Latest News

so the case in china continues...this is some interesting coverage here.  not wanting to write much more - i think a link is sufficient.

otherwise, things are going well here.  up early mornings to paddle before work has reset my night owl status to an early-to-rise, early-to-bed person.  go figure.  i do like exercising before work though - there is something nice about it.  and although the water is absolutely foul, it is still really nice out there paddling around the islands watching the sun rise.

here is a picture of an outrigger - for those of you who do not know.  you can go out in an OC1, OC2 or OC6 - the one is for one person and so on...

i have a busy work week next week and then i am officially off the account ive been looking after for the past 2 years.  it is time for a change!  my role will be 100% global now and hopefully it will help with some exposure into markets outside of hong kong.

so, thats all for now folks - have a great weekend.

Tokyo, My Favourite Geisha

tokyo is my favourite geisha.  it isnt home but it certainly is a lot of fun!  it started off, as i mentioned here, in first class.  let me just say on the record that ive never experienced anything like it.  the cathay first class lounge is redonkulous.  real silver, massive amounts of food, white linens and service like what i havent seen since new york.

then i get onto the flight in seat 1a to find a MASSIVE seat which could fit me and my haggis (but sadly he stayed home) to snuggle and watch a movie on my very large tv.  here, the charming (if a bit over eager) flight attendants fed me and fed me until i was ready to pop.  at one point, i rang the bell and not one but two flight attendants scurried over to me before i could even bring my hand back up from the panel.  i let them know i was beyond full and the sigh of disappointment they both let out was if they worked long hard hours in the kitchen themselves to prepare it especially for me.

after getting into tokyo and overcoming a small amount of confusion, i found my dear friend waiting for me on the platform of sugamo, which is apparently is 'harajuku for old ladies' and oh so fitting for the two of us to meet there!

otherwise, the weekend was spent hanging out, talking about life and love, visiting museums, drinking and eating and drinking and eating!

this exhibit was very cool - it was a room lit only by what the light provided and black ink being shot up to land on this bouncy surface with the landscape of tokyo behind it.

it is a same this photo didnt come out :( 

Aikido and Nutters

off to see my dear friend who left me in honkers for some adventures in learning aikido.  yes, she quit her job to embark on a year long aikido course.  you can check out her blog here and learn more about aikido here.

not only do i get to see my nutter of a friend who i miss dearly (and would only sleep in a dorm with bunkbeds and a shared shower for a very small handful of people) but i also get to fly first class!  ive never flown proper first class before.  the flight tickets were so expensive due to summer holiday so i used miles (which were due to expire) and am going first class (as that was all that was left) - YIPPIE!!!  is it wrong i wish the flight was a wee bit longer...?

Adaptation

sitting here enjoying my spicy laksa, ive realised ive adapted.  i now love soggy romaine.  when i first moved, i thought it was so weird that the chinese boil romaine lettuce.  i mean, whatever small nutritional value is in romaine is just boiled right out of the poor leafy vegetable.  and to add insult to injury, it tastes even more like nothing after it is boiled than when served raw.

go to any chinese restaurant and you will see plates and plates full of wet soggy lettuce pass by.  i would frantically wave my hand no to the waitress bringing a serving of it my way.  in fact, this guy in front of me today went BACK for his soggy lettuce as they forgot to give him his plate which is a treat only if you eat in.

so, as i have been enjoying my MSG fueled lunch, i realised i was actually looking for some good ole soggy romaine in my noodle soup...HUH?  what has happened to me?  i chalk it up to the fact that the soup base is aggressively spicy and i added even more heat with red chili peppers - so that and the little shrimp and a bit off udon noodle, the boiled romaine aint that bad.

go figure.

Haggis' Birthday

the birthday celebration was great!  we went out to dinner at a new "new york" style steakhouse called the blue butcher.  its received a lot of hype and i have to say, it is worth it (unlike brickhouse - which was terrible from the service to the food!).  although i dont eat land grazing animals, the seafood was still amazing - a true mark of a good steakhouse.

there were about 14 friends for a lovely time...and then it got rowdy.  about half of us walked over to a bar in soho for some arm wrestling and wild dancing - photographic proof below.   needless to say, the next day was fairly unproductive but it was definitely worth it.  we havent had a big night out in a while.

 

Consumed...Updated

a very quiet mention in the press has announced that a top party officials wife has been charged with intentional murder of neil heywood.

i wrote about this here as it was big news in the region.  however, i find it really interesting that the next step has been so quiet.

as the FT article here states:

 

Chinese censors kept tight control over news of Ms Gu’s indictment on Thursday night. Users of Sina Weibo, the country’s leading Twitter equivalent, were blocked from commenting on the development except in response to a story in the People’s Daily, the party’s flagship newspaper.

 in fact, the FT has a lot of good coverage including an article on who's who in the chinese power families as well as one on mao's only living grandson.  in the later article, i like how the "princelings" blame the bad system and that they are forced to accept good jobs, bank loans, power, etc. not them and their connections.  there is frequently deep sentiment expressed by people here who will not accept any onus at all.  it is almost admirable.

bringing it closer to home, one chinese partner explained like this, "they just dont have any empathy".  um, ok.

Over It

so ive returned from holiday and need to get back into my exercise regime.  i have increased my outrigger sessions to include two mornings before work as my weekend attendance was sporadic due to it being saturday morning at 7am.....

anyway, on the way back to central this morning, i was standing in the bus and the next stop all these oldies got on.  one lady got up and gave one of them her seat.  the young girl, say 25 years old, seated next to the good samaritan looked at the rest of the standing geriatrics and gently closed her eyes.  i thought, TYPICAL!

i went to pick up lunch today when people normally come back into the office and this was the scene:

 i love the sign telling you which way to walk.  once again - TYPICAL.

ive told the haggis i am more than happy to get out of here as soon as possible.

Ldn

returned from london yesterday after two weeks.  admittedly, as much as i love to travel, i am not the best person when dealing with jet lag so post i will as it be 430am and i am awake.  the haggis sleeps gently whispering away the time difference and i tossed and turned since 330.

anyway, the trip was good.  it was a difficult two weeks as we went back for the haggis' dad's one year memorial.  i worked for a handful of days in the london office (which is beyond fab), we had his nephew's christening as well and a handful of wonderfully english moments including tea at fortnum & mason and a visit to leeds castle - so not all gloomy!

however, the weather was atrocious with cold rain almost the entire time but here are a few cute pictures from sunnier moments.

Acupuncture

so i have had knee problems for a long time. my friend injured her shoulder and did physio for a long time without any improvement. she tried acupuncture and said it worked.  i thought i would give it a try and found a deal in twango for 3 visits for only 300 dollars.  i popped in and have found it helps.  i dont have a fear of needles and used to give blood in the city regularly.

i went last night and actually cried out a couple of times.  she asked me if i was eating a lot of sticky rice.  i dont eat sticky rice.  i do with a bit of sushi but thats all.  she said some patients say sticky rice affects their joints.  i asked her if it was the gluten because i had a lot of pasta lately (leading up the dragon boat festival race) and she didnt seem to understand.

she also told me not to eat so much spicy food as it interferes with my chi.  so no carbs and no spice - whats a girl to do??

Sums.Up.Hong.Kong.