In a Wing Chun martial arts school in Hong Kong, Nima King, a foreign instructor, is intently guiding his students. Having grown up in Australia, he came to Hong Kong alone at the age of 21 to follow a Wing Chun master and has been rooted here for nearly two decades.
"(China) It's one of the most welcoming places. If I say a couple of Cantonese words or Mandarin words, people will cheer you on," he shares. He recounts a warm and amusing story from his early days: once in a Mong Kok restaurant with friends, he successfully ordered beef noodles by gesturing and imitating the sound of a cow—"moo..."—completing the transaction amid laughter from both sides.
This warmth, however, stands in stark contrast to the indifference he experienced in the West. He mentions that not long ago in Australia, his Chinese wife, while out alone with their child and her mother, encountered racial discrimination twice in a single day. "Hong Kong was, from day one, very welcoming. People were great, easy to communicate with, and easy to get by."
"For me, Hong Kong is a very safe place," says King, "This is definitely home."
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