The near empty Harcourt Road in Wan Chai towards Causeway Bay
This afternoon I had a lunch appointment followed by a meeting at the Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong which is above Kowloon Station. I didn't finish until very late afternoon and had to get back to the office and so I took a taxi.
For traffic at 4.40pm there weren't that many cars on the road along the Western Tunnel, and then on Hong Kong Island we went along Lung Wo Road, passing by the Central Harbour front area where Clockenflap would have been set up by now if it hadn't cancelled, then cut onto Harcourt Road.
This main artery is usually choc a block with cars inching towards the Cross Harbour Tunnel, but since it has been blocked for a week by protesters, traffic was amazingly light. I could hardly believe it that I had to take a picture.
But once we got onto the Canal Road flyover, the regular traffic jam was back, slowly going up the on ramp, then passing Times Square before getting off. There were so many cars going towards the shopping mall that the taxi driver dropped me off a block away to avoid getting stuck.
The closure of the Cross Harbour Tunnel has affected hundreds of thousands of commuters daily and it is unclear when it will be reopened. But for the rest of us, having feeder routes to the tunnel completely empty have been a strange but welcome relief.
We interrupt our report on Rome and Spain with a report from the second day of Clockenflap, a three-day music and arts festival in Hong Kong.
I was very keen to see Renaissance man David Byrne perform tonight and I was not disappointed!
His entire band is mobile on stage so they can walk around
While I don't know all his songs, I was very impressed by his show -- it was all well thought out, choreographed and sounded amazing.
The stage was completely bare -- and he and almost all of his musicians and back-up singers were in bare feet. They also all wore the same shirt and gray suit, complete with vents and pleats behind each shoulder to allow more movement.
With the bare stage lined with long strings of chain as "curtains", it seemed like Byrne wanted to show that he had nothing to hide -- this is me -- and there are no special effects behind the scenes. And he did point out there were no amplifiers, that it was the musicians themselves who were playing the music.
He and his performers are barefoot on stage
Everyone from the guitarist to the drummers and keyboardist were mobile -- they wore contraptions on their shoulders to carry the instruments around and be able to walk around the stage and even dance.
Meanwhile Byrne himself was completely natural on stage, completely unfazed by what was going on and did his thing. He was non-stop for an hour and a half, singing, playing the guitar, dancing, marching around on stage. At one point he was lying on his side on a chair for a few minutes. Now that's core! And he's 66 years old!
At times he asked in Cantonese, "Ho teng ma?" "How's the concert" or "How does it sound?" We roared in approval.
Midway through he finally performed a Talking Heads song -- Once in a Lifetime -- and then eventually Burning Down the House where the crowd got really excited.
For his last song, Byrne struck a serious social and political note. He sang Janelle Monae's song, Hell You Talmbout, which calls everyone to say people's names. Whose names? Victims of police violence.
There are names like Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Michael Brown and Sharonda Singleton.
In a recent interview Byrne explains why he wants to perform it:
"Here was a protest song that doesn't hector or preach at us," he said. "It simply asks us to remember and acknowledge these lives that have been lost, lives that were taken from us through injustice, though the song leaves that for the listener to put together. I love a drum line, so that aspect of the song sucked me in immediately as well. The song musically is a celebration and lyrically a eulogy. Beautiful."
It's an energetic song, but also a sombre reminder of the times we live in.
David Byrne, thank you for an amazing concert! We hope you had as much fun performing for us in Hong Kong as we enjoyed every moment with you.
Tinariwen got the crowd excited on the second night of Clockenflap
The thing about living in Hong Kong is that you can be doing one thing, and then something completely different the next.
This morning I interviewed a Japanese Buddhist chef who is introducing people around the world to shojin-ryori cuisine, or temple food. Toshio Tanahashi is one of the few people in Japan who cooks this kind of cuisine, where only vegetables are used. Not only that, but he also makes everything by hand; while he uses knives and the stove, he does not use machines to pulverize or grind the food, nor does he use ingredients like onion, garlic, shallots and leeks.
Toasted sesame seeds in a grooved ceramic bowl with a pestle
He starts off each morning with a meditation by grinding sesame seeds and he let us try it.
We each got a large V-shaped ceramic bowl that had many fine grooves in it, along with the toasted sesame seeds and a wooden pestle with a point at the end.
Then he instructed us to either sit on our knees or cross legged and place the bowl right in front of us. Tanahashi instructed us to put one hand on top of the wooden pestle and the other hand holding it and making circles by turning the wrist, not using the shoulder.
We sat there quietly and you could hear the swish of the seeds going around the bowl and soon after we started smelling the gorgeous rich aroma of the roasted sesame seeds already filling the air. I decided to try to be as efficient as possible and not grind them too hard and keep the same tempo.
Tanahashi demonstrates how he meditates
At one point I closed my eyes and just listened to the sound of people grinding the seeds in their bowls and found it calming and nice to do something repetitive without having to think too much.
After several minutes he said we could stop and we were each given a spoon and try the grounded sesame paste. Mine tasted nutty. Then he told us to try other people's ground sesame seeds. Each of them tasted different! Some ground them so hard that they were about to become like a paste, while others like me were still at the roughly ground stage.
He explained that machine made sesame paste tastes exactly the same, while the ones done by hand each taste different.
This calm, chilled experience was contrasted with watching Mali group Tinariwen on the main stage at Clockenflap at 6pm.
I checked back on my blog and found out I had seen them five years earlier -- I had thought it was two -- and they were amazing. One of my friends dragged us out to watch them perform at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and I'm so glad she did.
The ultra chilled Tinariwen from Mali heating up the stage
So when I saw that they were performing at Clockenflap this year I was really excited, and the crowd tonight was too. The musicians, who are Tuareg rebels, were very laid back in their performance, but still full of energy.
There was one older man dancing on stage practically all night until one of the songs he grabbed a bright red electric guitar and started strumming away.
The 10th edition of Clockenflap kicked off this evening in Central
It's that time again -- Clockenflap, a three-day music festival that kicked off tonight at Central Harbourfront for the second year.
The chilled out DJ Kulu
It was unusually hot today -- 27 degrees and temperatures are expected to plunge to 19 tomorrow and Sunday with some rain patches.
We got to meet a gentle soul this afternoon -- the legendary DJ Kulu -- yep that's his name.
He's from Hong Kong and went to the UK in the 1960s to learn graphic design but ended up in fashion photography instead. He did quite well for himself and grew to have a passion for jazz.
In the 1970s he started DJ-ing. He regularly held parties once a month in his photographic studio and said one time his partner went to India and didn't come back -- so Kulu just started spinning the discs.
He came back to Hong Kong in 1999 and has been seen around town with his trademark looks Chinese robes, straw fedora and Chinese goatee playing at various gigs. He's such a gentleman too, so polite and chilled.
Higher Brothers rapping under the PLA gaze...!
In contrast, Higher Brothers, a hip hop group from Chengdu, Sichuan province was getting the crowd excited as they rapped in Mandarin and a few words in English.
The most ironic thing was them rapping provocative lyrics with the PLA or People's Liberation Army building behind them. I wondered if they could hear what they were rapping...
Gorgeous skies for the last day of Clockenflap that brought out the music fans
Today was a complete contrast to yesterday -- the rain finally finished overnight and this morning it was a gorgeous day, sunny and blue skies, though clouds started gathering in the evening.
Kids had a fun time with lots of activities for them to play
Last night M.I.A took to the stage, a Sri Lankan rapper who lives in the UK and burst onto the scene in 2005 and had a lot of political messages in her lyrics. She hadn't done an album in a long time and there are rumours this might be the last time people can see her.
However, she tried to warm up the crowd by mentioning China instead of Hong Kong, which got a lot of boos in the audience... she wasn't quite politically correct with the sensitive crowd.
Nevertheless, I managed to wander a bit more today and saw some funky grooves by Subcoat, a Hong Kong-born, UK-based DJ and then went towards the side closer to Admiralty to see what was going on -- Hong Kong thrash metal band CharmCharmChu was playing and many, particularly the gweilo were impressed.
Three kids hanging at Talk2Me, a sound installation
One song was related to the Umbrella Movement, when the police beat up protesters near where the band was playing. The lead singer mentioned this context before singing "F*** the police". It got a roar of approval from the audience.
Nearby kids were hanging out, playing hula hoops, making colourful three-dimensional designs with yarn, or hanging out at a sound installation called Talk2Me.
Later in the day The Sugarhill Gang got the fans going with their old school hip hop from back in the late 1970s. Their big hit at the time, "Rappers Delight" was played at the end, with a long solo rap by Master Gee about how old school rappers don't have lyrics dissing women, talking about shooting people, violence and such, but more about how the world needs more love, and too many people are disrespectful of women.
The Chemical Brothers closed out Clockenflap this evening
They warmed the crowd up for The Chemical Brothers from the UK, and they started with a bang with "Hey Boy, Hey Girl". I also wandered over to another stage to see The Turbans, a multi-ethnic band that also rocked the house.
So much music to take in, but so little time... Thank goodness today was a fantastic day to make up for yesterday. Oh yes and I had some Okinawa salt ice cream from Initial that was blue... it wasn't salty, but wasn't too sweet either.
London Grammar has a glowing red stage to keep people's spirits up in the rain
Today the skies looked overcast, and trying to be optimistic, I didn't bring an umbrella with me to the second day of Clockenflap.
It turned out to be a very bad decision.
Around 2.45pm, sprinkles of rain immediately turned into a downpour, and lots of people in the food area gathered under a large tent waiting for the rain to end. And waited and waited.
Earlier in the day there were big puddles and hiding in tents
It must have been tough for the performers to keep the audience engaged, but the artists braved on, while festival goers were trying to figure out the best course of action -- stay or go? They had paid HK$980 for the day... but no one was expecting monsoon rains today, with temperatures down to 14 degrees.
The rain finally let up over 30 minutes later, giving us enough time to find other shelter before it poured yet again, but tough for fans for Jose Gonzales, who is more an acoustic musician, and one of my colleagues gave up because the rain was so heavy and all she saw was a sea of umbrellas.
This gave me an opportunity to dry out a bit; but that wasn't to last. Just before dinner I wandered the main site again, and then just as Fat Freddy's Drop began their performance, but people seemed to brave the rain for some sunny reggae/techno/funk music to keep them going.
I got caught in the rain and was completely drenched -- water covered my face and at times I couldn't see where I was going very clearly! I managed to get a plastic poncho, but the damage had already been done -- my jacket was soaked, my socks and shoes completely wet, as well as my bag.
A journalist interviews members of Fat Freddy's Drop
After I got home I started drying them off, but it's several hours later and they are still drying off... what a day.
In places like the UK, rain is expected in music festivals. But in Hong Kong, even going across the harbour is a big deal. There were lots of complaints about the weather, but what can you do?
Hopefully almost all my things will be dry by tomorrow and that all the rain has fallen tonight so there's none left for tomorrow.
For a long time, I'd been thinking of investing in decent rubber boots and always thought that typhoons happened only a few times a year so it didn't make sense to buy a pair. But now I'm kicking myself for not investing in them anyway...
The Central skyline makes for a brilliant backdrop for Clockenflap this year
Tonight was the start of the three-day music festival Clockenflap and it's an eclectic selection of artists from various music genres, and local and international performers.
DJ Janette Slack's infectious beats gets people dancing
Because of construction going on at West Kowloon, Clockenflap has moved to Central Harbourfront, making it more convenient, and an interesting skyline backdrop too.
There was Ellen Loo warming up the crowd, who sang about pollution and rising housing costs, and DJ Jeanette Slack at the turntables putting on infectious beats that people couldn't help but dance to.
For some ethereal sound, there's Sigur Ros, a group from Iceland that sings its own language, but at another large stage was the granddaddy of funk, George Clinton of Parliament Funkadelic.
My colleague got to interview the man who inspired so many artists in hip hop, and even his granddaughter performs on stage with him. The man in his mid-70s doesn't know when to stop.
George Clinton signing albums for a superfan in a mask
When we walked into his trailer, it was literally a haze of smoke, and when it cleared we saw Clinton sitting on the sofa relaxed just before he went on stage.
One of the other journalists interviewing him was a humongous fan. How humongous? He had five vinyl records for Clinton to sign, and even wore a ski mask or balaclava that had an alien design on it, harking back to the days when the front man descended onto the stage from a space ship.
Clinton was so cool about the whole thing, and enjoyed chatting with the journalists who were big fans of his. He signed every album cover and his granddaughter was covering the entire proceedings on Facebook Live.
A panoramic shot of the festival grounds tonight
On stage he wore a completely sequinned jacket and was non stop on stage, even jumping up and down at the end. That man definitely has energy beyond his years.
The sunsets on Sunday on the last night of Clockenflap at West Kowloon
This weekend was my first time at Clockenflap -- the first time ever at a music festival. Eight things I learned:
The diversity of the crowd.
Music festivals draw a wide range of people who want to listen to their favourite genres, or they want to sample a variety of things that interest them. It's interesting to see who comes out to these events, and what they like to listen to. For me, I got a good taste of many things I have never heard before, but now I know what they're about. Had a good musical education for three days.
The music is loud.
As a precaution I brought some ear plugs with me, and though they didn't completely block out the loud sounds, at least it toned it down a few decibels and saved my ear drums.
Neon Indian played very poppy tunes reminiscent of the 80s
The food is pretty good.
Several Hong Kong restaurants have stands at Clockenflap. Butcher's Club had a steak burger, but it didn't fill up my Aussie colleague's stomach and cost HK$100... I had a foot-long hotdog for HK$80 and put tons of sauerkraut on it. On the second day I was very full after eating a chicken quesadilla for HK$90 from Little Burro, and then tonight had lots of thin-crust pizza from Pizza Express.
My only major complaint was that the food booths and the drinks area were not together, making it inconvenient to get both at the same time. Some places and dishes were more value for money than others...
It was all cashless, so you had to top up your card of wristband with cash before you could "buy" food or drinks.
The people watching is endless.
This is one of my favourite activities to do and managed to do a lot of it while waiting for things to happen or waiting for people. These concert goers were dressed in various fashions, like hippies with flowers in their hair, and even a group wearing bunny rabbit masks on their heads. Most people were in jeans and T-shirts, others were hipsters with their buttoned up shirts and rolled up trousers and shoes without socks.
My colleague had a fun mental checklist -- white man with rastafarian, Check. Goth girl. Check. Older rockers with faded band T-shirts. Check.
Two German graffiti artists paint containers for HKWalls
The festival is a taster.
There is no need to watch an entire set of a group or musician play. If you don't like it, or you feel hungry, there's no need to stay. Come and hang out for five minutes or the entire one-hour set. It's a great way to check out as many groups/artists as possible though your legs do get tired from standing and walking a lot.
The washrooms are atrocious.
It's all porta-potties and they aren't pretty. The Clockenflap venue is far, far away. The last decent pit stop is the Kowloon station washrooms and then you are testing your bladder. There are major lineups for the loo and be prepared for lots of liquids everywhere...
The weather can change.
Friday evening was freezing thanks to the strong winds and thank goodness I bundled up! Even then I was still kind of cold. However Saturday and Sunday the weather warmed up and there was more of a breeze than gusts. I had to schlep my jacket and cardigan around for part of the day, but as soon as the sun came down, I got warmed up with these two items of clothing.
The point is to have fun.
In the end even though I was working through the weekend (that means a 13-day stretch for me!) I did enjoy some of the music. It was fun seeing others letting loose and expressing themselves, through their dress, their choice of music and dancing. It's great that conservative Hong Kong has an event like this, and the setting -- right by the harbour -- is amazing. A number of overseas acts remarked at how fantastic it was to play with such a stunning view. Maybe the construction of M+ will be delayed indefinitely so Clockenflap can continue holding its festival here...
More music followed on the second day of Clockenflap at West Kowloon
I spent a second day at Clockenflap and for me it was interesting to watch two artists make their debuts at this music festival, Leah Dou and Denise Ho Wan-see.
Dou is 18-year-old and is an indie artist who released her first album in Japan recently. However she is best known as Faye Wong's daughter.
Leah Dou (left) performing at Atum stage
The young musician with pink and blonde hair ran onto the stage and sang several English songs, and addressing the audience mostly in English, and a few words in Cantonese. However the vast majority of people who came to see her were Chinese and gave her a warm welcome.
However it was soon over as her set was only half an hour long, but enough to have fans who knew her music and were appreciative of her coming to the festival.
Even more people came out to see Ho an hour later. The non-Chinese crowd who had just seen Earth, Wind & Fire left the area, and it was flooded with a sea of black heads.
She immediately observed this and pointed it out to the crowd who shouted her name out, while she waved to a few people she seemed to recognize in the audience. One guy shouted out "Ho Wan-see!" and the openly-gay singer replied, "My husband!"
Denise Ho made her fans happy performing tonight
Known for being active in the Occupy protests last year, Ho asked the audience how Hong Kong people were, and they roared and shouted. She also said she'd sing Cantonese songs, much to their delight, as a sign of her love of the city and culture.
She too had hair that was blonde -- and wore a boyfriend jacket, black hot pants and boots.
Because of her participation in the Umbrella Movement, her record label dropped her and she was banned from performing on the mainland. And so she gave a heartfelt thank you to Clockenflap for inviting her to be one of the few local acts to perform.
ANWIYCTI warmed up the crowd at 5.30pm as the sun came down
It's been a long day, going to work and then going to Clockenflap Music and Arts Festival for the first time.
The weekend music festival has been going on since 2008 and some 45,000 people attended last year. In the last few years it's been held at West Kowloon and now we can see why -- gorgeous view of Hong Kong Island as a backdrop and listening to music in an open space.
Not only that you can wander around and see other musical acts going on simultaneously.
A gorgeous sunset to start Clockenflap 2015 off!
Interestingly many people bring their very young kids, and of course there are teenagers, young women showing off as much skin as possible when it's freezing and windy, and then older folks who are well versed in music festivals, wearing boots and parkas.
The music ranged from instrumental rock from a local band called ANWIYCTI or Another World if You Can Take It, to Damien Rice with his acoustic guitar and his audience rapt with his ballads, and then Love Psychedelico from Japan with their own version of 1960s rock n roll.
