https://www.scmp.com/rss/327076/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com You know summer is here when, at the gym, you see a sudden influx of men hoping to make gains in what little time is left, and women looking to shape their perfect beach bodies, fuelled by social approval for staying fit. For women, praise turns into criticism when you become too muscular by Hong Kong standards. Never mind that strength training has proven health benefits, and having a poor body image impacts mental health: a recent poll of some 4,500 respondents by the Mental Health Foundation... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3014653/want-some-muscles-ladies-never-mind-naysayers-just-do-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3014653/want-some-muscles-ladies-never-mind-naysayers-just-do-it?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Jun 2019 10:16:10 +0000 Fish are friends – not just food. That is the message marine researcher Stan Shea Kwok-ho, 36, hopes will hit home with Hongkongers. “We recognise the need to protect endangered terrestrial species, but tend to associate fish and marine animals with seafood,” says Shea, who is a programme director at Bloom Association, a local marine conservation NGO. “We have a birdwatching society, for example, but none for fish. That is one reason why I’m interested in marine conservation.” There are more... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3013608/hong-kong-marine-life-under-valued-says-bloom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3013608/hong-kong-marine-life-under-valued-says-bloom?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Jun 2019 02:15:14 +0000 Backstage at the Eaton Hotel in Jordan, models and performers are getting ready for Saturday’s Harmony Show – a colourful showcase of fashion, music and dance. These men and women may hail from Nepal, Indian, Pakistan, Nigeria, Thailand and other countries, but they share one thing in common: they all live in Hong Kong. “Diversity is not appreciated here. As a model of colour, I’ve been told I’m ‘too dark’. But it’s not just my problem – other ethnic minorities in the fashion industry go through... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3012607/adventist-college-student-hoping-bring-harmony-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3012607/adventist-college-student-hoping-bring-harmony-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jun 2019 03:45:11 +0000 How often would you say “no” to plastic disposables such as straws, bags, bottles and takeaway boxes? Two local groups are calling on Hongkongers to do just that on May 30 as part of their “Enough Plastic” education campaign. The initiative, run by non-profit organisation EcoDrive and think tank New Youth Energy HK, aims to encourage the reduction of unnecessary waste and consumption of single-use plastics in the city. In 2017, Hong Kong dumped more than 10,700 tonnes of municipal solid waste at... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011604/hongkongers-urged-say-no-straws-bags-and-other?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011604/hongkongers-urged-say-no-straws-bags-and-other?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 May 2019 06:00:08 +0000 Karen Lo Cheuk-hang was a rising swimming star when she quit the Hong Kong team in 2006 at the age of 17. At the time, she could not figure out why her competition results were so disappointing. “I was always unable to sleep and eat well before a competition, and sometimes I would make excuses to avoid competing,” said Lo, now 30. “So, even when I performed well in training, I was unable to achieve good results in international meets. After a while, I just couldn’t see a point in continuing.” Lo... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011668/former-hong-kong-elite-swimmer-now-offers-winning?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011668/former-hong-kong-elite-swimmer-now-offers-winning?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 May 2019 05:00:15 +0000 Wu Xiaoping did not have a good night’s sleep during the three years she spent with her teenage daughter in an 80 sq ft subdivided flat in Aberdeen, Hong Kong. “There were always strange men lurking around, giving us looks. And whenever they smoked, it was suffocating,” recalls Wu, 51. Everything they needed to get by was crammed into their tiny space: a bed, bathroom facilities and a stove. There were days when the air conditioner malfunctioned, and the two would sit up in bed, unable to sleep... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011609/dont-leave-burden-social-housing-hong-kongs-ngos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3011609/dont-leave-burden-social-housing-hong-kongs-ngos?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 May 2019 00:00:08 +0000 When his doctor told him that the sharp pain in his back was stage four lung cancer, Rocky Yiu, 57, could not bring himself to ask how long he had left to live. “It felt pointless asking because they practically gave me a death sentence,” he says. Five years on, Yiu’s battle continues, aided by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which he believes has helped slow the spread of the disease. The number of people diagnosed with cancer in Hong Kong is increasing every year, partly due to an ageing... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010251/its-not-about-choosing-sides-how-blending-western?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010251/its-not-about-choosing-sides-how-blending-western?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 May 2019 02:00:13 +0000 Forced to retire early in 2012 after running into problems at work, Pius Leung Kwok-kwong, then 48, spent the following three months in isolation. “Everyone was at work, so nobody had time to chat,” the former workplace trainer recalls. Married without children, Leung’s relationship with his wife, who works in the financial sector, soon hit a rough patch because she felt helpless about his lack of direction. He spent most of his time at home, watching television, and trying to decide whether to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010626/when-retirement-not-rosy-empty-nest-syndrome-idle?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3010626/when-retirement-not-rosy-empty-nest-syndrome-idle?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 May 2019 00:00:11 +0000 Sukhdeep Singh, 23, is used to getting stares. “It’s because I’m so handsome,” he says, chuckling. At nearly 1.9 metres, Singh naturally stands out from most Hongkongers, but he believes his height is not the only reason he is considered different. “Some people who assume I don’t understand Cantonese would comment on my turban in front of me, and on the MTR, people would rather squeeze themselves into more crowded rows than take the empty seats next to me.” Singh is a final-year medical student... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3009452/sikh-hongkonger-wants-change-attitudes-towards-ethnic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3009452/sikh-hongkonger-wants-change-attitudes-towards-ethnic?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 May 2019 04:00:25 +0000 A howl breaks the silence surrounding the High Island Reservoir in Sai Kung. It is not by any wild animal though, but by Jasmine Nunns, a forest therapy guide, calling to her participants – or “forest bathers”. “Forest bathing offers a break from city life. Listening to the sound of birds is not like listening to traffic and people. It’s about reconnecting with our bodies, and other people,” says Nunns, 33, founder of Kembali, a group that offers nature and forest therapy walks, as well as... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008767/forest-bathing-way-escape-hong-kongs-stifling?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008767/forest-bathing-way-escape-hong-kongs-stifling?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 May 2019 05:00:09 +0000 Thai national Ann Bang On Leung fell in love with Hong Kong while on holiday in the city in the late 1970s. “Hong Kong was such a cosmopolitan city with convenient public transport,” recalls Leung, who comes from a family of farmers in a village in Phichit, central Thailand. In 1980, 30-year-old Leung found a way to Tung Tau Estate, a public housing estate in Kowloon City, through an arranged marriage to a local policeman. “He didn’t know how to speak Thai, and I couldn’t speak Cantonese, but it... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3008776/i-cant-eat-spicy-anymore-hong-kongs-thai-community-look-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3008776/i-cant-eat-spicy-anymore-hong-kongs-thai-community-look-back?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 May 2019 00:15:08 +0000 Fion Leung Ka-po and Wong Suet-yi were financial sector workers when they embarked on a very different path more than five years ago over a piping hot dinner of wonton noodles. Realising they both wanted richer life experiences, their self-searching journey would eventually lead them to set up a unique charity that allows people to trade volunteer hours with “inspiring” opportunities such as meeting prominent business leaders. Leung, now 31, had joined a bank as a graduate trainee but realised... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3007428/clock-volunteer-hours-chance-meet-business-leaders-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3007428/clock-volunteer-hours-chance-meet-business-leaders-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Apr 2019 04:21:12 +0000 Hong Kong is the sixth most environmentally friendly place in the Asia-Pacific region, lagging behind some of its neighbours, according to an international consumer research group. ValueChampion compiled its findings based on publicly available data on 13 cities and countries in the region to determine which places generate less pollution and plastic waste, while adopting renewable energy technologies, preserving green space and encouraging public transport. The city came behind Japan,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3006944/hong-kong-sixth-out-13-asia-pacific-green?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3006944/hong-kong-sixth-out-13-asia-pacific-green?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Apr 2019 04:00:15 +0000 Dutch photographer Saskia Wesseling is no stranger to achieving the right balance in her craft – but, lately, she has been searching for a different kind of balance. For the past year, she has been trying to enrol her 11-year-old daughter in a secondary school in Hong Kong. During an interview at an international school, her daughter was asked how many medals she had won, and how many hours she had dedicated to charity work. “My children are not tutoring every day, so they’re not as advanced... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005949/crushing-creativity-photographer-turns-focus-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3005949/crushing-creativity-photographer-turns-focus-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Apr 2019 01:00:15 +0000 Chan put on his security guard uniform a decade ago, and remembers it being a struggle. “I thought the job was for retirees and people who just want an easy way out,” says Chan, whose company would not allow him to reveal his full name. He was just over 50 when he lost his job at the publishing plant where he had worked for years, and felt there was no choice but to become a security guard. Chan’s story is not unique. Many security guards had other careers, often in the disciplinary forces or in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3005933/thankless-task-someone-hong-kong-has-do-it-meet-men-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3005933/thankless-task-someone-hong-kong-has-do-it-meet-men-and?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Apr 2019 00:00:13 +0000 Two Cathay Pacific pilots are on the run – a rice run. Earlier in March, Australians Glen Clarke and Matthew Brockman kicked off a crowdfunding campaign to raise HK$10,000 (US$1,270) to buy rice for Feeding Hong Kong, a local charity that rescues edible food from producers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers, and redistributes it to other charities. After raising the same amount for two Australian foundations in 2017 and 2018, Clarke and Brockman decided it was time to give back to Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003802/meet-cathay-pacific-pilots-raising-money-buy-rice-charity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003802/meet-cathay-pacific-pilots-raising-money-buy-rice-charity?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Mar 2019 02:00:07 +0000 Nestled among green, rolling hills in a quiet corner of Tai Po, Hong Kong, a towering bronze-cast statue of Guanyin, the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy, seems almost aglow in celestial white as it looms over a lavish but quiet monastery. At 76 metres (250 feet) in height, the statue is one of the tallest of its kind in the world, its grandeur rivalled only by the sprawling 500,000 sq ft Tsz Shan Monastery it watches over. This is all financed from the coffers of Li Ka-shing, the city’s richest... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003835/why-new-buddhist-museum-hk3-billion-li-ka-shing-funded?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3003835/why-new-buddhist-museum-hk3-billion-li-ka-shing-funded?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Mar 2019 00:00:08 +0000 Single mother Baby Jane Allas left her five children in Palawan, the Philippines in late 2017 to become a domestic worker in Hong Kong. “It wasn’t difficult,” she says. “Not being able to put them through school was harder.” Today, 38-year-old Allas faces another hurdle: stage-three cervical cancer. Her access to affordable public health care and entitlement to live in Hong Kong were cut off when her employer dismissed her last month, shortly after Allas was diagnosed. Allas’ employer handed her... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3002882/filipinos-cancer-ordeal-underlines-precarious-status?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3002882/filipinos-cancer-ordeal-underlines-precarious-status?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Mar 2019 00:00:12 +0000 The trick to getting rid of the stench, toilet cleaner Mei says, is to use one part bleach to two parts water. Splashing the potent mix everywhere is the first thing she does when she starts work each morning. “I’ve been told not to use this much bleach because it’s bad for health, but how else would you get rid of the smell?” the 69-year-old grandmother asks. Mei, who prefers not to give her full name, has been cleaning a public toilet in Happy Valley for almost five years. She works for one of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2189160/hong-kongs-lowly-paid-elderly-toilet-cleaners?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2189160/hong-kongs-lowly-paid-elderly-toilet-cleaners?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Mar 2019 00:04:39 +0000 Three weeks into his new job as a graduate trainee, Adriel Tjokrosaputro overslept. At 10am, he made a frantic call to his supervisor at a commercial real estate company to explain the situation. “I told him I don’t get any sunlight in my cabin, which was why I didn’t know it was already daytime,” the 25-year-old recalls. For less than HK$3,500 (US$450) a month, the Indonesian rents a windowless bed space in Mong Kok. Measuring about two metres in length, one metre across and one metre in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2187375/why-more-young-people-are-opting-co-living-spaces-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2187375/why-more-young-people-are-opting-co-living-spaces-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Feb 2019 00:02:47 +0000 Kitchee striker Yuto Nakamura considers himself a Hongkonger, and has the SAR passport to prove it; last October, he gave up his Japanese citizenship to take Chinese nationality in Hong Kong. As a growing number of young Hongkongers aspire for new lives in far-flung places, the 32-year-old professional soccer player believes Hong Kong is the place to be. “I am proud of Hong Kong. I hope Hongkongers can be proud of their city, too,” he says. Hong Kong has given him the opportunity to play soccer... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2186242/japanese-soccer-player-yuto-nakamura-hopes-bring-his-adopted?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2186242/japanese-soccer-player-yuto-nakamura-hopes-bring-his-adopted?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Feb 2019 04:00:52 +0000 Vaping could soon be all but banned in Hong Kong. Under a change to the law set to face its first reading at the Legislative Council next Wednesday, anyone who imports, makes, sells or promotes new smoking products, including e-cigarettes, could be jailed for six months or fined HK$50,000 (US$6,370). It will still be legal for the 5,700 Hongkongers who, according to a 2017 government survey, vape daily, to use the products, even if their supply will be completely outlawed. The research we have... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2186361/e-cigarettes-facing-hong-kong-ban-healthy-way-quit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2186361/e-cigarettes-facing-hong-kong-ban-healthy-way-quit?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Feb 2019 00:02:39 +0000 Jia Jia is back in her hometown of Zhuji, Zhejiang province, for week-long Lunar New Year celebrations. She may not be able to help much with preparations — the traditional art of making savoury egg rolls is lost on her — but she has been looking forward to the firecrackers at her grandmother’s countryside home. “It’s the most important time of the year,” says the 29-year-old, who wanted to be identified by her nickname. Jia Jia works at a recruitment firm in Hong Kong and flies home once every... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2185471/mainland-chinese-hong-kong-drifters-allure-becoming-permanent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2185471/mainland-chinese-hong-kong-drifters-allure-becoming-permanent?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Feb 2019 04:16:53 +0000 At first glance, Vincent Li Pok looks like your average 33-year-old Hongkonger, sporting a neat undercut, blue shirt and khakis. But as he introduces the history of Sunbeam Theatre in North Point to participants on a Touch Journey community tour, he speaks and walks a little slower than most. Li was born with cerebral palsy, a neurological condition which affects muscle movements. Growing up, he was concerned that his disability would prevent him finding a job. But through working at social... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2185435/disabled-hong-kong-tour-guides-get-creative-building-careers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2185435/disabled-hong-kong-tour-guides-get-creative-building-careers?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Feb 2019 03:01:41 +0000 January has been a busy month for undertaker Ogden Chan Yan. “It’s peak season for us because more people are dying due to the fickle weather, and many families don’t want to wait until after the Lunar New Year to bury their dead,” the 36-year-old says. Rows of cardboard boxes containing the ashes of his clients’ loved ones line the shelves of Chan’s shop in Hung Hom. His clients have left the ashes for safekeeping until their deceased are assigned columbarium niches. Chan reckons there are... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2183649/hong-kong-undertaker-every-working-day-matter-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2183649/hong-kong-undertaker-every-working-day-matter-life?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jan 2019 01:03:55 +0000 Life was put on hold for Hongkonger Phan Thanh Vinh when he was diagnosed with heart failure at the age of 17. “It was an awkward phase because I hadn’t completed my education or thought about a career. I didn’t even have the energy to play video games to pass the time,” says Phan, now 22. The son of Vietnamese parents, Phan underwent multiple operations early in life for his congenital heart condition, allowing him to grow up relatively normally. But during the summer before he started Form... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2183646/how-save-life-low-number-registered-donors-it-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2183646/how-save-life-low-number-registered-donors-it-time?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jan 2019 00:03:29 +0000 Budding moviemaker Victor Leung Man-kit thought he had ruined his chances of developing a career in film production when he stopped receiving orders from his boss. Leung, 20, admits it was his fault: “I would stay up all night even when I knew I had an important assignment the following day. I would also sleep on the job.” It would be a year before he would manage to turn his attitude around. He joined the production company as a freelance assistant after backing out of a diploma programme in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2182523/hong-kong-filmmaker-overcomes-troubled-childhood-release?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2182523/hong-kong-filmmaker-overcomes-troubled-childhood-release?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Jan 2019 03:01:37 +0000 Hauling large bags of plastic food packaging, egg cartons, polystyrene trays and other recyclable garbage, residents of Sai Ying Pun wait patiently as volunteers sort the items into their respective bins: six for plastics, and several more for paper and metals. “If it breaks, it’s probably Type Six plastic. If it doesn’t, it’s probably Type Five,” says Tam Kwok-sun as he bends an unmarked, single-use plastic spoon. The 63-year-old retired teacher is one of around half a dozen volunteers at... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2181738/frustrated-governments-recycling-services-hongkongers-are?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2181738/frustrated-governments-recycling-services-hongkongers-are?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 12 Jan 2019 00:00:00 +0000 At an e-sports tournament in Hong Kong’s D2 Place mall in Lai Chi Kok, players are locked in on the action on their computer screens, as they signal teammates decked out in headsets in a strategy to survive the “Battlegrounds”. Amid the sound of gunfire and roaring explosions, it is easy to overlook the nature of some of the gamers as their hands blaze across mouse controls and keyboards – they are retirees in their 50s to 70s. The eight unlikely players – fighting alongside younger peers – are... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2180695/game-enough-try-something-new-e-sports-give-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2180695/game-enough-try-something-new-e-sports-give-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 05 Jan 2019 03:03:32 +0000 On the rooftop of a Hong Kong shopping mall, 12-year-old Alice (not her real name) took her first shot of vodka, with her 15-year-old schoolmates egging her on. “I felt cool, pretty and attractive,” she recalls. “I felt amazing.” Now 26, Alice admits she did it so her older friends would think she was “cool” like them. Booze fuelled the weekends that followed. Alice would tell her parents she was sleeping over at a friend’s home, where they would secretly get drunk on liquor stolen from her... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2180637/hong-kong-doing-enough-stem-alcoholism-among-citys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2180637/hong-kong-doing-enough-stem-alcoholism-among-citys?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 05 Jan 2019 00:04:58 +0000 For the past seven years, dimly lit internet cafes in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong’s poorest district, were homes to 50-year-old Hung (not his real name). He spent every evening browsing the web at such establishments for movies and songs of the 80s, before hunkering down for the night. “These songs and films remind me of the better days of my youth. Without them, I’ve got nothing but painful memories,” he says. As a young man in his 20s, Hung developed a gambling problem. At the time, he had lost... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2178965/hk55-night-hong-kongs-invisible-homeless-or-working-poor-turn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2178965/hk55-night-hong-kongs-invisible-homeless-or-working-poor-turn?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Dec 2018 04:00:28 +0000 Len Chui Hin-chun would not be caught dead chowing down on chicken: the 22-year-old Hong Kong bodybuilder is completely plant-powered, and proud. Last month Chui won the men’s physique category at the International Natural Bodybuilding Association’s Natural Olympia in Las Vegas. It was a career-defining victory that enables him to compete alongside professional bodybuilders in future shows. “It was surreal,” he says. “I’m glad that I’m able to show people that you can become muscular and strong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2179075/hong-kong-bodybuilding-champ-len-chui-out-prove?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2179075/hong-kong-bodybuilding-champ-len-chui-out-prove?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Dec 2018 03:00:58 +0000 Bus driver Lee Chun-ming remembers the day he worked almost 24 hours non-stop. It was a particularly busy day during the peak travel season, and he started driving his tour bus at 4am, stopping at several hotels to pick up tourists to take to the airport. He did three more round trips between the airport and hotels, a couple of sightseeing and shopping trips in between, and did not get his 45-minute break until 6.30pm. Then he took a group to the Peak Tram station on Garden Road and sent them... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/2178107/long-hours-difficult-customers-unequal-pay-and-few-toilet?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/2178107/long-hours-difficult-customers-unequal-pay-and-few-toilet?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Dec 2018 00:03:49 +0000 Navigating Mai Po nature reserve in Hong Kong’s Deep Bay may be a walk in the park for most visitors, but for those who are not as able-bodied, touring the migratory bird haven could be challenging. To address these obstacles, conservation body WWF Hong Kong, which manages the nature reserve, began upgrading some of the park’s facilities three years ago as part of its “Nature with No Barriers” project. The aim is to make such areas more accessible and inclusive. Data from the Census and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2176259/wwf-hong-kongs-mission-ensure-visit-mai-po-nature-reserve?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2176259/wwf-hong-kongs-mission-ensure-visit-mai-po-nature-reserve?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Dec 2018 03:00:39 +0000 In a sleepy Hong Kong village, a property with a lush, European-inspired veranda peeks out from a row of concrete houses. Its tenant is cafe owner Nicole Ip Yan-lan, affectionately known to locals as Mrs Wong. The delights on Ip’s menu do not come with price tags – her guests are free to donate however much they please for meals and drinks. “I hope people will come here to relax and find a listening ear, or a shoulder to cry on. Food and drinks are just a side business,” the 57-year-old says. A... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2176813/counselling-cafe-out-beat-self-imposed-constraints?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2176813/counselling-cafe-out-beat-self-imposed-constraints?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Dec 2018 02:02:06 +0000 Slim, bendy, and with a following of almost 120,000 on Facebook, Mona Chan Man-lai is what most people would consider a fitness guru. But you won’t see her showing off her curves in trendy workout clothes or sipping expensive teas reputed to aid weight loss. For 63-year-old Chan, being a fitness instructor is about connecting with people, and giving back. For the past two years, Chan has been teaching classes at public parks across Hong Kong – for free. “Nothing gives me greater fulfilment than... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2175816/meet-63-year-old-fitness-guru-thousands-hongkongers-swear-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2175816/meet-63-year-old-fitness-guru-thousands-hongkongers-swear-and?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Dec 2018 04:33:56 +0000 The first time Dean met up with a friend after coming out as HIV-positive, he was greeted with a gloved hand. “I was like: ‘Why are you wearing gloves? It’s not like we’re eating fried chicken!’” says the 26-year-old, who prefers to go only by his first name. The friend was worried about catching the virus from merely interacting with Dean. Instead of getting upset, Dean told his friend that the virus that causes Aids is transmitted in specific ways, such as through sexual contact and blood... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2175682/how-emotional-toll-hiv-and-aids-patients-largely?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2175682/how-emotional-toll-hiv-and-aids-patients-largely?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Dec 2018 00:32:09 +0000 Veteran paramedic Li Wai-keung recalls the time his crew was called out to a bus terminus at Deep Water Bay. “There were four teenagers and one of them said he had an upset stomach, so after assessing his condition, we put him in the ambulance to take him to hospital,” says the former principal ambulance man. “But before I could even get into the vehicle, his three friends climbed in.” According to protocol, only one family member or friend is allowed to accompany a patient in an... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2174754/hong-kongs-ambulance-services-are-busier-ever?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2174754/hong-kongs-ambulance-services-are-busier-ever?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Nov 2018 00:30:58 +0000 Good teachers make great business leaders as they feel a responsibility to nurture others who are better than themselves and know when to step aside, said Alibaba executive vice-chairman Joe Tsai as he rallied fresh graduates at the Education University of Hong Kong on Friday. Speaking to hundreds of students and guests at the graduation ceremony, Tsai encouraged the youngsters to be optimistic about the future and “always seize that teaching moment to make others better”. Tsai, who was giving a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2173674/stay-optimistic-despite-us-china-trade-war-and-nurture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2173674/stay-optimistic-despite-us-china-trade-war-and-nurture?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Nov 2018 14:46:05 +0000 To many, Hong Kong bodybuilder Siufung Law Wan-ling may have transcended boundaries when she scored a tournament win in her sport by beating typically bigger white opponents who pack more muscle, paving the way for her to go up against the pros. But for Law, a teaching assistant at the University of Hong Kong, her greatest victory in the sport is coming to terms with how she perceives gender – because, to her, muscles are genderless. Born a woman, Law is forced to compete in bodybuilding events... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172490/muscles-are-genderless-how-bodybuilding-has-helped?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172490/muscles-are-genderless-how-bodybuilding-has-helped?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Nov 2018 02:33:21 +0000 Aaron Wong Yiu-leung, 33, who was born deaf, has lived in a silent world all his life. At 18, he dropped out of vocational school. Although he is proficient in sign language, having learned it from his parents who are also deaf, it was rarely used in classrooms, and he just could not keep up with his peers as he struggled with lip-reading his teachers. For the next seven years, Wong worked odd jobs in restaurants and garages. “I thought: ‘This is it. This is the best I can do for the rest of my... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172484/dont-silence-sign-language-call-dying-medium-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172484/dont-silence-sign-language-call-dying-medium-be?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Nov 2018 00:31:11 +0000 As a primary school student, Jason Li Mau-wah could not keep still while his classmates sat and listened attentively in class. He would entertain himself at the back of the classroom by playing, moving around and drawing on the floor. “My teachers had given up on me,” says Li, now 36. When he was eight, Li was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). An audit report published earlier this year showed that one in three pupils in Hong Kong aged eight or older were identified... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2171293/lack-institutional-support-has-failed-hong-kongs-special?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2171293/lack-institutional-support-has-failed-hong-kongs-special?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Nov 2018 02:15:33 +0000 About a year ago, they seemed to be everywhere in Hong Kong – tourists holding signs on the streets asking for donations to fund their round-the-world trips. Dubbed “begpackers”, they were on footbridges, outside train stations, and on busy pavements busking, selling knick-knacks or simply holding a note asking for money to support their wanderlust. The trend, which is also growing worldwide and has popped up in neighbouring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia, has sparked controversy, with... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2170379/would-you-give-them-money-travel-rise-and-fall-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2170379/would-you-give-them-money-travel-rise-and-fall-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 Oct 2018 04:31:42 +0000 Angel Wong Yeuk-sze, 48, was on the phone with her doctor when she froze mid-conversation as news of her diagnosis hit her – it was cancer. “I was silent for so long that he thought I’d hung up on him,” recalls the project manager, who about one year ago, was told she had stage one breast cancer. Although her condition was in its early stages, her cancer was HER2-positive, said to be the most aggressive form of breast cancer. This meant unlike many early-stage breast cancer victims, who may only... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2170206/can-hong-kong-embrace-new-way-fight-cancer-try?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2170206/can-hong-kong-embrace-new-way-fight-cancer-try?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 Oct 2018 01:33:46 +0000 The annual CCB (Asia) Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival, which opened to the public on Thursday, is expected to draw more tourists from across the border this year following the launch of the world’s longest sea-crossing bridge linking the city to mainland China. Organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the event, marking its 10th anniversary at the Central harbourfront, is set to draw 140,000 visitors, with tourists making up at least 10 per cent of the number. “With the opening of the Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/2170241/140000-visitors-expected-biggest-hong-kong-wine-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/2170241/140000-visitors-expected-biggest-hong-kong-wine-and?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Oct 2018 12:46:49 +0000 Their painted faces belie the focus in their eyes. Sleeves flicking, heads tilting, the young Cantonese opera stars revel in applause. But these are no professionals – they are students of the Cha Duk Chang Children’s Cantonese Opera Association, a charity dedicated to promoting the ancient art among Hong Kong’s youth. Every week professional instructors take time out to teach pupils from kindergarten to Primary Six everything from singing and gestures to stretching and martial arts. Parents... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2169412/cantonese-opera-script-based-video-game-hong-kong-charity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2169412/cantonese-opera-script-based-video-game-hong-kong-charity?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Oct 2018 04:18:03 +0000 When Mandy Chan Man-yee returned to work at a law firm after her maternity leave in May, she was asked to step down from her position as legal secretary to be a receptionist instead. “It hit me hard,” the mother of a 3½-year-old boy and a seven-month-old girl said. “After all, I’d spent the last eight years establishing my career as a legal secretary at the firm.” Chan, 31, said her supervisors hinted that if she did not do as she was told, she would be let go. She resigned. When Chan first... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2169295/despite-coming-changes-hong-kong-mothers-still-face-uphill?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2169295/despite-coming-changes-hong-kong-mothers-still-face-uphill?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Oct 2018 00:00:30 +0000 Ask anyone in Hong Kong what Chung Yeung Festival is, and chances are you may hear the question: “Isn’t it like Ching Ming Festival?” Yes – and no. Like Ching Ming, Chung Yeung, also known as the Double Ninth Festival, is indeed time for ancestor worship. But it is also when people head for higher ground to ward off negative energy and wish for longevity. In Hong Kong, it can mean a busy day for firefighters, as irresponsible incense burning during tomb sweeping, coupled with the dry, autumn... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2168089/hill-fires-and-mythical-swordsman-chung-yeung?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2168089/hill-fires-and-mythical-swordsman-chung-yeung?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Oct 2018 04:01:04 +0000 In Victoria Park, an elderly man, visibly annoyed, spits a mouthful of water at a flock of feeding pigeons. He turns to sisters Gian and Inez and snaps at them: “The reason they’re here defecating and spreading germs all over the place is because people like you feed them!” The man, who declined to give his name, then takes a fresh mouthful of water before launching another attack on the birds. Inez says this outburst is relatively mild, adding that she has seen people pour boiling water over... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2168286/hong-kong-sisters-spearhead-pigeon-rescues-face?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2168286/hong-kong-sisters-spearhead-pigeon-rescues-face?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Oct 2018 02:04:31 +0000 Better known among Hongkongers by its pet name “ding ding”, the tram is one of the earliest forms of public transport in the city. And it’s not your average tourist attraction: economical and arriving at frequent intervals, the tram remains the travel mode of choice for many – even after 114 years. Hop on as the Post takes you on a ride back to where this love affair started, and why there seems to be no sign of stopping. How did it all start? In the 1880s, continuous population and economic... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2167214/hong-kongs-century-old-love-affair-trams-track-record?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2167214/hong-kongs-century-old-love-affair-trams-track-record?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Oct 2018 02:18:53 +0000