Moving from UK to HK - Loadsa questions!!

L

LilyBo

Registered User
Hey guys!

We are a british family (2 kids age 6 & 1) moving from the UK to HK in May and although I have tried to do as much research as poss, there are still a few things I would appreciate some much needed help on!!;

Where to live?
My husband will work in Quarry Bay and we are looking for an active social life (inc rugby!), however, it's quite important that we are somewhere that's fairly family friendly. We have not long returned from living in Beijing so I'm fairly well versed in making new friends and joining playgroups but it would be kinda comforting to know that we choose somewhere not so isolated! I've been checking out QB / Happy Valley (budget HK$40000) but would like to know what experiences anyone has of living in these areas with a young family?

Commute
If we were to live in Pokfulam / Mid levels / south side - what sort of commute time could we expect for my hubby?
So many

Apartments
Do most apartments come unfurnished? This is a permanent move for us and will be bringing our whole lives with us...!

Schooling
I have been checking out ESF and want to know if anyone has any experience of applying through their corporate surety scheme.....I have emailed them with some specific questions (and telephoned!) however, answers have seemed a little vague! If I apply for YR2 and arrive in May, will there be enough to fill our time if my son has 2 months off school? Are the waiting lists as such that he won't get a place for the last 2 months of his Yr1?
Bearing in mind that we currently don't know where we will live, are we assured a place in a school of our choosing or can beggars not be choosers??
Alternatively, can anyone recommend an international school (pref British curriculum based or british/mandarin bilingual) on HKIsland as an alternative to ESF (budget HK$65000pyear)?

What to bring / not to bring?
From previous experience I shall be bringing OTC meds in droves but what about things like nappies....are they at a premium out there (if I have a container to fill, I'll damn well fill it!!!)? Ideas on anything else I need to bring would be most grateful!

Playgroups
We will be living in a serviced apartment when we arrive for 1 month whilst we apartment search and am keen to make friends asap for myself and my kids.....I see there are loads of playgroups around so guess I'm asking if it's ok to join as soon as I land (may have more questions by then!!)?

Small business advice
I have a small jewellery business here in UK which I would like to continue.... I currently import from Beijing and am well aware that I will be especially close to Guangzhou and Shenzhen but what are the markets like in HK with regards to handmade jewellery and the like or do I need to go further afield?

Wow, I've just taken a breath so huge apologies for all these questions - your help and personal experiences will be gratefully received and much appreciated!

Many thanks
Sarah.
 
hi sarah...
i am sure you will get many responses to your questions...so let's see what we can do.

WHERE TO LIVE
there are rugby clubs all over hong kong. no matter where you settle, there will be a relatively nearby club for your 6yo.

happy valley is full of young families and is a great place to be. lots of great shops, a fun community feel. i have also heard positive things about quarry bay. yes, you would be able to get something within your budget.

the commute time from pokfulam to qb would be app 20 minutes. (that's to the highway, after exiting it would likely take a few more to get to office location). midlevels, half that??

most family sized flats come unfurnished.

SCHOOLING
as for schooling, while i don't have experience applying under esf's css, i do think there is a fair chance your son could spend two months in year one before summer break. people are exiting hong kong at odd times, and as you are being flexible, it might work.

esf works in a cachement system...if you were in quarry bay your son would attend quarry bay esf, however, some schools are more oversubscribed than others, and so you may get a nearby cachement school if not the school in your cachement. normally, esf will make the effort to get your child in the correct area, however.

rani knows more about this than i do...she's the expert and hopefully will correct me if i've misled you.

good alternatives -- hong kong academy has an excellent reputation. isf does as well, but i am not sure about the price. kellet has many british students, but i am not sure about their mandarin programme.

hope this is a good start for you. i think it is a smart move for you to stay in a serviced flat for the first bit, to get an idea of what you like and where you want to be.

good luck!
 
"the commute time from pokfulam to qb would be app 20 minutes. (that's to the highway, after exiting it would likely take a few more to get to office location). midlevels, half that??"

commute ALWAYS depends on time of day...

personally, i would also look at sai kung. it is VERY family oriented, a lot more laid back than the island, still an easy commute from quarry bay, ESF school in the area (Clearwater Bay), NOT highrise living, lots of outdoor activities....
should be VERY easy to get 2100', with private garden, possibly a communal swimming pool, minimum 3-4 bedrooms for $40k.

all in all, you get more bang for your buck in sai kung (or even discovery bay ~ but that's a more difficult commute to quarry bay)
 
This is a bit off point, but are you thinking of getting a car? Second hand cars are not expensive in HK; the most expensive thing is finding a parking space. Some apartments come with one, so just something to bear in mind. It really improves your quality of life, allowing access to the New Territories, or from the NT to the island.

You'll be able to tell more once you're in the service flat, but I think Happy Valley is a good choice. Not sure what busses there are from HV to QB, but it's 15-20 minutes by car, maybe a bit longer in rush hour.

OTC meds definitely! Bring your anadins and Boots stuff as it's hard to get the stuff you're used to here! I think nappies and other things are easy to come by here but others may have other suggestions.

I think you should be able to find playgroups to join when you land. Many of them do a trial class before you commit to a package.

Jewellery- it really depends on what sort of jewellery there is. There should be a market, especially at the pre-Christmas fairs, but you could always start an internet business if need be?!
 
The Southside

The southside of HK is great and extremely family oriented. We moved here from London as well. There is less pollution and there are tons of Brits, Australians, Americans, French and Chinese living here. From Repulse Bay it is is about 15 minutes into Central and from Stanley/Tai Tam areas it's about 20-25 minutes. Playgroups are easy to join, but if are looking for a structure one rather than getting together with mums in your building/area, they are indeed mostly in Central. The southside has Tutor Time, Woodlands, PEKIPS and classes at the clubs like American Club, Hong Kong Country Club and Cricket Club. Full serviced buildings come unfurnished. Major ex-pat high-rises are: 109 Repulse Bay, The Manhattan, Pacific View and Park View.
 
If you've got room in your container, then yes I would stock up on the nappies that you like. Nappies are readily available here, but I find the quality varies. I find the Huggies from Parknshop aren't that absorbent (esp. for overnight), so for night time I buy Pampers from Bumps to Babes (baby store) which are imported from the UK and quite expensive!

Belinda
 
I prefer the nappies here personally!

Southside, Repulse Bay, Tai Tam, Stanley would be out with your budget but I've heard great things about Happy Valley. I agree you should check out Sai Kung and Clearwater Bay, per Carang's suggestion especially as this is a pretty definitive move for you and I'm sure after all the moves you've had recently you'd like to feel a little settled for awhile at least. I know lots of people who started off somewhere central only to move out to the New Territories within a year or two to make the most of the space, fresher air, lower rents etc. We ourselves are thinking about doing the same. It might seem like far away but Quarry Bay is actually really close because of the Eastern distributor. The ex-pat community there is apparently pretty good so you shouldn't have any trouble feeling a part of things quickly.

Schools here are really expensive so it will pay to have a good idea where you want your 6 year old to go and to consider areas based on school preference.

I think you also need to ask yourself how you want to spend your days - i.e. living in a cramped apartment or in a more spacious villa/village house, potentially with garden out in the New Territories. How do you feel being surrounded by people all the time? Living in Quarry Bay, Happy Valley etc I would always feel surrounded and would be desperate to get away! Going to Sai Kung etc feels like a trip to the countryside. Far more relaxing lifestyle. It's all personal preference of course so disgard if you are a city, city person!

Good luck.
 
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i would suggest bringing OTC cold medicines for yourselves, not just for baby.

i, too, have not had any problems with nappies here.

some things that i miss from "home" even after 14 years here:
close-up toothpaste (the red one)
aussie mega shampoo
GOOD deoderant
hubby's neutrogena shampoo (can buy it here at about 10X the cost)
snacks/chocolates

i REALLY miss the supermarkets from canada... they are awesome and i spend at minimum one full day perusing the supermarket everytime i'm back.

the things above, i ALWAYS bring back tonnes of as they are either not available here or wayyyy too expensive.
 
Where to live?
If your DH is anything like mine he will not like to commute very far. Quarry Bay is a nice area with some good international schools nearby (such as Delia School of Canada in Taikoo Shing). We lived in the area BC (before kids) and liked it a lot. We also stayed back in the area on our second move to HK in a serviced apartment for two months but the commute to Kowloon was just too long (about 1.5 hours) so we moved to Discovery Bay.

Commute
As above and as others said. First you need to decide how long DH is willing to travel and then you will be better placed to pick an area to look into. I think the public transport system is excellent in Hong Kong so I would not consider that a factor.

Apartments
There are lots unfurnished. Bring it all over if you can!

Schooling
We liked what ESF had to offer but places are fierce and with ESF you can not apply at anytime and go on a wait list. You have to do it during a set period of time (usually 12 months before the year of entry). Each school does have its own requirements though so best to pick where you want to live and then look at the schools in that area.

What to bring / not to bring?
I have heard that the local nappies are NOT good (especially) for boys as they are made as unisex. I shipped over about 6 cartons of nappies and kept those for my girls at night, using Huggies or Pampers Premium during the day. When the boxes ran out, I used the local ones and never had any complaints. Ship some if you have the space but I would pack other items first (see comment below!).

Playgroups
As others have said, lots of playgroups and Quarry Bay has its own one here on GB too. Here is one you may want to post some questions in http://www.geobaby.com/forum/thread125089.html

Good luck with it all.
 
Hi, just wanted to reply to let you know, I am living in Happy Valley, with 2 children, 7yr old boy and 2 year old girl, and we love it here. The location is perfect (although we are at the top of the hill!), you can get many buses from here, also taxis are quite cheap. The town has many shops and 2 main supermarkets. There is an indoor playground and also an outdoor one next to the racecourse (which has the football club within - also play rugby there). Not sure on prices as we are here on a work contract so accommodation is included, but apparently they are good at the moment.
Schools, we came out in August last year and had our sons name down for 3 schools in June/July time, 2 international ones and an ESF one - it took him a month after we arrived to get into the French Int'l - we have never heard back from the ESF one! (very pleased with the french school though).
Nappies - quality not as good, I find - pampers leak nearly ever night! (Will have to try the ones fom Bumps to Babes), not tried the chinese ones so can't comment on them.
Medicines - def bring out what you can, although most pharmacies can give you childrens paracetemol - not sure if there is an equivalent to medised!
Keep in contact before you come out, would love to meet up if you are going to be near by.

Good luck
Karen
 
I would suggest bringing as many of the meds and the nappies as you can. Every time we go back to Australia, I buy my huggies by the boxload to bring back as they are much better quality than the ones here... my son NEVER had nappy rash until we used the local Huggies.. and the quality just isn't as good, nor are they as durable or absorbent. We find Pampers just as bad here.

The childrens panadol here is quite good, as it seems to have a 'sedative' effect (something the Australian equivalent lacks), however we still bring over the meds we're used to and need as well as you just can't guarantee you can get the same (or even similar) stuff here.

In terms of locations... we looked at Fortress Hill, Quarry Bay, Braemer Hill, Happy Valley and Jardine's Lookout. Given the decline in the market, you should be able to find an apartment in all these areas for under $40k... in fact one person I spoke to recently found a nice 1400 sq ft 3 bedroom apartment in Happy Valley for under 30k a couple of days ago.
Things to think about are do you need a carpark? Do you need 'facilities' such a a playground in the apartment complex? How much room can you downsize to? How close do you need the shopping to be? Will you consider having a maid and do you want a maids room? Do you need an oven? (don't laugh... a LOT of places don't have ovens... we even saw one in Fortress Hill with no kitchen!) And remember, the 'ticket price' for rental is generally more than the price you will negotiate for rent.
We live in Jardine's Lookout, which gives us the green suburban feel, but is only 5 minutes from Causeway Bay, however, personally, given the choice again, with children, I would have preferred to look closer in Happy Valley as it has a nice mix of shops/food/culture/playgrounds and people... despite being only 5 minutes away from Causeway Bay, I can't help but sometimes feel isolated being away from the bustle of the city (and taking a stroller on a green mini bus with an under-2 year old on your own is not an entirely fun situation).
We saw some nice places in North Point too... which is also well worth considering given its location next to Quarry Bay.
I think it depends on how much of the 'local' environment you want to experience also. Something that appeals about a place like Happy Valley to me is it has a nice mix of ex-pat and local chinese community.

In terms of playgroups... well... there are always those of us keen to meet up. :)

And schooling is a difficult one. As there are quite a few families being relocated back 'home' I imagine there are a few spots opening up all the time in various schools, but I don't know whether they have waiting lists for places or will give the places to a new arrival...

Good luck!
 
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