Independent work topic: Living in another country

Mingling with the locals

There are many reasons why you should mingle with the locals. The most important one is that they know all the good places. Locals and long-term expats can show you the most beautiful spots around town. No tourist guide book can ever give you the same inside information on where to buy the freshest food, where to get the cheapest deals or where to sip the best cocktails in town.

“Even though I had lived in Hong Kong for almost half a year, I was completely detached from Cantonese culture. I spent most of my time at work or with other expats,” Antonia (36) remembers. She moved from Milan to Hong Kong on a work assignment for an international designer brand in 2009.

However, her outlook changed rapidly when she was invited to celebrate the Chinese New Year with some of her Cantonese colleagues. Antonia learned about the various traditions and customs surrounding the New Year celebrations. "We ate dumplings and nián gāo, a very sweet and sticky cake pan-fried with eggs, and they explained to me how they would send pieces of nián gāo to their family members over the next few days."