Drink-drive party crawl to a gourmand's delight
The Christmas decorations are starting to look tired and the kids are already bored with the toys they received as presents. You know what that means: time to refocus on New Year's Eve. Of course, it doesn't always have to be a big blowout. Sometimes different is good. Here are some prominent Hongkongers with what they recall as their most memorable Christmas and New Year holidays.
Four years ago, many of my friends and old classmates from overseas all came back to Hong Kong to celebrate New Year, so we literally had something like five or six parties going on. I was with three of my closest friends and one drove. There was not always a car park in the building, so sometimes we had to park somewhere else, like in a public park and so on. When we got out of the first party, it was okay since we were still very much sane and sober. Then we got out of the second party - it was fine too but it took us a bit longer to find our car. By the third party, we simply didn't know where our car was. We kept looking and looking but no luck. So you had four guys who were so drunk, we couldn't even walk straight, looking for hours for a car. Then one of us woke up a bit and suddenly remembered that we didn't park in the car park but on the street. It was funny. Of course our party tour didn't stop until dawn. But I should say to all drivers, never drink if you know that you will be driving.
Louie Castro, singer
It was New Year's Eve at my old place, Cubana in Mid-Levels. From about 7pm on December 31, the place was fully booked, with around 80 reservations. Party favours were on the table, mojitos were being prepared, the place was decorated like a Cuban carnival and guests began to arrive. The party was going well when the last table of 18 showed up in formal attire. They claimed they had reserved for a business dinner and asked if we could turn off the music, turn up the lights and give them the use of the microphone with the room in silence. My staff were totally gobsmacked, confused to say the least. Over the PA system came: 'Happy birthday, Timothy, and a happy New Year to all.' The music went up, the lights down, to the relief of everyone. Then the party continued into the small hours. Did I know anything about the last joke of the year? No.
Jean-Paul Gauci, restaurateur
In the past two years, I have had these crazy New Year countdowns/celebration parties with my model friends where we would do crazy make-up to match with the theme chosen by some of us. Last year we had gold as the theme and some guys arrived with their hair painted gold and their bodies painted also in gold. It was really hilarious. Honestly, some of them literally looked like those Oscar statues. However, I think what really makes every New Year's Eve memorable is just having your loved one by your side because the countdown not only symbolises we have been with each other in the past year but that, holding our hands tight, we are moving forward and looking to the future too. It is a very sweet moment.
Mikki Yao, model
I am a big fan of New Year's Eve and last year was my favourite so far. As usual, everyone was planning to go to big parties at cool places. My fianc?e (now husband) Nikolas expected us to hit the town too. But at 2pm in the afternoon I decided I just didn't feel like getting all dressed up and mingling. Instead, I had a brainwave. Nikolas was completely baffled when I said: 'Let's go to Disneyland. Now. The two of us.' So we bundled up excitedly like children, with scarfs, hats and boots. I'm a huge Disney fan. I just think it's like entering a fairytale. There was Christmas music, all my favourite animal characters, fake snow blowing and a huge fireworks show at midnight to music as we slurped hot chocolates with marshmallows. Everyone was so happy and clapping and dancing on the main street. The atmosphere was electric. There were no cabs so we hopped on the MTR with other park visitors still singing songs together and blowing our paper trumpets together. By 12.45am we were back home and snuggled in bed with the cats. The next day I woke up ready to start my New Year resolutions (every year it's to go to the gym more) while everyone I knew was nursing their hangovers.
Kelly England, beauty consultant
My most memorable was my first New Year's Eve at Les Amis in Singapore, cooking up an incredibly reasonable New Year's Eve gourmet dinner. It was 1994 and for S$1,000 (HK$5,517), diners got to wine and dine on top ingredients like caviar and black and white truffles, complemented by expensive wine from legendary Bordeaux vineyards such as Latour, Krug and Chateau d'Yquem. It was a steal. But my dream New Year holiday would be a getaway to Paris. I love its cold weather and atmosphere.
Justin Quek, chef of Whisk and The French Window
