Another Reason to Strike

Swimmers enjoying the Kowloon Park Swimming Pool

There's a good chance many people won't be able to go swimming in their neighbourhood pool or beach tomorrow because 100 lifeguards will be on strike for one day.

They are protesting against staff shortages and increased workloads caused by an influx of mainlanders who come to swim in the pools particularly in Fanling and Sheung Shui. There are complaints that these day trippers don't respect pool etiquette and mainland children will urinate near the pools, resulting in more efforts to clean them more often.

Alex Kwok Siu-kit, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong and Kowloon Lifeguards' Union says he has seen more mainlanders come to swim in the city in recent years, while the government has cut the number of lifeguards at pools and beaches by 30 percent in 2004.

No one in the water yet at the Morrison Hill Swimming Pool...

Kwok said last month, a friend of his who works at the Kowloon Park Swimming Pool reported seeing a group of 40 mainland tourists who were there for a one-day "swimming tour".

"They were holding a flag that said, 'Hong Kong swimming one-day tour'. They came at around 1pm and swam for about three hours. There were 40 of them," Kwok said.

He adds that people aren't interested in entering the profession because of the heavy workload and it's a dead-end career. But who is a lifeguard for the long term anyway? In the west many young people see it as a summer job or a temporary one to earn money for tertiary education.

The average salary of a lifeguard is HK$15,000 a month.

In any event, the union is calling for the number of lifeguards to be increased by 20 percent.

This is not the first time lifeguards have gone on strike, and it certainly won't be the last.

While it's understandable lifeguards may feel they have more work to do, so do the rest of us. But at the same time, if the Hong Kong government is encouraging people to get fit, there should be a few more lifeguards watching over swimmers too...

Quanjude Celebrates 150 Years

Roasting the ducks over wood from fruit trees gives the birds a sweet taste

A Beijing institution, Quanjude Peking Duck celebrates its 150th anniversary this year.

It used to be the place for the roast bird called kaoya (烤鸭), as the restaurant is covered with pictures of VIPs who have eaten there, but most prominent are the photographs of then US President Richard Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger tucking into Peking Duck in 1972.

The original Quanjude location in Qianmen West

When I first visited China in 1985, we went to that restaurant and I couldn't understand why these famous people would like eating Quanjude's roast duck because it was so oily! And all they had on the menu was every other duck part, such as heart, liver, intestines, web, minced duck wrapped in cabbage, duck soup... was that all the restaurant served?

Then when I came back in 2007, I was so relieved to learn there was an alternative place -- Da Dong Roast Duck, and it is one of my favourite places, not only because the ducks are roasted a bit longer to let the grease drip off and make the skin crispier, but also because the restaurant features a number of other non-duck dishes that are just as delicious.

Perhaps that's why Quanjude is so anxious to trumpet its big anniversary this year, and marking the occasion with the opening of a museum in its Beijing restaurant.

The museum features 20 models that show each stage in preparing the famous dish. One of the stages shows the bird being pumped full of air to separate the skin from the fat.

A perfectly roasted duck before its carved...

How many people will check out the museum is hard to say, especially with hungry stomachs... nevertheless Quanjude boasts it has served 196 million ducks worldwide -- including a new branch in Melbourne!

That's a lot of ducks in 150 years...

Beijing Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant

14 Qianmen Xidajie
Beijing
(86 10) 6511 2418

quanjude.com.cn (in Chinese)

Picture of the Day: Threesome

Will there be more men applying for MasterCard than women?

Images used in advertising can subliminally influence consumers from deciding on what kind of milk to buy to clothing.

Depending on the advertising, the images give people a perception of what kind of lifestyle they will have -- or aspire to have -- if they buy a certain brand.

This ad on the taxi caught my eye the other day. It's a Standard Chartered bank advertisement promoting its MasterCard credit card.

And in it, is a man who looks successful and stylish, dining with two women in evening wear. On the table are Western dishes like rack of lamb, oysters, prawns and beef, and each of the diners are holding a glass of red wine.

The ad says, "Enjoy everyday rewards at all restaurants and up to 10% rebate till year-end".

We're assuming the man is paying with his nifty Standard Chartered MasterCard for this dinner, right?

And what about the ladies? Why is he in the company of two women? With statistically more women than men in Hong Kong, is this a hint that women are supposed to resort to sharing a man?

Or are they two lovely escorts he plans to continue having fun with after dinner?

Either way, to male consumers, the man in the ad is one lucky dog, and to women, an asshole.

Is this the message Standard Chartered and MasterCard want to send to consumers?

Or are we complete prudes and don't realize that threesomes are the "it" thing these days?

Kevin Lau Back to Work

Kevin Lau Chun-to talks to reporters on his first day back at work in Chai Wan

Warm cheers for former Ming Pao chief editor Kevin Lau Chun-to who returned to work today, almost six months after the brutal chopper attack on his back and legs that led to fears about press freedom in Hong Kong.

Reporters said he looked tired and used a cane to walk, but Lau urged his fellow journalists to show courage.

"I still haven't full recovered from the wounds and I will be receiving physiotherapy every morning and coming in for half days of work in the following months," he said.

The veteran journalist was attacked on the morning of February 26 in Sai Wan Ho by a man with a meat cleaver, deeply wounding his back and legs, and the assailant escaped on motorcycle driven by another man.

Lau was rushed to hospital where he was fighting for his life and had serious nerve damage to his leg which doctors say will take two years to recover.

On Friday two men charged with assault appeared in Eastern Court, and then the case was handed over to the Court of First Instance.

Yip Kim-wah and Wong Chi-wan both face charges of unlawful and malicious wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, as well as theft charges.

They have yet to enter a plea.

Lau spoke in a defiant tone to reporters, saying the attack would not affect his approach to his work.

"We have to be cautiously optimistic about any developments in the present political situation. But journalists should not yield to any pressure and must be courageous, especially at times of political instability," he said.

He stressed he would "stand his ground" and continue "to stick to the core principles of journalism".

The attack occurred after he was removed from his position at chief editor by Ming Pao management in February and Lau was transferred to Ming Pao Group's electronic books and teaching materials division.

He does believe the attack was related to his journalism, and in March, thousands of people, including myself marched the streets calling for press freedom.

It's wonderful to finally see Lau up and about, albeit still recovering. When he was transferred, many saw this move very much like something that would happen on the mainland.

People were annoyed that this was happening in Hong Kong. But when the horrific attack happened, everyone was so shocked because Lau is hardly a radical, making it seem even more strange why he was the target.

Nevertheless, he knows everyone is watching, which is why he hopes the determination in his voice will not only demonstrate his confidence, but also inspire others, particularly in the journalism field, to continue guarding press freedom in the city.