Travels Tag

Yes, we went to Disney! It's a pretty stumpy looking castle, no?!

Yes, we went to Disney! It’s a pretty stumpy looking castle, no?!

The weather is gradually changing day by day. Its started to get a lot cooler so I’ve had to don my mac; albeit nowhere near as cold as the UK, but it’s been pretty chilly- 19ºc today!  Sorry for the lack of updates. My brother and my friend came to visit me, so I was busy for the past two weeks doing lots of fun things with them. I also met up with Carne Griffiths the other week as he currently has a solo exhibition at Above Second Gallery in Sheung Wan. And Sam is coming to visit in a few weeks time (yay!) and then I’m off back to the UK. So I’ve got about five weeks left to try and cram as much stuff in before I leave.

I can’t believe my time in Hong Kong is nearly coming to and end. It’s been testing at times, filled with emotions, met some amazing people along the way, made me more independent than I ever thought I was capable of. Living on my own was one of the biggest things to overcome as I’ve always lived in a household with more than one person. So to have my own company was weird at first, but eventually I got used to it and I do appreciate having my own space (in my tiny flat).

But do you know what? I miss my home comforts! I can’t live without cheese and bread for any longer now! I will probably be on a cheese binge when I get back… I’m not sure what my plans are when I get back. I’m going to move back to London and start looking for jobs again; probably something in the speech and language area. I also want to continue to do volunteering work as my time at The Nesbitt Centre has been extremely rewarding and invaluable.

Today I was supposed to be at The Nesbitt Centre for my volunteering work. Somehow, I had completely forgotten it was ‘Golden Week’, which means the students get to go out and do fun stuff. I wasn’t updated about it so I turned up at the centre and nobody was in! I spent about half an hour trying to get in contact with the co-ordinator so I decided to have a wander around Sheung Wan.

I had read about The Crafties from an article by Sassy Hong Kong (I love it by the way!), so I decided to check it out since I was around the area. I thought I would never bother with illustration as I assumed I wouldn’t have the time for it, funnily enough being here has inspired me to make new work.

The Crafties

The Crafties is a studio space, co-working space, shop; a place for creativeness. The space itself is lovely, homely and very cosy. Bearing in mind space in Hong Kong is a rarity so I was really taken aback when I walked in! My flat in Fanling is really small so sometimes it feels quite claustrophobic; not an environment you want to be working in especially if work space is limited. I was thinking about hiring out a desk for a day or so during the week, which is perfect as it’ll work around my work schedule.

Lots of lovely things for sale!

Lots of lovely things for sale!

The Crafties sell craft supplies as well as handmade products by local artists and designers. They also hold regular workshops from screen printing, knitting classes to lantern making. I asked Sky, who runs The Crafties, about the screen printing workshops and she said that the guy who runs them can do private group workshops (by appointment of course). I really want to do some small runs of screen prints so if anyone wants to join me feel free to get in touch!

Loving the displays.

Loving the displays.

The perfect place for a meet-up and a coffee or two.

The perfect place for a meet-up and a coffee or two.

I also asked Sky about holding a pop-up exhibition as I’ve been looking into it and she said that it was do able; providing I give them a bit more information as I was really vague at that point. I think it would be really nice to have a solo exhibition before I leave Hong Kong (not long now, two months to go!)

Address: 1/F, Sing Kui Commercial Building, 27 Des Voeux Road West, Sheung Wan.

I can’t believe it’s been more than a week since I left the UK- where did the time go? I’m slowly adjusting to the way of life, although I’m still feeling a little bit homesick. Yes, I’ve even had a little cry (on my own) and thought, ‘I’m so far away from everyone why am I even here?!?’ Lots of self-doubt as usual and negative thoughts but that’s the way I am with anything and everything (ask Sam, he keeps on telling me to be optimistic about things but I’m one big pessimist for sure!)

It’s been a weird week.

I always thought I was incapable of communicating in Cantonese; talking to relatives is different as I tend to switch back and forth from Cantonese to English. I’ve managed to ask for directions and get a new PIN number for my ATM card! I do feel a lot more confident speaking in Cantonese, which is a positive sign.

Emotionally, it’s been a tough week so I’ve been keeping myself preoccupied and doing loads of touristy things on my own. It’s nice being lost in Hong Kong; there’s no pressure for me to be anywhere and I can do things in my own time. Although I’m quite ashamed to admit this but I’ve been going to Starbucks to get my coffee fix! More like on a constant mission to find a coffee shop…

Some things are never going to change.