Well-balanced life

I think living in Hong Kong has given me more of a well-balanced life despite working in banking. Here are a few reasons for it.

1. Because everything is so close to each other, one need less time and motivation and go out and do stuff. Sure, you got off at 10PM, but all your friends are just 5 minutes away and you can definitely still go hangout without problems. Just on Monday, I played scrabble with two of my closest friends in Hong Kong at the bar that is literally 2 minute walk from my apartment. We actually all live within 500 feet of this bar.

2. Going on trips are easier because there are so many places you can pop by for a day or for the weekend. Even the hamptons in New York was 3 hours away. For that amount of time, you can fly to Vietnam, Thailand, China, etc.

3. The novelty. Because everything is still so new for me here in Hong Kong, everything is a new experiences, which creates more balance compared to work. I'm actually excited doing a lot of the stuff after work/free time because it's never been done before vs. the same old things in the U.S.

4. Friendships are shallower, but easier to make. Hong Kong is a transient place, which means no expat has a set group of friends. Everyone is coming and going. We need to constantly make new friends because our old friends have left us. This makes everyone especially friendly and open to the idea of hanging with new people.

5. For me personally, for some reason, I have found it incredibly much easier to feel more for the world, for people, for everything. Maybe it's the fact I'm now out in the real world alone. Maybe it's the new place. I haven't decided if I like the ups and downs, but at least I feel like a real person again.