Remembering Leslie Cheung 23 Years On

The fans and flowers are back. Photo: KJoules

The sad anniversary of Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing's death has come again. It's been 23 years since the singer and actor took his life at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Central on April 1, 2003. 

And the fans are back at the hotel with flowers and messages for their idol. In 2022 police in civilian clothes used the national security law to prevent people from gathering; as a result fans could only take a picture of their flowers in front of the hotel and then leave.

In Vancouver, I still have yet to visit the park bench in Stanley Park that is dedicated to Cheung; his fans gather here with flowers and tributes.

One of his co-stars, actress Joey Wong posted a video on her social media showing her sitting on the bench along with clips from A Chinese Ghost Story that she and Cheung starred in in 1987.  

In the movie, Cheung is scholar Ning Caichen, who takes shelter in a deserted temple in the forest and falls in love with a ghost called Nip Siu-sin, played by Wong.

Wong, who lives in Vancouver, wrote in her social media post: "Even though I haven't spoken about you [all this time], my heart is full of memories."

We're all reflective now, because we all miss Gor Gor...

Canada Back on China's Approved Travel List

Chinese tourists like to visit Vancouver's Stanley Park

Tour companies geared towards Chinese groups are excited that Canada is back on the approved destination status list. 

Chinese tour groups stopped coming to Canada when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020, and relations between China and Canada were on the rocks because of the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and the subsequent detention of the two Michaels, Spavor and Kovrig.

But now that Prime Minister Mark Carney has reset relations with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, there may be some deals in the future, though critics are concerned that human rights violations are being sidelined. 

While Canada is not as large a market as the United States, China is probably keen to divide and conquer North America. Does this mean Chinese electric vehicles in Canada are in the cards? 

In the meantime, we could see the resurgence of Chinese tour groups in Canada as early as Chinese New Year, which is February 17 next year. One tour operator, Glynnis Chan of Happy Times Travel says Chinese groups usually spend six weeks in Canada, visiting places like Vancouver's Stanley Park, the Rocky Mountains and Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and easily dropping $1,300 a day.

"[Monday's] news was like a shot in the arm to the local tourism industry, and I am ready to show them the beauty of the country," she said in an interview with the Canadian Press.

Individual Chinese tourists can travel to Canada, but it's the groups that bring more visitors.

One can only imagine not only tour operators are thrilled, but also Chinese restaurants that used to cater to these tourists will surely be gearing up to welcome them and their hungry stomachs...

Blustery Day on the Seawall

Dramatic windy scenes along the west side of the Seawall

Today was a long day that started with breakfast with an ex-colleague who is in Vancouver for Christmas. We loaded up on brunch at White Spot and then headed downtown to walk around the Seawall at Stanley Park. 

Construction of the Seawall began back in 1917, overseen by master stone mason James Cunningham. But it wasn't until 1980 when the entire loop of the Seawall was declared completed.  

Lions Gate Bridge with busy traffic

Thankfully it wasn't raining in the early afternoon, and by the time we got to the start of the Seawall, the sun came out, along with gorgeous blue skies and fluffy white clouds. The 13km walk started off well, though once we got to the north side of the park it was chilly because the sun wasn't shining in this area. 

By the time we reached underneath Lions Gate Bridge, the temperature became chilly, and powered on to keep warm. Towards the mouth of Burrard Inlet, the wind picked up and I was bent forward as the wind blasted us head on. Even the water crashed onto the walkway, spewing onto the asphalt. We thought we had avoided it and then splash! We were sprayed with seawater. Luckily it wasn't a lot, but it was such a surprise!

From walking around the Seawall we didn't see too much of the trees taken down. About 25 percent of 160,000 of the trees need to be chopped down because they were infested by the hemlock looper moths, a native species. The problem was further exacerbated by drought this summer. Removing the dead and dying trees will cost taxpayers C$4.4 million, but it needs to be done, and other, more resistant trees need to be planted.

Looking out to the Pacific Ocean and the sun

After over two hours, we reached the end of the Seawall at David Street and made the hike up to Burrard to get back to the hotel again.

Needless to say we were exhausted by the time we got back and I promptly closed my eyes for a light nap on a chair! We had walked 16km in total, over 22,000 steps and 1,000 calories spent.

Stanley Park Train Back on Track

The train's route is decorated with numerous lights

Christmas has finally arrived at Stanley Park as corporate donors stepped up to help pay for parts and repairs to the miniature train.

Up until 2019 it was run as a fundraiser for the BC Professional Fire Fighters Burn Fund, but then Covid-19 hit, then there were concerns of coyote attacks in the park, and then numerous repairs needed to be made on the train.

Sim (left) made the announcement today

But this year, with Mayor Ken Sim onboard in City Hall, donors like Beedie Foundation, the Peter and Joanne Brown Foundation, the Diamond Foundation, the Lyall Family, Jeff Stibbard, and The 625 Powell Street Foundation were called and stepped up to chip in.

Sim said the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Park Board were facing "financial constraints" and so the city was "thinking outside the box" when it reached out to these donors to help cover the costs.

"But when we asked they gave us a resounding, 'Hell yeah,'" said Sim, who didn't disclose how much money was raised to repair the train.

So while the money was rolling in, it was a challenge to find parts for the locomotives and track. But with this announcement, things are starting to move again.

The annual fire fighter fundraiser is back this year

This will be not only exciting news for kids who love riding the train and seeing the Christmas lights in Stanley Park, but also for the BC Professional Fire Fighters Burn Fund, who raised most of their funds during this period. One wonders how they survived these past three years.

Now Sim can cross this off his to-do list...

VIFF Review: All Ears

Hu Ge is Wen Shan, an obituary writer

Director Liu Jiayin sent a video message before the screening of her film, All Ears. She apologised for not being able to come because of visa issues, but reminisced that her breakout film Oxhide was shown at the Vancouver International Film Festival, and fondly remembered the trees at Stanley Park.

She thanked Vancouver again for seeing All Ears and wryly hoped that everyone could follow along the subtitles.

Wen Shan struggles to figure out his life

It wasn't too hard to do that -- the dialogue is sparse but meaningful, discussing life and death, and how people want to remember loved ones.

Wen Shan is a failed scriptwriter who makes a living as an obituary writer in Beijing, and is a good one at that. His friend works in the funeral home and refers business to him, and from there has had many people hire him for his literary skills.

After he's written one about a deceased brother, we viewers find out what his work is like -- one sibling will relate their view of events which contradicts another. But in the end, the obituary Wen Shan writes reveals the brother in the best possible light, which is what every family wants to do for the most part.

Another is a businessman whose father has passed but has barely anything to say about him because he barely spent any time with him which is telling, and may represent today's China where some people are so driven to make money that they don't care much about anything else. 

He helps others process the deaths of loved ones

Interestingly the businessman's nine-year-old son has something to contribute to the obituary, a hint to his own father.

Meanwhile, Wen Shan struggles to figure out his own life, nearing 40 years of age and seeing his peers move on and get good jobs, leaving him behind, living on his own in a sparse apartment. He can't admit to his parents what is really going on and finds solace hanging out in the zoo.

He also seems to have a younger man as a roommate, but he turns out to be a character Wen Shan has created, but has been stuck on developing his story.

All Ears is a contemplative look at life, death, how to live one's life and legacy. Director Liu also explained in her video message that she hadn't made films for 10 years and was facing internal struggles in that time, much like the main character. While it is not autobiographical, it is universal. 

All Ears

Directed by Liu Jiayin

Stars Hu Ge, Wu Lei, Xi Qi

112 minutes

The Toll of Global Warming on Stanley Park

This is Beaver Lake in Stanley Park, minus the lake

This afternoon I met up with an ex-colleague who I haven't seen since 2007. He now lives in France and came to Vancouver for a short trip. 

One of his requests was to walk around the Stanley Park Seawall so I helped him cross it off his bucket list. We walked from 4th Avenue and Balsam, across the Burrard Street Bridge, got a bite to eat at the food court in Pacific Centre and then set off to the park.

We almost walked the entire circumference, though he wanted to stay in the shade as much as possible so we cut through part of the park.

This is what Beaver Lake used to look like

He wanted to see Beaver Lake, a place he last visited 13 years ago. But we were shocked to find that it wasn't a lake -- most of the water had evaporated and what was left was a "lake" filled with greenery. 

When we made this remark, a middle-aged woman sitting on the park bench nearby echoed the same sentiment. She'd lived in Vancouver for 50 years, hadn't been to Beaver Lake for a while and decided to come take a look and was as shocked as we were.

We had a discussion about global warming and were dismayed by what had happened to this lake. We could only see a small patch of water off to the side which barely even fit the definition of a pond. There was a lone duck there, enjoying what was left of the water there.

Metro Vancouver has now stepped up to Level 2 water restrictions, which means absolutely no lawn watering, and only the watering of flowers and vegetable patches with a hose. Anyone violating the Level 2 restrictions will be fined C$500. Water elements like fountains cannot be refilled either, which probably applies to Beaver Lake too.

This was the only patch of water we could see

What's shocking is that water usage in Metro Vancouver is up 20 percent -- there couldn't be a 20 percent jump in the population in the past year, could there?

What are people using water for these days? Everyone has been told not to wash their cars with a hose, and to leave their lawns dry. 

But it was quite sad going through Stanley Park to see a lot of dead trees. Granted I didn't know when they turned brown and waiting to fall down, though my friend pointed this out and the sorry state of the yellow grass.

Towards the end of our walk we took a break by the concession stand where I bought two glasses of lemonade for over C$13, seriously equivalent to Hong Kong prices. As we sat cooling down with our cold drinks, I was shocked to see a young woman next to us, wasting her bottle of water by dumping part of it on the ground and not behind her on the parched grass. She did it in an attempt to pour her lemonade into the bottle, with limited success.

A lone duck in the "lake" of Beaver Lake

Why are people wasting water like that?!

In the end we walked over 16km around the city and my friend was pleased we'd accomplished so much walking.

He was impressed I'd managed to keep going in the heat and I remarked it might have been from all those days walking in the heat in Hong Kong...

Cyclists Angry Stanley Park Bike Lane Will be Removed

Temporary bike lane in Stanley Park was voted to be removed

Back in chilly Vancouver, where the snow from a few days ago still has frozen into ice and still hasn't melted, though rain may come late tomorrow.

The big story today was tonight's Vancouver Parks Board vote on whether to remove the temporary bike lane in Stanley Park and it's a contentious issue for cyclists, pedestrians and motorists. 

Described as the city's "jewel", the urban park has a bike and pedestrian path that is 13km long in circumference. This is great for leisurely bike users and pedestrians to avoid getting into crosshairs with cars.

The bike lane created headaches for drivers

About two years ago during the pandemic, one of the two car lanes was turned into a temporary bike lane which made it easier for cyclists to commute through the park. 

The action resulted in joy for cyclists, and frustration from drivers, as it immediately led to a massive traffic jam in the park, and it led to many not visiting Stanley Park anymore.

However now with the recent municipal election last month which voted in a new Park Board stacked with ABC Vancouver commissioners, tonight they voted 6-1 to return to the two-car lane in Stanley Park. 

City park board commissioners have asked city staff to come up with a permanent cycling plan for the park by the spring.

The lone vote against was Green Party commissioner Peter Digby, who criticised ABC for not putting this divisive issue in its election platform, and only brought forward the motion after being elected into office.

The city will come up with a permanent bike lane

"It's been such a victory to have this bike lane," he said. "Driveability is not the hallmark of a world-class park."

While the motion asks city staff to "immediately restore the pre-Covid traffic and parking configuration in Stanley Park in time for the upcoming December 2022 peak holiday season".

Reaction from cyclists has been swift. Jeff Leigh is the president of the non-profit group Hub Cycling, said the vote result was "very unfortunate".

"There are many things that could be done to improve the bike lane, but to pull it out on a faint hope of reinstalling it, we think is a poor decision," he said.

We will have to wait and see what the city staff come up with in terms of a permanent plan for cyclists. In the meantime those who voted for ABC Vancouver hoping for the change they wanted may now be frustrated this was not the change they wanted. They are stuck with this super majority in city hall and the park board for the next four years...