• Question: How did you find life and working in another country? Was it similar to England or any different?

    Asked by Emma to Dawn on 23 Jun 2016.
    • Photo: Dawn Lau

      Dawn Lau answered on 23 Jun 2016:

      I moved from Hong Kong to London when I was 17 to start university, so I’ve never held a full-time job in Hong Kong. Life in Hong Kong was chaotic, very busy, and it is a city where money talks. There are a lot of cultural nuances to “doing business” and if you didn’t know the etiquette, you could be shooting yourself in the foot with regards to career. The work ethic in Hong Kong is very strong; my parents would be at work from 9 AM to 8 PM most days, and my mum often came home with piles of paperwork to do on the weekend. My parents rarely took a day off.

      When I moved to London, I found life a lot more relaxed. I can take as much holiday as I’m allowed to without feeling guilty, I work less hours than my parents did in Hong Kong, and I find people are a bit kinder and gentler here. But I do miss the craziness of Hong Kong! One of the things I miss is the diversity of shops and restaurants we had almost everywhere and the long opening hours. You could have dinner and then go wandering in a shopping mall until 10 PM. That doesn’t happen here. I experienced a big cultural shock when I realised how much people go to the pub!

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