Chan Ying Kit, Gordon

I would like to thank Prof. Fung and Mr. Frankie Wong for their hard-working and well-organized preparation for this fruitful field-trip. It is my first time to travel with long-hour flight into another foreign country. I feel my horizon is really broadened after the trip. There are precious moments spending with those professors from the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo. Their guest lectures as well as their detailed explanations at the field are very useful, meaningful and inspiring. Other unforgettable moments include the visit to a landfill site, traveling in the Tunnel of Journel behind the falls, eating BBQ pork dinner in Toronto’s China Town, as well as ice wine tasting and the “multi-visiting” of the Toronto’s waterfront. This trip helps me to refresh my geographical knowledge, and also it provides me one of the most memorable period of time in my life.

Dung Wan Yee, Winnie

The field trip to North America is an invaluable experience for me. The most impressive thing is having the chance hardly ever had to meet other professors of other universities and representatives of government department. I have learnt a lot from their precise and concise presentation. With actual field observation, I have acquired knowledge on different topics within limited time, such as the watershed planning of the Grand River and the urban development of downtown Toronto. Moreover, field works such as doing questionnaire offer me an opportunity to talk with the local people and learn about their lives in Canada.

Although this is my first time traveling to Canada, thanks to the arrangement of the department, I quickly got with the new environment. If I have a change, I would like to participant in another field trip.

Mak Kit Yan, Jenny

It is the first time I went to Canada. It is really a great experience for me traveling to this faraway country. Green grass and trees, lovely squirrels, groups of goose can be found in Toronto and Waterloo.

We stayed at University of Toronto during the days in Toronto. It’s a nice place although we have to share the washroom with boys. Prof. Fung has invited some professors in Toronto and Waterloo talking to us. We went to St. Lawrence Market where sells farm products on Saturdays and second-hand goods on Sundays with cheap price.

Also, we went to the highest building in the world. It is the CN Tower. The most exciting thing is we took many nice photos on the glass floor on the tower. We screamed at first when standing on the glass floor and I could feel I was shaking on the floor at that time.

On the other hand, we have to do some preparation and research before and during the field trip. The topic of our group is the industrial transformation in Waterloo. We visited the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Centre (TMMC) and Accelerator Centre in Cambridge and Waterloo where provide some information for us to know more about the development of high-tech industry in Waterloo. We went on a chain-car taking us to see the procedures of making the cars in TMMC. Although we cannot walk everywhere we want, it is very comfortable and funny for us to sit on the chain-car.

The most impressed place we went is Niagara Falls. It is amazing and wonderful. In order to see the falls with a little distance, we went abroad the Maid of the Mist. The pouring water from the falls was just like raining dogs and cats. Also, the government uses the fall for hydroelectric. Can you feel how powerful Niagara Falls is!?

To sum up, it is an educational trip for us and we have learned a lot from it. I have built up friendship with my mates who I didn’t talk with them much in Hong Kong before. The trip has brought me much more fun than I thought!

After taking fifteen hours plane, we finally arrived to the continent of North America. My first impression of Canada is that the air there is very fresh and clean. . I took a deep breath without hesitation. The sky is clear with only a few high clouds. The weather is a bit cool and dry which is totally suitable for me because I do not like living in a hot and humid area. The building and population density is extremely low. We feel so relieved there.

Thanks to the preparation of Prof. Fung and our tutor Frankie, we lived in two of the most famous Universities in Canada, University of Toronto and University of Waterloo. The hostel is cozy and tidy. But I have never imagined that one could be woke up by beautiful birds’ songs next to your windows and the noise from a group of ducks around the campus. That was really interesting. It was just like living in the farm. Everything is so natural and simple. The distance between an everyday supermarket and your hostel takes at least fifteen minutes walk if you do not have a car. It is the only thing I was not used to. Also, there is very little entertainment except snooker. Students can fully concentrate on their study. There is no wonder many talents are come from Canada.

We went to many different places in Canada, like Ontario Science museum, CN Tower, Korean town, China Town, High Park, CBD of Toronto, SOHO Place, Waterloo, Kitchener, Grand River, landfill site, TMMC, accelerator centre, St. Jacobs, the Niagara falls, vineyard etc. My most unforgettable scene in Canada was the visit to Niagara falls. It is one of the seven wonders in the world and places you must go before you die. I am so lucky that I have a valuable chance to be there. The falls are awesome that you would never forget. You wonder the power of nature. The view is wonderful. We also took the the ship “Maid of the Mist” to go in front of the fall. I remember that all my hair was wet because there was a big hole on my raincoat. But still we felt excited. You just did not want to leave and wanted to stay one more second. However, our schedule was tight and we needed to go to our next stop, the vineyard. I had my first chance to taste ice-wine. It was very nice. I bought one back to Hong Kong and share with my friends.

I also appreciate the way Canada treats the rubbish. In every single house, there is a blue box. People put recyclable rubbish in that box. Then the rubbish is delivered to the landfill. The landfill is organized one. Recyclable rubbish like paper and aluminum cans are placed in a separate area.  We also had a valuable chance to take a ride to the heart of the landfill. However, we did not smell anything bad most of the time. I think it is due to the comprehensive treatment in Canada.

Besides, one interesting thing I found in Canada is that people have a very good relationship with their pets, say dogs. People often take their lovable pets out for a walk. Dogs are so lucky in Canada. There are many dogs’ parks in Canada. They are large and clean. They can always go play with their masters.

People keep asking me do I want to stay in Canada longer. Right now, my answer is no. It is good for traveling or field trip, we learn a lot from Canada, from environment to culture. However, if I have to settle there, I think the pace is a bit slow for me.  Especially we are still young and energetic, we still need to explore more and play more. However, when I get older, Canada maybe a good place for me to retire. It is because the weather is nice, the neighborhood is harmonious.  Anyway, I still find this field trip enjoyable and useful. I had a very good time with my classmates. The overall workload is not much and not harsh. I think I made a correct choice to North America Field Trip.

Kwok Kai Ling, Carol

After about 15 hours of flight, we arrived at Toronto airport with great delight. It was a great place with harmony, clean air, and planning.

In the downtown area of Toronto, I was impressed by the way a government react to preserve historical buildings, which are usually demolished in market force. History tells about our past. I believe that a place without its own history is dry and dull. Luckily enough, with various policies, the tradition al beautiful old buildings were preserved and turned into different uses including shops, offices, restaurants, whatever. I appreciate all these, but I doubted when I look at Queen ‘s pier in Hong Kong. I understand there is sometimes inevitable trade-off between economic development and cultural preservation, although we emphasis balance of interests in many occasions.

The food, especially the Vietnam cuisine, in the China Town is also fantastic. There are several China Towns in Toronto, some old, some new. The one near to UT (University of Toronto) is relatively new and it is probably a tourist spot. In China Town, there were surge of Vietnam restaurants in recent years. Since most of the owners were really native Vietnamese, the food is native too! It was spicy and delicious. And we enjoyed so much. This is contrary to Hong Kong, where Vietnam restaurants are also common in many senses, as most of the food is not that “native” indeed.

After days of visit in the downtown area, we head to the relatively remote UW (University of Waterloo), which is a renowned or its computer and high tech education. Here, I smelled the calm and harmony. The trees, the grass and the animals are all around. I loved it. During the days, we also visited the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada and Accelerator Centre. In the Toyota plant, we took the chain-car to get familiar with the car-making procedure. Its effectiveness impressed me a lot. For the Accelerator, I would regard it as a dream-come-true platform for me, as a teenager. It helps to put your innovative idea into real business, really world. It is really new for me, as in Hong Kong, not much support is given by the government to aid the young talents, especially the scientists.

In the last day, we visited the Niagara Falls. It was breathtaking. It is especially true when I took the boat to the bottom of the Falls with our classmates. We were just so close to the Falls that we could hear the loud water sound nearby. It was like raining so heavily that we need to all hide inside our raincoats. I am sure that its sound and its magnificent view will be deep inside my heart forever.

( So lucky that I could see the Rainbow in Niagara Falls)


The trip to Canada is memorable for me. I reflected a lot and enjoyed a lot.
The sound, the smell and the warmth. All are unforgettable memories for me.

Sit Hing Yu, Terence

A wonderful field trip it was.
40 students, our tutor and professor spent a meaningful and fruitful week in Canada. We enjoyed the warmth of sunshine and harmony of the atmosphere. We were also welcomed by the hospitable professors from the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo. However, please do not perceive that this field trip is only for fun. Academic-wise, I think this field trip offered me a brand new perspective on urban planning and the latest development of Canada. A lot of representatives from related parties, e.g. water management, garbage disposal, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada, Accelerator Centre at the technology park of the University of Waterloo, etc. shared their valuable time with us and kindly offered their insight into different aspects of development.

However, 'life' at Canada was no harsh at all. Although our professor did organize a tightly-packed learning tour for each day, academic activities ended around 4 to 5 o'clock in the evening. That means, we would always have our free time to relax and experience the culture and the living of Canada in the evening. Personally speaking, the balance between academic work and free time is just at the right amount and thus my classmates and I really enjoyed the field trip.

Enjoying a pizza in Little Italy

People like to say see things yourself is better then read them on book. This is absolutely true. This is the first time I have been so far away and Canada was always a fainted image in my heart. No matter how well you know the things and food are expensive there, no matter how well you understand the hospitality (average time lag of a local person 'asking' to offer help when you suddenly show a map on the street, finding your way through, is around 2 seconds!) of the people there, you never experience and feel that unless you yourself is right there.

On the other hand, after the field trip, I strongly believe that there are always something that you can't simply search for them on the internet. How can you see the process of garbage recycling , get a thorough understanding of what the Accelerator Centre of Canada is doing to nurture technology development, the strict regulations and innovative ideas on planning of the Canada Government simply on the internet? Even if so, it will always take up a lot of your time for the searching work.
So trust me, field trip is really a great opportunity for learning and experiencing different cultures of the world and you will always gain a new insight and broaden your horizon after every field trip.

Chen Zhouyi, Joey

I always enjoy having a field trip with all the geography-lovers, and in GRM department, we can go field trip with different years students, which is a good opportunities for everyone to share the knowledge and build up friendship.
I do learn a lot from the other people, especially from my group mates, who always give me lots of support. As this time I am the group leader, I need to hold discussion from time to time; it also helped me to improve my leadership ability.

Wong Siu Man

It is my first time to go to Canada. Both Toronto and Waterloo are clean and beautiful cities. The tranquil and green environment makes me feel comfortable and relax. In this field trip, I have gained many valuable experiences. Visiting Toyota Motor Manufacturing Centre and landfill site gave me a very deep impression. Having an overseas field trip, it not only can broaden my horizon and knowledge, but also give me an opportunity to meet year 1 and year 3 students.

Dao Chun Yeung

Canada is spacious with lots of open spaces and a number of communities such as Little Italy, Little Korea, Little India, Chinatown, etc. set up by people of different races and a large variety of cuisines from all around the world. Not only are there many Chinese, there exist people coming from different countries. What amaze me are the harmony and the leisure within the University of Waterloo, which is composed of three colleges each with different religions. Landfill is another surprise to me during the trip. It is because this is a rare chance that someone can stand on landfills. It is also a good opportunity for me to know more about my classmates.

Tsang Kai Ho