Hey hey!=)

My name is Maxime (or officially Pui Man). I am a second year International Politics and History student from Hong Kong. Yes! Hong Kong, not China.

Hong Kong is one of the many cities of China. However, Hong Kong has been under British colonial rule for more than a century and therefore has been developing along very different paths from those of China. Even though Hong Kong is now part of China again, we have our own government and use different passports. In terms of culture, even though we share a lot in common, especially for traditional core values, Hong Kong has its very own unique culture due to the vast exposure to the western world over the years. Therefore, I consider myself as a “Hong Kongnese” more than Chinese.

Though the culture in Hong Kong is more of an interesting mixture of the West and East, we still serve a lot of traditional “Chinese food”. Like many others, I love our Chinese food. What’s more, I also enjoy cooking it, a lot! I have tried to start the Chinese cooking workshop here in Mercator this semester and hopefully in the future as well. So, if you are also a fan of Chinese food, or simply just love eating, feel free to join and have some fun!

Apart from the brilliant food culture, Hong Kong is also a dynamic city with much energy. Born and raised in Hong Kong, I am used to a very fast pace of life. I love the efficiency back home since I am a person with little patience and I like the dynamics and energy that goes together with high efficiency. That being said, I also enjoy moments of calmness. Swimming, watching movies and chilling with friends would make quite a good weekend for me.=)

Travelling and exploring new places would be another thing that I enjoy doing a lot. At the age of 16, I decided that I should take a longer trip, to see the world and to challenge myself. So, I became an exchange student to Germany. Without any knowledge of German, I arrived in Germany and started my first far-away-from-home journey. I lived with a German host family and went to Gymnasium like other German students. From having completely no clue in class, till I managed to write my Music essay exam in German after 10 months, I had a great time in my exchange year. I could still remember very vividly how badly I cried on the day of departure, having no clue when I would be able to see my host family and friends again. Without any plans to study in Germany at all, I could have never imagined that I would be back after two years, studying at Jacobs University.

Having in mind my exchange experience in Germany, I thought it would be much easier for me to adapt into university life at Jacobs. Yet, studying and living at Jacobs is quite different from studying elsewhere in Germany, as many of you may have noticed. The idea of studying and living with people from diversified background is definitely amazing, but at the same time not so easy, especially that I have never been a very socialized person who can integrate easily. I can still remember how timid and nervous I felt at the beginning, while at the same time amazed at how much I feel like being home here in Mercator college now. Thanks to our friendly college masters and college office team, who try to make Mercator as “homey” as possible and always a nice place to stay.