Tse Wing Yi

I had a brilliant learning experience in Britain where I stayed there for three weeks with 5 students, which has become unforgettable in my mind. Without a doubt those 3 weeks in England have to be the best time which I will never forget. To be honest before the trip, I was a little afraid that I couldn't deal with my daily life well in England as I had to do everything by myself.

Having never flew on a plane, I was extremely nervous about both tinnitus and safety, so I searched for a lot of information on them. On the other hand, I was so looking forward to my first journey to Europe. I was eager to discover and explore the differences between Hong Kong and Britain.

At the beginning, the plane was moving slowly to the track. However, just before it took off, it was speeding up as fast as a roller coaster. I was utterly scared by the situation so I kept staring out of the window whereas Jay and Jess were listening to music and looked very relaxed. My worries have not occurred because my ears were just like usual. It was sensational to see the buildings becoming smaller and smaller. While it was climbing up to a higher altitude, the panoramic view was all captured by myself as my eyes have never left the window. I listened to the instructions of both captain and flight attendants carefully in order to know when I could take my phone out for photographs. I was glad that everything was alright until landing. When the plane was landing, I suffered from the tinnitus seriously. That was like a beast howling next to the ears!

We received a warm welcome by the staff of our summer school at the Heathrow Airport and headed to our destination in Cambridge. Arriving at Cambridge, I was so surprised that I could even hear the whisper of the birds as it was so quiet and relaxing there, which was completely different to Hong Kong's busy lifestyle. We took a taxi to our host families. At first, there was a little episode that there was no one was home for both Jay’s homestay and Jess’s homestay. We all became very disappointed as we didn’t even expect that. Luckily, the taxi driver was humorous enough to put a halt to the disappointment by telling many jokes! Although the rundown was not very smooth, we still settled down very quickly after reaching the homestay.

Angelika, who was my host mum, was a Polish. She was so amiable that she always reminded me to bring the key before going out as if she was really my mum in Hong Kong. Not only was she good at cooking, but she was also very talkative. We spent lots of time dinning and chatting with each other every day whereas I would not be able to do the same when I was in Hong Kong. It was only when I needed to leave that I realized how much love she put on me. Until now, I still miss her a lot!

Apart from the genial host mum, I also met lots of friendly classmates. The school I went to is called Select English which acts as a bridge to connect students from many different countries. On the first school day, we need to finish a test which aimed at classifying our standard of English. I was a little bit nervous as if I was having an exam in Hong Kong. I entered the top class with Jay after the test. Having lessons there, we found it quite difficult to follow the flow at the very beginning. It was only when the teacher pointed out that I was not brave enough to make a wild guess until I confirmed the answer so I always kept silence in the class. Furthermore, he claimed that I was capable of speaking English, but just too timid to express my own feelings. Encouraged by the teacher, I started to discuss with my neighbors more often as I really wanted to improve my English. The style of lessons was completely different to that of Hong Kong, which made you more involving and engaging. The immense difference was that I did not get much homework to deal with.

The lessons focused on developing critical thinking of the students rather than reciting any theories, which really helped me to get a thorough understanding towards distinct social issues such as abortion. Sometimes, we would even have an intense debate on the both sides. Before the trip, Emily, who was the selected student of this program last year, told me that you had to submit a group project and present your findings and conclusion in front of the whole class every two weeks. I was slightly worried about it because I was not a confident person at all. However, it was not until the teacher praised me that I noticed my improvement after going to England for English learning.

After the inspiring lessons in the mornings, we had a range of activities to choose from and to participate in. There were loads of activities that I had never ever experienced before such as T-shirt making and punting along the River Cam. However, the most unforgettable experience must be the Select’s Got Talent which provided a stage for each class to perform and to inspire the others. Our class chose to perform the popular song- Frozen in different languages in order to represent the motherland of each student so the song included 7 languages such as Russian, German and Italian. Although our class did not receive any award in the show, we still developed a deep friendship because of happy practicing hours. I thought, if I did not meet them, my trip would not be that delightful.

Every moment of the trip was stamped into my heart, which I would never forget. On the last day in Cambridge, I thought of the excitement of being chosen after the interview. Everything happened to me was just like a wonderful dream. Time is running out too fast in my trip. In the three weeks, saying goodbye and thank you to the bus driver has become a habit but suddenly it became the last time as it was utterly weird if you say goodbye and thank you to the Hong Kong bus drivers.

Looking back at the trip, I felt that I have become a more independent person who feels natural in communicating with foreigners. With such precious experience, I have faith in myself to be a high achiever in the coming future.

Finally, I would like to give a big thank to the Wan Chai Rotary Club and my teachers because of their generosity and support. I hope one day I will be able to help other students experience the world just as how they helped me.