Like many Hongkongers living abroad, we waited eagerly for the lifting of the final quarantine restrictions before making our trip to Hong Kong. I had tried to prepare my kids in the month leading up to our visit about what Hong Kong is like, but what I did not know is how the city might have changed since our visit eight years ago. So, in a sense, we were kind of exploring Hong Kong together, which filled us with nervousness and excitement at the same time as we wondered what we would discover.

Our apprehension soon melted away after a few days into our trip and we were able to shake off the jet lag after the long, arduous flight to get to Hong Kong. I could see in your eyes, as you tried to familiarise yourselves with the surroundings, how amazed you were at seeing the tall buildings and apartment blocks that surrounded us everywhere we went. One day when we were at Victoria Harbour and it was a particularly misty day, you looked in awe and amazement at the skyscrapers situated along Hong Kong island. You loved pointing out the huge advertising boards that lit up above the office blocks.

Kowloon and the other smaller islands of Hong Kong were another different experience altogether. We spent time in places such as Sham Shui Po and Cheung Chau island, where I would go to stay with my grandparents or lived out part of my early childhood. It felt like a trip down memory lane, or at least it was for me.

Some of the experiences you enjoyed more than others, like riding the tram, hiking in the hills and going up to The Peak to get a spectacular view of Hong Kong. It was great to see you showing an acceptance to try new things, including all the different variety of food one can eat in the city. You even showed an interest in practising some Cantonese whilst there, which maybe I should harness and continue to encourage now that you show some enthusiasm to our language.

It was exciting to see my kids experience the city through their eyes and speaking to their relatives there to learn about life in Hong Kong, find out about its history as well as their heritage. It was a special and meaningful trip to spend some time with extended family and have my boys create new memories with each other.

It is hard to sum up this trip into a few words as we are still digesting all the feelings and emotions from being with family again and a new, yet familiar, environment. But I have to say that seeing Hong Kong through our children’s eyes made this trip even better than my own childhood experience. I’m so glad I took photos so we can look back at all the moments we made.

If you enjoy looking at the photos and would like to see more, go to read Hong Kong - Journey to my homeland.