You don’t have to look far to find the British influence in Hong Kong. It’s written in the architecture, the mannerisms, the cuisine, and of course the language of the city. When I arrived in Hong Kong, the first thing that struck me was how unlike China it felt. It wasn’t just that everyone I encountered spoke at least some English, or that people actually queued up in orderly lines to get on the bus and metro, or that there was not a motorbike in sight on all of Hong Kong, but some combination of all of those plus so much more.

I’ve studied Chinese economics to some extent (enough to be familiar with Hong Kong’s former role as British colony and China’s current “One country, two systems” approach to ruling the region) but it’s one thing to read about the vast cultural and economic differences instilled by a hundred years of British control and another thing entirely to experience it.

There’s an overall air of prosperity, confidence, and attention to order by the people. I cannot tell you how shocked I was the first time I crossed a street in Hong Kong and pedestrians actually waited until the light turned to start walking and cars stopped to let them walk (anyone who has ever tried to cross a street in most of China will know how unusual this is!). The cost of living in the city took me by surprise as well. I’m certainly a budget traveler and look to cut costs where I can, but even eating at local restaurants away from tourist areas cost me more per dish than I would pay at home and the price of my dorm bed was higher than most of hostels I’d stayed at in Europe.

It may sound to you like my shock is prejudice –  that I expected Hong Kong to be poor because it’s Chinese. I assure you that’s not the case. I’ve been to China before and loved it. I love the crazy streets packed with cars, motorbikes, pedestrians, and bicycles all fighting for the right of way. I love how no matter how much (or little) I’m picking up of the conversation, the shopkeepers and vendors will just keep chattering at me in Mandarin. I even appreciate fighting to get onto the metro among a crowd of people and the rows of street vendors hawking wares over loudspeakers.

In fact, that’s what I felt was missing in Hong Kong – that vitality, the energy of fighting your way up to success, to living life out loud. Hong Kong in many ways felt like just one of many international cities in the world – prosperous, orderly, multi-cultural, a little subdued. I still enjoyed the visit, but it was eye-opening to see how evident the cultural differences are. It goes beyond having a different monetary system and different governing policies, goes right down to the attitudes of the populace. When people ask me what countries I visited, I’ll tell them China and Hong Kong, for Hong Kong really must be considered its own unique place.