https://www.scmp.com/rss/5329/feed Mark Sharp joined the Post in 1996 as a business news editor, and has since held roles including production editor and deputy chief of the former Bangkok bureau. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com What is this place? Across the Ping river from Chiang Mai’s old walled city, in northern Thailand, this luxury boutique hotel is steeped in history, evoking the bygone era of colonial timber barons. The hotel’s 30 suites are in stand-alone buildings set among tranquil, leafy grounds with a century-old teak house as a centrepiece. This was built by the British-owned Borneo Company, which controlled the region’s lumber concessions from the 1880s until the 1950s. Its first occupant was Louis... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3045133/137-pillars-chiang-mai-luxury-hotel-where-aesthetics?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/travel/article/3045133/137-pillars-chiang-mai-luxury-hotel-where-aesthetics?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Jan 2020 11:30:12 +0000 The South China Morning Post’s move to grade A offices in Times Square this February, in Hong Kong’s buzzing Causeway Bay neighbourhood, was rich in significance. The move may have raised eyebrows at a time when print publications are struggling to survive. But that is exactly the reaction Alfred Cunningham and Tse Tsan-tai got when they launched the newspaper. New chapter begins as the Post moves to face challenges ahead The Times Square move was another milestone for the 115-year-old Post,... https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/2169684/where-and-why-post-moved-offices-over-115-years-changing-media-times?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/2169684/where-and-why-post-moved-offices-over-115-years-changing-media-times?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Nov 2018 19:02:47 +0000 Almost three weeks into my new, nicotine-free life and I’m in a taxi – or maybe it’s a tram. I’m with a friend, though I’m not sure who. I pull a pack of cigarettes from my pocket and light one up. After two deep drags, I stub it out. My mysterious companion asks how it feels, to which I reply: “Tastes disgusting.” After 19 days without a smoke I feel pretty lousy about this relapse – until I awaken with a surge of relief at the realisation that it’s just a dream; a potent fusion of psychology... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/article/2153688/how-quit-smoking-five-tips-smoker-who-stopped-after-35?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/article/2153688/how-quit-smoking-five-tips-smoker-who-stopped-after-35?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Jul 2018 23:19:37 +0000 What do a sledgehammer, fire extinguisher, two cats, a Spider-Man toy and a rucksack stuffed with cash have in common? Clue: this is not a joke. It is a list of objects that have all fallen or been thrown from a height over the past decade by Hong Kong residents of high-rise buildings. The latest case was reported last week when a dog fell through the sunroof of a vehicle in Wan Chai – followed by a wooden pallet that landed next to it. Many such incidents may go unreported because fatalities... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2142889/its-raining-cats-and-dogs-and-tvs-things-thrown-height-hong-kong-despite?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2142889/its-raining-cats-and-dogs-and-tvs-things-thrown-height-hong-kong-despite?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Apr 2018 23:34:14 +0000 The Big Buddha that gazes down serenely on visitors to the Po Lin Monastery at Ngong Ping on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island opened to the public 25 years ago. Thirty-four metres (112 feet) high and weighing more than 250 tonnes (276 tons), the statue has since become one of the city’s top tourist attractions. Many visitors climb the 268 steps to its podium to see the statue up close and take in the view. Pilot and air traffic controller errors behind Shenzhen Airlines near crash at Hong Kong’s Big... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2136895/pictures-how-hong-kongs-big-buddha-statue-was-built-lantau?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2136895/pictures-how-hong-kongs-big-buddha-statue-was-built-lantau?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Mar 2018 23:17:29 +0000 Residential property – and the lack of it – is never out of the news for long in Hong Kong. In recent times, the big issues have been the housing affordability crisis, the individuals and families forced to live in often squalid subdivided flats, and the ever shrinking micro flats developers are building. Hong Kong history: the tunnels where Japanese hid from air raids in wartime – exploring one of the last vestiges of 4-year occupation Turn back the clock half a century and the focus was on... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2135797/hong-kong-pictures-when-squatter-huts-covered-hillsides?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2135797/hong-kong-pictures-when-squatter-huts-covered-hillsides?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Mar 2018 05:01:43 +0000 The traditional Lunar New Year clear-out has come early for the South China Morning Post this year, as staff embark on the first stage of a historic move that will reunify the company in state-of the-art offices designed to reflect and facilitate a makeover of its corporate culture.  The new year in the Chinese calendar marks an exciting new era for the 114-year-old Hong Kong newspaper publisher, which is undergoing a transformation into a digital media company as it remains committed to... https://www.scmp.com/news/article/2132136/south-china-morning-post-moves-times?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/article/2132136/south-china-morning-post-moves-times?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Feb 2018 23:00:30 +0000 Hongkongers are more likely than others travellers in Asia to dread returning from a holiday, and many don’t use all the leave days due to them, a global survey has found. Some 2,001 Hongkongers were questioned for the survey, commissioned by British Airways and conducted in 11 countries and regions between December 20 and January 4. It found that 37 per cent of Hongkongers surveyed were stressed at the thought of going back to work after a holiday – more than in any other place in Asia... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2130004/hong-kong-holidaymakers-dread-return-more-other-asians-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2130004/hong-kong-holidaymakers-dread-return-more-other-asians-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Jan 2018 08:15:41 +0000 I got a smartphone notification from Apple recently, telling me: “You have a new memory”. It was reminding me that I had a photo on my camera roll of my goddaughter, taken several months ago. Thanks, Apple. Totally unnecessary, however. My goddaughter, Gabriella, is a cherub and I will never forget her. The “reminder”, which lit up my phone screen as I was working, was just one more technological distraction. It seems Apple is trying to keep abreast of fierce competi­tion in the battle for... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2127777/notifications-why-i-cant-stand-my-phone-beeping?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2127777/notifications-why-i-cant-stand-my-phone-beeping?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Jan 2018 23:32:48 +0000 There’s a popular Chinese saying that after a family company has been founded by the first generation, the second generation grows the business, and the third generation squanders the family fortune. Of course, that is not always the case. A number of home-grown Hong Kong brands have endured over decades, expanded into global markets and become household names. Here are five local brands that opened their doors to us this year to give us a peek into their operations and history. Lo... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2125921/made-hong-kong-five-companies-have-stood-test-time-and-gone-global?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2125921/made-hong-kong-five-companies-have-stood-test-time-and-gone-global?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Dec 2017 04:04:33 +0000 Progress never sleeps in Hong Kong. The face of the city has constantly changed over the decades to facilitate economic development and a growing population. To a degree, this has led to a wave of nostalgia among Hongkongers in recent years. In that spirit, the Post delved into the history of a number of local neighbourhoods over the past year, to trace their origins beyond living memory, and track the changes that have occurred and places that have been lost. Not all have been transformed as... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2125850/history-behind-some-iconic-hong-kong-neighbourhoods-and-how?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2125850/history-behind-some-iconic-hong-kong-neighbourhoods-and-how?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Dec 2017 09:22:57 +0000 Eclectic, nostalgic, fun and saucy are just a few of the diverse adjectives we like to use to describe the South China Morning Post’s culture and lifestyle coverage. Our readers agree, if some of the most popular stories we ran in 2017 are anything to go by. In case you missed them, here are 10 of your – and our – favourite stories of the year. Why Hong Kong passengers are a flight attendant’s nightmare At Christmas time, many expats in Hong Kong head home for festive family reunions, while... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2125651/10-hong-kong-lifestyle-stories-you-liked-best-2017-and-some-our-own?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2125651/10-hong-kong-lifestyle-stories-you-liked-best-2017-and-some-our-own?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Dec 2017 05:00:14 +0000 For the record, fish and chips isn’t Britain’s favourite dish. In one survey, Chinese food came out on top, followed by Indian, and then pizza. Nevertheless, the dish still holds a special spot in the hearts of many Britons. In the former colony of Hong Kong, the stodgy staple has always been a fixture on the menu of British-style pubs and restaurants. Traditional fish and chip shops, also known as chippies, however, are rarer, and have come and gone over the years. Throughout most of the 1990s,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2123105/best-fish-and-chips-hong-kong-we-cast-wide-net-over-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2123105/best-fish-and-chips-hong-kong-we-cast-wide-net-over-city?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Dec 2017 23:45:30 +0000 David Beckham may not do many one-on-one interviews, but that does not stop him from appearing in the news almost as often as Donald Trump. Google the former England football captain’s name on any given day and up will pop a stream of fresh stories: the latest outings with his kids, a new tattoo or hairstyle, sponsorship deals, friends – and what the British tabloids presume his wife Victoria thinks about all of them. Then there are the parties, business ventures, foreign trips – it is all... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2122242/why-david-beckham-thinks-china-will-win-world-cup-soon-plus-his-love-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2122242/why-david-beckham-thinks-china-will-win-world-cup-soon-plus-his-love-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Dec 2017 11:15:29 +0000 It was recently reported that non-smokers at a marketing firm in Japan are being given six extra days of leave each year, because they spend more time at their desks than smokers. We all work with smokers. Invariably, after just an hour in the office, they’ll pop off to indulge in their disgusting habit while the rest of us labour on. An hour later, away they go again, to while away another 10 minutes. Then they come back, with that lingering, stale whiff of tobacco smoke that turns one’s... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2122240/opinion-cut-smokers-pay-reclaim-40-working-days?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2122240/opinion-cut-smokers-pay-reclaim-40-working-days?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Nov 2017 10:47:37 +0000 A group of male friends in Hong Kong have stripped off and flashed their tools to produce a calendar in time for Christmas to raise money for two causes close to their hearts. The Sai Kung residents got naked and hid their private parts behind workmen’s tools in aid of friend Catherine Lumsden, who runs dog shelter Catherine’s Puppies, and the Movember Foundation, which seeks to raise awareness about men’s health issues. Eating like a Hong Kong refugee: teacher lives on HK$40 food a day for... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2121414/hong-kong-men-go-full-monty-charity-calendar-tools-strategically-placed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2121414/hong-kong-men-go-full-monty-charity-calendar-tools-strategically-placed?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Nov 2017 00:45:15 +0000 Organisers of the inaugural Gurkha Trailblazer race in Hong Kong’s New Territories say it is intended to commemorate Nepali soldiers who died in battle zones around the world – and those formerly based in Hong Kong, who played a key role in initiating the city’s biggest annual charity race. How mass participation sports events ‘exploded’ in Hong Kong – and the challenges city faces to stay at the forefront The first Gurkha Trailblazer charity race will take place on January 20, 2018. Open to 500... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2116070/new-hong-kong-endurance-race-gurkha-trailblazer-honours?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2116070/new-hong-kong-endurance-race-gurkha-trailblazer-honours?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Oct 2017 11:15:42 +0000 Dutch photographer Marcel Heijnen, whose 2016 book Hong Kong Shop Cats struck a chord with fans of the furry felines, focuses his lens on less pampered pets in a follow-up book to be released next month. Hong Kong Market Cats captures a different class of the creatures – wilder, shier and more transient, Heijnen says. In pictures: The allure of Hong Kong’s shop cats “It’s got a different feel to it. It’s a bit more grim and desolate … because some of the cats in the markets are not owned by the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2115511/photo-book-hong-kong-market-cats-sequel-shop-cats-shows-wilder-side-citys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2115511/photo-book-hong-kong-market-cats-sequel-shop-cats-shows-wilder-side-citys?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Oct 2017 05:13:04 +0000 Drivers are always complaining about the bad habits of other motorists in Hong Kong. “Don’t they teach you how to use a f*****g roundabout at driving schools here?” and, “Use your c*****g indicators” are refrains I frequently hear in the passenger seat of foul-mouthed friends’ cars. Something else I heard recently was: “Don’t they teach the Green Cross Code here?” That’s because many pedestrians also don’t seem to have much common sense when it comes to navigating roads. The Green Cross Code... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2114100/opinion-hey-hong-kong-pedestrians-were-driving?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2114100/opinion-hey-hong-kong-pedestrians-were-driving?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Oct 2017 23:16:50 +0000 There’s no shortage of voices crying foul every time Hollywood “whitewashes” a film character, and rightly so. A term referring to the choice of a white actor to play a role that is ostensibly Asian, several cases of whitewashing have caused an uproar in recent years. British actress Tilda Swinton starred as a Tibetan mystic in the 2016 Marvel blockbuster Doctor Strange. (Making matters worse, the original character was a man.) The latest case to cause a stink was the casting of American actress... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2098458/opinion-whitewashing-rife-asia-too-just-look?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2098458/opinion-whitewashing-rife-asia-too-just-look?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jun 2017 23:00:15 +0000 Wong Kan-tai’s new photo book of black-and-white images taken in old Hong Kong and Macau has no page numbers or captions, nor is it in chronological order. Flipping the pages is a wondrous journey into the past, through a curated collection of memorable events and everyday slices of life in the two former colonies. The book offers plenty of nostalgic moments for anyone who spent any time during the past several decades in the cities. The photojournalist took the Hong Kong photos during British... https://www.scmp.com/culture/books/article/2097303/new-photo-book-captures-colonial-hong-kong-and-old-macau-historic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/books/article/2097303/new-photo-book-captures-colonial-hong-kong-and-old-macau-historic?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Jun 2017 22:45:00 +0000 Sunday’s column about the the first-world problem of finding a decent avocado in Hong Kong prompted a flood of responses from readers, many of whom put me in my place. According to them I’m stupid, impatient, an idiot, dork, hipster, retard and a “squirrelly guy”. Two of these descriptions are on the mark. Many readers, however, agreed with the premise of the column. “True, buying an avocado here in Hong Kong is just like gambling,” one reader wrote. “Same experience … never buy an avocado in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2095305/where-buy-best-avocados-hong-kong-readers-offer-tips-after-our-rant-about?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2095305/where-buy-best-avocados-hong-kong-readers-offer-tips-after-our-rant-about?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 May 2017 03:47:34 +0000 Most nutritionists would recommend stocking up on avocados. One website touts as many as “19 science-backed health benefits” of the fruit. They’re hailed as being high in fibre and monounsaturated fat, which means they’re good for the heart. Avocados are also packed with minerals and vitamins – including B6, which gives the sex drive a boost. Studies have shown that people who eat them regularly have a better chance of losing inches from their waistline. By all accounts, they are something of a... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2094853/finding-perfect-avocado-hong-kong-why-its-harder?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2094853/finding-perfect-avocado-hong-kong-why-its-harder?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 May 2017 02:49:33 +0000 There are few weekly meals as hearty as a Sunday roast – a plate bulging with slabs of succulent meat, a selection of vegetables and – the crowning glory – a Yorkshire pudding, all bathed in a rich brown gravy. The secret to a good pudding is having the fat smoking hot before the batter is poured and placed in the oven, making it rise. “A Yorkshire pudding isn’t a Yorkshire pudding if it is less than four inches tall,” Britain’s Royal Society of Chemistry says of the golden concoction made from... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2081137/search-hong-kongs-best-sunday-roasts-yorkshire-puds-potatoes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2081137/search-hong-kongs-best-sunday-roasts-yorkshire-puds-potatoes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:30:45 +0000 More than two weeks after the death of Thailand’s king Bhumibol Adulyadej, Bangkok’s nightspots are back in business. The military government’s call to cease all “joyful events” for a month in the wake of the king’s death on October 13 came just a few weeks before the start of the high season for tourists. The timing couldn’t have been worse for an economy that’s propped up by overseas fun seekers. However, pragmatism has since prevailed. Bangkok’s nightlife shuts down, and no one knows when the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2041913/partys-back-bangkok-even-if-neon-lights-are-still-down?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2041913/partys-back-bangkok-even-if-neon-lights-are-still-down?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Nov 2016 05:15:45 +0000 The technology behind the Pokemon Go smartphone game phenomenon has been harnessed by a Hong Kong property listings start-up, which has applied augmented reality (AR) to its home-search app. The new feature, launched by Spacious.hk last week as an update, enables users to point their mobile device at buildings, get on-the-spot information and prices on flats for rent or sale – and find “haunted houses”. Users can tap an “AR” button, which activates the phone’s camera. By pointing the camera at a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2041034/hong-kong-point-and-view-app-finds-haunted-flat-bargains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2041034/hong-kong-point-and-view-app-finds-haunted-flat-bargains?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Oct 2016 21:30:45 +0000 What does the future hold for the next generation of Mongolian nomads? Join us as we follow traditional herdsmen and their camels on a trek across the vast plains of remote Western Mongolia Mongolia’s nomads: masters of their destiny in a changing world When Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban, her family turned to another extraordinary young woman from Pakistan, Shiza Shahid. Now the former CEO of the Malala Fund has a new mission, investing in ‘the greatest solutions to the world’s... https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/2038686/typhoon-top-ten-best-leisurely-long-reads-rainy-day-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/2038686/typhoon-top-ten-best-leisurely-long-reads-rainy-day-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Oct 2016 23:32:37 +0000 A big drop in rents in some Hong Kong neighbourhoods appears to be a further indication of the downturn in the city’s finance sector, and another possible sign that expats are on the move. Data from online property listings firm Spacious shows the biggest fall in residential rents in the first half of 2016 was in Quarry Bay on Hong Kong Island, where rents dropped by an average of 13 per cent compared with the second half of 2015. “The neighbourhoods showing the biggest drops have a few things... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2022621/ten-parts-hong-hong-where-rents-rose-or-fell-most-2016-and-why?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2022621/ten-parts-hong-hong-where-rents-rose-or-fell-most-2016-and-why?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Sep 2016 21:30:15 +0000 It’s time to clamp down on the uncivilised behaviour of animals on the trails around Kowloon’s Monkey Mountain. A recent visit to the macaques in Kam Shan Country Park illustrated just how obnoxious they can be. Not the monkeys, the Homo sapiens. Policeman arrested on suspicion of shooting monkeys in Hong Kong Despite numerous signs warning people not to feed the macaques, countless vehicles had been halted on the road along Kowloon Reservoir and food was being dropped out of open windows for... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2019668/wild-behaviour-hong-kongs-monkey-mountain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2019668/wild-behaviour-hong-kongs-monkey-mountain?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Sep 2016 01:03:09 +0000 He has been described as “the happiest man in the world” since neuroscientists rigged his head with electrodes and thought their machine was broken, but Tibetan lama, meditation teacher and bestselling author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche modestly shrugs off the epithet. “It’s not only me, but other long-term meditators, too,” he says. Richard Davidson, who runs the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin in the United States, ran tests on Mingyur Rinpoche and other... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2018880/happiest-man-world-has-tip-hongkongers-how-be-less-stressed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2018880/happiest-man-world-has-tip-hongkongers-how-be-less-stressed?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Sep 2016 04:30:00 +0000 Copy watch? Hashish? Restaurant? We’re at the entrance of Chungking Mansions trying to avoid eye contact with the touts, and Christopher Doyle is on his way. The Hong Kong-based Australian cinematographer arrives with a wide grin, excited to be back at the concrete monolith on Nathan Road’s Golden Mile where he shot scenes for Chungking Express, the film that made his name. Doyle wants us to interview him in the guest house where he worked on the low-budget classic, directed by Wong Kar-wai, its... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2017088/filmmaker-christopher-doyles-guide-hong-kongs-chungking-mansions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2017088/filmmaker-christopher-doyles-guide-hong-kongs-chungking-mansions?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Sep 2016 21:33:48 +0000 Pilots and airline passengers greeted the sight of Hong Kong’s old airport with a mix of excitement and wonder as they made the dramatic descent onto the tarmac at Kai Tak. It was also thrilling to watch from the ground, as aircraft made a low approach over the rooftops of Kowloon’s densely packed streets. The technically challenging landing in the heart of the city offered unique photo opportunities. Kai Tak was a popular hang-out for amateur photographers, including Briton Daryl Chapman, who... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2004559/hong-kongs-famous-kai-tak-airport-fans-photo-gallery?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2004559/hong-kongs-famous-kai-tak-airport-fans-photo-gallery?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Aug 2016 09:30:00 +0000 Here’s our top 10 list of long reads from the recent archives of the Post – perfect for indulging on a rainy day The changing face of Hong Kong neighborhoods My 20 years in Kennedy Town, a Hong Kong dump turned destination From the waves that used to strike the Praya to the barbers and their 100-year-old chairs, Fionnuala McHugh reflects on the vivid life and changing face of a gentrifying neighbourhood and the symbolism of the fight to save its ‘temporary’ garden Old traditions Honour bound:... https://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/1998093/great-long-reads-rainy-day-our-top-ten-post-typhoon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/1998093/great-long-reads-rainy-day-our-top-ten-post-typhoon?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Aug 2016 05:06:39 +0000 Pui Pui has one eye on the thick Perspex wall that separates her from curious visitors at Hong Kong Wetland Park. After five motionless minutes under water, she ascends gracefully, only nostrils and eyes breaking the surface. The crocodile fills her lungs, then sinks just as slowly to the bottom of the pool. It’s hardly riveting entertainment, given the excitement the crocodile once aroused, but the former RTHK “Personality of the Year” is still the main attraction at the Hong Kong Wetland Park,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1986112/catching-pui-pui-crafty-croc-who-captivated-sars-weary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1986112/catching-pui-pui-crafty-croc-who-captivated-sars-weary?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Jul 2016 22:00:15 +0000 There will be 110 cars parked by the Great Wall near Beijing on Sunday, with drivers bristling to begin the 6th Peking to Paris Motor Challenge. Judging from past records, however, about 30 per cent of them will not reach the finish line. Teams in the almost 13,700km endurance rally, which takes 36 days to complete, will face some of the world’s most challenging terrain, ranging from mountains to desert. They will cross their first border into Mongolia, then spend a 23-day stretch in Russia... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1971643/drivers-rev-6th-peking-paris-endurance-rally?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1971643/drivers-rev-6th-peking-paris-endurance-rally?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Jun 2016 07:45:30 +0000 The vibe: The Old Monk Bar & Grill, seemingly named after a notoriously strong Indian dark rum, is a casual, friendly bar on a busy Tsim Sha Tsui street corner. With panoramic open windows and a front porch, it’s a great spot for people-watching (we saw one drunken guy fall over a road sign before being helped into a taxi). Dimly lit but not so much that you can’t read the menu, most of the walls, bar and porch are coated in rustic, dark-stained wood, which gives the place a warm, natural feel.... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1960349/bar-review-old-monk-bar-grill-tsim-sha-tsui-irish-car-bomb?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1960349/bar-review-old-monk-bar-grill-tsim-sha-tsui-irish-car-bomb?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 May 2016 09:00:45 +0000 Japanese luxury-car maker Infiniti’s vehicles sometimes appear a little over-designed and too sculpted. There’s a curve here, a bulge there, but the result is undoubtedly artful, especially in the Q30, which takes the company into a new segment in its expanding product range – active compact. It’s a segment intended to combine the sportiness of a coupe with the empowered stance of a crossover, as Infiniti puts it. It has already proven itself to be a versatile vehicle. European car safety... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1956862/infinitis-active-compact-q30-proves-sporty-and-versatile-car?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1956862/infinitis-active-compact-q30-proves-sporty-and-versatile-car?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 May 2016 15:54:49 +0000 Tender meat mixed with salad, smothered in sauce and wrapped in a warm carb cocoon: the trusty kebab ticks all the boxes for a tasty booze sponge after a night on the town. For a fair comparison, we opt for medium-spicy lamb wraps all round. Let the gorging begin. CENTRAL 27 Kebab House Turkish Restaurant HK$65 Location, location, location: a good corner spot with a buzzy vibe and kiosk-style layout are the best qualities of this place. The kebab didn’t tick many boxes: it was too hot to hold.... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1952852/where-find-hong-kongs-most-delicious-post-drink-kebabs-we-ate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1952852/where-find-hong-kongs-most-delicious-post-drink-kebabs-we-ate?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 May 2016 22:00:30 +0000 A new Hong Kong smartphone app offers users relief from the tedium of telephone hotlines that steer callers through a labyrinth of recorded messages. Hotlines like HSBC’s – the one most often cited as a source of frustration among people the app’s developers spoke to. Skipmenu, branded a “hotline killer”, represents hotline messages visually on a smartphone screen, allowing callers to bypass robotic recordings and tap their way rapidly through the maze of options – and even connect to a customer... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/1947238/truly-killer-app-hong-kong-designed-hotline-killer-avoids-hanging-phone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/1947238/truly-killer-app-hong-kong-designed-hotline-killer-avoids-hanging-phone?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 May 2016 04:23:19 +0000 Another year, another supersized Mini. The Cooper Clubman variant of the old British classic, distinguished by its double back “barn doors”, has been given its first large-scale makeover in almost a decade, and the end result is the biggest Mini ever produced. It has also been invigorated with some serious design panache and upgraded technology that takes the Mini range to a higher level. What’s left intact is the typically British eccentricity that Mini fans expect and has kept the car rolling... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1944689/supersized-mini-cooper-clubman-gets-hi-tech-makeover?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1944689/supersized-mini-cooper-clubman-gets-hi-tech-makeover?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 May 2016 15:03:37 +0000 1. Avoid using single-use, disposable plastic items such as plastic plates, cups, bowls, cutlery, straws, bottles and bags. If you have to use them, try to reuse them. Hong Kong’s plastic waste epidemic, and why it’s bad news for all of us 2. Try not to buy products with unnecessary packaging, e.g. bananas and other fruit that already have their own natural packaging (the skin). If you have no option, try to ask the vendor (or write to the store), and ask why they need to wrap things. 3. Put... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1942998/5-ways-every-hongkonger-can-help-reduce-plastic-waste?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1942998/5-ways-every-hongkonger-can-help-reduce-plastic-waste?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 May 2016 04:00:45 +0000 Plastic has been more than just a drop in the ocean to the Hong Kong economy. The city’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, built his fortune on plastic flowers in the 1950s and ’60s. At the same time, a generation of children learned the city’s name from plastic toys stamped “Made in Hong Kong”. Unfortunately, almost all the plastic disposed of since it was invented is underground or, worse, in watercourses that feed into massive “rubbish patch” gyres swirling around in our oceans. There, it soaks up... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1942996/hong-kongs-plastic-waste-epidemic-and-why-its-bad-news-all?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1942996/hong-kongs-plastic-waste-epidemic-and-why-its-bad-news-all?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 May 2016 04:00:45 +0000 Hongkongers are among the car enthusiasts to have signed up for an opportunity Jeremy Clarkson never experienced on the TV show Top Gear: the chance to drive three of the world’s most exclusive, limited-edition sports cars in a single afternoon. Corporate services provider The Sovereign Group has teamed up with British supercar club Auto Vivendi to offer its global clients the once-in-a-lifetime chance, in an event called “The Hypercar Holy Trinity 200mph Challenge”. At a cost of about... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1942574/hongkongers-sign-once-lifetime-320kmh-hypercar-challenge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1942574/hongkongers-sign-once-lifetime-320kmh-hypercar-challenge?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 May 2016 05:00:45 +0000 Its members disgusted by the sight of plastic debris seen floating in the city’s waters, the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club says it will stop selling drinks in disposable plastic bottles and providing members with plastic bags and straws. The club will launch the initiative on June 8 to mark World Oceans Day. Bits of plastic will outweigh all fish in the oceans by 2050, study warns “Reducing the amount of waste being dumped into our oceans is one of the challenges of our time,” says Anthony Day,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1941093/royal-hong-kong-yacht-club-stop-selling-drinks-plastic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1941093/royal-hong-kong-yacht-club-stop-selling-drinks-plastic?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 May 2016 05:30:30 +0000 A global advertising agency has produced a graphic video targeting Hongkongers to hammer home the message that consumption of shark’s fin soup is threatening the marine animals with extinction. “For every Hong Kong wedding, 30 sharks have to die,” the subtitles of the 30-second video read, as a bride on a fishing boat roughly cuts the fin off a shark, before her groom kicks the body over the side. The ad, produced by Ogilvy & Mather, has been made to highlight the horrific consequences of Hong... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1939935/every-hong-kong-wedding-30-sharks-have-die-videos-shock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/1939935/every-hong-kong-wedding-30-sharks-have-die-videos-shock?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Apr 2016 03:15:45 +0000 Habla Español? If not, never mind; everyone is welcome to join the free monthly film screening with popcorn at Hong Kong’s Mexican consulate. There are English subtitles, so audience members also get a free lesson in the world’s second most widely spoken language after Chinese. For the past year, the consulate has hosted free screenings on the last Thursday of every month, starting at 6.30pm. Its CineClub Mexico aims to showcase the best of contemporary Mexican cinema, which has experienced a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1938386/hong-kongs-best-kept-secrets-free-film-screenings-and-free?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/1938386/hong-kongs-best-kept-secrets-free-film-screenings-and-free?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Apr 2016 22:15:45 +0000 The death of Prince will come as a shock to Hong Kong music fans who attended his packed concert at Harbour Fest beside Victoria Harbour in October 2003. The multi-talented singer-songwriter and producer headlined the first night of the series of open-air concerts in a temporary outdoor stadium at Tamar, Admiralty, aimed at reviving the Hong Kong economy, badly hit by the deadly outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) earlier that year. Prince, genre-defying music genius, found... https://www.scmp.com/culture/music/article/1937666/when-prince-played-hong-kong-memories-funk-filled-night-beside?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/music/article/1937666/when-prince-played-hong-kong-memories-funk-filled-night-beside?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Apr 2016 03:15:30 +0000 Police officers are expected to set an example to the public rather than behave as though they are above the laws it's their job to enforce. That's why it's especially objectionable (and counterproductive) to see a video online that shows what appears to be a gang of policemen beating up a protester. Bad driving habits are another poor example to set the public. While it may be acceptable for officers to obstruct entrances, park on double yellow lines or break speed limits in the line of duty,... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/1935921/why-hong-kong-police-officers-should-set-good-example-roads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/1935921/why-hong-kong-police-officers-should-set-good-example-roads?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Apr 2016 22:00:45 +0000 Bentley Motors has given its first glimpse of the Bentayga – the world’s largest, fastest and most luxurious SUV, with an equally superlative price tag of HK$4.25 million. The unveiling ceremony, at The Repulse Bay, would have been dramatic enough without the accompanying rumbling thunder. The gargantuan, handcrafted vehicle is 5.14 metres long and, standing at a height of 1.74 metres, is Bentley’s tallest model. Luxury SUVs out to catch eye of China’s middle class at Shanghai Auto Show The... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1935721/hong-kong-gets-first-look-bentleys-debut-suv-bentayga-and-its?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/motoring/article/1935721/hong-kong-gets-first-look-bentleys-debut-suv-bentayga-and-its?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Apr 2016 06:15:30 +0000 The air pollution inside some Hong Kong homes is worse than beside some of the city’s busiest roads, tests show. And it could be making the homes’ occupants chronically ill, worried scientists say. Levels of small-particle pollution, known as PM2.5, that can lodge deep in people’s lungs were on average nearly 10 per cent higher indoors than the highest level found outdoors. Levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) - carbon-based chemicals that easily evaporate at room temperature - were, on... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1935398/hong-kong-indoor-air-pollution-so-bad-it-could-be-making-you?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1935398/hong-kong-indoor-air-pollution-so-bad-it-could-be-making-you?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Apr 2016 04:15:00 +0000