It’s that time of year again where drunken revelry, outlandish behaviour, daft costumes, over indulgence and general naughtiness become the norm in Hong Kong - well in and around the Stadium and the bars of Wan Chai afterwards. Yes, the Rugby 7’s kick off this afternoon and a 3 day ‘hedonistic orgy’ (as today’s South China Morning Post puts it) awaits all of us lucky enough to have a ticket.
After missing last year’s 7’s which was U2’s fault – not mine (tenuous but I will explain later *), I am eagerly anticipating this year’s event. The IRB 7’s series is currently wide open with England under pressure to gain a result in Hong Kong to stay in contention, so there should be some good games over the weekend – not that you normally see any of them as it tends to distract from the serious business of drinking and generally watching what is going on around you.
So I apologise in advance to those of you who receive an intoxicated phone call from me at some inappropriate hour saying that I think you are a great mate, how much I miss you and that that I really, really love you etc. In the same respect, I also apologise to those of you who I do not call - it does not mean that I don’t think the same about you (of course I do), it just means that I have either come to my senses and thought better of it, run out of battery, somehow locked the keypad or worse, lost my phone!
Well, that’s enough from me for now. Just Friday afternoon to get through then I’ll be heading off to the stadium. Can England make it 5 in a row? – I sincerely hope so!
En..ger...lund! En..ger...lund!
* Last year we had tickets to see U2 in Japan the same weekend as the 7’s. A couple of weeks before the concert, U2 had to postpone the final leg of the tour including the Japan date (for very valid reasons I must add), which left me ticket less for the 7’s!
Friday, March 30, 2007
Sunday, March 25, 2007
A Whole World of Pain
Well, perhaps not a whole world but a good proportion of it, I am now certainly feeling the effects of my third dragon boat training session from earlier in the day. After our first practice session with the police a couple of weeks back, I was hopeful that things would be a touch easier as our training was being taken over by the Hong Kong Amateur Dragon Boat Association from our second week. When our 30 minute warm up session on the beach far exceeded any of the circuit training sessions we used to do at school I should have realised that that the HKADBA was not going to be a softer option. Last week we separated into the learners and experienced paddler groups (each with separate boats), off we went and all was well.
This week I was expecting more of the same, however it appeared that our 'learning' period was over as we were split into two boats with the other paddlers (police included) who are using the training session to practice for the International races which are held at Shatin each year, not the 'fun' races at Stanley (which tend to involve a few races, then a few beers) which is more what I had set my sights on.
We headed out for our 'warm up' paddle, consisting of 3 bouts of 120 strokes at full power, with a 5 minute breather in between. Following the second bout I had finished my water supply, and, if I am completely honest, was not entirely sure whether I was going to last the morning.
When we had finally completed our 'warm up' one of the younger police members collapsed in the boat from exhaustion and needed attention. A few paddles and life jackets were passed forward to form a makeshift bed for the chap to lie down on, whilst first aid was administered. What alarmed me at the time was the fact that none of the other paddlers seemed particularly concerned about the situation, as if this was quite a normal occurrence.
After 10 minutes of 'first aid' which seemed to consist of slapping the poor fellow around a bit (I suspect that this was more for embarrassing the police than to aid his recovery), he was well enough to make it into the back of the boat and sit up, although his paddling for the day was over.
After this, the training seemed a little easier, although not by much, and the rest of the morning was fairly uneventful. After our 2 hours of paddling we finally made it back to the beach when our trainer announced that for those who wanted to, he would carry on the training session for another hour. At this point, I took the 'sensible' option and decided to carry on for the additional session (not wanting to be out done by the professional paddlers). The last hour focused on cardio training (would you believe), which generally involved paddling faster than I thought was physically possible.
After feeling quite pleased with myself at the time, I am now aware that just about about everywhere on my body hurts. In addition, I also managed to get quite badly sun burnt, even though it was cloudy all morning, just to add to the general level of discomfort!
Next week, alas, it's the Hong Kong Rugby 7's, so my paddling will have to give way to a weekend of drunken debauchery (not by me I hasten to add - I will be quietly sipping my mineral water and going nowhere near the South Stand)!
This week I was expecting more of the same, however it appeared that our 'learning' period was over as we were split into two boats with the other paddlers (police included) who are using the training session to practice for the International races which are held at Shatin each year, not the 'fun' races at Stanley (which tend to involve a few races, then a few beers) which is more what I had set my sights on.
We headed out for our 'warm up' paddle, consisting of 3 bouts of 120 strokes at full power, with a 5 minute breather in between. Following the second bout I had finished my water supply, and, if I am completely honest, was not entirely sure whether I was going to last the morning.
When we had finally completed our 'warm up' one of the younger police members collapsed in the boat from exhaustion and needed attention. A few paddles and life jackets were passed forward to form a makeshift bed for the chap to lie down on, whilst first aid was administered. What alarmed me at the time was the fact that none of the other paddlers seemed particularly concerned about the situation, as if this was quite a normal occurrence.
After 10 minutes of 'first aid' which seemed to consist of slapping the poor fellow around a bit (I suspect that this was more for embarrassing the police than to aid his recovery), he was well enough to make it into the back of the boat and sit up, although his paddling for the day was over.
After this, the training seemed a little easier, although not by much, and the rest of the morning was fairly uneventful. After our 2 hours of paddling we finally made it back to the beach when our trainer announced that for those who wanted to, he would carry on the training session for another hour. At this point, I took the 'sensible' option and decided to carry on for the additional session (not wanting to be out done by the professional paddlers). The last hour focused on cardio training (would you believe), which generally involved paddling faster than I thought was physically possible.
After feeling quite pleased with myself at the time, I am now aware that just about about everywhere on my body hurts. In addition, I also managed to get quite badly sun burnt, even though it was cloudy all morning, just to add to the general level of discomfort!
Next week, alas, it's the Hong Kong Rugby 7's, so my paddling will have to give way to a weekend of drunken debauchery (not by me I hasten to add - I will be quietly sipping my mineral water and going nowhere near the South Stand)!
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Ski Videos Posted
I have set up an account to host videos and have posted some short clips taken during our ski trip to Big White. The clips were taken on my phone and camera so please excuse the poor quality. Click the link below to view.
http://s170.photobucket.com/albums/u268/hojsvideos/
http://s170.photobucket.com/albums/u268/hojsvideos/
Monday, March 12, 2007
Dragon Boat Training
Well, after 9 years of living in Hong Kong I, for some reason (unbeknown to me now), decided that it would be good fun to join a dragon boat team for this year's races which will be held in June. All seemed well for a while, I signed some forms and did not give it too much more thought until I received an email last week advising that the practice sessions were due to commence this Sunday - at 9:30am in Sai Kung, (and every Sunday thereafter).
Sai Kung is a beautiful spot in the New Territories, particularly when it is warm and sunny (which it is not at this time of year). It is also about an hour from my apartment which means that I have to get up on my only day off earlier than when I need to go to work during the week. After waking up too late to make it by MTR, I took a taxi driven by an absolute psyhco who completely ignored my pleas to slow down, eventually arriving in a cold and rainy Sai Kung in plenty of time to take in the picturesque surroundings.
Whilst waiting for my other work colleagues to arrive I noticed that everyone else who was turning up for training were not only a lot younger than me but also in a lot better shape. When we finally assembled ready to commence paddling it became apparent that we had gate crashed the Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force's Dragon Boat training session - not that they seemed to mind. No surprises that I was the only gweilo in attendance, and the only person sporting a beer belly! After an opening ceremony, bisan and speeches, it was time to tuck into the roast pork, have a quick chat with the Senior Inspector (who welcomed me and asked if I would like to sign up), before heading off out onto the water.
After a while it all sort of came together, by which time several of the paddlers were starting to tire. I am pleased to say that I held my own (if you know what I mean), and lasted the duration, although I am starting to feel the effects around now. Whilst under no illusions that it would be demanding, I did not realise that it would take it's toll not only on your arms, but also your back, waist, legs and feet! Still great fun all in all and looking forward to getting up nice and early next Sunday.
Below is pic from my phone showing the tranquility of the Sai Kung waterfront, with said dragon boat in the distance. Never noticed the UFO above the dragon boat when I took the picture, however it was early at the time.
Sai Kung is a beautiful spot in the New Territories, particularly when it is warm and sunny (which it is not at this time of year). It is also about an hour from my apartment which means that I have to get up on my only day off earlier than when I need to go to work during the week. After waking up too late to make it by MTR, I took a taxi driven by an absolute psyhco who completely ignored my pleas to slow down, eventually arriving in a cold and rainy Sai Kung in plenty of time to take in the picturesque surroundings.
Whilst waiting for my other work colleagues to arrive I noticed that everyone else who was turning up for training were not only a lot younger than me but also in a lot better shape. When we finally assembled ready to commence paddling it became apparent that we had gate crashed the Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force's Dragon Boat training session - not that they seemed to mind. No surprises that I was the only gweilo in attendance, and the only person sporting a beer belly! After an opening ceremony, bisan and speeches, it was time to tuck into the roast pork, have a quick chat with the Senior Inspector (who welcomed me and asked if I would like to sign up), before heading off out onto the water.
After a while it all sort of came together, by which time several of the paddlers were starting to tire. I am pleased to say that I held my own (if you know what I mean), and lasted the duration, although I am starting to feel the effects around now. Whilst under no illusions that it would be demanding, I did not realise that it would take it's toll not only on your arms, but also your back, waist, legs and feet! Still great fun all in all and looking forward to getting up nice and early next Sunday.
Below is pic from my phone showing the tranquility of the Sai Kung waterfront, with said dragon boat in the distance. Never noticed the UFO above the dragon boat when I took the picture, however it was early at the time.
Sunday, March 4, 2007
Black Holes, Revelations and Hysteria - Muse live in Hong Kong
Well, excellent performance from Muse last night in Hong Kong.
Fantastic set, starting with Take a Bow and finishing off with Nights of Cydonia (my favourite of the night), only dissapointment was that they did not play Absolution.
The crowd was the liveliest I have seen in over 9 years of going to concerts in Hong Kong and even had us jumping around a bit (not like me at all...). The Pics posted were taken with my new Dopod PDA phone, so please excuse the poor quality. As you can see this appears all the rage at gigs nowadays, with people photographing or recording almost the entire set on their mobiles or cameras (check out the link to You Tube below).
As for my mobile I have now figured out how to lock the keypad as during the excitement of last night I managed (without knowing it at the time), to connect to the internet, reject 2 calls and phone Reedy Boy back in the UK treating him to 3 mins of the concert (sorry fella!).
Well worth seeing if you get the chance and certainly worthy of the accolades they are currently enjoying (best live band - Brit Awards, best British Band - NME Awards etc).
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