Picture of the Day: XX Shades of Grey

It's not a black and white picture -- it just turned out that way!

This morning I woke up and saw this picture outside.

The Hong Kong Observatory issued a thunderstorm warning with a few intermittent showers. Luckily by the time I left for work it wasn't raining because by lunchtime it was pouring down. Later there was an amber rainstorm warning that wasn't cancelled until 6.15pm.

What's neat about this picture is that I didn't use a black and white filter -- it was just several shades ranging from white to black.

The next few days will continue to have showers and thunderstorms.... and it's only the beginning of summer.

Picture of the Day: QE Park

Such a nice treat to see the park in full bloom in the summertime

After my friends and I had an early dinner on Main Street, I suggested we head to the nearby Queen Elizabeth Park to walk around and digest our meal.

It was still bright outside and I hadn't really visited the park in ages. Turns out all of us needed a refresher.

The 130-acre park was named after Queen Elizabeth, the mother of Queen Elizabeth II, and it's the highest point in Vancouver at 152 metres above sea level.

Succulents line the bases of these trees and giant plants

It has sunken gardens because it used to be a quarry, and the landscapers definitely made good use of the land. The gardens are well maintained and it's a favourite place for wedding photos in the summer.

While some parts of the park are the same, there are others that have been upgraded or modernized. One section featured mounds of trees where the bases are decorated with lots of succulents! Talk about creating more colours and textures!

There's also another section that has three metal sculptures where happy couples can demonstrate their love by putting their lock on the three dimensional figures.

Apparently it's inspired by Pont des Arts in Paris, where couples seal their love for each other, but the sculptures here are hardly covered in locks, though there are many. And it's not just couples showing their love, but also grandparents and grandchildren too, some in different languages like French and Chinese.

Picture of the Day: Sunset Summer

Catching the tail end of a gorgeous sunset at Spanish Banks in Vancouver

I've had a short trip to Vancouver, but enjoyed every moment thanks to the fantastic weather we've been having. The best part is that the humidity is so low you hardly break out into a sweat, unlike Hong Kong, where walking outside for five minutes results in sweat pouring from your forehead like a waterfall.

After dinner my friend and I headed to Spanish Banks to catch the sunset and we got there at the tail end with the sky was already a deep pink and mauve.

Down the beach we saw a gaggle of Canada geese hanging out right by the water -- I don't remember ever seeing this before. But there they were standing around and cleaning themselves. Wondered what they were up to next.

It's so nice to see the sun go down just before 10pm -- in Hong Kong it's already dark by 7pm, but then again in Vancouver, it's dark by 3pm in the winter.

Nevertheless I was really glad to be able to catch the beautiful sunset right by the water -- before heading back to Hong Kong.

Sliding in Hong Kong

Enjoy the thrill of sliding down and taking in the view of the city too

At the Central waterfront there's a giant 10-metre long slide for people to beat the heat, though according to the Chinese lunar calendar, summer was officially over on Tuesday.

Slide in the City had a delayed start yesterday

Slide in the City was supposed to open at 9am yesterday until Monday, but was delayed until 2pm because it was waiting for approval from the Hong Kong government's Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.

Karen Kwok Ka-yan, project director of event organizer Dreams Salon Entertainment Culture, conceded the company had underestimated the time it needed to win government approval for the installation.

As a result, many people who had tickets for the morning session were disappointed they couldn't play on the slide, though they were happy to return at a later time and get a free bottle of water each.

This is the second year Slide the City has come to Hong Kong. The American outfit first installed temporary slides in the United States in 2013 and has since gone to Canada, Japan, Columbia and Malaysia.

Visitors can hang out in the make-shift beach...

There were over 16,000 people who visited the site in Hong Kong last year and organizers are hoping for 6,000 a day for six days.

While people can enter the site for free, they have to pay HK$180 to HK$580 to use the slide for two hours, depending on the time of day. There's even an artificial beach complete with deckchairs and large plastic balls.

Sound like fun? Join the line...

Picture of the Day: Rain Again

Overcast and rainy, at times heavy too -- the forecast every day this past week

In the last week or so, temperatures in Hong Kong have dropped to high 20s because of the rain we've been getting day and night.

One minute the sky is covered in a grey gauze-like curtain of showers, and a few minutes later it clears up and maybe the sun pokes through, albeit briefly before showers appear again. It's as if the weather hasn't decided if it's rained enough yet.

Today the Hong Kong Observatory raised the Typhoon signal No. 1 and this evening it was upped to No. 3. There is currently a tropical depression that is intensifying south of Hong Kong, but by tomorrow will blow westward towards Hanoi.

Apart from having to carry umbrellas all the time and put on our plastic shoes and rubber boots, we're definitely not complaining about the temperatures that are much cooler than usual.

Picture of the Day: Labyrinth

For a short meditative walk, go to the labyrinth at St John's Cathedral

I inadvertently discovered a labyrinth in Hong Kong near the Star Ferry several months ago, though I have yet to actually walk it.

Then I found a second one on the weekend at St John's Cathedral in Central. It's quite small, but in a quiet area that's conducive to having a meditative walk.

I tried walking it, but the midday sun proved too hot and so I rushed through it. However, you can't exactly rush either, if you want to walk between the lines and go through all four quadrants, which some believe is like going through the four quadrants of the brain.

When the weather gets cooler, I'll have to try it again sometime, with a question or issue in my heart, and hopefully it may lead to some answers, or at least calm my mind. Who doesn't need to get their brain to relax?

Picture of the Day: Manhattanhenge

Coming across the Manhattanhenge

According to Wikipedia, the Manhattanhenge is an event during which the setting sun is aligned with the east-west streets of the main street grid of Manhattan, New York City. This event, also known as Manhattan Solstice, occurs twice a year around the summer solstice.

The other night we were walking home from dinner and managed to witness this event. Summer is definitely in the Big Apple.