After university, Benjamin was determined to leave mainland China. He valued personal freedoms and had a natural scepticism towards the authoritarian Chinese government.
But it has also been difficult for him to build friendships with locals because of differences in background and language. "We can... have dinner together," he says. "But we can't become good friends."
이미테이션여성시계=이미테이션여성시계
An August encounter with a pro-protest Uber driver sticks in his mind.
After a minor argument over a pick-up, "he said to me that he could tell I am not from here by my accent," Benjamin recounts.
제일아쿠아 정수기렌탈=제일아쿠아 포티 정수기렌탈 + ANAM 회전형 히트펌프 건조기렌탈 9kg 실버/그레이추천
When he and two friends were thrown out of the car, his friends seized the opportunity.
남자명품레플리카=남자명품레플리카
Media captionThe identity crisis behind Hong Kong's protests
"They said, 'Don't you stand on their side? Oh, they don't see you as one of them?'"
He is now looking to move away from Hong Kong and China.
MSGM=MSGM여성의류
"Students have lit fires and blocked roads, but this is nothing compared to the Cultural Revolution."
The city is living a double life. Protests at the weekend, business as usual on weekdays.
남자레플리카신발=남자레플리카신발
But Hong Kong has entered its first recession in a decade, with the number of tourists plummeting more than 40%.
Mr Chan, who has been working as a hawker for more than four decades, knows that tough times have come. Before the protests, he made more than HK$1,000 (about $130; ￡100) every day. "Now we only make a few hundred dollars."
His account is a corrective to the narrative that economic decline will infuriate Hongkongers - it hasn't yet. But shops are closing down and people are feeling financial pain.
Despite this, the 67-year-old remains unfazed, even though Kowloon has become a battleground.
A Guangzhou native, Mr Chan was witness to the Cultural Revolution - he once saw a peasant being beaten to death by children. He swam to Hong Kong in 1973.
Mr Chan doesn't blame the protesters for his losses.
자동살균냉온정수기렌탈=쿠쿠 인앤아웃 10s 자동살균 냉온정수기렌탈 샴페인 골드이벤트
"The future belongs to the youth, and they are fighting for things they want," he says. "We have enjoyed the most prosperous time, and we can only accept when things go downhill. It's as simple as that."
