Remebrall

Necessities for daily life in Hong Kong

What I need to get through the day in Hong Kong is different from what Iowa life requires.  For the first couple of weeks, I regularly arrived at campus, rummaged through my bag, and then got to backtrack to the dorms to grab what I had left behind.  For a while there, I really longed for a rembrall to help double check that I had not left anything on my bed or by my desk.  After a month and a half of living in Hong Kong, I can now pack my bag for the day without forgetting the key items to surviving in the city.



Daily checklist includes:

1) Umbrella
I arrived in the rain.  I found out quickly that August and September are the wet months here.  My poor umbrella has taken a bit of a beating from being shoved into my backpack everyday, but it has saved me from being soaked many times.


2) ID, room, and MTR cards
The all-important MTR card
In order to function in Hong Kong City University, you need to carry all three of these cards on your person at all times.  The student ID card is needed to get into your dorm building, the library, a handful of classes, and for discounts at stores and attractions.  The room card only has the one purpose, but unused to having to unlock my bedroom it tended to be the card I was more oft to leave behind (which then involved waiting for my roommate to return and let me into the room).  The MTR card works a bit like the student ID card at ISU in that it is necessary for transport (both the MTR/subway and the bus system) and that you can add money to it and use it like a credit card, except that it works in many of the stores around the city rather than just on campus.  Conversely, none of the canteens or stores on campus will accept credit cards so it is either the MTR card or cash. All three of these cards need to be in an easily accessible location, both on campus and in the city.

3) Bottles of water
Hong Kong is hot and humid, a combination that easily causes dehydration.  I quickly came to the conclusion that one bottle of water was not enough and so now I always carry two bottles that I can refill throughout the day.

(On my day trip to Macau, I quickly finished off the water I had brought and by the end of the day I had bought an additional 8 bottles of water.  Dehydration makes pain worse and is to be avoided at all costs.)



4) Fan and handkerchief  
As mentioned, Hong Kong is hot and humid.  To fight off the heat it is beneficial to carry a fan, to counteract the humidity a handkerchief or towel can help you look less like a half drowned cat and more like a person.



5) Sunscreen and insect repellent
Sunscreen and insect repellent are needed around the world when traveling outside and become particularly important when in tropical or semi-tropical places as the insects can carry around dangerous diseases.  I went to a park in Hong Kong, saw a sign warning of Dengue Fever, and proceeded to hunt down a drug store where I could buy insect repellent.  With sunscreen and insect repellent, I can go exploring outside without worries.

With the above items, I can now navigate and explore Hong Kong without running into any serious problems.  

Travel smart, stay safe, have fun.

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