Hong Kong Can't Compete with Shenzhen

Many restaurants were quiet in Hong Kong this long weekend

This Easter weekend Hong Kong was eerily quiet. 

Over 680,000 people left the city to either go to other countries, or crossed the border into the mainland.

Many who did the latter headed to Shenzhen, the "it city" where options are plentiful but the key word is cheap.

How cheap, you ask?

Cheap food in Shenzhen, though quality not high

An acquaintance just came back from Shenzhen yesterday. He said four adults and three children went out for dinner and the total bill was around HK$600.

What did they eat, you may ask?

A whole grouper cost HK$68. In Hong Kong that same grouper would cost HK$500. Granted he said the Shenzhen fish didn't taste very good, but hey, it was super cheap.

Same goes for half a chicken, HK$68. Even four pieces of KFC in Hong Kong costs HK$89.

How can Hong Kong even compete with prices that are a fraction of those 45 minutes away by train?

It's impossible because rents in Hong Kong are so high, as well as labour and food costs.

It's not about eating good food in Shenzhen, but it's really cheap. And with people in Hong Kong struggling to make money post-pandemic, they love the cheap thrills they can get across the border. 

Is it any wonder restaurants and shops are struggling in Hong Kong these days? 

Uneven Dim Sum Joint

"Goldfish" dumplings that were yellow blobs not fish

My relatives took me to a dim sum place in Whampoa, which took a while to get to because my aunt took me out of the wrong MTR exit. It was supposed to be exit B, but we had already gone out of exit D and had to do a massive round about way to get there.

Apparently there is another branch of this place in Tokwawan, but is quite small compared to this one, which had about 25 tables. With this being Easter weekend, it wasn't packed and we luckily got a round table for the seven of us.

Interesting matcha-flavoured sesame balls

The menu not only had har gao, or steamed shrimp dumplings, but also ones shaped like goldfish complete with gold leaf. When the trio of "fish" dumplings arrived, one of my cousins remarked they looked like a pale comparison to the picture, and complained it didn't have a neck, and was just a blob.

Taste-wise it had a tiny bit of parsley stalk in there, but it was hardly substantial.

The deep-fried spring rolls had red cabbage stuffed inside, while the turnip cake was cut into cubes, pan-fried and then seasoned with a creamy orangey sauce and bonito flakes. Like what? It was totally unnecessary -- the sauce completely overwhelmed the delicate taste of the turnip.

Another was a rice dish that was presented in a lotus leaf but open -- with slices of flat spare rib like kalbi with a sweet soy sauce. 

But really impressive was the deep-fried taro dumplings -- the filling was substantial with some meat inside and the taro was so soft while the exterior was crunchy. Usually they are very heavy and oily, but this one was light and so smooth.

Turnip cake with bonito flakes?

For dessert, the ma lai go or steamed cake was so fluffy and light, while we also ordered the matcha-flavoured sesame balls. The balls were small, but when sliced in half, there were three layers inside. Quite impressive.

This particular location was also busy servicing customers who needed wheelchair access -- the entrance has a ramp rather than stairs to cater to seniors living in nearby homes. The not so good thing about this place is that reservations cannot be made.

Sun Moon (Hunghom Bay Centre)

Shop 14A, G/F, 92-112 Baker Street

Hung Hom

2780 0288                                                                                                         

First Impressions of Hong Kong Two Years Later

Nice to be back walking along the promenade again

Woke up at 4am this morning with jet lag and couldn't get back to sleep until around 6am for another two hours. It took me a while to get organised but I finally got out the door and on a whim took the tram going west from Sai Wan Ho.

The streets were much quieter because it was Good Friday, and many people have left for the long weekend. By the time the tram reached Causeway Bay it was 11.15am and I realised Din Tai Fung was there. Vancouver is set to have one towards the end of this year, so I decided to have my dumpling fix.

Xiaolongbao looks a bit smaller at Din Tai Fung

When I got there the shutter was still down, but staff were busy in the kitchen wrapping dumplings. The restaurant actually opened before 11.30am and there were only a handful of us waiting to get the first seats.

As I perused the menu I was shocked that the prices had gone up, and not only that when the food arrived, the dumplings and other dishes looked smaller. Shrinkflation, folks. The food was still good, but for one person it cost HK$230 for pork dumplings, vegetarian dumplings and an appetiser of seaweed and beansprouts with a generous drizzle of sesame oil.

Nearby was Sogo and even though it was lunchtime it was not packed with shoppers despite encouraging its members to collect five times the points on certain products. I managed to score 20 percent off on swimming caps because I bought two.

The next stop was to see Bakehouse, a popular bakery that had opened there after I left. It was completely packed with a queue of people waiting patiently to snap up sourdough egg tarts, pastries, cookies and coffee. Amazing.

Bakehouse doing a bustling business

I then headed to Sheung Wan to buy ferry tickets to Macau in a few days. There were massive lines at TurboJet (the red ferry), while the one for Cotai (blue) was not too bad. Service was brisk with three people servicing counters for tickets to Macau as well as China. 

There weren't as many mainlanders in the city, though today is Friday. My friend and I saw a group of young people wearing the same cap with a small Winnie the Pooh stuffie on it! How ironic.

She took me to a bookshop called Mount Zero in Tai Ping Shan that will be closing at the end of the month. It has been accused by the authorities for several minor violations, including illegally occupying a space outside the shop. It's a tiny place and there were lots of people standing in front or trying to get inside to take a look. 

After that we made our trek east, walking through Central, then Admiralty towards Tamar where there were a lot of people waiting to look at... glowing eggs. It's an exhibition put on by Team Lab from Japan. There are giant eggs that you can touch and apparently make sounds and these things go all the way down the grass at Tamar into the water too. We had to fight the crowds to get to the waterfront.

Mount Zero bookstore closing soon

Almost two hours later we made it to Fortress Hill and enjoyed a Japanese meal that included grilled fugu or puffer fish, and yakitori skewers of beef, chicken, mushrooms, scallops, shishito peppers, and sweet potato, and boiled edamame washed down with sake.

Hopefully that long walk will keep jet lag at bay!

Review: Mommy Dead and Dearest

Dee Dee Blanchard controlled daughter Gypsy Rose  

On the flight to Hong Kong I watched several documentaries, one of which was Mommy Dead and Dearest made in 2017. It is about how a mother was murdered by her daughter Gypsy Rose and her boyfriend, but also why this horrific crime was committed.

Gypsy Rose curled up the fetal position in the bathroom as she heard her mother Dee Dee scream as she was being stabbed by Nicholas Godejohn on June 14, 2015.

Tired of 23 years of abuse, Gypsy Rose asked her boyfriend to get rid of her mother. From when Gypsy Rose was a baby, her mother made up a long list of illnesses her daughter had, from leukemia to epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, to vision and hearing impairments and seizures. 

Gypsy Rose in prison outfit speaking in the doc

Most doctors didn't pick up the abuse, and that Dee Dee had Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy -- where she faked Gypsy Rose's illnesses and forced her daughter to take the medicines which actually induced the illnesses. Gypsy Rose even had surgery to have a feeding tube inserted in her stomach for food and drugs; she never knew what her mother was feeding her. The feeding tube was replaced every six months -- without an anesthetic.

Her mother forced her child to do this to get attention, and receive get lots of freebies from people who truly thought Gypsy Rose was living her last days. She constantly shaved Gypsy Rose's head, forced her to sit in a wheelchair and made her look much younger than her actual age.

A psychologist in the documentary points out how Dee Dee is constantly holding Gypsy Rose's hands as if to send a message to her that she had control over her daughter and she could not escape.

At first Gypsy Rose thought her upbringing was a bit different, that her mother was over protective, but later realised her mother was forcing her to act sick and helpless.

So when she announced on social media that her mother was dead and how she died, her followers thought her account was hacked at first -- how could she want that "bitch" to be dead?

Gypsy Rose was released earlier this month

Eventually it was revealed through investigations the two decades' of abuse Gypsy Rose had suffered which caused her to want to have her mother killed, but she didn't think too clearly about what would happen either, nor did she have much experience with relationships with members of the opposite sex.

The film shows police interrogation videos, interviews with Gypsy Rose in her prison clothes, the psychologist, friends, Dee Dee's father, grandfather, nephew and her ex-husband. They all paint nasty pictures of Dee Dee, who had a history of lying and stealing from her own family. 

He is also at fault for not trying to keep in contact with Gypsy Rose because she didn't have to kill her mother -- she could have found her father and gone to live with him and his partner.

But that was never an option Gypsy Rose ever thought of, and she tearfully accepts her fate. The interviewer asks if she prefers prison over being abused by her mother and she says jail is much better.

The film was made in 2017 and noted that Gypsy Rose would be out of jail by 2024 and yes -- she got out for good behaviour in March after eight and a half years in prison. She even got married while in prison and will be making the media rounds promoting her memoir, Released.

It's such a tragic story on many levels, and hopefully Gypsy Rose will finally have healthy relationships with people and get on with the rest of her life, now 32 years old. 

All Hail the Best Restaurant in Asia

This modern French place the top restaurant in Asia

Last night was the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants awards held in Seoul and it was so great to see chef Daniel Calvert's restaurant Sezanne clinch the top spot this year.

He is a young British chef from Surrey, southeast England, who knew from the age of 13 he wanted to cook. And he's a damn fine cook. He has the talent, skills and finesse, and being in Tokyo suits him perfectly, where precision artistry is appreciated. 

In 2016 Calvert came to Hong Kong to help chef James Henry open a French bistro called Belon for Black Sheep Restaurants.

Calvert (second from left) with his team last night

He thought he'd only be there for six months, but in that time he fell in love with the city and became head chef the following year. However, the initial excitement of Belon had dissipated by then.

"When I took over Belon, it was not doing well. It was very hard to get people to change their minds and eat here again. So I would say going from this restaurant, which was empty, to turning it into what it is today, that's probably my biggest achievement," he said in August 2020 when he was leaving the city.

People were not used to the expensive items on the menu, like three pieces of asparagus and dots of caviar at HK$900 (US$115), and chicken wing stuffed with matsutake mushroom and foie gras at HK$348.

Instead of lowering prices or doing gimmicky dishes, Calvert persisted and in 2017 that year Belon earned a Michelin star. 

His attention to detail and taste are impeccable

After he moved to Tokyo, the Covid-19 pandemic postponed the opening for about a year in 2021. But Calvert was ready to show off his culinary talent. Six months after Sezanne opened, he earned the restaurant's first Michelin star, and its second in 2022.

Some dishes that diners have raved about are duck foie gras slow poached with chicken leg and soy sauce, Shanghai hairy crab marinated in yellow wine with rice, and mille crepes with Australian black truffles. 

When he was in Hong Kong he was curious to learn more about Chinese ingredients and condiments, and incorporated them into his dishes; same goes for what he has discovered in Japan.

Meanwhile on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants, Sezanne ranked second last March, and last night climbed to number one.

Now in his mid-30s, Calvert claims to have no secrets to his success. "I'm not the greatest chef in the world -- I can't attest to that. But I do think I work harder than most people. I think that was the key."

We're so pleased to see him do so well. Hard work rewarded in spades.

Dressing Down in PJs at Work in China

Young people wear pyjamas to work to be comfortable

Following work trends in China like tang ping or "lying flat" and bai lan or "letting it rot", there's now "gross outfits for work".

On Douyin, or China's TikTok, a woman with the handle "Kendou S" posted a video of herself in her work outfit -- slippers, pyjama bottoms and a brown sweater dress and accessorised with a pair of holey woollen gloves.

Another woman named Cindy Luo in Wuhan, Hubei province has the same idea. "I just want to wear whatever I want," explained the 30-year-old. "I just don't think it's worth spending money to dress up for work, since I'm just sitting there."

Others don't see the point in dressing up anymore

Luo has a point.

Kendou S' video had 736,000 likes and 1.4 million shares, and the Chinese hashtag for "gross outfits for work" went viral. Others took videos of themselves wearing hoodies, sweatpants and other kinds of sleepwear.

It's yet another sign of young Chinese workers throwing out the 996 work ethic of working from 9am to 9pm, six days a week as the country's economy slows and job opportunities or chances for promotions have dried up.

As a result, they choose to take their time or pursue a work-life balance not be so ambitious, a kind of quiet protest that has bosses annoyed their employees aren't gung-ho about their jobs.

The Covid-19 pandemic has also influenced how people dress, having worked from home during that period and so they are just used to wearing comfortable clothes. 

Kendou S has said her boss has complained her work outfits are "gross" and that she needed to wear better clothes "to mind the image of the company."

But seems like she and many others don't seem to care what their bosses think and instead guess how long it will take until their supervisors will comment on their fashion sense.

In this way they are making work fun for themselves, and shouldn't we all?

Jellyfish Stop Ultra Endurance Athlete in Hawaii

Pelletier got swollen eyes

Last summer ultra-endurance athlete Nick Pelletier made headlines when he swam the 106-km length of Okanagan Lake from Vernon, BC to Penticton in 71 hours.

Originally from Kelowna, the 26-year-old was very familiar with the lake, but he wasn't quite prepared for his next challenge -- to swim across Molokai Chanel, 41km between the Hawaiian islands of Molokai and Oahu.

He swam the length of Okanagan Lake last year

While he was ready to deal with sharks in the water, he really should have been worried about jellyfish.

"I knew there'd be sharks and jellyfish, I was just hoping I wouldn't run into them," he said in a radio interview.

However, he encountered a lot of jellyfish, resulting in long red streaks across his torso and arms.

"It got me in the face here and then all over my arms, and my chest and everything," said Pelletier. 

He said he could feel jellyfish tentacles on his hand as he swam, and then tentacles began hitting him in the face.

"It looks kind of like I got whipped," he explained. "I felt like I had a hot iron on me, getting branded."

The stings also left him with swollen eyes.

Pelletier was in the water for 13 hours, halfway through his swim when his crew decided to pull him out. 

"It's very frustrating," he said, adding he had been fighting rough currents, and his lungs were filling with saltwater which made him feel sick.

Jellyfish left stings and red streaks on his torso

He was disappointed after all the practice he had done was all for naught.

"At that moment, you just kind of think about all the time you spent in training that people don't see.

"You get all the hours, and hours and hours in the pool alone and mentally preparing in the gym, strengthening your shoulders, doing your running, everything like that... So, all this stuff kind of flashes before your eyes when you're getting pulled,"

Pelletier is laying low in Hawaii for the rest of the week, but plans to attempt his swim again, but did not say when.

"It's always a learning experience," he said. "I wouldn't trade the things I've learned for anything."

Floral Display Flaunts Funeral Vibes

Originally the flowers were all white, with "funeral vibes"

Today is the last day of the Hong Kong Flower Show at Victoria Park, where visitors can check out beautiful floral displays big and small, but another one is being set up in East Kowloon that's gotten a lot of flak recently.

Originally thousands of live flowers were going to be displayed as a backdrop for photo-taking at East Kowloon Cultural Centre in Kowloon Bay, but then Kwun Tong district committee members switched to LED-lit flowers because the former "took too much effort in watering".

Criticism resulted in adding colours on flowers

But when the flowers were installed -- all white no less -- there was an uproar about spending HK$500,000 (US$64,000) on a display that had "funeral vibes", as white signifies death in Chinese culture. Others said it had a "toilet vibe", referencing toilet paper with embossed floral designs.

After the snarky comments about feeling like being in a "mourning hall", the flowers have now been injected with some colour -- pink and orangey-pink -- to brighten things up a bit during the day, and they will glow at night.

Kwun Tong district councillor Cheung Ki-tang said originally the colour and design of the flowers and the display were not discussed in meetings because these were "minor details".

Really? If the point is to create a floral background for people to take pictures, surely the colours of the flowers and how they are displayed are important?

"The new look is more colourful now. It's good that the government is receptive to public opinion," he acknowledged. "But the original design also looked good to me too."

Someone has to have the last word...

Picture of the Day: Cherry Blossoms

Cherry blossoms like pink popcorn on branches

Vancouver is turning pink! 

Cherry blossoms were coming into full bloom in Kerrisdale and I managed to take a few pictures.

They are definitely different from plum blossoms, which have fewer flowers and are darker in hue, whereas cherry blossoms are more dense in terms of petals and are hung in clumps that look kind of like pink popcorn hanging from branches!

There are thousands of cherry trees

For Vancouverites there's no need to go to Japan to see sakura -- we have over 43,000 cherry trees in the city. Hundreds were planted in the early 1930s by the mayors of Kobe and Yokohama in honour of Japanese Canadians who served in World War I. 

Then in 1935, immigrant Japanese couple Bunjiro and Kimi Uyeda donated a thousand young cherry trees to the Vancouver Park Board.

The city has thousands more cherry trees than the National Mall in Washington DC, which only has 3,800.

And it's not a Japanese city with the most cherry trees -- that honour goes to Changwon, South Korea with 360,000 trees.

Who's Happy and Who's Not in the World

Are you happy where you are, according to the report?

The World Happiness Report 2024 is out and perhaps no surprise the Nordic countries are at the very top with Finland, Denmark, Iceland and Sweden in the top four spots respectively. Israel is ranked at no. 5, as the surveys were completed before the deadly Hamas attack on October 7 last year.

Australia is at no. 10, and New Zealand close behind, and Canada is at no. 15 (previously 13), the United States at no. 23 (previously 15). It was found people in the US and Canada are happier if they are over 30 years old. The United Kingdom is at no. 20, France no. 27. 

Singapore is at no. 30 behind Kosovo, but before Taiwan at no. 31 which is described as "province of China", and then a block of Asian countries -- Japan, South Korea, Philippines and Vietnam at nos 51 to 54 respectively.

Nordic countries rank the top four happiest in the world

China is ranked a bit further down at no 60, but Hong Kong (SAR of China) is waaay down at no. 86.

The worst? Afghanistan is at the bottom at no. 143, and Zimbabwe is no. 138.

In general women were not as happy as men, but in east Asia, it's the women who are happier than men. The survey found in general people are happier living in countries where the equality of happiness is greater.

In Taiwan, those 30 and younger were happier, while the older generation were less happy. Meanwhile in China, the elderly were happiest enjoying the fruits of their labour, though lower middle class were least happy, perhaps finding it hard to deal with inflation, or housing costs, or not having the means to immigrate.

For Hong Kong, it's the upper middle class who are very happy, the lower middle class not happy. 

Loneliness does affect happiness, and the report says social interactions add to one's happiness, that in turn helps increase social support, and reduce loneliness.

Nevertheless in broad strokes it is promising to see people around the world do care about others. The report has graphs that show people from boomers to Gen X and Millennials are more helpful to strangers, donate more and volunteer more post-pandemic than before 2020.  

Perhaps there is still hope for humanity after all!

Over 4K People Abusing Elderly Fare Transport Scheme

People 60 and over can ride public transport for HK$2

One of the perks of being a senior in Hong Kong is that taking public transportation is much cheaper. When people 60 years old and over take the MTR, bus, and ferry, it costs HK$2 (US$0.26) per ride. 

Naturally it's not surprising to see more elderly people riding 650 routes for buses and ferries, as well as the MTR railway network.

However, the authorities have found that over the past eight months, 4,260 rail passengers were fined for misusing the HK$2 fare concession scheme. 

The government has also found that over the last five years, 1,419 suspected cases of abuse of the scheme were uncovered during monitoring of buses, MTR, ferries, minibuses, trams and even buses to transport residents to and from their apartment blocks.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han even mentioned one passenger who was fined HK$14,000 (US$1,800) and had to pay around HK$2,000 in unpaid fares.

He said the Transport Department had asked operators to increase ticket checks and passenger identity verification, as well as strictly enforce penalties.

This is hard for frontline workers to enforce when there are lots of people getting on a bus or ferry, and also what can they do if someone doesn't pay up? 

The scheme costs the government around HK$6 billion in terms of reimbursement of costs to the transportation companies.

In order to make up for the shortfall, lawmaker Peter Koon Ho-ming suggests doubling the concession fare to HK$4 to keep the scheme sustainable. 

"Transportation fares have gone up by around 30 percent since the HK$2 scheme was rolled out. Is it feasible that we keep the concessionary fare at HK$2 and don't increase it? I think we should be more realistic when looking at this," he said.

Koon is the reverend who helped Chan Tong-kai who allegedly murdered his girlfriend in Taiwan and set off the anti-extradition protests in 2019...

Another lawmaker, Chan Siu-hung, suggested placing restrictions on the scheme, such as limiting the number of trips a person could make.

"Whatever it is going to be -- be it a fare discount, a limit on the number of rides or on the fare -- I hope the original purpose of the policy can be maintained, which is to encourage the elderly to go out more," Chan said.

Article 23 Passes, a New Era Begins

Lee (centre) pleased that Article 23 has finally passed

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu did what one of his predecessors, Tung Chee-hwa could not do -- pass Article 23 -- at warp speed.

"Today is an historic day in Hong Kong," Lee said. "It is an historic moment that Hong Kong has been waiting for 26 years, 8 months, and 19 days... It is a proud moment for all of Hong Kong in collectively making glorious history."

Twenty-one years ago half a million people came out to protest against Article 23 which led to the government shelving it indefinitely.

There were 89 votes for the bill and no dissents

But now with the national security law implemented, and the Legislative Council political landscape completely overhauled to have "only patriots", Article 23 was passed unanimously in a marathon session. Legislative Council President Andrew Leung does not usually take part in votes, but this time he did to seal the deal.

After the vote Lee said Article 23 would come into effect on Saturday, March 23, far earlier than the expected April 15 which would coincide with National Security Education Day.

There were claims of wanting to pass the bill quickly to keep "foreign forces" off guard. 

The new law focuses on severe penalties on a wide range of actions authorities deem threats to national security, where treason and insurrection could be punishable with life imprisonment. The possession of seditious publications could also result in several years in jail. There are some provisions allowing criminal prosecutions for acts committed anywhere in the world.

In addition, Article 23 has tough penalties for people convicted of endangering national security for some offenses if they are found to be working with foreign governments or organisations. It also includes targeting those who damage public infrastructure with the intent to endanger the state and could be jailed for 20 years, or if they colluded with external forces, for life. In 2019 protesters had occupied Hong Kong International Airport and vandalised railway stations.

Lee says Article 23 in effect from Saturday

Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong said the passage of Article 23 signalled a strong "firewall" that has been built for the city's stability and prosperity, so that it could now focus on promoting economic development and improving people's livelihoods. 

Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung who pushed the legislation through, likened its passage as welcoming his "newborn baby" into the world.

"I have very mixed emotions. I am of course excited to see my child -- Article 23 -- coming into the world soon, but I am also a little bit emotional, as the bill has gone through so many trials and tribulations and miscarriages," he said, looking exhausted standing next to Lee.

However, the passage of the bill drew criticism.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said adopting Article 23 was "a regressive step for the protection of human rights in Hong Kong."

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement that "the broad definitions of national security and external interference will make it harder for those who live, work and do business in Hong Kong" and continue the "erosion of freedoms" there.

The European Union said the bill could potentially "significantly affect" the work of the EU office and consulates of EU members, and could impact European Union citizens, organisations and companies in Hong Kong. "This also raises questions about Hong Kong's long-term attractiveness as an international business hub," it said in a statement.

The dawn of the new era in Hong Kong begins March 23. 

HK Police Warn of Whatsapp Scams

Scammers use Whatsapp to get people to send money

One would have thought by now people would be more wary about scams -- especially in Hong Kong -- but there's a new sucker every minute.

More than 130 people were victims of a scam in one week and lost a total of HK$1.7 million (US$217,300). 

The scam involved fraudsters hijacking Whatsapp accounts, getting into their contact lists and duping people by sending messages posing as friends or relatives who urgently needed money due to emergencies.

The victims were asked to send money as soon as possible, but when they spoke to the real account holders, they found out they were scammed because they had already sent over the money.

It all starts by swindlers sending phishing text messages that are linked to fake websites and manage to trick users into giving their account verification codes.

"If you receive a text message asking for money or a bank transfer request from friends or relatives, please remember to call and confirm first," Hong Kong police said.

According to police figures on the theft of online accounts, 3,434 were reported last year, compared to only 168 in 2022. Most of the cases involved Whatsapp accounts.

Financial losses in these scams totalled HK$87.6 million in 2023, compared to HK$73.8 million the year before.

However in terms of total scams, Hong Kong recorded a 42.6 percent increase to 39,824 cases last year, from 27,923 reports the year before. The total amount lost rose by a staggering 89 percent to HK$9.1 billion in 2023, compared to HK$4.8 billion the year before.

When you get a strange message, stop and think carefully. Better yet, call the friend or relative in question first to see if they really are in trouble.

Fraudsters need to earn less money and more jail time!

Picture of the Day: Spring is Blooming

Lovely magnolias in bloom under blue skies

This weekend we had almost summer-like temperatures with a high of 15 degrees! 

With that comes signs of spring -- first it was snowdrops and then crocuses, and now the magnolias and plum blossoms are beginning to bloom.

Plum blossoms in fierce pink

I have only seen plum blossoms so far -- cherry blossoms are more dense in terms of petals, and dusty pink in colour; I hope to see the city "pinked out" as writer and artist Douglas Coupland has described Vancouver in spring.

While it's lovely to see all these flowers coming out, my sinuses are frazzled!

My allergies are back with a vengeance!

Last year I didn't suffer from allergies after being in Hong Kong for so long, but perhaps my body has adjusted and now I'm getting itchy eyes and am prone to sneezing.

I'm taking some mild medication for now, and hope these allergies will be over soon!

Taylor Sheesh is the Next Swift Thing

Who wore it better? Sheesh or Swift?

For fans who couldn't get enough of Taylor Swift when she was in Singapore for six dates, they were able to catch Taylor Sheesh, a drag artist who looks like the American pop sensation.

Mac Coronel, 29, is from the Philippines and is known as Taylor Sheesh. She had a two-night sold out show a week after Swift left the Lion City.

Sheesh wowed Swifties in Singapore

Coronel wears a blonde wig, dresses in jewel encrusted bodysuits and wears cowboy boots, lip-synching to Swift's songs and imitating her dance moves.

Sheesh has been impersonating the four-time Grammy winner since 2017 and has a collection of outfits very similar to Swift's. He has been a Swiftie since 2009.

'[Before each show], I will listen to Taylor Swift and watch some of her videos to memorise her choreography and refresh my mind," Coronel said.

After one of his performances in the Philippines went viral last April, his bookings have soared.

And why not -- if you can't see the real Taylor Swift, Sheesh is the next best thing -- and much cheaper too.

How Much Will the 2026 FIFA World Cup Cost?

Vancouver is one of 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup

Vancouver will be one of the cohosts of the FIFA 2026 men's World Cup, but taxpayers have no idea how much money they will be on the hook for the global football event.

Toronto released its estimation of some C$380 million, up from C$300 million, and Vancouver is expected to be in that ballpark as well.

However, while Toronto Mayor Oliva Chow has been transparent with what has fallen into her lap, Vancouver City Hall has refused to follow suit, same with the provincial government.

Toronto Mayor Chow estimates C$380M

Reporters have tried many times to request a copy of the contract or the amount of money budgeted, but they have either been rebuffed or given stacks of redacted papers that are practically blank.

Finally Lana Popham, minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport says the amount will be revealed in a "few weeks".

"As soon as we are able to we will be releasing everything we are able to legally," Popham said Thursday.

The football games during the World Cup will be held in 16 cities in Canada, the United States and Mexico. Vancouver will host seven of the 104 tournament games at BC Place Stadium starting in June 2026.

Originally Vancouver was expected to host five games at an estimated cost of C$230 million over a year ago.

"We have a significant increase in opportunity, with that comes an increase in cost. So with seven games we have more security costs. So we have to redo some of the numbers from the initial estimates," said Popham.

Sim "super pumped" but no released figure yet

A big chunk of the budget will be for security, and fulfilling FIFA's requirements that real grass be installed at BC Place, with specific instructions on how the grass be watered and cared for.

However the Canadian Taxpayers Federation is frustrated that the final figure is still not known and tried to force Vancouver into revealing numbers by releasing Toronto's budget. 

"Taxpayers have every right to know how much we're paying to host seven soccer games," said Carson Binda, BC director with the CFT. "The city and province must be transparent with taxpayers instead of hiding the details."

Binda said other host cities like Toronto and Seattle have already released their contracts with FIFA to the public, and that Vancouver Mayor sim should "stop the secrecy" and "release the unredacted contracts."

While Sim is "super pumped" about Vancouver hosting seven games, it does cost money. Indeed, we are waiting...

Au Revoir Le Crocodile by Chef Michel Jacob

A meaty Dungeness crab cake with a red pepper mousseline

It was announced in early February that beloved Vancouver French restaurant Le Crocodile will close at the end of April, as chef-owner Michel Jacob will retire after over 43 years. 

He has sold the business to one of his early apprentices, Iron Chef winner Rob Feenie, who has been a consultant chef at Cactus Club for many years and most recently had a pop-up at Bacchus at Wedgewood. Currently Feenie is biding his time at the Vancouver Golf Club -- in Coquitlam.

Calm before dinner service at Le Crocodile

There's some skepticism that Feenie can pull off "Le Crocodile by Rob Feenie" as he intends to call it -- which is why diners are heading to Le Crocodile now for one last taste of Jacob's food. Since the news broke, reservations have been snapped up until April 30 and I managed to get a table tonight.

We arrived for 6pm and were seated off to the side by the bar, which is a nice, quieter area. For starters I had the Le Crocodile classic of tomato and gin soup that arrived piping hot topped with whipped cream. It was so comforting to have the soup, the creaminess tempering the acidity of the tomato, and yet it wasn't too rich either. 

The Dungeness crab cake was a thick puck-shaped portion choc full of crab meat that was fresh and flaky, topped with salmon roe and dressed with bell pepper mousseline and a side of greens. Another classic is the Alsatian onion tart full of umami flavour served with an endive salad with mustard dressing.

My favourite tomato and gin soup

The bread basket was so good we couldn't help ourselves but ask for a refill! We paid for it later as we barely finished our mains.

Mine was one of the four specials -- duck confit featuring two legs that were so tender they literally fell off the bone, together with a vol-au-vent with a savoury custard inside with citrus fruits on top, and a salad on the side. The duck skin wasn't crispy at all, but rather braised and moist. The vol-au-vent was small, but still crispy and held up the custard inside. The citrus fruits were a welcome counterpoint to the savoury duck. 

The pan-seared Haida Gwaii scallops were huge! Not having read the menu I thought they were from Hokkaido, but no they were on British Columbia's front step. They were cooked perfectly, meaty and subtle in flavour with a beurre blanc sauce.

Lovely pan-seared Haida Gwaii scallops

Meanwhile the grilled tiger prawns were quite large too, decorated with swirls of thinly zucchini spaghetti and in the middle some angel hair pasta in a lobster veloute and Pernod sauce. The sauce was not to one of my companion's liking, who found it a bit on the sour side. 

By now the dining room was filling up and becoming noisier, and a couple seated next to us celebrating their wedding anniversary. We got a mini pre-dessert, a small scoop of pear sorbet. It was so divine I could have eaten another.

We ordered a Grand Marnier souffle and it looked lovely, like a mushroom with a muffin top sprinkled with icing sugar. The server generously poured in creme Anglaise, a vanilla custard that made it quite wet at the bottom. Nevertheless, the souffle itself was very light and airy.

Duck confit with vol-au-vent and citrus fruits

Our second dessert was sunburnt lemon meringue tart with passion fruit sorbet. The presentation was dramatic, the lemon tart decorated with frilly piped meringue that was torched. Also a nice light, tart finish, though we could have had more passionfruit sorbet! Lovely finish.

We thanked our server and asked him to pass on our gratitude to the chef. He said the new owner plans to keep the restaurant as it is, but even he is not sure if it will change and urged us to try it under Rob Feenie.

There are too many memories in this restaurant, as we have eaten here many times over the years. The best part of it is the quality and consistency over four decades, not an easy feat. The landlady lives upstairs from the restaurant and we've heard she dines here regularly. So there will be expectations to keep it pretty much the same... we can only hope!

Lemon meringue tart with passionfruit sorbet

Le Crocodile

909 Burrard Street #100

Vancouver, BC

604 669 4298

How Hong Kong's Airport Capacity Stacks Against Other Cities

Hong Kong is struggling to increase its airport capacity

See this chart? It tracks the capacity of several international airports in seeing if they are back to 100 percent capacity post-pandemic.

You can see Singapore Changi Airport represented by a black line on the graph and it has already broken through the 100 percent mark along with London Heathrow in yellow.

New York's John F Kennedy International Airport (green line) was well over 100 percent in November, but declining slightly at the moment, while Incheon Airport in Seoul is at 99.9 percent (pink line).

Haneda Airport in Tokyo? Well it hit 100 percent last May and was already at 110 percent in mid September.

Where's Hong Kong International Airport (blue)?

In December it reached a high of around 75 percent, but it has since plunged in January (no figures yet for February). 

This is what happens when there is a clear road map out of the pandemic by reopening faster. Around Christmastime the airline was short 500 pilots to fly Cathay Pacific planes and that resulted in numerous cancellations which left a bad impression with passengers, new and loyal.

While Cathay recently announced a HK$9.78 billion (US$1.3 billion) net profit last year, it doesn't believe it will return to 2019 capacity levels until 2025, and so HKIA's blue line on the graph won't be hitting 100 percent anytime soon...

A Warm Visit to Bloedel Conservatory

The Bloedel Conservatory this afternoon

It's been a miserable several days in Vancouver with rain and cold temperatures, but today the sun peeked out of the clouds and they were blown away to reveal and gorgeous blue sky.

I took a friend for lunch to celebrate her birthday at Seasons in the Park and the view of the city was so clear. 

Afterwards we took a stroll around the quarry garden before checking out the Bloedel Conservatory, a large domed indoor tropical garden. 

Valentine is a charming parrot

It was named after Prentice Bloedel, who was co-founder of Macmillan Bloedel, British Columbia's biggest forestry company in the mid-20th century. He pitched in C$1.4 million to build the conservatory, fountains and surrounding plaza.

The "triodetic" dome design was inspired by the Expo '67 dome in Montreal. Its diameter is 140 feet across and was made from aluminium pipe triangles and 1,500 plexiglass bubbles. The design was conceived in 1966 and was officially opened in 1969. Over half a million people visited it the first year.

In 2009 the Parks Board voted to closer the conservatory because of low attendance, but with the Winter Olympics coming up, several groups formed to save it. The following year it was taken under the wing of the VanDusen Botanical Garden, which is why VanDusen members can go into the conservatory for free.

Inside there was lots to see, from lots of plants and flowers to birds, particularly parrots and cockatoos.

There were lots of hydrangeas and posies, but also orchids that flourished in the warm and humid environment. Looking up there were banana trees with their large rectangular-shaped leaves and their trunks were very smooth to the touch!

Lovely orchids in the indoor garden

We also enjoyed watching the various birds in the domed garden. A few were allowed to roam around freely, though the parrots were either chained to their posts (with umbrellas nearby to block the sun). Carmen and Maria are colourful green-winged macaws, while Kramer is a lovely dusted pink cockatoo. 

Valentine is another parrot who showed off his wings to us, while Rudy is an African grey parrot who who made wolf whistle sounds to my friend! We tried to teach him wei? in Cantonese but he didn't seem to pick it up!

Picture of the Day: Dragon-in-Waiting

The dragon-in-waiting at Floata Seafood Restaurant

Yesterday we went to a concert put on by the Vancouver Recital Society at the Vancouver Playhouse downtown.

It featured a trio of a pianist, cellist and clarinetist performing works by Gabriel Faure, Johannes Brahms and Ludwig van Beethoven.

After the concert we headed to Floata Seafood Restaurant for an early dinner as it offers free parking and the food portions are generous.

However, when we got there, we were surprised to discover not one, but two banquets being held simultaneously to celebrate the Year of the Dragon. Even though Chinese New Year ended on February 24, some groups are still holding their festivities.

There was even a dragon on poles that was leaning against the wall, waiting to dance around the room held by members of the local kung fu club.

The head waiter was blase when we asked for a table -- he started setting one up at the back of the room of one of the banquets but then changed his mind and took us to the other side, where there was a small room.

In it were stacks of chairs, but a space big enough for six people to dine. So he moved the table over here, throwing a white table cloth over the round table, and a lazy Susan. 

We marvelled at having this mini private room that shielded us from the loud festivities outside -- until the event actually started. We could hear everything because there was a speaker in the room we were in!

Oh well.

The good thing was that we ordered quickly and were served our food before the banquets got started!