Apr 30:
Lamma
People Make Memories
Ms. Maureen Frank
has been visiting Lamma for an entire week recently. We've heard from her in
the past, mainly as
"Pinky Chan's #2 Fan". We've just seen her at the Lamma Ladies
training and the wedding reception for Jim & Tania. So let's hear from her
in her own words, about what made her stay most memorable:
Lamma People!!
|
Maureen Frank - Lamma first-time
visitor
(Text
and all pictures by Maureen. Click to enlarge pictures): |
|
Lamma People Make Memories
One Woman's Week
Remembered
Since I grew up in a central Canadian tourist
town, I know full well how a friendly atmosphere keeps people
returning for their vacations.
Like Lamma, we have great fishing, beautiful
sunsets, wildlife, pubs and warm sunny weather too. But when the
local people make you feel so welcome that you hate to leave...
it creates a warm feeling unmatched by any stuffy resort or
amusement park. Bravo to Lammaites!! What I felt there was
genuine and sincere.
One thing that stood out to me while being a
stranger in Yung Shue Wan, was how many local people remembered
my name once we had met. Such a welcome feeling is not often
part of a traveler's world in such a short time. Lamma knows how
to treat its visitors!!
From the magical, aesthetic talents of "Icy" ,
the voluminous smiles of "Taiwan", the early morning coffee
ritual with "Emma", the wanderings and philosophical views of
"Peter Ip", the beating of the Lamma Ladies Dragon boat drums,
"Alice" the tour guide extraordinaire, the mouth-watering
cuisine at the Deli Lamma and Water Front, and the generosities
of Tom, Brian and Bob... my Lamma experience was incredibly
awesome !!
The Talented Kitchen staff at the Deli Lamma
speaks for itself. These ladies worked very hard and very late
to please our group.
My wonderful friend Peter Ip who took
time several days to tell me about many things: the temples of
Lamma & prayer rituals, a recipe for a pork soup that I could
make with a package of dried ingredients purchased on Main
Street Yung Shue Wan, the philosophical side of "experiencing
many trees in a forest", posing with me holding the "Advertiser
Newspaper" from Cranbrook Canada, so we could enter a "paper
goes everywhere" contest. Thank you so much for your time,
Peter!!
Taiwan, a spectacular lady whose smile
lights up the room, shown with friend Tania and her handsome
sweetheart. I hope they come to visit me in Canada.
Then there's Alice; bubbly, happy,
beautiful and very willing to walk with me all over Lamma Island
one day to show me many more incredible sights, like the
pavilions and the village of Shek Kue Wan. She & Tania
also took me all the way to Lantau Island to see the Giant
Buddha. I hope to be as good of a tour guide when she comes to
British Columbia in Canada.
Derek, the most helpful and attentive
employee of a shop in Stanley market, Hong Kong Island. He was
the nicest person I met in such a hectic, crowded place. Any
shop owner would love to pay him double what he is currently
making to have his people skills working for them.
Finally, this unique statue, which I found
propped up in a local person's garden as I was on my way to the
beach. Someone is very creative - I love it!!
I wish I had a good picture of Tom, Brian and
Bob, but no, sorry. They really made a huge difference
providing our group with a wonderful boat tour in and around
Victoria Harbour after Jim & Tania's wedding. I'm sure that most
tourists wouldn't have this opportunity.
I also wish I had taken a picture of Emma
from the bakery beside the Bali Hotel. She was a ray of sunshine
every morning!
I only hope that some of these people might
consider allowing us to show them some Canadian hospitality in
return.
I'm certain I will be bringing my family to
Lamma Island one day soon, so they can see for themselves.
|
Talented Kitchen Staff at Deli Lamma
Peter Ip & I with Canadian newspaper
Taiwan and her sweety
Alice introduces me to Dohfu
Alice & her beautiful friends
Tania & Taiwan
|
Apr 29:
'Pushing
the Boundaries of Promptitude'
Open letter to Daniel (Mo Man Tai) MomentEye:
Dear Daniel,
Many thanks for a new issue of your wonderful HK Copy News. The Lamma-zine
has been happily promoting and linking the past 20 weekly issues. But
recently you've been pushing the boundaries of promptitude - as you say so
yourself at the end of the latest HK Copy News below - issuing your unique
news & views on more like a monthly than a weekly schedule. Please let us
and all your vast multitudes of fans know what's happening.
We frankly worry about the future of your feature. Since you've become
famous HK-wide with that big SCMP story about you some weeks ago, even more
people have been awaiting your weekly dose of satirical looks at HK events
which are so often virtually crying out to be satirised. Have you gotten so
busy with work flooding in from HK Copy News fans now that there's no time
left for creating and producing HK Copy News? Or have you been offered a
million-dollar-job as a high-flying multimedia producer/animation mogul and
will be moving to DbAY soon? ;-)
This month's HK Copy News, featuring patients, wills, litigants and even
Lamma's very own famous couple of pet pot-bellied piggies, Sumo & Peggy,
whose survival is in imminent severe danger right now:
Apr 28:
French
Crêpes and a French Bagpiper
Emmanuelle, Banyan Bay Café's Cath, Laurent the Crêpe Chef, Hervé,
plus Lights-Out Alistair sneaking into the shot
Many musicians make Lamma their home, but did you know that we even have a
bagpipe player living here? Introducing Frenchman Hervé, part of the
fast-growing local population of French, who are most welcome on Lamma to
counter-balance all those hordes of Brits swarming all over the village,
especially the bars.
They're also introducing some famous French culinary traditions to Lamma,
also most welcome in a place where you can get "Full English Breakfast" in
almost every Western restaurant. Fine French Crêpes are finally making an
appearance on Lamma, thanks to Laurent from Burgundy province and his
friend. About once a month in Banyan Bay Café, they're hosting a Crêpe Night
which has been running for several months already. Crêpes (French spelling
with an ê) are these very thin pancakes, made very quickly on a large
hotplate and filled with almost anything savoury or sweet.
What better place for a Frenchman from Brittany province playing Scottish
bagpipes than a Café? In this case, the Banyan Bay Café which is managed so
well by charming, ever-popular Cath, a very experienced "veteran" and
"survivor" of the sometimes volatile local dining/drinking scene.
Below you can see part of the poster on the Democracy Wall that alerted
Lammaites to this unusual event. Lamma-Por and I had to check it out
yesterday - Fri, Apr 27 - and I took a few snapshots. By the way, Banyan Bay
Café has never been a Lamma-zine advertiser, so this story is NOT an
advertorial:
Click for closeups of the crepes.
Click above for the full 10-crepes menu
The unusual, dark colour of the savoury crêpes comes from the buckwheat
flour used, a strong, unfamiliar taste that might take some people a bit of
getting used to. I loved my tangy "Landaise" crêpe with smoked duck breast
and mushroom sauce. But the buckwheat might be a bit overpowering for the
more delicate taste of the salmon, leeks and lemon cream in Lamma-Por's
crêpe. 5 sweet crêpes with regular flour make great choices for second
course and a crispy dessert. Mais, zut alors! Aujourd'hui il n'y a pas de la
Crêpe Suzette! No Crêpe Suzette today, the most famous of all crêpes. Maybe
next time?
Hervé is playing his bagpipes very well and very melodiously, as far as I
can tell. A friendly and amicable guy, Hervé has been on Lamma for over 5
years already. It's about time for him to join one of the many Lamma Bands!
He's been playing in orchestras with up to 25 bagpipes and 25 other
instruments, like drums. Could you imagine the number of noise complaints if
this orchestra would ever be performing on Lamma beyond 11pm? Yung Shue
Wankers & Friends, eat your heart out!
Next Crepe Night provisionally announced for May 26.
Click photos to enlarge:
Yes, bagpipe playing requires good lungs and is really hard work!
 
 
People coming in from town for Crêpe Night - Applause for Hervé
Apr 27:
The
Lamma Gazette - Issue No. 1, 1988
See what a great find I've recently been given by ex-Lammaite
Lisa Jones, the original of the very first issue of "The Lamma Gazette", one
of the local newsletter that were published on Lamma in the late 80s and
90s. Lisa kept if for almost 20 years, just to leave it behind on the Lamma
ferry when visiting recently for the day. She writes, "I had to run back
from Cath's bar to retrieve it!"
Here it is, all 4 A3-size pages scanned and re-published for your reading
pleasure. It should be especially fun if you've lived on Lamma in 1988 and
you might recognise many of the writers and contributors. For all of us
other Lammaites and visitors, it's a really fascinating glimpse into the
past of Lamma.
The original of this newsletter (1 A2-size sheet folded twice, page 1 and 4
in colour) is available now to buy, a real collector's item, the only one
left in existence, as far as I know!
I'm auctioning it off for the Child Welfare Scheme charity.
Email me with a bid! Starting bid $500.
Auction closes on Monday, May 7, midnight, HK time.
Picture caption: The clash between traditional rural values and urban
industrial development often causes great sociological problems.
So far, Lamma Island has been able to avoid them. Yet what will the future
bring?
Will Lamma become another overcrowded city of commuters or will pastorality
remain? Picture and caption by Jimmy Wing
This gazette makes for absolutely fascinating reading for Lammaites,
especially for Lamma Newbies (less than 5 years on the island) and Lamma
Juniors (5+ years), but also for regular Lammaites (5-20 years) and Senior
Lammaites (20+ years):
-
Contributors: Jimmy Wing, John Grandy, Publisher
& Editor Derek W. Blair, James Bayley, Social Editor Maggie Beale,
Cynthia Hydes, and a "Strolling the hills" story by recently deceased
Susan Sheers.
-
Ferry schedule from YSW to Central: 6:25, 7:45, 9:30,
11:30am, that's all in the morning! Last ferry to Lamma: 11:20pm, no Pak
Kok ferries at all.
-
A paid HK Electric ad, a tradition fortunately remaining
alive today on this website. Quite a few other ads from companies out of
business by now.
-
Maps: Restaurants & bars that have closed down
since then: Corner Bar, Lamma Kitchen, Capital Rest., Bak Hoi Doh, Sweet
Sweet Bakery Cake Shop. But most of them are still around, plus so many
new, additional ones.
-
Only 2 power station chimneys and no huge Extension.
-
The football pitch was on the water front and there was
only sandy beach beyond it.
-
The Lamma Gazette was sold for HK$10, almost unthinkable
today where people expect most newspapers and magazines to be free.
   
Click to read the pages above.
Apr 26:
Orange Paisley Bell Bottoms With Sequin Trim?
The spring season's social calendar is heating up and the numerous Lamma
Bands are coming out of hibernation, one by one. There are all kinds of
concerts and parties happening in the next few days and weeks, not just on
Lamma, but also all over Hong Kong with events organised by Lammaites or
featuring Lammaites, spreading cheer and goodwill (and our famous talent to
party hardy) far beyond our little island.
So what's going on? Check out my regularly updated
Events Calendar, listing
all Lamma events I know about or I'm made aware of - send me posters! - plus any events off-Lamma organised by
Lammaites. The best event promo blurb came from the Funkraiser ladies, the
same enthusiastic group of marketing talents who organise the ever-growing Lamma Fun Day for
charity every year:
|
"Fun
Day Sonya" of
Publissity - "Publicity is Bliss" might be their motto?
"Fun Day
Sonya" has been declared a
Living Lamma Legend by the SCMP for co-leading the
great
Lamma Fun Day
organisation committee to new heights of fundraising success: |
|
It's that time
again... time to GET FUNK'D. Afro wig? Check. Over-size shades?
Check. Orange paisley bell bottoms with
sequin trim? Er, if you insist. If there was an occasion
to dress like an over-keen extra from Shaft, it's definitely here.
And everyone will forgive you and admire you -
because it's all for a great cause. Come and go clubbing for
charity!
Yes, the 7th Annual
FUNKRAISER is upon us, in support of
The
Child Welfare Scheme (CWS), to raise much-needed funds for
its youth projects in Nepal.
Headlining Funkraiser for
the 4th year in a row are those funkmeisters extra- ordinaires,
NUDE.
Last seen fighting off some slightly intoxicated rugby supporters at
the Sevens Bollinger tent, and battling for final position at the
World Battle of the Bands, as well as Rockit headliners, NUDE will
be on set and on form on May 4, bringing their own unique blend of
funk, ska and afro-beat to the party.
Also providing entertainment for the night will be DJs
Simon Pang and Samuel Faction along with further performances
supplied by the Cavern ensuring a funk night to remember.
Doors will open at 8pm with
Happy Hour prices until 11.30pm. Tickets are $180 at the door which
includes one free drink with ticket proceeds going towards Child
Welfare Scheme Nepal.
Last year we raised
HK$44,000 and this year we are hoping to top that our 2007 goal is
HK$50,000. So get the funk out and support us! |
 Let's promote a few more events in
the next days:
Tonight, Thu: Quiz Night
@ The Island
Bar.
Tomorrow, Fri: Crepe
Night @ Banyan Bay Cafe,
Transnoodle playing @ The Fringe Club.
Sun, April 29: Lamma Ladies
Dragonboat race @ Cheung Chau Island; Kinesiology demo @ Sha
Po.
Wed, May 9:
LAMMA DAY: Tin Hau Festival, Dragon- boat
& Sampan races, Cantonese opera (May 8-12).
Apr 25:
Lamma.com.hk Vandalised by Email Bomb!!
Yesterday, while the SCATTERED SQUALLY THUNDERSTORMS were throwing Lamma
Island into wet turmoil, a most sinister plot was brewing and a
nefarious scheme hatched. The vile vermin and malodorous minions of
cyberspace assembled and prepared for a devastating attack on Lamma's website!
While the red rainstorm warning was up yesterday, a record 46 messages were
posted in the Lamma forums in a single day, oblivious to the devastating
doom and gloom of the big boom of an email bomb going off!
Yes, BIG TROUBLE has befallen this website yesterday!
ALL emails have been irretrievably lost at
info@lamma.com.hk yesterday; all
email folders like inbox, sent mails, even the draft emails have been
terminated and eradicated in one fell swoop! And it was all caused by one
single person, a foul fiend of the highest magnitude, you might suspect!
Unbelievably, it was a Lammaite causing all this woe for our community
website! I was able to quickly identify the hacker-cracker-attacker! As much
fun as a public shaming might be - or, even better, a public tarring and
feathering - and however much I'm tempted to reveal his/her identity,
s/he'll get the benefit of the doubt this time. I've been led to believe and
finally convinced that the attack was not vicious and malignant, but just
bad luck.
This is kind of a pity as I was already making up sensational headlines
like these:
Community Website Defaced!
A Dark Day: Death of all Emails on Lamma.com.hk!
All Your Emails to Lamma.com.hk Got Terminated!
Lamma’s Hacker Extraordinaire Revealed!
Demise of Lamma.com.hk Narrowly Averted!
Perp Being Voted off the Island!
Harsh Punishment Demanded for Email Vandal!
et cetera, et cetera.
Hey, I’m getting the hang of this scandal rag business! If I could write
Chinese, I might freelance for Apple Daily!
Well, it wasn’t actually the fault of the person, a valued and frequent
Lamma-zine contributor who was just submitting some fine content to this
Lamma-zine. No malice was intended. It was more kind of an accident
revealing by sheer coincidence a massive security hole in the Lamma.com.hk's
hosting company's email handling software, plus their absolutely ruthless
policy of irretrievably and immediately deleting all emails that don’t fit
into your in-mailbox limit. Anybody could launch the same attack, with the
same results. "Thanks" to this incident, I know now how to wipe out all
stored emails of all publicly known email addresses on all their hosted
websites which must be thousands and thousands of email accounts.
Fortunately for them, I’ve never been a hacker in my 25+ years of computer
experience, so I won’t take any advantage of this loophole, not revealing
this deceptively simple method to anybody…
Basically, it was as simple as sending a simple, regular text email to
info@Lamma.com.hk. As they were
just close to a very specific size, for several complex technical reasons
and sheer coincidences, this caused the mail server to wipe out ALL the old
emails in the info account. If you overflow your mailbox with this hosting
co., an automatic program will delete some of your overflow messages, in
this most extreme case everything, except the single offending message.
The hosting co. also does NOT archive anything they delete – intentionally
and as matter of policy - so all the messages were gone forever, no
retrieval possible. The first time this has ever happened in the almost five
years history of Lamma.com.hk. Congratulations to the perpetrator for
finding this loophole in the server’s email software!
What upset me a bit was how easy it was to wipe out all emails forever. No
virus, worm, Trojan, malware, malicious code or nasty computer bug was
needed, just a simple text email! After all these decades of fighting
hackers, spammers, thieves, fraudsters and other cyber attacks, there remain
still massive security/safety holes, like this one. Their technical support
has mentioned that their next software upgrade will get this glaringly
obvious data safety hole fixed very soon.
Fortunately, there's a happy ending to this sordid tale of loss and
desperation! I’m keeping multiple backups of everything important and have
been forwarding all incoming emails from
info@lamma.com.hk automatically
to another server and my hard disk for years. The hard disk is also backed
up weekly by a portable hard disk and CD-ROMs. No harm at all was done,
nothing was lost, just a minor inconvenience and a valuable lesson learnt.
Plus another little inspiration for this unscheduled Lamma-zine story...
You're most welcome to continue sending emails to
info@Lamma.com.hk, the main email
of this site! But for large attachments like full-size digital photos or
videos, please use my LammaGung@gmail
account.
Yes, it's not easy being a webmaster these days, so much work, effort and
time goes into all this behind-the-scenes technical and admin stuff, all
invisible to the website visitors, Lamma-zine readers and forum members. It
takes a lot of time to prevent hacker attacks, fight off link and email spam
and install frequent software upgrades and bug fixes; often more time than
all the public stuff, like writing these stories, soliciting stories/photos,
editing/formatting other people's submissions and
editing/improving/archiving my own and submitted photos.
Well, who's complaining? Not me! If I didn't like it so much I wouldn't do
it, it's as simple as that. The little and irregular advertising revenue is
definitely far from enough motivation to spend up to ten hours a day on my
new computer... There are many easier ways of making a much better living
than my currently very modest one. But those "easier ways" would hardly be
as much fun, enjoyable and suitable for a (theoretically) semi-retired
dotcom dropout like me. Wow, way too much honesty today, I'll have to reduce
my caffeine intake...
This little episode (webisode?) has truly reaffirmed my belief in strict multiple backups of everything important. That's why nothing was
lost at all in the end and my work is always safe and protected, hopefully.
What would happen if all YOUR emails were suddenly wiped out irretrievably
from your email host? It happens every day to a lot of people. Maybe you
should think about it and take action to safeguard your data and yourself.
Apr 24:
SCATTERED SQUALLY THUNDERSTORMS
 
Yung Shue Wan, today, 11am
(all photos in this story by L-G, except the three photos below, sent to me
by Dave Kerr, Zep and Stine Baska. These clouds fascinated many Lamma
photographers.)
HK Observatory (they like uppercase
letters as it makes their notices look so much MORE IMPORTANT:
"RED RAINSTORM WARNING SIGNAL SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT ISSUED BY THE HONG KONG
OBSERVATORY AT 10:40 A.M.
"THE RAINSTORM WARNING SIGNAL IS NOW RED. THIS MEANS THAT HEAVY RAIN HAS
FALLEN OR IS EXPECTED TO FALL GENERALLY OVER HONG KONG, EXCEEDING 50
MILLIMETRES IN AN HOUR, AND IS LIKELY TO CONTINUE.
 "FURTHER HEAVY RAIN COULD CAUSE, IF NOT ALREADY CAUSED, SERIOUS ROAD
FLOODING AND TRAFFIC CONGESTION AND COULD DISRUPT NORMAL SCHOOL HOURS.
"THE THUNDERSTORM WARNING ISSUED AT 9:15 A.M. ON 24 APR 2007 HAS BEEN
EXTENDED UNTIL 2:00 P.M. TODAY. SCATTERED SQUALLY THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED
TO OCCUR OVER HONG KONG."
The
first red rainstorm warning of 2007. Spring weather and the rainy season
have truly arrived in style. The "SCATTERED SQUALLY THUNDERSTORMS" have
turned into torrential floods and loudly crackling radio reception, caused
by the lightning flashes.
Here are two old photo galleries of Lamma in the rain. I like the rain
personally and especially the aftermath when the air turns so clear, clean,
fresh and full of wet scents and mysterious, botanical perfumes...
Click below for photo galleries:
High Street High Fashion for a Rainy Day, Lamma style. Click for photo
gallery:
P.S. By the way, I've just updated and extended my two recent
photo galleries below. Have a look,
especially as Hog Heaven will have to close down soon and the Cantonese
Opera performances will be on from May 8-12:
Apr 23:
Beer & Babble & Spectacular Seaview
Click any photo below for a fully annotated photo gallery:
|
Lamma-Gung (with some significant input from Lamma-Por,
all photos by L-G. B&B has finally also become a Lamma-zine advertiser,
so this story is kind of an advertorial) |
|
 Coming
from the ferry in Yung Shue Wan, the very first non-Chinese
restaurant you're going to encounter on Main Street is B&B, short
for Beer & Babble. You'll be warmly welcomed by Andy the Manager,
usually greeting potential guests just outside the restaurant. B&B
is one of our firm favourites, Lamma-Por and I patronize it at least
once a week on average, often choosing their tasty daily specials.
This seems to be one of the most underrated places in Yung Shue Wan,
almost an insider tip. With its consistently high quality of
food, friendly, professional service and overall pleasant, relaxed
atmosphere it deserves to be much more famous. B&B features several distinct areas
(see photos below) with different design, seating and decorations
separate this restaurant into various attractive parts, be it the
bar area, family dining or the green patio with the stunning sea and
sunset view.
The Western-style dining menu features a wide selection of starters,
most including salad, soup and desserts. A fine and wide selection
of soft drinks, beers and house wines are on offer, some by the
glass. They do some really nice seafood, juicy steaks, pasta dishes.
We love and recommend the braised lamb shanks and grilled tuna
steaks. Mixed grilled vegetables come with many dishes and the
perfectly-seasoned daily soups and crème brûlée desserts (a custard with a
crust of caramelized sugar) are very popular. Mixed salad and
dessert are included only on weekdays.
People-watching from the front tables is one of our favourite
aspects of dining in B&B. You can clearly oversee the major corner
of Main Street between the Lamma Kiosk, Spicy Island and B&B. Within
minutes, so many interesting people will be walking by, coming off the
ferry in the evening. They can't see you as you're sitting inside,
so it makes for great, undisturbed people-watching while you're
enjoying a fabulous multi-course set dinner and a glass of wine!
Village living in truly fine style.
 The bill, without the usual 10%
markup, is actually considerably lower than in many other competing
restaurants on Main Street: usually just between $50-100 for a set meal,
including a drink. A really good deal!
But check B&B out yourself one of these days and make up your own
mind. You might be in for a very pleasant surprise and might soon
become a regular like us! See you there? |
Apr 22:
Boost Your Appreciation of Electricity
Smart Power ambassador, Mr. Leo Ku, pictures with students during his visit
to Lamma Winds. He is accompanied by Hongkong Electric's Director and
General Manager (Corporate Development), Mr. Wan Chi-tin, and General
Manager (Generation), Mr. Francis Cheng.
Today on another warm and humid Sunday, dear Lamma children, let's talk
about appreciation of electricity, while we huddle around the TV and our
home theatre systems, the aircon blasting at full power. Let's look at the
example of all those children above and commiserate with them. They only
have one single but quite big fan running behind them to cool them down!
These poor kids also seem to be outdoors somewhere in the
horrible wilderness up on a
Lamma hillside, all hot and sweaty! It's probably full of pesky mosquitoes,
flu-threat birds and other very bothersome wildlife! Aren't you lucky to be
probably inside right now instead and read this Lamma-zine story, using
loads of electricity for your computer, broadband, video games and aircon,
feeling cozy and comfortable?! Conserving energy? Why???
There seem to be a few grown-ups in the group above as well, probably HK
Electric executives. They're broadly smiling as well, and with good reason
after recently announcing their
latest annual results full of amazing group earnings figures
(HK$6.842 billions for 2006).
But I digress, back to our topic of today: Boosting Your Appreciation of
Electricity! Boost your appreciation, not your aircon! Let's just quote from
HK Electric's recent press release (Visit
to power station boosts students' appreciation of electricity [14 April
2007]). They're the true experts in generating and appreciating
electricity (especially appreciating its amazing money-generating capacity.
Sorry, I digressed again.) A small fraction of one thousandth of one percent
of this amount helps to support this website, by the way.
 "Electricity
is vital to everyday life. But all too often people take it for granted,
particularly in Hong Kong where disruption to power supply almost never
occurs.
"Some 500 young schoolchildren had
the opportunity to appreciate the importance of electricity at firsthand
today when they visited the company's power plant on Lamma Island and the
wind power station at Tai Ling.
A model of Lamma Power Station has drawn the attention of many students.
"The children, from 15 primary
schools, saw at close range the stations’ state-of-the-art facilities, the
awesome machines there and the hardworking people who operate them to bring
power to consumers on Hong Kong and Lamma Islands. They also learnt that
Hongkong Electric's reliability rate of supply stands at an extraordinary
99.999 per cent.
"The company's Director and General
Manager (Corporate Development), Mr. Wan Chi-tin, who was on hand to welcome
the young visitors, said he hoped the visit would help them better
appreciate the hard work and huge investment involved in providing a
reliable supply of electricity to everyone.
"Mr. Wan pointed out that many of the
things people enjoyed or were vital to their existence would not be possible
without electricity. He urged the young people to use electricity wisely and
properly and to treat it as a precious commodity...
Students take part in a vote for the things they would like best to do when
power is available.
"Singer and teenage idol Leo Ku said
that as a student he enjoyed singing and surfing on the Net – things he
would not have been able to do if there was no electricity. He joined Mr.
Wan in urging young people not to waste electricity and to practise the
smart use of power.
"Open Days at Lamma Power Station and
Lamma Winds are held annually. Another 500 secondary school students are
scheduled to visit on 21 April, bringing to 1,000 the total number of
students to visit the facilities this year."
A game booth on wind energy is a major attraction of the day.
Yes, switch off the aircon right now, dear children, and go play outside!
Apr 21:
'Leafy
Lamma Island's Seafood Restaurants Regularly Attract Celebrities'
A story in our forums has made it all the way into a printed newspaper, the
Taipei Times. Quoting several of the posts in our
"Ayumi Hamasaki on Lamma" forum, they made a sensational story out
of the comments. I published the story from an Alert Reader who had been
dining close to Ayu's table on Easter Sunday night at the Rainbow Seafood
Restaurant in Sok Kwu Wan, a celebrity magnet of sorts (see photos on
the fancy Rainbow
Rest. website). See story:
|
Taipei Times - Thu, Apr 19, 2007, Page
17: |
Ayumi Hamasaki makes scene with bodyguards in restaurant
濱崎步與保鑣引人側目
 |
|
Japanese pop singer
Ayumi Hamasaki poses in Taipei while kicking off
her Asian tour, Mar. 22, 2007.
今年三月二十二日，正在亞洲巡迴演唱的日本流行歌手濱崎步於台北留影。PHOTO:
AP |
Japanese pop queen Ayumi Hamasaki upset
locals in a Hong Kong fishing village when she made a
surprise visit for a seafood meal with 22 aggressive
bodyguards and flunkies, witnesses said.
Hamasaki, known as "Ayu" to her fans and the
biggest-selling solo pop star in Japan, was cocooned by her
entourage who prevented locals from getting near her table
or fans from taking photographs.
She popped over to Sok Kwu Wan village on
Lamma Island, about 3km from downtown Hong Kong after she
had completed a series of sold-out concerts at the city's
Coliseum arena.
Contributors to local Website forums
complained that the diminutive singer, whose unusually large
round eyes and fair hair are believed to have sparked a fad
for eye-lid cosmetic surgery among Japanese girls, had upset
locals.
"The most famous J-pop star of all time was
having a post-concert bite accompanied by no less than 12
bodyguards and another 10 strong entourage," wrote one
anonymous subscriber to Lamma.com.hk, the blog for
island residents.
"(I) didn't have a phone to photo with and
the table next to me was prevented from taking pictures
anyway," the writer added.
A spokesman for the Rainbow Restaurant,
where Hamasaki ate, confirmed the singer had dined at the
eatery but wouldn't comment on her entourage's behavior.
"She had lots of bodyguards with her," he
said. "She came over on her own chartered boat."
According to her Website, Hamasaki has had
27 number one hits in Japan, more than any other solo
artist.
Leafy Lamma Island's seafood restaurants
regularly attract celebrities including Jackie Chan and Chow
Yun-fat. (AFP)
日本流行天后濱崎步惹火了香港某魚村的居民，目擊的民眾表示，她突然帶著二十二個粗魯的保鑣和隨行人員來訪，說要一啖海鮮。
歌迷稱「Ayu」的濱崎步是日本最暢銷的流行歌手，當時她被隨護團團包圍，以防當地居民接近她的餐桌，或歌迷照相。
她結束在紅磡體育館一連串爆滿的演唱會後，突然造訪離香港市中心三公里遠的南丫島索罟灣村。
當地網站論壇的網友抱怨這名身型嬌小的歌手惹惱了當地人。據說濱崎步異常的大圓眼和金髮在日本年輕女孩中掀起了一陣割雙眼皮的狂熱。
南丫島居民的部落格Lamma.com.hk有匿名網友寫道︰「史上最受歡迎的日本流行之星在演唱會後小吃一頓，隨行十二多名保鑣，和十名高大的隨從。」
這名作者補充︰「(我)沒有可以拍照的手機，反正我旁邊的桌子也不能拍照。」
濱崎步用餐的彩虹餐廳發言人證實，濱崎步的確在店內用餐，但是不願意對隨行人員的行為做任何評論。
「她有很多保鏢跟著她，」他說︰「她自己包船過來的。」
根據濱崎步的個人網站，她在日本有二十七首冠軍單曲，比其他日本歌手還多。
綠意盎然的南ㄚ島上的海鮮餐廳，常吸引如成龍和周潤發等名流前往。
（法新社╱翻譯︰鄭湘儀
|
Apr 20:
What Is Kinesiology?
From left to right > Hermas, Lilian, Eliane, Riyah, Brett, Vivienne &
Yolanda,
shot by L-G during a Kinesiology Class in Sha Po Old Village.
|
Brett Scott - Kinesiology Expert, Practitioner
and Teacher:
Kinesiology
Asia website,
email, tel. 6114 8871.
Free
demo and introduction next Sunday, Apr 29, 3pm in Sha Po Old
Village.
(Kinesiology Asia is a Lamma-zine advertiser. All
photos by L-G): |
|
What is Kinesiology
Conventionally, the word kinesiology
(kin-easy-ology) means the study of motion, in particular the study
of how muscles act and coordinate to move the body.
However, in the natural health field
the term kinesiology is seen and used in a different way. Here,
muscles become monitors of stress and imbalance within the body
where the “Muscle Response Technique”, the key technique in
kinesiology is used as an effective and versatile tool for detecting
and correcting various imbalances in the body which may relate to
stress, dehydration, pain, allergies, nutrition, learning
difficulties, injuries, etc.
Kinesiology combines Eastern medicine
philosophies and Western understanding of anatomy and physiology to
promote physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.
Kinesiology can help improve the
effectiveness of the Immune system
The role of the immune system is to
protect the body from foreign micro-organisms such as viruses,
bacteria, fungi and parasites.
It is now commonly accepted by most
scientists that stress reduces the effectiveness of the immune
system because it causes the levels of B-cells and T-cells to drop.
Studies have shown that when an individual faces a stressful
situation, the adrenal glands release Cortisol, a stress hormone,
into the blood which suppresses the Immune system.
What may decrease the effectiveness of
the Immune system?
-
Chemicals: pesticides, herbicides,
pollution
-
Nutritional deficiencies, food
intolerances
-
Substance abuse: tobacco, alcohol,
recreational drugs
-
Hormonal imbalance
-
Stress mental/emotional
-
Chronic infection
-
Medications
Kinesiology can detect what may be
causing a problem in the Immune system and can help increase the
effectiveness of the Immune system.
Allergies
Symptoms of some allergies will often
dissipate when the Immune system is working effectively. Kinesiology
techniques can also detect environmental sensitivities that may be
creating an immune response, for example certain people may become
sensitive to certain chemical products such as soaps, shampoos,
washing powder, air fresheners, deodorants, glues as well as certain
foods, food additives and colourings.
Kinesiology and
Brain Function
Kinesiology can assess and address
blocks that may inhibiting access to integrated brain functions.
These blocks may be environmental sensitivities, allergies,
emotional/mental stress, inappropriate activation of the
fight/flight system, heavy metal toxins and marginal nutritional
deficiencies.
These stresses can cause long term or
contextual loss of brain integration.
Candida (yeast
overgrowth) and heavy metal toxins
can result in long term disruption of flow of information across the
Corpus Callosum (communication between left and right sides of the
brain), whereas an emotional stress
or allergy may cause
loss of brain integration only when in that specific situation or
eating that particular food.
Anxiety
can be activated by inappropriate activation of the fight/flight
survival response, therefore blocking access to the thinking area of
the brain (as thinking is too slow for survival), allowing only
reactions to take place, which are inappropriate for the situation
and happen at a sub-conscious level, therefore no conscious control
of your actions, which then adds to the feelings of anxiety.
Marginal nutritional deficiencies may
not be noticeable, but when we need to think in stressful situations
the brain requires extra energy and nutrition. If there is not
adequate nutrition to function under stress the brain will not be
able to make enough neurotransmitters, resulting in a loss of
integrated brain function.
Addressing these functions can
permanently improve brain function for children and adults alike.
Benefits of
Kinesiology
-
Correction of Specific Learning
Difficulties.
-
Relief from Anxiety & Phobias.
-
Relief from Depression & Emotional
Stress.
-
Identify food & environmental
sensitivities.
-
Improve Immune function and have
relief from Allergies.
-
Relief from Chronic Pain and
Headaches.
-
Increased Energy and Flexibility.
-
Enhanced gross and fine motor
skills.
-
Enhanced balance & co-ordination.
-
Enhanced memory, concentration and
brain function.
Brett Scott - Kinesiology Practitioner
Appointments available at Yung Shue
Wan, Lamma Island, tel. 6114 8871. |
 |
Apr 19:
'Enticing lustful, opiatic-like, sodden dreams on
warm, balmy nights'
|
Gina Miller - Captain of Lamma Dragons
Dragonboating team (2nd from right above).
(This story has been republished (with small
edits) with friendly
permission from the very informative and entertaining
Lamma
Ladies blog.) |
"Enticing
lustful opiatics" and our
"tight, dampened shorts"
It is with
overwhelming shame that we, the Lamma Ladies have recently
learned that our outrageous, immoral behaviour is offending
the sensibilities of the more principled members of Lamma
society.
In a recent
photo essay on
Lamma.com.hk,
Lamma-Gung posted some snaps of the Lamma Ladies getting
ready to begin a training session on Saturday, Apr 14,
4:30-6pm:
Apr 14: Getting
Ready for the 1st Race of the Season
According to
the
"Dragon Boat Noise" forum,
the loud, violent drumming and the "Too much of shouting
shouting," was particularly loathsome to some of the
more morally upstanding denizens of the Lamma community.
In addition
to our "Too much of shouting shouting..." the Lamma
Ladies Harridans have been urged to stop
this disgraceful exercising in public and do what proper
ladies of exemplary dignity have done for centuries:
stay home.
"Maybe
machine for rowing is better," opines one gentleman.
"The
ladies dancing on tables after consuming alcohol, it
is not suitable for these ladies to behave in such a
manner. Too much of excitement. Staying home is better
and having [home rowing] machine will give the
exercise," he concludes.
We are
delighted that exercise remains on the agenda - with all the
jackboot polishing we will likely be doing (as befits
proper, dignified ladies) - we'll need to keep up our
strength.
Our greatest
shame came from the febrile pen of Mr tjungarayi
who wrote:
"Not
only (do the Lamma Ladies harridans
have) loose morals but they look they are all on drugs.
Steroids that is! Just look at the shoulders and
forearms on some of those... er... 'ladies'. Popeye,
eat your heart out!"
[Editor's note: Popeye was a pussy
wuss, as are all men who are perplexed by muscular
women.]
"At
last the voice of the moral stalwart can be heard among those in this forum. Bring back the morals of
Queen
Victoria and the quiet, dignified ladies and gentlemen of
yesteryear.
"Get
rid of the smut and scantily clad women in pink lycra
swim wear. Enough of the grunting echoes in Yung Shue
Wan.
"These
women should be setting an example to the young ladies
on the island not parading about in tight
dampened shorts riding up their suntanned thighs.
What effect will those women have on the young men on
the island, I ask?
"They
will lead young men into the ways of wickedness and
depravation. Enticing lustful, opiatic-like,
sodden dreams on warm balmy nights. Blinding our
young men to upright, meaningful Protestant occupations.
Alas, what has this island come to!"
If we had
known that parading around Lamma, with our "tight dampened
shorts riding up our suntanned thighs" would lead to
"enticing lustful opiatic-like sodden dreams on warm balmy
nights," well - we'd never wear anything else!
We do,
however, apologize for the "sodden dreams."
Perhaps some
"Young Men" on Lamma should consider rubber sheets?
Nocturnal emissions are nothing to be ashamed of, certainly,
but they do make your bedding a little funky after a time.
In
conclusion, the Lamma Ladies (reborn, harridans no
more!) would like to offer our since apologies to those
people we've offended with our crass, unfeminine behaviour.
Should you care to discuss the matter with us at a future
date, please drop by after a training session.
We'll be a
little tired, but we'll still be happy to kick your sorry,
whinging asses!
|
Apr 18:
Cantonese Opera Bamboo Arena
Cliik below for comprehensive photo gallery:
  
  
  
Apr 17:
OzArt - Australian Artists Set to Sample
Lamma Lifestyle
|
Jay Scott Kanes - STBWFLA
(text and photos by Jay Scott Kanes): |
 |
|
Seaside at the Deli Lamma, Elsie soaks up
Yung Shue
Wan's soothing vibes. |
Lamma Island's reputation as an inspirational refuge
for Hong Kong artists has taken a new twist. Two artists from
Australia plan to make Yung Shue Wan their temporary home during
OzArt 2007, an exhibition of Australian art at the Fringe Club
Gallery in Central from April 25 to May 9.
The event's organizer, Elsie Edenhall-Ip, art
director for the Melbourne-based company Hong Kong on Board, has
booked the ultra-innovative David Edward Conolan and free
expressionist Derek Erskine into rooms at a guest house on Main
Street. They'll arrive soon.
"People always think of Hong Kong's shopping and
tall buildings," said Elsie, who visited Yung Shue Wan on April 9.
"I want to show these artists something else.
"Lamma's a lovely place with fresh air and without
claustrophobia. I want my artists to experience the freedom and
pleasant surroundings, the absence of cars, the abundance of
friendly faces and the relaxed situations. They'll probably find new
inspirations, go home and do more paintings.
"These Australian artists are used to open spaces
and lots of freedom. Living in Central might upset them a bit. It's
just too busy."
An abstract expressionist, Conolan, from Broome in
Western Australia, is vibrant and highly motivated. He often uses
pearls and gemstones in unique paintings, including some of dragons
and with Chinese script. "I wanted to do something that has never
been done before," he said.
Erskine relies on simple forms and precise execution
to capture diverse moods, often in charcoal or acrylic abstracts. He
describes his style, with its abstract shapes and big impact, as
"free expressionism". Originally from Scotland, he moved to Tasmania
and later to the Melbourne area. Multi-talented, he also thrives as
an actor, film director and poet.
OzArt 2007 also offers paintings, boomerangs and
delicately crafted didgeridoos (musical instruments) by the
aboriginal artist David Dryden, but a family illness prevents Dryden
from visiting Hong Kong.
P.S. For info on the exhibitions and samples
of the artists' works,
click here. |
Elsie (left) and an assistant show works by artist Derek Erskine in
preparation for OzArt 2007 at the Fringe Club in Central.
Strolling on Lamma's Main Street brings a smile to Aussie art
director Elsie Edenhall-Ip's face.
Elsie plans to introduce "her artists" to the most pleasing place,
Lamma Island. |
Apr 16:
Lomo Lamma
Today, we've got a new way of looking at our island home, via the cheap,
non-digital, all-manual, fixed-focus, no-flash, plastic Lomo cameras, this
one with a fisheye lens. It's actually quite amazing what kind of
interesting photos have been produced by the large community of low-tech
Lomo enthusiasts around the world.
Guess where on Lamma these photos have been taken by long-time forum member
KoalaKoala:
  
 
 
 
Apr 15:
Living with Frogs on Lamma
|
Nancy Karraker Ph.D. - Lamma Newbie,
expert on amphibians and reptiles.
(text
and photos by Nancy Karraker, click to enlarge!
Check
out our
frogs forum): |
|
When I first heard about a job
opportunity at the University of Hong Kong, I wondered how I could
possibly study amphibians and reptiles (my area of research) in a
huge city. Believing, along with my friends and many other
ill-informed Americans, that Hong Kong was only a city, I couldn’t
imagine finding much more than an urban toad or two.
I soon learned that about 40% of Hong
Kong SAR was protected in country parks, that Hong Kong had 24
species of amphibians, and that a small island called Lamma
permitted no cars, buses, or high rises. Given all of this, I
thought Hong Kong might be just fine.
I moved from New York in mid-February
after finishing my Ph.D. in conservation biology and having spent
the past 15 years studying amphibians and reptiles in California,
New York, Ecuador, and Panama. Throughout Hong Kong, including on
Lamma Island, I will be researching the basic ecology of and threats
to some of the amphibians, including the endemic Romer’s tree frog
and the Hong Kong newt. If you see someone with a headlamp in a
drainage ditch at night, it will probably be me.
What better place for an amphibian
lover to live than on Lamma Island? I still marvel at my good
fortune to have landed here. On my fourth night, I was standing
behind my flat in Yung Shue Long New Village and I heard a great
cacophony of frog croaks up the hill. I ran down to the path, up a
set of stairs, and at the top sat my first Asian common toad. He
(like birds, only the males ‘sing’ in most frogs) was puffed up,
seemingly challenging a smaller toad on the step below. I grabbed
the upper toad and looked for the black spectacle around its eye so
be sure who he was. Shortly, I learned that I needn’t burn calories
running up stairs like that because in a few days with a bit of a
rain, I began seeing toads everywhere.
A week later we had our first balmy
night with a light rain, so I set out with my headlamp hoping to see
some new frogs. The path up Yung Shue Long Valley to the Old
Village appears to be an amphibian hotspot. There I saw an ornate
pygmy frog - a tiny gray or brown frog an inch or less in size with
a triangular snout. You only get one second to look or grab before
the miniature creature with great leaping skills is gone.
Further down the path clinging to a
thin stem of grass was a brown tree frog. This frog had large eyes,
a faint X on its back, and toe discs for climbing. These frogs make
a low, deep, rattling sound, at times reminiscent of an old heavy
door hinge. I hopped down into the drainage channel and tossed out
a number of toads that were stranded there. The snake that was
hunting toads in the channel was not pleased with me, I suspect. On
the way back, I saw a confused paddy frog, with a grayish body and
bright green dorsal stripe, trying to mate with a toad in the lily
pond.
Now that we have had a bit of rain, I
see all of these species often, as well as the bellowing Asiatic
painted frog which began calling this past week. There are a number
of good habitats remaining here for frogs, including the cultivated
area in Yung Shue Long and the swampy area near Pak Kok, the intact
forests on the paths to the wind turbine and Tung O beach, the few
perennial streams, and of course all the human-created water bodies
that some species don’t mind using.
All is not perfect for the frogs on
Lamma Island, however. I suspect that scores of frogs die in the
concrete drainage ditches every year, either by not being able to
get out or becoming easy prey for the snakes that hunt there. As
another concrete ditch is currently being built, I wonder if it will
be the last.
I suspect that much of the water in
low-lying areas is polluted with herbicides, fertilizers, and
household chemicals. After a burst of breeding activity by toads in
the lily pond, there seemed to be zillions of tadpoles. Very
quickly the numbers of tadpoles began to dwindle, and I wondered if
snakes were feeding on them. When there were very few left, I
scooped some up to take a look and many were deformed and listless,
resembling others I have seen exposed to chemical contaminants. For
those of us who appreciate the songs of frogs at night, we could try
to use fewer chemicals in our homes and workplaces and certainly
other species, such as birds and fish, would benefit as well.
In general, though, Lamma is a fairly
safe haven for amphibians. I feel fortunate to live in a place
where native wildlife is still quite common. Sometimes I overhear
people on the ferry mention the racket of some bird that wakes them
up every morning or the horrible sound of the frogs that keeps them
from falling asleep at night.
For me, I think I would rather hear
the birds and frogs than buses and car horns. I guess we make that
choice when we live “out in the sticks,” as we say in America. We
risk a nip from a centipede in the night or sometimes having to ford
the Yung Shue Long stream to get to the ferry, but I will take these
‘hazards’ over living in the city any day. |
Asian Common Toad
Toad Tadpole Habitat
Asiatic Painted Frog
Tadpoles, Beware!
Brown Tree Frog
Kamikaze Cave Search
Brown Tree Frog
(Polypedates megacephalus)
PHOTOS BY ANONYMOUS_GUY:
Tree Frog
Frog Ball |
P.S. Plus a little gem of a poem from Lamma's "Anonymous Gal":
Open-air Auditorium
Rainkiss…
Some frogs gargled in the gutter,
some frog gargoyles on the path.
But when the clouds gathered,
the swelled claim! jacked-up blare!
Bellowing cars fractured
in a ditch.
Apr 14:
Getting Ready for the 1st Race of the Season
The Lamma Ladies today during their weekly practice in Yung Shue Wan harbour
 
Your ride is ready, Ladies! - A Lamma Dragon snarling at the competition
  
Pre-training conference - Wow, some of these Ladies look really tough! -
Lamma visitor Maureen is meeting her first dragon
 
The men's team is returning the Dragonboat - Sorting the Ladies into two
boats
 
Getting into the boat, the hardest part? - Photo opportunity
 
Yes, these Ladies know how to have fun! - Taking off for an afternoon of
hard work
First race of the season next Sunday, April
22, 200 metres, in Shatin!
In the meantime, learn more about their
"Perfect Ass Awards": read their blog!
Apr 13:
Congratulations to Jim & Tania!
Wedding reception for Tania & Jim (in white) in the Deli Lamma's garden
 Yesterday
night, Apr 12, the Deli Lamma was the location for another great party.
Well-known and popular Lammaite Nepali Tania just got married to Canadian
Jim! They chose this great location for their wedding reception with
friends and family. I stopped by for a chat & pictures, also meeting
first-time Lamma visitor and repeat Lamma-zine contributor Maureen ("Pinky
Chan's 2nd-Biggest Fan", see right)
It was this mutual connection to the late Pinky Chan that brought the happy
couple together. Tania the Bride was a really close friend of Pinky, calling
her "Big Sister". Jim the Groom is a great friend of Ian, Pinky's longtime
companion. Jim visited Ian on Lamma in April last year when he and Pinky
introduced him to Tania who was waitressing in the Spicy Island.
 |
|
Pinky Chan and Ian, taken on Chin. New Year Eve,
Jan 28,
2006 in the Beer Garden,
outside The Island Bar |
It was love at first sight, both of them say! Yes, all you cynics out there,
love at first sight can still happen! Instead of just a few days, Jim spent
5 weeks on Lamma...
 Jim's
parents and Ian & Maureen came to Lamma specially for the wedding, all
staying for a few more days. Jim the Groom owns a hunting lodge in Ontario
where tourists can hunt black bears. But Tania has never even experienced
snow before, so it'll be quite a change for her from subtropical Lamma
Island, moving to Canada permanently soon.
Sincere congratulations to the newly-weds
and all the best for their happy future together!
P.S.
The Deli Lamma is a really
fantastic place for wedding receptions or even a formal wedding and any
other party. Fine international dining with a wonderfully romantic seaview
from the renovated garden. They pride themselves on providing only the
freshest food available, making it one of my personal favourites, together
with many other Lammaites and tourists alike. The place was almost full of
happy customers yesterday, a Thursday night!
P.S. II: Prafull "encouraged" me to promote his
restaurant and write the words above. As
the Deli Lamma is a long-term Lamma-zine supporter I won't disappoint him,
especially as I really love his restaurants. Prafull is the tycoon-to-be of
a fledgling restaurant empire, going from 1 to 3 locations already,
including the Deli Lamma take-away across the street and the amazing Deli
Lamma Lan Kwai Fong. Check out their cool-blue
website, to
be expanded very soon by yours truly.
P.S. III, April 17: Finally, the wedding ceremony pictures have
arrived in my in-box, taken by Bob "Wedding Photographer Extraordinaire"
Davis:
(Please don't tell him that I called him that! *Real* photographers like him
don't like it at all to be called "Wedding Photographer", for some
mysterious reasons...)
Apr 12:
Fret-Wanking, Plank-Spanking,
Red-Hot
Blues Pyrotechnics
|
Nick the ReviewMan - Official Court
Music Reviewer of the Lamma-zine:
(all photos by Zonda. Many thanks! Click photos to enlarge.)
Videos by RSR (streaming QuickTime, will start to play
instantly):
Shopping Malls (with back guitar) and Walking With The Devil
-
Footsteps On The Stairs |
|
During the past two decades, many local bands
have taken the opportunity to display their Brobdignaggian
talents in the Lilliputian confines of The Wanch's "stage" area.
Generally, these shows have been mercifully free of the ravages
of Yahoo intelligence, i.e. no heckler-jecklers (at least on the
nights I've attended).
The latest entry on this Rock n' Roll Call of
Fame is
Red Star Rising - a blues-rock power trio that's been
(not so) quietly blowing minds at various gigs and HK Festivals
in the past two years.
Red Star Rising are Steve on lead guitars and
vocals, Alex on bass and Hugh on drums. It's
Saturday the 7th of
April and about 20 people are inside The Wanch for this latest
gig which Lamma archivist John Palmer is filming for posterity.
Steve says he's sent out "about 1,000 invites to the show", but
there's no obvious rush to break down the doors.
The opening tune is the eponymous Red Star
Rising which begins with about four minutes of Stevie Ray
Vaughn/Jimi Hendrix inspired fret-wanking, plank-spanking,
red-hot blues pyrotechnics. Steve admits later that he was
showing off a smidgeon to hook the audience. Hugh and Alex
subtly smooth into the groove as the tune progresses. It reminds
me of Ten Years After playing "I'm Going Home" at Woodstock. The
insistent yet minimal drum and bass interplay forming a
foundation for Steve to go all Alvin Lee.
The next tune is "When Worlds Collide", and a
chance to stay with some science-fiction here. A good blend of
cheery Southern gothrockblues with plenty of face-to-face
interplay between Steve and Alex leads into the third tune
"Finishing Line". It's bits of vintage Juicy Lucy colliding
with Hamburg-era Beatles trying to fuck up "Roll Over
Beethoven". (Well, that's what my notes say and what's in these
drinks anyway?) Lamma support in the shape of Katherine and Zoe
are enjoying it all, while John is firmly ensconced by the door,
filming relentlessly.
The 4th song is "Slow Blues" with its mantra of
"whisky and wine, I'm feeling fine" segueing into the more
cautionary tale of "The Man From Ma On Shan" Both sound like
they should have Tom Waits gargling and spitting out the
lyrics with juicy relish. Or Fee Waybill, the lead singer
of shock-cabaret rockers The Tubes in his alter-ego of Quay
Lewd. The next song is "Footsteps" which is Red Star Rising's
upcoming first single. It's an edgy-80's indie-rocker, part The
Police, part Wire and I can just imagine sampledelic
footprints clattering in and out of the mix.
Personally, I find the band more intriguing when
they go indie-quirky. I love the blues stuff. It's brilliantly
played, but adheres too closely to blueprints of past masters.
Possibly the audience agrees as little outbreaks of happy feet
are apparent when RSR start to rock the Wanchbah.
I've zoned out for a while and when I return,
Steve is playing an old favourite. It's "Last Ferry To Lamma"
and it first surfaced as a spontaneous folk jam on the err, last
ferry to Lamma in 2005. This one is a simple little grower. It's
hidden beauties become more apparent on subsequent airings. The
bar is starting to fill up with punters as Red Star Rising pull
out all the stops with a massive version of "Escalator Girls".
This is a moodydelic monster of a tune, recalling prime lysergic
Fleshtones. Steve is spitting out the politically incorrect
lyrics with real bite. The last notes peak, hang in the air for
a false ending which crashes into the opening chords of
"Shopping Malls".
I've loved this song since I first heard it. It
reminds me of late 80's indie band The Television Personalities
in it's droning buzzsaw elegance. The collective sound of jaws
hitting floors is almost audible as Steve rips into the best
backwards guitar solo since The Stone Roses' first LP. Hugh is a
revelation on the drums. He's gone totally Burundi -
polyrhythms bouncing and intertwining with Alex's seismic bass
playing. The audience is bouncing and singing along in
tuneless abandon. What A Fucking Finale! Except that it
isn't....
Not one to miss a trick and having noticed that
the audience has doubled, Steve wipes the sweat off, wrings out
his t-shirt and leads the band through a 4-song encore. The
lucky crowd get "Footsteps", "When Worlds Collide", "Dollar
Arcade" (which I forgot mention was played earlier) and
"Shopping Malls" (as a special favour to me coz I shouted the
loudest for it!) Basically, these 4 songs comprise an Instant
Guide to the Best of RSR and the applause is unanimous.
I'm chatting with Steve and Maria "from Greece"
who've just arrived in HK from UK en route to Oz and he tells
me: "This is one of the best lead guitars I've heard in a pub
band... EVER!" Bill Ashlong weighs in with: "These guys are
brilliant. A lot of passion and soul. I could listen to
these guys for another hour or more." As for the "1,000
invites", an anonymous reviewer from HK Magazine has made it and
has expressed his joy and gratitude to Steve in person. As for
me, I'm meant to be impartial. Bollocks to that. When a band
puts this much effort into a gig, impartiality is left bleeding
in the dust, trampled underfoot in a stampede of approval and
unhinged adoration (babble, babble...)
See you at the CD launch, guys! |
|
Apr 11:
Wong Yat-Fei Filming "Hong Kong Sister"
An Alert Reader (thanks, Alan!) alerted me to this breaking story today. A
film crew of about 20 people was filming an episode of the Putonghua drama
series "Hong Kong Sister" for CCTV (China Central TV) in Yung Shue
Wan today afternoon, from the ferry pier to the Policebox. It was all about
the two stars walking along Main Street and chatting, no action scenes, like
in some of the many other movies of the male star. Nobody seems to know the
identity of the pretty girl, the "Hong Kong Sister".
 According
to the Lamma-zine's in-house resident expert on Chinese movies, Lamma-Por,
he's
Wong Yat-Fei, a veteran actor of HK movies and TV. You might
remember him from being one of the soccer players in one of the best and
most successful HK movies ever, the amazing Shaolin Soccer by
Stephen Chow Sing-Chi. He was the guy named Iron Head of First Big Brother,
getting bottles broken on his head, enabling him to hit very powerful
headers.
Chow Yat-fei has also been starring in
A Chinese Tall Story and also in
Crime Story with Jackie Chan, almost 10 movies with Stephen Chow
Sing-Chi and literally
dozens of other HK movies, including classics like Kung Fu Mahjong 3
- the Final Duel; Where is Mama's Boy; Love Me, Love My Money; Young
Policemen in Love; and even Sexy and Dangerous. A diverse career, indeed!
He's got a Golden Bauhinia and a HK Film Award for
Best
Supporting Actor to prove it, both for Shaolin Soccer!
If you have a newsy tip, an event, story idea, suggestion,
photo or video for the Lamma-zine,
email me!
For urgent, just-happening stories, call me at 6498 6960 anytime and
I'll come running, if it's worthwhile and if I'm available!
Apr 10:
Lamma Kiosk Reopened
Ah-Hay and Ah-Chi, the big and little bosses of the new Lamma Kiosk
A few months ago, the newspaper stand outside Lung Wah
restaurant has closed down, as the lady running it for over a decade has
retired. People worried about not being able to get their morning papers in
the village anymore, having to visit the Lamma Store at the ferry pier
instead. The newsstand looked sad and deserted (see left).
In the typical Lamma entrepreneurial spirit, a commercial vacuum like that
could not exist for more than a few days! TWO places jumped at
 the
dormant opportunity to make a few but steady, daily extra bucks.
The hardware/flower/toy shop besides Man Kee Rest. jumped in first and
expanded their eclectic mix of goods sold to include a few daily English and
Chinese newspapers:
 Then
the old newsstand reopened under new leadership, initiated by Lung Wah
restaurant boss and Lamma Legend Ah-Hay (a former Kung Fu movie actor). They expanded their range into Filipino newspapers and even English
magazines. Wishes from customers are welcome!
The opening hours have been
extended till 2pm, but the newspapers will still remain available afterwards
from the Lung Wah Restaurant staff. All the best to the Lamma Kiosk,
a most welcome addition to the wide range of local shops!
  
Apr 9 - Easter Monday:
Best of Lamma-Gung's Photos
Lammaites
(Click on photos to
view captioned enlargements):
Since last October I've been shooting all my photos with a
new
Nikon D80 dSLR camera. One of the best investments I've ever made
and it has moved my photography up to the next level, after years of taking
photos almost daily. There
are still a few buttons on the camera whose function I'm not clear about yet,
but I'm
learning, photo shoot by photo shoot, trying out a wide range of
locations and subjects. Many of the not-all-bad shots have made it into this
Lamma-zine. Almost all unaccredited photos on this website are my own. I
spend much more time on taking/editing photos than on writing/editing
stories these days.
I took the Easter holidays for a little review, selecting my
personal choices of best photos taken with the Nikon D80 so far. I've put them up
on the leading
Flickr photo sharing website and added some of them to the
"Lamma"
pool of Flickr photos. Here are a few of my shots, arranged fully
automatically by the Mosaic web program in the fantastic
Flickr Toys.
More Photos by L-G
(Click on
photos to view captioned enlargements):
I'm always looking for more paid
photographic work and have published photos in a wide range of
newspapers, magazines and other websites. This website doesn't pay my
monthly bills, so extra freelance work is always welcome and needed, be it
photo shoots, writing/editing articles or building websites.
Pricing is very flexible and very competitive due to almost
no overheads and my low-cost living on Lamma. Single, quick photo shoots in
HK could go for as little as $500 (same as the standard SCMP picture rate), a 2-day wedding
photo shoot could be as low as $3K, all inclusive. But I'm no good at
shooting babies and pets, leaving that to the professionals. If the photos can be used
for a Lamma-zine story, then they might be all free!
Email me
for a free consultation and a quote.
Apr 8 - Easter Sunday:
Stine Baska - Sea Lives & Still Lives
|
(Editor: Instead of just providing
the usual bio or Artist's Statement, Stine Baska just launched a
brand-new artist website and provided the entire Lamma-zine story
below, incl. introduction and self-promotion. A really professional
and multi-talented artist, making an editor's life easy!
;-)
(Just the photo-montage banner above is
L-G's handiwork.)
Stine Baska: |
Stine
Baska is our artist of the month for April. She is a
portrait photographer (see above top left) and also mother of
Freya (see above top middle) who was the artist of the month in
February. Living here at Lamma creates a perfect backdrop for
creating lovely relaxed portraits of children and families.
Stine is an expert on finding what is so special about your
child and family.
 www.StineBaska.com
To celebrate Stine being
ARTIST OF THE MONTH she is organising a portrait session on
Sunday 15th April. You can come down to Tannery Beach
(below the DickStock Residence) to have a family portrait done.
Stine will not charge her normal minimum fee and you can buy
just what you want! Please email her on
stine@baska.com.au to arrange a time. The first 5 people who
book will receive a free slide show of their pictures, worth
HK$2,000.
Stine has been capturing the
special personalities of young and old in Sydney since she
finished Art College just a wink before Freya was born (she gave
birth to older sister Maja in her 2nd year Uni break – now a
photographer too!) Having come here to lovely Hong Kong 3 years
ago she is now making portraits here as well in ol’Sydney. Have
a look at www.baska.com.au.
As well as photographing for
private commissions Stine also loves her work so much she just
cant leave the camera alone, so she is constantly making new
bodies of work:
Domestic lives -
StineBaska.com/Still-lives.html
Classical Portraits
StineBaska.com/Classic%20Portraits.html
Sea lives
StineBaska.com/Sealives.html
|
Apr 7:
The Resplendent Return of
Lamma's rising star band, Red Star Rising,
is playing live at The Wanch tonight, April 7, 9pm
(54 Jaffe Road, Wanchai, Tel 2861-1621). Steve Cray ("Award-Winning Prof Red
Star") looks really magnificent
and resplendent in his royal red robes in their poster above, doesn't he? But
who's the very pretty lady? Their new lead singer? Wow, it looks like quite
an image change for Red Star Rising, a total makeover, taking their Red Star
name to its logical conclusion! We're red and we're stars!
Hmm, wait a sec... sorry, my personal Chinese translator (Lamma-Por) informs
me that the 3 Chinese characters above do not mean "Steve Cray Is
Glorious!", as I assumed. The characters actually mean "Hing Fung
Ming", the famous Cantonese-opera troupe
which is visiting Lamma Island every year. This year, they'll perform around Tin Hau
(Dragonboat) Festival time, May 8-12, on the Football Pitch.
Click here for more bilingual info! Sorry for the little poster
mixup, hehehe...
So where's the correct poster for the
gig tonight? Too many posters, too little time on a holiday like today!
Well, finally, here's the correct poster. Click on it to view the entire
minimalist, B/W/Red-only artwork:
P.S. Maybe we can convince the Cantonese-opera troupe to let
perform after one of their shows? That would be a first in HK, I think. A
double class act!
P.S. II: Email reply from our "Award-Winning Prof Red Star", after
seeing the story above:
"Yes, yes, very funny . . . although I like the bit about performing with
the opera troupe. You've put an idea in my mind!"
Apr 6 - Good Friday:
Shocking Stockings Stalker Sequel
|
Samson -
Official Court Moderator of
All Chinese Forums:
Update of the Chinese forum from Chin. New
Year - end of March 2007: |
-
 Farewell
Old Friend
The tributes poured in as the Chinese forum
mourned the lost one of the most loved canine characters on
Lamma – Robert (AKA Lobert) of Man Fung!
Read more...
and more...
-
Laudable Lamma
Luminary in the making?
One of Mainland China's sporting greats,
Sun Yue, will move to
Lamma
next year having married a Lammaite! Congrats to the former
captain of the national female volleyball team and her lucky
husband. Read
more...
-
 Return of
Centipedes
With the recent bout of warm and humid weather,
the truly evil kind has returned! By the way, apart from
human flesh, what else do centipedes feed on? Read
more...
-
Lamma No Fire
Thanks to the Conservancy Association’s efforts,
no large-scale hill fire was reported on Lamma during Ching
Ming Festival this year. Meanwhile, Samson misread the title
of the campaign, almost making it “Lamma On Fire” instead of
“Lamma No Fire”… Read
more...
-
Medical Services
The staffing changes to the North Lamma clinic,
proposed by the Hospital Authority, sparked some concerns
about the quality of health care services on our fair isle.
Update: the proposed changes had been dropped by the HA. Read
more...
-
Can We Fix It?
A new topic aimed at alerting the officials of
the need of maintenance of public utilities. The road – just
around the corner from Bookworm on that little access road
that leads to the Back Street - had kinda collapsed, leaving
a hole on the ground. This has enjoyed a 100% success rate!
Hey, it worked in one of one occasion… Read
more...
-
Shocking Stockings
Stalker… The Sequel
The paranoia continues… Read
more...
-
Newsstands
With more newsstands being started up around the
Main Street, Lammaites can now pick up their papers more
easily. Keith even suggested the newsstands to giveaway BBQ
pork and rice with purchases… Read
more...
-
Farmland in the
News
Lamma’s own farmers, Gavin and Gary of Herboland,
continue to attract mainstream attention with coverage on
the Chinese press, Ming Pao!
Read more...
-
The Donald and the Broom
The Hong Kong political heavyweights are all
converging on Lamma! The Donald (Tsang, not Trump) visited
the seafood chain at Sok Kwu Wan just ahead of the recent
Chief Executive election.
Regina Ip, more affectionately known as Broom-head, will
soon visit our fair isle with her think tank group, on Apr
29. The participants will be split into two groups – the
hiking group walks from Yung Shue Wan to Sok Kwu Wan, while
the non-hiking group takes a ferry directly to SKW. The
groups will meet up in SKW for a seafood feast and a tour of
the Fisherfolks Village.
More on bow tie -
More on broom head.
|
Apr 5 - Ching Ming Festival:
Susan Sheers, R.I.P.
Click here for our Susan
Sheers forum for info, photos & eulogies, plus:
her
very own drawings, "Strolling the hills" story and that famous poem.
Apr 4:
'Memorable Moments'
|
Ms Wendy Yuen Wai Yin -
Public Relations of
Lamma Animal
Welfare Centre:
(All photos by LAWC) |
“Memorable Moments” Pet Videos & Photos Competition
Jointly presented by Lamma Animal Welfare Centre &
iPETchannel.com
 iPETChannel.com and The Lamma Animal Welfare Centre (LAWC)
proudly co-present the first “Memorable Moments” Pet Videos and
Photos Competition. This competition is held from 1st
April to 25th April. Owners of pets of all kinds are
welcome to join. Winners of the competition will get valuable
prizes as well as the opportunity to have their videos featured
in the new TV commercial for LAWC. Through this event, LAWC aims
at increasing the public’s consciousness of animal welfare and
also respect for animal lives.
LAWC receives numerous requests to handle abandoned animals or
stray dogs and cats every week. “We are demoralized that Hong
Kong people have low consciousness and consideration in animal
welfare. That is why the no. of animal abandoning cases is
growing rapidly. People must understand that it is a life-time
commitment to offer a warm, loving environment when
adopting pets.”
In recent years, the no. of animal maltreatment cases has been increasing
speedily. Some internet users even collect opinions online about
getting a pet to impress their loved ones on special occasions.
 After these special occasions, the animal welfare organizations
would receive a high number of abandoned animals. LAWC
sincerely hopes that the public would enthusiastically
participate in this event and spread the motto of "treating pets as
members of the family" to every corner of the city.
The event’s application form and details
can be found and downloaded from iPETchannel’s website
www.iPETChannel.com
or
www.88db.com.
|
Host |
www.iPETChannel.com |
|
Beneficial Organization |
Lamma Animal Welfare Centre |
|
Theme Sponsor |
CANON |
|
Sponsor |
Hills,
Red Carrot, Qpets,
Pet Oasis, EV,
Foundation |
|
Supporting Organization |
Hong Kong Kennel Club, 88DB.com (JobsDB Network) |
|
Judging Panel |
Hong Kong Kennel Club, Hong Kong Cat Fanciers’ Club,
Lamma Animal Welfare Centre,
iPETchannel.com |
|
Category |
Video(DV)
and
Photo |
|
Prize |
Canon cameras and camcorders (first 100 entrants
will receive special prizes) |
|
Award Presentation Venue and Date |
Awards presentation will take place at Pet Oasis in
Tuen Mun on Sat, 28th April. |
|
Donation |
Donation of HK$50 is required for each entry. |
 Lamma Animal Welfare Centre is a registered non-government
organization which was co-founded by a group of
enthusiastic volunteers, who strive to rescue and take care of
un-aided animals.
They have established an animal welfare centre
at Sha Po Old Village, Yung Shue Wan, Lamma Island, which is also
a congregation point of volunteers with a fair to raise funds to
cover LAWC’s operation costs. Lamma Animal Welfare Centre is
dedicated to improving the living environment for animals in
Lamma Island and is hoping to expand its services to other areas
in HK.
|
Apr 3:
Half an Hour From Lamma
Even we Lammaites get off our island once in a while, for
work, for shopping, for meeting friends, for getting away from all that
peace and quietness, or for a little night photo shoot with the
Hong Kong
Photography Club, like in this case below. I shot these photos
recently in the Central District on Hong Kong Island - just half an hour by
ferry from Yung Shue Wan. So close, but what a contrast! It's nice and very
convenient to have the "best of both worlds" so close together.
Click on the photos below to enlarge them and see more from
other Hong
Kong Photo Club members. They're a fun, mixed bunch of amateurs from
all over Hong Kong, getting together at least twice a month to socialise and
learn from each other how to take better photos. Highly recommended! Check
out their
Flickr
group photos and forum. Membership is still only $50/year!
 
  
  
Apr 2:
'Are Lammaites Haughty Lotus Eaters?'
Lamma in the 90s: Kite Flying and Frank Zappa party
(Photo by Goat
Maison)
|
Goat
Maison - ex-Lammaite (text and photos): |
|
 It's
interesting to read some
forum posts about the snootiness of Lammaites and how they
allegedly look down their noses at non-believers...
The first time that I
visited Lamma was in 1990, just before the big gweilo invasion when
Lamma became full of Brits of mixed specifications. Before this
time, Lamma was considered a fairly well-kept secret by the lucky
few gweilos who had found their way one way or another to this
blessed isle. The ‘originals’ as I shall call them from now on, were
mostly 20-somethings with heads full of ideals and loins full of
juice.
There were fewer shops
and restaurants back in the early 1990s and the ferries were much
slower than they are today. The ‘Corner Bar’ was the hip place to
hang out and the social calendar was strung together with rooftop
and beach parties. Cocaine was not a big part of the Lamma scene at
that time and most people drank far more than was good for them, as
they still do now. The main band was a funk outfit called Mothership,
and it seemed that just about everyone was too cool for their
underpants.
These originals were
generally higher-brow than those that followed and were extremely
proud of their discovery. It reminded me a bit of 'The Beach' or
some kind of tropical Chelsea where acceptance was not automatic and
that any newcomer would have to earn their way into a clique before
being regarded as a fellow lotus eater. Under the weight of the new
immigrants, many originals retreated into the shadows.
I left the island when
the head-butters took over in the mid-90s, but have seen how it has
calmed down since then and that the 20-somethings are now
40-some-things with children and dogs. Looking back at Lamma from the
faraway land of England, I'd say that most 40-somethings over here
in Blighty are living pretty sedate and mediocre lives. It's the
property market and the dull grind that keeps them in line. The
resident Lamma survivors seem to be living mostly blessed lives and
although there may be cliques which are a part of the [British]
culture on Lamma, the social activity, connections and opportunities
are far beyond those of the average 40-something Surrey dweller.
Lamma gets into your
blood and once you leave on a mission to find another Lamma - because
surely there must be others? - you will always think fondly of your
time there. Whenever I come back to Lamma, the ferry rounds the
corner to reveal the three great towers of Brahma, Shiva & Vishnu
and I scan the hillside to spot my old flat in Po Wah Yuen. It feels
as though I’ve never been away and I spend the first few days
grinning like an idiot wondering if I could get my old job back and
‘just look at the tropical plants and the steaming dim sum baskets!’
As
an ex-resident I feel that I’m a true blue Lammaite for life and
although I may be on the other side of the world I’m still one of
the clan and very proud of it! |
Apr 1:
Lamma Is Our Home Carnival
Sunday afternoon, April 1, 2007, Yung Shue Wan Soccer Pitch -
organised by Hans Andersen Club - Lamma Island Centre:
  
Would you like more and larger pictures?
Email me!
Read last month's stories...
|
