【明報專訊】“About myself
I am Lucas Jaspert from Germany. My first language is German, though I'm also fluent in Catalan (西班牙嘉泰羅尼亞語) and English as I'm half Spanish and one-quarter English. I've also learnt French and Latin at school.”
I live in a rather small city called Bochum in mid-west Germany. Bochum is not a very well-known city, but I like its tranquillity (寧靜). Life there isn't very stressful and we really live life to the fullest.
As an outgoing person, I love to make new friends, visit new places and learn new languages. That is why I participated in the AFS exchange programme. I wanted to go to an Asian city that is oriental but not too exotic, somewhere that has an obvious Eastern culture, but also has a substantial exposure to the western world. Hong Kong sounds like a perfect match for me-a dynamic metropolitan (大都市) in China, where everything is always alive and no one ever gets bored.
That said, Hong Kong is way beyond my imagination! Things are just so different here. At first glance, Germany is definitely more spacious, but everything in Hong Kong seems bigger. I reckon this is an illusion due to the lack of space here. Anyhow, I was in awe when I first saw the tall buildings in Hong Kong. That was completely impressive.
Then there is the food. I love the food in Hong Kong and it is amazing how many different new dishes I've gotten to know since my arrival. Back home we Germans eat one dish per meal, but here you share a table full of yummy dishes! This is Christmas feast to us, you know?
Another thing I really appreciate in Hong Kong is your transportation system, particularly MTR. You can travel to and from every corner of this city without big fuss. Although it can get a bit expensive without student discount, it is worth every penny.
And then there's school. I totally admire Hong Kong students, especially my classmates who are doing A-Levels. I have never seen such hard-working students back home who would spend so much time working on school work and bear such immense pressure. In Germany, we also study of course, but we simply wouldn't study or do homework several hours a day. Our school days are shorter, and usually finish at about 1pm to 2pm.
I have been in Hong Kong for three months now, and I have already seen so much! Heaven knows what is going to happen to me in another eight months!
