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SCMP

We have selected seven Lifestyle stories from the past seven days that resonated with our readers. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. How Chow Yun-fat became one of Hong Kong’s most down-to-earth superstars
For five decades, Chow Yun-fat has been two people. There is the global superstar, and then there is the man Hongkongers simply call “Fat Gor” (Big Brother Fat), the down-to-earth celebrity spotted running marathons, riding the MTR and buses, eating in traditional Hong Kong-style cha chaan teng cafes, and cheerfully taking mobile phone selfies – with his own left hand – with anyone who asks for one.
2. How the Qin dynasty forever changed the Chinese nation in just 15 years

The Qin dynasty was the first unified imperial dynasty of China. It was also one of the shortest. Although its reign, from 221BC to 206BC, only lasted 15 years, the Qin dynasty is widely regarded by Chinese and Western scholars as the beginning of a new age – the Chinese empire – that would prevail until 1911.
3. Hong Kong teen who feeds city’s ‘cardboard grannies’ goes viral on Instagram

The face behind the Instagram account @blesiva_ is a mystery. The 19-year-old university student, known only as Belle for privacy reasons, has gained more than 25,000 followers since she started posting in January. In her viral videos – one has 53,000 likes and nearly 800,000 views – she hands out meals for free to underprivileged elderly people in Hong Kong, such as those working physically laborious jobs outside.
4. What is royal Thai cuisine? The Hua Hin resort serving food fit for a king
How did the royal families of old keep cool in the summer? Many of us have heard of places like the Summer Palace in Beijing, China, and the Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso in Segovia, Spain, where monarchs used to retreat from the heat. However, less mentioned is the Klai Kangwon Palace in Hua Hin, Thailand, which remains in use by the Thai royal family even now. A special type of cuisine is still served to the family during the summer months.
5. ‘We are married!’: Hong Kong stars Terrance Lau and Cecilia Choi wed in Japan

Hong Kong actors Terrance Lau Chun-him and Cecilia Choi Sze-wan announced their marriage on their social media accounts on Tuesday. The celebrity couple, who have been together for five years, tied the knot in an intimate ceremony for their close friends and family in Karuizawa, Japan.
6. Hear from stigmatised groups and ‘unjudge’ at Hong Kong human library event
You have almost certainly visited a library and scanned its neatly ordered rows of books. You are likely familiar with the saying, “Never judge a book by its cover.” A different take on the book library, a human library, aims to raise awareness of mental health issues and reduce stigma.
7. ‘I did not worry’: breast cancer survivor shares her story of love and faith
For Mumbai resident Aarti Pathak, 2021 was memorable for all the wrong reasons. She lost her mother to Covid-19 in June, then, weeks later, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. The economics professor turned writer and editor credits yoga, Ayurveda (traditional Indian medicine) and her deep religious faith for helping her face cancer with calmness, equanimity and grace, enabling her to heal.


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SCMP Highlights

Chow Yun-fat’s journey to stardom, Qin dynasty’s legacy: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Khao chae at Pribpri restaurant at the Devasom Hua Hin Resort in Thailand. A Thai palace cuisine dish, it includes cool, perfumed rice with iced, jasmine-scented water and side dishes such as shrimp paste balls, sweet fried fish, stuffed green peppers wrapped in egg, pork floss and stir-fried preserved radish in coconut milk. Photo: Devasom Hua Hin

Chow Yun-fat at an interview with the Post in 2003. The Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon star can still be found taking the bus in Hong Kong or buying food at his local market, despite his global success. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

An illustration shows the burning of Confucian letters opposing the Legalism of the Qin dynasty under the rule of Qin Shi Huang. The emperor also ordered the execution of hundreds of Confucian scholars by burying them alive. Photo: Bridgeman via Getty Images

“Belle” hands a lunchbox to an elderly woman in Sham Shui Po. The Hong Kong student gives out free meals to underprivileged elderly people and in the city and documents it on Instagram. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Cecilia Choi and Terrance Lau pose for a wedding photo in Japan. The Hong Kong actor couple have been together for five years. Photo: MOM Production

Alcohol ‘increases dementia risk’, Cantonese lessons from a kid: 7 Lifestyle highlights

A chef shows the folding technique for xiaolongbao at A.Wong. Photo: James Gillies


Any amount of alcohol may increase the risk of dementia, according to a new study led by the University of Oxford. Photo: Shutterstock


These Cantonese barbecue dishes were the result of a collaboration between Chinese restaurant Wangs and roast meat specialist Lap Fai-lee for a one-off pop-up in August 2025 to raise funds for Wangs’ Cantonese barbecue oven. Photo: Instagram/@oishinboy

Eight-year-old Aiden Tsang is charming people on Instagram with his Cantonese lessons. Photo: Aiden Tsang

People look at work on display at the contemporary art fair Art & Bali. Photo: Handout

(From left) Michelle Yeoh, Maggie Cheung and Vivian Wu in a still from The Soong Sisters (1997), a Chinese historical epic from Hong Kong director Mabel Cheung. Photo: Handout

Maria Cordero’s Cantopop journey, VTubers find fame in Hong Kong: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Fans wave glowsticks at a screen featuring VTubers Hakos Baelz (left) and Kobo Kanaeru at the Hopewell Hotel Grand Ballroom in Hong Kong, part of the “hololive Meet @ Hong Kong 2025 ft. Hakos Baelz and Kobo Kanaeru” event, on July 27. Photo: Cover via InfiniteOne

Maria Cordero in an interview with the Post in 2014. The Cantopop singer, actor and chef rose to popularity in Hong Kong in the 1980s, but more recently her political outspokenness has made her a polarising figure. Photo: Bruce Yan

Mamoru Hayashi, managing director of the Heichinrou Group, which owns Metropol, chooses dim sum dishes at the Hong Kong restaurant in Admiralty on August 26. Photo: Elson Li

A man sits on a bench on the Tseung Kwan O promenade as waves approach during Super Typhoon Ragasa on September 24. Photo: Elson Li

Hong Kong foodie’s surprise fame, Cantopop’s golden age: 7 Lifestyle highlights

(From left) Beat Friday members Zip Chow, INK and Ballshing at Bing Bing in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Kent Wong, aka Uncle K, at Lok Yuen, a traditional Hong Kong-style cha chaan teng cafe in Kowloon City. The content creator has risen to Instagram fame in recent months with his videos about Hong Kong restaurants. Photo: Sam Tsang


A Paris peacock butterfly is seen at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district. Photo: KFBG

A Chinese oracle bone from the Shang dynasty (1600BC-1046BC) at Hong Kong’s Chinese Culture Festival 2025. Inscriptions on these bones are the most ancient form of written Chinese ever found. Photo: Nora Tam

Carina Lau’s best films, Jolly Roger’s evolution, Seoul Art Week: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Assorted leung gwo from Yiu Fung. Photo: Yue


Hong Kong actress Carina Lau attends the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards presentation ceremony on April 14, 2024. Photo: Sam Tsang

A HK$200 (US$24) preserved plum from Yiu Fung, a third-generation Hong Kong preserved fruit company. Each of the plums is hand-picked, crafted using premium natural ingredients, hand-prepared and sun-dried for 60 days. Photo: Lisa Cam

An activist holds a poster as a flag from the Japanese anime One Piece is displayed during a rally in Jakarta, Indonesia, on September 3, 2025. Photo: AP

Guests enjoy a meal at a Japanese restaurant at Soneva Fushi, which won the Art of Hospitality Award in the World’s 50 Best Hotels 2025 ranking. Photo: Soneva Fushi

Chinese supernatural beings explained, a 30kg weight loss journey: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Tony Leung Chiu-wai in a still from Silent Friend. Photo: Lenke Szilagyi

Gong Li plays Baigujing, or White Bone Spirit, in a still from the 2016 film The Monkey King 2. Jing, or spirits, are living and non-living entities in Chinese culture that, unlike yao (demons), do not only manifest in human form. Photo: Filmko Entertainment

After she started seeing online fitness trainer Sheikh Nadir Siddiquee in 2023, Ashanthi Nandika now weighs 55kg. Photo: Ashanthi Nandika

Chinese actress Xin Zhilei holds the Volpi Cup for best actress for her performance in The Sun Rises on Us All at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. Photo: EPA

Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s character studies a gingko tree in a still from Silent Friend, directed by Ildikó Enyedi. Photo: Lenke Szilagyi

Douglas Bray (centre) competes in the Hyrox challenge in Hong Kong in July. Completing the gruelling race left the cancer survivor feeling “fully recovered” three years after his life-changing surgery. Photo: Douglas Bray

Lifestyle

From a Hong Kong teen feeding the city’s ‘cardboard grannies’ to royal Thai food, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting


From a Hong Kong teen feeding the city’s ‘cardboard grannies’ to royal Thai food, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.


Chow Yun-fat’s journey to stardom, Qin dynasty’s legacy: 7 Lifestyle highlights

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}From a Hong Kong teen feeding the city’s ‘cardboard grannies’ to royal Thai food, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting

1. How Chow Yun-fat became one of Hong Kong’s most down-to-earth superstars

From a Hong Kong teen feeding the city’s ‘cardboard grannies’ to royal Thai food, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting