Corporate relocations often involve children and the change for the whole family can be difficult initially. Removalists that have well prepared programs for children help you overcome the fear sometimes felt on moving to a new country.

Preparing your children for their new home is an important step to successfully begin your new life. Moving to Hong Kong can be a unique and exciting time, but for your children you may need to answer a never ending stream of questions before you get there. You can well understand your children asking where is Hong Kong, what’s the weather like, will I be able to talk to people, how do I get around and what will I be able to do, what can I eat. Here is a quick reference to help you along the way:

Hong Kong – Where is it?

Located off the coast of China, it is about half way around the world for children from the United States or Europe. It has four main areas:

-Hong Kong Island

-Kowloon

-The New Territories

-The Outlying Islands (about 230 small islands)

What’s the weather like?

Hong Kong has a sub-tropical environment which means it is hot and humid most of the year. That’s why it is lush and green. Summer starts in early April and is the hottest, but also the rainiest time of the year. Make sure you have an umbrella handy and most stores, homes and restaurants will have an umbrella stand for you.

During summer or early autumn, you might experience a typhoon – a strong, windy tropical storm, just like a hurricane. When this happens, everyone leaves school and work and stays at home to wait out the storm.

Autumn is normally cool, dry and sunny. Most tourists come to Hong Kong at this time. In November it can get quite cold as winter sets in. Bring your sweaters and warm coats!

Excuse me, what did you say?

People in Hong Kong speak Cantonese, a major Chinese language. However, because it used to be a British territory, many also speak English. To learn Cantonese can be easy and difficult at the same time. It’s easy because all the words are short words like “won”, “hong” or “sup”. It’s difficult because there are nine different ways to raise or lower your voice to give a different meaning. For example, a few meanings of the word “goh” are auntie, mushroom, drum and ancient.

How will I get around?

Hong Kong is crowded and this makes public transport the best way to get around. You will be able to take trams, trains and taxis. Double-decker buses and ferry boats are great to ride on. You can even take a giant escalator through some of the busy areas.

Places to Visit

You will never be bored and here are some of the attractions to be enjoyed:

-Visit Victoria Peak by taking a tram to the top – the highest point in Hong Kong. It is a steep 1,300 feet rise and once on top you will have a perfect view of the entire city. It also has nature trails for you to take a walk, or you can shop or have something to eat.

-Ocean Park is a wonderful park with pandas, sea lions and dolphins in the aquarium. If you are brave enough, go on the roller coaster and the Abyss!

-Repulse Bay is the most popular beach in Hong Kong. It has large, sandy areas and gentle waves. It can get crowded, but there are 40 other beaches for you to visit.

What am I going to do?

In Hong Kong you will be able to do many of the same things you do in your home country.

There are many country parks for hiking and getting a sun tan at the beach. Along the many trails, you will usually see fantastic views, but also animals native to Hong Kong.

Shopping is always a great pastime and the malls and markets are great. The most famous market is Stanley Market where you can buy almost anything and for a good price too. The Jade Market is excellent to buy rings and bracelets and at the Ladies Market you can pick up cheap clothes.

Many children learn martial arts such as judo or karate during their time in Hong Kong. Since they originated in Asia, you are taught by highly-skilled instructors and can compete in tournaments as well. Some kids find it fun to just watch.

Hong Kong has many exciting and colourful festivals. Chinese New Year is in late January or early February and you will get a few days off school. Red lanterns are hung in doorways. Lion dances take place and children receive “lai see” packets that are little red envelopes filled with money. Chinese New Year is also famous for its fireworks. Legend has it that loud noises and the colour red keep scary monsters away.

In June, people fill the beaches to see the Dragon Boat Festival. This is a very exciting race. The long, narrow boats are decorated with dragon heads and tails. The crews of each boat row as fast as possible to the beat of drums.

The Moon Festival celebrates the year’s harvest and is also called the Mid-Autumn Festival. Hundreds of thousands of people gather at night to honour the full moon. They carry candle-lit lanterns in many shapes and colours and eat moon cakes that look like they have a moon inside them.

What’s there to eat?

You will enjoy many new foods in Hong Kong. You might start with Dim Sum or “little hearts”. They are small parcels of food that you eat with chopsticks. Every parcel is different and delicious and you will probably want to dip them into soy sauce or sweet and sour sauce. Deep-fried candied apples and bananas are really tasty. The fruit is coated in batter and fried, and then dipped in sugar syrup. It is then brought to your table and dunked into ice water so the sugar hardens like candy.

No matter where you come from, chances are that you will find restaurants serving food from your home country. This includes some of your favourites like McDonald’s, Domino’s, Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken.

You are going to a country of adventure with many things to see and do. Before you know it, you will have many new friends and have done lots of things that you can tell your friends back home about. Your international removalists if they have a good children’s program can help you with many questions about Hong Kong, particularly to keep your children aware of where they are going and what they can do.

Author Bio: Craig Page has over 25 years experience with Crown Relocations. Crown are removalists specialising in corporate relocations. As international removalists for families moving overseas, Crown has special country guides written for kids by kids.

Category: Real Estate
Keywords: Removalists, corporate relocations, international removalists, interstate removal