Some Final Thoughts: Three week countdown to return to the USA

Hello blogger friends! I am feeling quite wordy today, so be forewarned : )

As we prepare to return back to the USA, I have been thinking a lot about the things I will miss from our experience here as well as the things I definitely will not miss...Of course there has to be a list! I am even organized in my stream of consciousness. And it goes without saying that we definitely have very mixed feelings about leaving our lives here and starting all over again in the USA. Neither is better, just different. Read on for some of my more candid points on the topic.



THINGS I WILL MISS ABOUT HONG KONG:

1. First on my list is the friends we have made: Our little Rockwell family here who has taken such good care of one another, loved and encouraged one another, and shared our holidays, our traveling stories and our experience with. We will miss you guys the most!



2. City living: From being downtown and in the middle of all the excitement, going back to suburbia will be tough. We have loved being in the middle of the city!



3. The travel and jet set lifestyle: Four countries in four weeks? Not a problem here! VIP on the airlines, access to the club lounge, upgrades, and the best airlines in the world! Need I say more?! We will very much miss the adventures and travel to places in the world most people can only dream of visiting. Seriously everyone should think about coming to Asia for your next vacation, we have plenty of recommendations and tips for you, just save up your $$ for the plane ticket and of course at least two weeks of vacation to spend in the region.



4. The Hiking: A favorite past time of all Hong Kongers which we have grown to love is the hiking. Being able to step outside the city to beautifully manicured paths and trails filled with steps and mountains has been a great way to exercise and laugh with friends on the weekends.



5. Transportation of Hong Kong: This has three main categories or benefits. First of all, as many of you know, I hate driving! I have loved not having a car and being able to be driven places in a taxi, or even better, to walk! When I do need to get somewhere though, Hong Kong has the cleanest most well maintained subway system in the world, second to none. And not only that, seasickness aside, I have loved the network of ferries for all of my weekend island hopping. There is no greater way to travel.



6. Being told you are beautiful all the time: Not such a bad thing to stick out like a sore thumb, yes, I have eaten up every compliment and stashed them away for my future old fat and ugly days when my ego needs a boost. It has been nice to be the only person with curly hair, the tallest female in 3 counties, and of course having the whitest skin which is so coveted by this culture. See all you straight haired, petite, tanned bodies back in NYC? This is the real key to beauty! Lol...just goes to show, it is all in the eye of the beholder, we knew that already, didn't we?



7. Serviced Apartment: How did this get so far down on the list when it is OH SO important? Do you know it has been a year since I have cleaned my own toilet? I only have to make my own bed on Sundays. And we get fresh towels every day and fresh sheets twice per week. What am I going to do without my full time helper Jenny coming every day to do all of these things? Not living in a serviced apartment will be a rude awakening! Better stop by COSTCO and get those cleaning products in bulk!



8. The wet market: We have thoroughly enjoyed shopping for all of our fruits and veggies at the local wet market, an area of the streets where local farmers bring their produce to sell. We walk out of there with two bags full of the best stuff you've ever seen for like $12 USD. Plus not to mention all the new exotic fruits we have come to love: Dragon fruit, Mangosteens, Jack Fruit, Lychee, Pomelo, mmmmm I could go on forever.



9. Smoothies: In conjunction with endless supply of fresh fruits comes the smoothies. Hong Kong is very big on them and nearly every store has some delicious blended concoction you can purchase as an afternoon pick me up or just a drink to go with your meal. Nothing is more refreshing on a hot day. Maybe I will start to use my blender for something other than margaritas!



10. Working with a young sales force: OK finally a comment about the job experience! Did you think I was just on vacation this whole time? No, I actually did do some work ; ) Our sales force here in Asia is both young in age and in years with our company - most have less than two years across the board. It has been great mentoring them, teaching them how to find opportunities, and working within our own companies organization to get things done. There are some bright young people out there, hopefully they stick around long enough to make an impact.



11. Octopus Cards: So, this is probably the coolest thing in Hong Kong. Everyone has a little multicolored card, about the size of a credit card which you can use as a debit card tied directly to your bank account for replenishment, using RFID technology, and then this card gets you on any public transportation, you can buy your groceries or even your Starbucks coffee, 7-11 mini marts, and one day soon, even your taxi fares. There is almost no need for cash when you have this little fellow in tow. Now, NASA scientists, get to work on designing one for us in the USA! We want the Octopus!



12. Bootleg DVDs: Why go to the movies when you can get your very own copy of the film on DVD the next week for only $2 - $5 USD? Alright, don't call the copyright police on me, this maybe the only quasi-illegal thing I have partaken in lately (just kidding mom!) but I love to go to the market and pick up all the latest movies. Don't you think those movie stars get paid enough? I do! Will these movies work on our USA DVD players? Probably not, we may have to gift them to our next expat replacements...but they were fun while they lasted.



13. Being surrounded by water: Maybe it is the Scorpio in me (a water sign for those astrologically challenged folk) but I am so in love with looking out my window and seeing water. Island living is where its at. Maybe we can find a place on one of the 1000 lakes in Minnesota?



14. Asian Service: These are the most hard working, dedicated service professionals in the world, bar none. They are attentive, they run to get you things, and they operate as a team to keep you as happy as possible when receiving any service in any form here. I will miss that next time I go to the diner in the USA and the gross old fat waitress with stained teeth, coffee breath, and a cigarette hanging from her lip asks me "What do you want?" Ugh.



15. Cheap yet wonderful shopping finds: The shopping here is amazing. I will not blow my cover on how much things are, but if you go into the markets and pick up seemingly expensive things only to find out they cost no more than $1 USD for something which would be upwards of $25 USD in the states, you cannot beat that. Plus the endless supply of knock-off bags and other merchandise...Made in China baby!
16. Being an expat: There is something to be said for living in a city filled with fellow expats - our visitors have all been amazed at the vibe of Hong Kong and how it really feels very International, Cosmopolitan, Modern and yet truly Asian all at once. This city has more expats than any other place in the world and I will miss meeting people, finding out where they are from, and how long they have been in Hong Kong. It is truly a place of "East meets West"

What will I do without all of these wonderful things in my life? How will I cope? Well, for one thing, I can look at the list below and remind myself of what I will not miss about being here, and of course all the great benefits of our own fabulous nation.

THINGS I WILL NOT MISS ABOUT HONG KONG:

1. Chinese toilets: Gotta top the list. Who wants to pee in a hole and then hope that you have your own tissue in your pocket to use as toilet paper which you then throw into the waste basket in order to 'keep the toilet clean', try to wash your hands with no soap and then again have no towel to dry them off? Think of all the money I will save by coming home to free toilet paper and soap in the public restrooms! Well, at least I will save on an endless supply of hand sanitizer.



2. Pollution / Water Contamination: This goes hand in hand. I will not miss the smog of China, the grit coating your entire body when you finish the day, and the awfulness of having to brush your teeth with bottled water and ensure your mouth is sealed shut even in the shower for fear of pollutedness making you sick. Hey India, you are on my list too! I have nothing more to say people, it is called the EPA and emissions regulations - start an org today! You are killing our whole planet!



3. Imminent smell of Dried Seafood: Nothing is more nauseating in the morning than to step outside and take a deep breath of fresh air only to smell dried seafood. There is a scent which lingers in the air as you walk down the street past the different food stalls. You can't get it out of your nose no matter how hard you try...no, won't miss that one at all.



4. 'Yellow Fever' couples: Sorry all you old American loser guys who have been dreaming of an Asian comfort women to be your love slave for life in exchange for your wallet...I am so sick of seeing these old ugly loser white guys with these pretty young things. Poor girls, their families have sold their souls to the white devil. Granted not every single couple has this yellow fever disease, however, just take one look at the guy and typically you can tell what a big loser he is and how he had to get his mail order bride because no American women would touch him with a ten foot pole. But the girls are using them too, they send all their money home to their families in their own countries so they never need to work again. So it is kind of a mutual thing I guess. But it is still so gross.



5. Shopping for things and knowing where to buy them: This is a very broad category which spans many aspects of life. I will not miss having to ask for the 'largest size' when trying on clothes; I will not miss not being able to purchase shoes anywhere; I will not miss going to the grocery store and guessing which of the Chinese branded things I should try out this time for laundry detergent; I will not miss needing something and having no idea where to go to buy it. Praise Bloomingdales! Praise Stop & Shop! Hell, I'll even give a shout out to Walmart! Very much looking forward to the American stores...



6. Seedy fruits: What is with this people? Why can you invent the Octopus card yet growing seedless grapes, watermelon and oranges seem to allude you? I will put you in touch with NASA and you can exchange your intelligence. Seedless is SO very nice.



7. Smoking, everywhere: Cough, cough. I know there are plenty of smokers left in the USA, but everyone smokes here. And they smoke everywhere. My lungs are looking forward to fresher air on many levels and this tops the list. I am so happy that at least Minneapolis has joined the ranks of the other great states who passed the no smoking in bars and restaurants law some years back. Now if we could only change Wisconsin...



8. Change: So they may have the Octopus card, but Hong Kong also has some of the absolute heaviest change in the world if you do dare to use your cash money. I think my wallet is permanently fattened from carrying around these heavy pieces. Just wait as we really wind down here...I already have been paying for taxis with all change, they just love me! Need to get rid of it all before we split! It would put us over the weight limit in our luggage for sure!



9. American TV: Yes, sure we got this season of American Idol via satellite one day later...but every other American show which is on TV is from like three seasons ago! And yes we do have HBO and Cinemax...But it is like we decided to export all the most awful movies in the world, and yes, most of them are over 10 years old! We just got a new one on HBO last week...The Pursuit of Happiness with Will Smith. Um, that came out in 2006. That is NOT NEW! We are so getting Tivo when we get home.



10. Another work related one for you - I will not miss customers having no idea who our company is! That is not even a possibility in the USA unless you are going after some brand new market space or industry...everyone knows us. I guess it is good to be king because here, I have had to give my little elevator speech as those sales folk call it several times - you are supposed to be able to summarize what your company does and what value you bring in the time it would take you to ride with a potential customer from the ground floor up the elevator. I will be happy to return to a place where every body knows our name, and they're always glad we came. But I will be sure to instill on my global counterparts that everything is not chickies and bunnies over here in Asia and we have a long way to go to prove ourselves in this market.



11. Mapquest, Google, The YellowPages: Sure we may flatten a whole forest printing these things out every year, but can I tell you that I would have given my left arm for a copy of the Yellow Pages here? The websites are not very good, even if you can find them somewhat translated into English. And with the cities growing with leaps and bounds, there is no official maps, let alone Mapquest. Ahh, going back to the information age, let my fingers do the walking!



12. Bless You: This is a small thing but just in case I have gotten so used to NOT saying this, and you happen to achoo in front of me, lemme explain. They do not say 'bless you' when you sneeze. In fact, they don't say anything. They just kinda look at you and move on with life. In the off chance I have lost my head and offered up a 'bless you' to someone, they look at you like you are crazy and why are you drawing attention to their bodily function?



13. Not knowing the language: This has probably been the toughest part of it all. Feeling like you are only getting part of the story, having to rely on people to translate for you, then they talk for ten minutes and the synopsis you get is two sentences long...I am sure I have missed out on a lot. And it has been very hard to communicate with potential customers at times either thru a translator, or through me talking so slowly I want to kick myself and my head hurting by the end of the day for trying to find all the simplest words and sentences to get my point across. It will be nice to speak English to everyone again. But I will have to be careful not to talk about you in front of your face thinking you won't understand what I am saying anyways...whoops.



14. Food: No, I will not be missing Chinese 'food'. Chicken feet, intestines, mystery meat, orange squid on a stick, glutenous jelly type things, everything on the bone with skin...it is amazing I have not starved! I will miss my dim sum though, and yes we have eaten well in other parts of the world...just not in China. Chinese food is just not good people.



15. Trying to cook in our apartment: I will not miss Tony and I trying to make one of our normal fabulous meals with no oven, no grill, and only two 'hot pads' for a stove which we can only fit one pot on at a time anyways. I may actually hug my grill when I see it. That goes for the All Clads too. My babies! Mom & Dad are coming home, dust yourselves off, you are going to get a workout!


16. Uniformity: You go to China, it is all Chinese people. You go to India, it is all Indian people. You go to Hong Kong, well we are the most diverse of the bunch but just because there are some white folk from the UK and Australia, this does not get to count as a diverse culture. I miss Black people! I miss Hispanic people! I miss walking down the street and seeing a blend of every gender, culture, creed, color and religion all on the same road or in the same line at the super market. Homogeny sucks. But I guess mostly you only really get to see thru diversity at work in our very own country, one of the things I love about us the very most.

So there you have it! My thoughts on leaving, my things I wish we could have left behind long ago...Keep in mind that none of these things are in any particular order. All of them will be missed / and not missed accordingly. And yes, the lists are intentionally even, no one wins, we love both options equally...how politically correct of me.

Most of all, we are just so happy to be coming back to be back in YOUR lives! We've missed our families and friends so much, so you all make it worth leaving all this fabulousness behind. We couldn't last another day without you!

Would we do this again? Yes, in a heartbeat. I highly encourage anyone to work with your company and try to find an opportunity like this. Of course it does help when your spouse is employed by the same company I guess. But completely worth it! It is life changing, mind altering, universe shattering. You will never see the world in the same light again.

Not that the countdown is on or anything...but we will see you in the homeland in less than 3 weeks!

Till then, I LOVE YOU & MISS YOU!