Three Years Ago Today…

On November 9^th, 2011, I wrote on this blog, “I expect this coming year will fly by just as quickly, and before I know it, I’ll be posting another blog entry on Halloween 2012 and my third anniversary.” Well here I am, one year later, and it seems my prediction was scarily accurate, with another whirlwind of a year under my belt, marking three full years of expat life! Three years ago today, I landed in Hong Kong for the first time. Now, in three short weeks, I will be leaving to start the next chapter of my Asian adventure in Singapore.

I always get a little bit nostalgic in the early part of November, as this date approaches. I usually go back and re-read my earliest blog entries and reminisce about all the great people who came into my life because of my decision to move out here. I’ll look back at old photos on Facebook and remember all the good times—late nights, weekend trips, new foods and hearty laughter. It was doubly nostalgic this year, then, with my imminent departure. But remembering how many good things have happened to me over the past three years also makes it easier to make the move to Singapore, for if the people and experiences awaiting me down there are even half as incredible as those up here, I’ll be in for a treat.

This past year, the one that I predicted would “fly by just as quickly” as the one before, did indeed just whiz by. And it took with it some of the best friends I’ve ever had. In fact, over the past twelve months, more than fifteen of my good friends have all moved on in life. Even just yesterday, Rich, my roommate and pal over the past eighteen months, made his own departure from Hong Kong. He's headed back to the U.K. now to figure out the next stage of his life. In some way, things like that make the timing of my own move a bit easier.

In Rich's old room, we now have Sarah, an energetic Scottish girl from Edinburgh. She's only been in the apartment for a short amount of time, but I already feel like we've become good friends. She has a great passion for Hong Kong, and I know having her around will ensure that my last weeks are fun and memorable.

My fourteenth roommate, Sarah!

So, with Rich leaving and Sarah arriving, you can imagine life has been super busy since I came back from the States. And lots has happened back home, too. First there was the devastation brought by Hurricane Sandy, which destroyed many beautiful towns in the area where I grew up. Luckily, my family weathered the storm safely, and with only minimal damage to our home and property. I just spoke to my dad this morning, and he told me that power has finally been reconnected today, twelve days after Sandy made landfall in New Jersey. It was difficult to be so far away during the catastrophe, but thank God Facebook and e-mail kept me in touch with my loved ones throughout.

There was also, of course, the presidential election, which I monitored closely from Hong Kong. I sent in my absentee ballot weeks ago, taking my right to vote seriously, and I even attended a CNN-sponsored “Election Watch” organized by Hong Kong’s American Chamber of Commerce. With the time difference, the first East Coast polls begin closing around 8am Wednesday morning, Hong Kong time. So I took off from work to experience American democracy in action.

And I think I mentioned in my last post that I had to bolt down to Singapore for two days to meet up with Alan and Dimitri, my company's president and tech wizard, to be present for the setting up of our new office in the Central Business District. I finally got to fly Singapore Airlines and was lucky enough to stay on the club floor of Singapore's Mandarin Oriental, so you can bet I wholly enjoyed my two quick days.

Atop the Marina Bay Sands with Alan, his girlfriend Jackie, Dimitri and David, who helped us find our office space

I got back just in time for Halloween! Normally, the Saturday closest to Halloween becomes the de facto night for costumed revelry. But as you know, Wednesday is Hong Kong’s favorite party night, and since Halloween itself fell on a Wednesday this year, there were two occasions to dress up. Having literally just come back from the two day jaunt down to Singapore the night before, I had put very little time or effort into planning a proper costume for Saturday.

Gauthier and I ran all over Causeway Bay and Wan Chai around 6pm that night hoping we'd get lucky at a costume shop, but the Halloween gods were not on our side. We decided to go as nerds, buying some cheap, thick glasses and bow ties we stumbled across and sporting dorky t-shirts from the bottom of our drawers. Though Gauthier definitely looked more like a hipster than a nerd, and my costume was pretty lame, it was still a fun night. Andrea was back in town from Shanghai, and he, Bernadett and Gauthier’s roommate Hugo (a pirate) all joined in for the once-a-year Halloween mayhem in Lan Kwai Fong.

Saturday night in Lan Kwai Fong

On Wednesday, after watching Night of the Living Dead, I donned Rich’s Egyptian costume from Saturday and went as a pharaoh for Halloween 2012.  Rich and I headed to Wan Chai for Ladies Night, meeting up with the usual suspects for a great Wednesday. I love Halloween, and the whole season that goes along with it, and I’m glad I got to enjoy one more in Hong Kong before experiencing the Singaporean version in 2013.

Halloween in Wan Chai

So another year has flown by, and I'm once again grateful for all the people who've made this journey so incredible—from my bosses in New York, who trusted me enough to send me out here, to Kevin, who's been a friend and mentor from day one, to everybody else who's been a part of my Hong Kong story! Thanks for the memories... And here's to many more to come!