Night before Departure

So here's my first post in A Wandering Chameleon. In case you were wondering, I chose the title to refer to my wanderings as a research exchange student who will be living in another culture. Chameleons fascinate me in a metaphorical sense - it's often difficult to know what a chameleon's true colours are. Is a chameleon's present coloration the result of its background or is it in its natural state? Does the chameleon attempt to blend in with its surroundings or attempt to stand out? Growing up as an ethnically-Hong Kong Chinese in the Toronto area, my cultural identity has often been a question of either leaning toward my Hong Kong Chinese side or towards my Anglophone Canadian side. Do I side with my roots or with my new home? With the past or with the future?

This is also the first time that I will be living an extended period away from home. Personally, I hope that this will be a great opportunity to explore the world and grow as a person. I'm also very excited that I will be able to conduct research at the renowned Human Language Technology Center at HKUST.

I've already printed my boarding pass online - for some reason my name is now "Lyndonhincheung Chan".. haha.

Family and friends in Toronto, I'll miss you and keep you updated with the latest events on this blog.

各位香港親戚朋友，等一下：我來了！