When you share news like this with people you get some interesting reactions. It has been fun watching facial expressions and hearing comments from people in reaction to this news. It’s not what most expect to hear. A typical conversation is something like:
me, “Sorry, I won’t be here for [that event] because I’m moving.”
other, “Oh, you’re moving! Cool. Where are you moving?”
me, “Hong Kong.”
other, “WHOA. WHAT? That’s CRAZY! Hong Kong! Are you moving for work?”
me, “Yes, my husband was transferred for work by his company.”
other, “Wow! What does he do? Finance?”
me, “Yes, he’s in finance.”
Hahah! It is amazing how many times almost this exact conversation has been repeated.
And a move to China has also served as a great excuse for many things. If you want to cancel a subscription or deny a renewal, say you’re moving to China. If you want someone to bend the rules for you (i.e. I had a retail cash voucher in Braden’s name that needed to be used) just say your husband has moved to China. It has worked every time (and it’s a honest excuse in these cases!)
The most common questions I get is, “Are you scared?” I guess it’s reasonable to be scared of such a monumental shift but I’m not. I think I would be if I were going alone but knowing Braden and I are jumping in together is making this a lot easier. There are lots of people who speak English in Hong Kong, and the signage is very clear and easy to follow. Braden has a job and we know where we’ll be living. We can figure the rest out. Food is the biggest question for me right now. What will we eat? Where will we buy groceries? Will we eat out a lot? Or cook at home a lot? Who knows…
Maybe I’ll realize I should have been scared once I get there, but so far, no fear! I just keep telling myself, “We are not the first people to relocate to China.” “We are not the first people to relocate to China.”
I’m going to keep repeating that.
A Life Shift 