from the field' engineering professor doesn't really appear as prevalent in Hong Kong universities as compared to my experiences at Drexel. This is what I consider the defining difference between my experiences in Hong Kong.

The first major difference to come to light was the direction of teaching in the classroom. The classes are taught straight from the books. This is not what you would call bad, but this is problematic for me as I am better acquainted with learning conceptually, learning the theory as a product of my common sense. This has made studying in Hong Kong harder than I originally expected, even with what is the minimum load here at HKUST.

The next difference come from the student culture here in Hong Kong. Studying is quite memorization based. By the method and rate by which the material is taught,  memorization is basically the only effective method to gain the competency of the material required to perform in class. While I was prepared for this in idea, I was not prepared for this at all in practice. It ends up that through experiencing the classroom in Hong Kong, I have found out that I am a conceptual and kinematic learner to a higher degree than I originally expected.

All in all, the first part of my time in Hong Kong has shown me a lot more about myself as a student and individual than I could ever expected. I have better qualified my learning type, and also how I want to lead my life. I would say that my time in Hong Kong is already worth more than its time in money, I can't wait to see how much more I learn of myself and Hong Kong in the three months left!

Well, it is late! I better head off to bed. By the way, the average bedtime for a Hong Konger appears to be well past midnight!

A Good Day to talk about Engineering in Hong Kong (2014 February 18)

So my Tuesdays end up being extremely light, which gives me a lot of time to think about my time in Hong Kong. The one idea that has been strong in my mind recently is the sheer amount of humidity in Hong Kong, even though it is still considered Winter here. My entire sight of the bay that come right up to the edge of the the mountainside campus of HKUST is covered with a thick fog that is making everything wet. Quite inconvenient!

This humidity starts making me notice many of the engineering decisions that are made in Hong Kong. Tiles are often used to create walkways on campus, which I found quite confusing as it became extremely slippery and visibly dirty whenever it gets wet. What I found was that tiles were used because of the humidity because it would degrade slower than cement and is easier to replace.

Similarly, all of the windows are able to open ajar in almost every building I have been in. I found that very confusing as I would think that they would want to keep the humidity out. After seeing how much moisture accumulates in building even with climate control, I am quite glad they can open...

That being said, finding fellow full-time engineers to actually be hard in academic Hong Kong. I actually found out that engineering is not as popular in Hong Kong. Because Hong Kong is the financial center of the world, there are many high paying jobs in the financial sector. So much, that it is more cost effective for Hong Kong to import its engineers, making the pay for engineers based in Hong Kong to be undesirable by most developed nation's standards.

I would say that this conclusion has a large impression for me as an developing engineer. The lack of desirability of engineering in Hong Kong has left the quality of engineers in its universities lower than I expected. Even though HKUST is renown for its engineering in Hong Kong, I feel that its level might only be mid-ranged in the highest echelons of schools. There are many good labs in Hong Kong, but it is not quite to the scale in America, so I recommend searching elsewhere if you want to advance in engineering.

Finally Settled after Two Weeks of Classes! (2014 February 16)

I can't believe it, but two weeks out of 14 weeks of classes have finished at HKUST. So much has happened! 

I am writing this very tired, so I will not write a lot, but I will talk a little about engineering in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is one of a few places in the world where a large number of its engineering is imported. This is probably a result of this special place being the financial center of the world. As such, I have found that a large percentage of the college population here in Hong Kong are business and finance majors, hoping to making it large from the bullish economy here in Hong Kong.

Whether or not this is good or bad for Hong Kong, I will not decide or judge. All I know is that Hong Kong is probably one of the richest places in the world, and a large population of Hong Kong have a level of livelihood that is desirable to a good majority of the world.

Weekend break!!! (2014 February 8)

*phew* The end of my first week of classes in Hong Kong!!!

I should say that my experience of classes are similar yet dissimilar to the experiences I had while at Drexel. While the lecture style is the same as far as I know between American Universities and HKUST, teaching in HKUST are done in larger groups. I am not certain if that is due to the difference of size between HKUST and my home university, Drexel, but it certainly is a different format than what is done over in the U.S.

Also, it appears that classes are far more off-hand in HKUST compared to my experiences in Drexel. Not trying to compare university systems, but I can see why engineering degrees are still majority ranked highest in the United States. The American university system is a lot more hands-on in the engineering degree programs compared to Hong Kong, possibly due to more space availability for such hands-on work, which is greatly limited in Hong Kong, and the difference in cultures, where labor is quite cheap is Hong Kong.

Either ways, finalizing edits to my photos to share on Facebook. I am also trying to set up a Flickr album, but am finding myself on the brunt end of the sheer amount of data I am uploading. Apart from that, have a little paperwork to get done before I am truly settles in Hong Kong, and then I can take a long needed rest!

Strange binders, and weirder classes. (2014 February 5)

Second day of classes over, and I am finally starting to get to grips with the class formats here. The professors all appear to be unprepared for this week. I guess everyone is still recovering from Chinese New Year!!!

I was finishing up my days by buying the final stationary I will need for the term, and I noticed something different about the binders in Hong Kong. They are two ringed!!! (For those who don't know, binders are three-ringed in the states.)

That being said, I bought all of the paper I should need for the term, a binder to hold it in, and a multi-pocket paper folder, all for under 9 USD. Quite a deal for a university book store!!!

Well, not much else to say. Halfway through my first week of class, and I will finally be meeting my only male cousin on my mother's side tomorrow!!! See you all then!

First Day of Class!!! More lessons about the Hong Kong Economy!!! (2014 February 4)

So finally I have had a day to put down my camera, and started my first day of classes in HKUST!

I only had one class today, so I did not have to stress much at all, but I was thoroughly surprised at the cost of food on campus!!!

Food is cheap!!!

For both lunch and dinner today, I ate at the canteens across campus, and each time the meal cost me only 24 Hong Kong Dollars, which converts to just about $3.20!!!

Well, I have laundry running, and I am finally getting all of my photos uploaded, so I will leave it here.

Good night!!!

Hiking in Hong Kong and First Week Review (2014 February 3)

Again, writing before I head off to bed. Let's get straight to the point.

So, yesterday on the third day of the Lunar New Year (people celebrate the Lunar New Year for up to a week after the New Year!!!) I went hiking with my relatives in Tsuen Wan. One thing I did not know was that hiking is a national hobby of Hong Kong. So after three hours and a pair of sore legs and sweat soaked clothes, I found out how much fitter Hong Kong people are. They make me look unhealthy even when I walk over 6000 steps a day regularly in college (yes, I am a walker)!!!
 

Either ways, as I come to the close of my first week in Hong Kong. I feel that my time in Hong Kong could not have been better. I was able to experience the biggest holiday in Hong Kong (Chinese New Year!!!), and also was able to explore this wonderful city/state/special administrative region???? (Hong Kong needs to decide what it is politically......) To sum it up, I have had a great experience in Hong Kong so far, and can't wait for the next four months!!!

Hiking in Hong Kong and First Week Review (2014 Febrary 2014)

Again, writing before I head off to bed. Let's get straight to the point.

So, yesterday on the third day of the Lunar New Year (people celebrate the Lunar New Year for up to a week after the New Year!!!) I went hiking with my relatives in Tsuen Wan. One thing I did not know was that hiking is a national hobby of Hong Kong. So after three hours and a pair of sore legs and sweat soaked clothes, I found out how much fitter Hong Kong people are. They make me look unhealthy even when I walk over 6000 steps a day regularly in college (yes, I am a walker)!!!
 

Either ways, as I come to the close of my first week in Hong Kong. I feel that my time in Hong Kong could not have been better. I was able to experience the biggest holiday in Hong Kong (Chinese New Year!!!), and also was able to explore this wonderful city/state/special administrative region???? (Hong Kong needs to decide what it is politically......) To sum it up, I have had a great experience in Hong Kong so far, and can't wait for the next four months!!!

Amazing Chinese New Year's Fireworks!!! (2014 February 2014)

Writing this post while I am very tired and ready to head off to bed, so I will make this post quick.

I went to watch the Chinese New Year's Fireworks in Victoria Harbor this evening, and I was absolutely blown away. For 20 minutes straight, fireworks filled my entire field of view!!! It was as if I was up in the sky with the fireworks!!!

The Chinese really do know how to do fireworks. They even had fireworks that took the shape of Chinese characters, I hope that we get them in America!!!

Check out photos of the fireworks here! https://www.facebook.com/jamesysato/media_set?set=a.10203127858421176.1073741856.1348331979&type=3

Finally Got to Writing! (2014 January 31)

*Phew* Finally found some time to write after a very busy first few days in Hong Kong!

I got over the jet lag very quickly, didn't really even experience anything on day one. I expect it was due to me adjusting my sleep schedule to the local time as soon as I got onto the plane! The airplane food was okay. Somehow it had taste, I expect airplane chefs are starting to gain an understanding of the science of eating in a plane, and I drank eight bottles of water (and went to the toilet quite a few times as well).

Getting mobile in Hong Kong was not that hard for me. My mother had the foresight to keep an Octopus card (an electronic prepaid money card used in Hong Kong) from the last time my family came to Hong Kong seven years ago, so I simply had to reactivate the card and I am able to use public transport again.

Moving into my university was smooth thanks to the help of my Aunt Sandra and Uncle Tom. Moving in on a Saturday was probably not the best idea. The majority of the staff was gone due to it being close to Chinese New Year and I was pushed into a room swap to a room that had a great sea view! (Check the pictures out on my Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/jamesysato) I got many great sights of the campus before I left to stay with my Aunt Lorraine and Uncle Peter (yes, I have a lot of relatives in Hong Kong - 4 uncles, 3 aunts, and 3 cousins immediately, and a few grand aunts and uncles and other relatives).

Since then, I have been sight seeing quite a bit! I went to hiking on a few mountains, went to the Chi Lin Nunnery, Giant Buddha, and the Avenue of the Stars and saw Jackie Chan's and Bruce Lee's handprints!!!

I am pretty much settled in now. I have all of the necessities I need, and all of my paperwork is taken care of. Let's see how this term goes!!!