Why I Left Taipei to Move to Hong Kong (and then to Singapore)
I was born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan, and I lived there until I was 18. After that, I moved to Hong Kong for university, stayed on to work there for another three years, and later relocated to Singapore for work.
Across both Hong Kong and Singapore, I built my career in digital marketing agencies, mainly in account management. I worked across SEO and paid media campaigns, managing projects for clients across different markets and learning how different cities shape not just your career, but also your sense of self.
Looking back, I would not say I left Taipei because I had a perfectly planned life strategy. A lot of it came from curiosity, timing, and inspiration from other people.
But underneath all of that, I think I always had the same inner drive: I wanted to explore, grow, and find out who I could become outside the place I already knew.
Why I Decided to Leave Taiwan for Hong Kong
When I was 18, I already knew I did not want to stay in Taiwan forever.
At the time, Taipei felt comfortable, familiar, and safe, but it also felt small to me. I wanted something more international. I wanted to meet people from different backgrounds, live in a city with more movement, and experience a version of life that felt bigger than what I had known growing up.
But I did not immediately know where to go.
Hong Kong became the obvious next step because my older brother was already studying there. He had applied to universities in Hong Kong, moved there, and seeing him do that made the idea feel possible for me too. Hong Kong was close enough to Taiwan, but still different enough to feel like a new world.
In a way, I took inspiration from him. I did not wake up one day with a grand plan to move abroad. I just knew I did not want to stay where I was, and Hong Kong felt like the next place I could try.
What I Liked About Hong Kong Compared to Taipei
The first thing I loved about Hong Kong was how international it felt.
When I arrived, I was surrounded by people from so many different parts of the world. Because Hong Kong is such a small city, the expat and international communities often overlap.
Once you meet one person, you suddenly meet twenty more. Someone is organizing a hike, someone is going to a boat party, someone is introducing you to another group of people.
That was very different from what I experienced in Taipei.
1) Hong Kong Made the World Feel Bigger to Me
Taipei, to me, was comfortable and relaxed. But Hong Kong had an energy that made me feel like I was constantly being exposed to something new.
I could meet people from different cultures, industries, and life paths within the same week. That gave me a very different sense of possibility. It made me feel like life did not have to follow one fixed route.
2) I Loved Hong Kong’s Balance of City and Nature
Another thing I loved about Hong Kong was the combination of city and nature.
Even though Hong Kong is dense and fast-paced, nature is surprisingly accessible. Within 30 minutes to an hour, I could be in the mountains, at the beach, or on an island where I could not even see buildings around me.
That kind of separation mattered to me.
In Singapore, when I went into nature, I still often felt like I was in a city park. In Hong Kong, nature felt more immersive. I could go hiking, kayaking, or exploring somewhere that felt completely removed from the city.
Because I love hiking, that became one of my favorite parts of living there. I could finish work, travel a short distance, and be on a proper, challenging trail.
How Singapore Compared to Taipei and Hong Kong for Me
What I loved most about Singapore was the efficiency.
Singapore is designed extremely well. Everything feels organized, fast, and easy to navigate. Whether I was applying for a bank account, a credit card, a visa-related document, or dealing with airport and government processes, things generally worked.
That might sound simple, but after living in different cities, you start to appreciate how much good systems affect your daily life.
1) Singapore Made Daily Life Easier for Me
In Singapore, so many things can be done quickly through your phone. The city feels structured in a way that reduces friction.
That efficiency gave me a lot of comfort. I did not have to spend as much energy figuring out basic logistics, because the systems were already built to work.
2) I Wish I Had Built Deeper Connections in Singapore
At the same time, I do wish I had been more proactive about building a life outside of work.
A lot of my closest relationships in Singapore came from colleagues. I love the people I met through work, but looking back, I think I would have felt more connected to Singapore if I had made more effort to meet people through activities, communities, and social circles outside the office.
That is one thing I would do differently if I moved to a new city again.
What I Learned From Moving to Hong Kong and Singapore
Moving abroad taught me a lot about independence, identity, and how many different ways there are to live a life.
1) I Learned to Be Open-Minded and Try Everything
This sounds simple, but I think it is one of the most important lessons.
When you move to a new city, you cannot really understand it if you only stay inside one familiar lifestyle. You have to experience the good, the bad, and the uncomfortable parts of the place.
I have seen people move to Hong Kong and only stay within a very specific bubble. They try certain things once because “that is what tourists do,” but they do not really immerse themselves in the local culture or allow the city to change them.
For me, trying everything is how you start to build your own relationship with a place. You get to decide what you like, what you do not like, and what kind of life you want to create there.
2) I Learned to Be Proactive About Making Connections
Another lesson I learned is that you cannot expect a city to feel like home if you do not actively build connections there.
This is something I wish I had done more in Singapore.
When I was there, many of my friendships came from work. That was meaningful, but I think I could have created a stronger sense of belonging if I had gone to more activities, met more people, and allowed myself to be part of different communities.
Moving somewhere new is not just about changing your location. You also have to create roots.
3) I Learned That There Are Many Ways to Live My Life
Top left: A truffle hunter in Croatia with his 2 dogs
Top right: A food tour guide in Rio
Bottom left: A gaucho with his horses at Mendosa, Argentina
Bottom right: Bedouin family in Wadi Rum, Jordan
Travelling and living abroad taught me that there is no single correct way to live.
When you meet people from different places, you realize that everyone builds life differently. Some people spend their whole lives fishing. Some people become tour guides in the desert. Some people build their identities around family, work, travel, creativity, or something else entirely.
That changed the way I look at my own problems.
When something is not working out, it does not mean your life is over. You can reinvent yourself. You can choose a different path. There are hundreds, even millions, of ways to live.
4) Leaving Helped Me See Myself More Clearly
When you stay in one place your whole life, it is easy to think that your environment is the whole world.
Leaving Taiwan helped me see myself outside of the expectations I grew up around. Moving to Hong Kong and Singapore forced me to become more independent, more adaptable, and more aware of what I actually wanted.
I do not think I would have developed the same perspective if I had stayed in Taipei my entire life.
My apartment in Hong Kong!
How Moving to Hong Kong and Singapore Changed My Life
Moving away changed how I see the world. Sometimes when I go back to Taiwan and spend time with people I used to know, I realize how much I have changed. The things people complain about, the things they focus on, or the way they see life can feel very different from how I see things now.
I do not mean that in a judgmental way. It is just that once you have lived in different places, handled things on your own, and built a life outside your home country, your perspective shifts.
1) I Became More Independent
Because I moved out when I was 18, I had to learn how to handle things by myself.
I had to figure out practical problems, career decisions, friendships, housing, and daily life in places where I was not always fully familiar with the system or the culture.
That made me mature faster.
2) I Learned Not to Fear Change as Much
Former colleagues from First Page Digital Singapore and I!
If I had stayed in Taipei my whole life, I do not think I would have had the courage to quit my job and travel for a year.
But after moving once, and then moving again, I realized that change is not as scary as it seems. If something does not work out, you can adapt. You can move again. You can go back. You can start over.
That does not mean everyone has the same freedom or privilege to do so. But if you do have the ability, the resources, and the opportunity, I think it is important to ask yourself what is really stopping you.
3) I Value My Family More Than Ever
When home is a flight away, you stop taking the ordinary moments for granted, such as the unremarkable dinners, the lazy afternoons, the conversations that once felt routine. Distance has a way of sharpening what matters.
Now every visit back home or every chance to see my parents feels precious, and I find myself far more present for it: fewer distractions, more attention, a deeper appreciation for simply being in the same room. I've come to cherish my family in a way I'm not sure I would have if I'd never left.
I Outgrew the Version of Myself That Never Left
The biggest change is that I no longer see life as something fixed.
Leaving Taipei, moving to Hong Kong, and then moving to Singapore showed me that identity is not permanent. You are shaped by your environment, but you are also allowed to choose a new one.
I left Taipei because I wanted to see more of the world. I moved to Hong Kong because it felt like the first door that opened. I moved to Singapore because another opportunity appeared, and I knew I wanted to try.
None of it was perfectly planned.
But all of it changed me.
And now, when I look back, I can see that every move gave me something different. Taipei gave me my foundation. Hong Kong gave me expansion. Singapore gave me structure.
Together, they taught me that home is not always the place you start from. Sometimes, home is something you build by leaving, exploring, and slowly becoming more honest about the life you want.
