Lamma-zine Blog - June 2006


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June 30: RIP, Pinky Chan

Very, very sad news: Pinky Chan died a few days ago in a fire in her house in China.

A true Lamma icon and widely known local landlady, she'll be sorely missed by so many people for so many good reasons.

The local wake will be held tomorrow, Sat night, from 8pm till late in her regular hangout, Spicy Island (see right and below).

The funeral will take place late next week in HK, date and location not confirmed yet. On Tue, Pinky's sister will bring her ashes back from Shenzhen, after the cremation has taken place.

For more details and up-to-date info on the arrangements, see our forum topic: RIP, Pinky Chan, where Lammaites remember her fondly.

Please email me any news and updates on this sad matter and I'll publish them in the forum for everybody to see!

I'll publish a tribute to my friend and occasional Lamma-zine contributor Pinky next week, written by some of her many good friends. A public online photo gallery will also be set up. Please submit photos and stories for inclusion ASAP: email Lamma-Gung.

In the meantime, you can have a look at some of the many Pinky stories and photos already published on this website:

Forum: Pinky Chan rules, Become a shareholder of Lamma Island!
Lamma-zine: Pinkyism; Lamma-zine Blog: Pinky's 2nd-Biggest Fan.

June 29: Congrats to Harry the Excellent!

Asian Newspaper Awards, as reported in the SCMP:

P.S. Despite repeated emails, Harry wasn't available for any comments. Probably too busy celebrating with his many mates and gaggle of admirers...

June 28: Best of English Forums - June 2006

It has come to our attention that several (quite a large percentage, in fact) of the readers of this blog do NOT read our very active English and Chinese forums yet! How could you! That's where all the fun stuff is happening and the uncensored, unedited free-speech stuff is going on! Mischief! Mayhem! Mass Hysteria! Murder!

Well, not quite, but it can become pretty heated and very interesting quite frequently. No better place (besides some bars after midnight) to hear the latest news about Lamma and Lammaites. Check it out!

To help you to find the rare "pearls of wisdom" among all the (often quite entertaining) verbal dross and drivel that's part of every forum, let's do a monthly update of the best of the forums. As this selection is unavoidably subjective, I hope we can get other forum moderators and active members to put together this short list in the future. Here it is, Lamma-Gung's unabashedly personal selections:

Lamma-Gung - Moderator of "Discussions" and several other forums:

Fruit of the sea:
From the water quality at Hung Shing Yeh beach to "dickheads on jetskis", "severe conjunctivitis", "illegal skinny dipping" and "sexy nurse's uniforms". Read more...

Martin Booth's book "Gweilo":
A review of Martin Booth's book "Gweilo" is starting this most rare of events in the Lamma forums: an intelligent discussion about philosophical and political topics like:
"Confucianism caused the Cultural Revolution",
"pop fiction shall remain an expense of spirit in a waste of shame",
"self-consciously cultivating a kind of affected intellectualism".
Read more...
The abandoned sanatorium:
The long-running "Lammarina" topic has been morphing into a history lesson about the ancient, decrepit, abandoned sanatorium in Shek Li. Do you know the history? Read more...

Bar & Restaurant News:
Lots of news and updates! Add your own reviews and ratings of these old/new places: POW, Banyan Bay Cafe and The Fully Monty, version 3. Read more...

Lights Out HK?
The recent story in this blog initiated a hot debate about the merits of the campaign in general and power-saving in particular... Read more...

A poet who ululates by the shores of the yummy chocolate sea:
My appeal of "Looking for writers (amateurs & professionals)" has been spectacularly unsuccessful so far. But it got at least one "Ghost Teacher" out of his (sea) shell and he posted several mysterious and intriguing poems. Read more...

Environmentally-friendly websites?
Sylvie: "...some information on how to live ecologically in Hong Kong. Does it exist?" She got quite a few replies. Read more...

Screaming ferry:
Probably the most controversial topic of the month: children coming back from school on the afternoon ferries, having fun, running around, screaming, laughing. Some Lammaites feel disturbed, verrrry disturbed... Read more...

June 27: 'Evil Environmentalist'

James submitted the controversial poem below which he wrote after about a month of moving to Lamma. He loved it here so much, but he couldn't shake off the nagging feeling that it was all too good to be true and surely some evil people were going to come in and spoil it all at some point with some "high-rise frenzy of development or road or something".

The poem below seems to attack various groups, but it's really up to the reader's own opinion. James uses his full, real name, but he hopes that the readers don't think he wants to do all those "evil" things to the island, hoping there won't be a lynch mob by morning! No worry, James, lynch mobs are NOT a Lamma tradition and are unheard of, to my admittedly very limited knowledge. "Being voted off the island", yes; tarring & feathering, maybe; but lynching, no!

As usual, the poem and the comments about it do only reflect the opinion of the authors and not the official opinion of the Lamma-zine. This blog intentionally does NOT have an official opinion, but considers itself more as a community platform, a public soapbox for its readers to stand up and voice their own opinions. We'll continue to proudly publish controversial opinions, independent of the personal opinions of the editor and publisher. Their opinions are definitely not more important than the ones of the readers of this community magazine.

Let us know what YOU love and hate about Lamma and Lammaites!

James Ockenden:

Evil Environmentalist

I want to set fire to the windmill,
replace it with banks of car batteries,
and build channels
so the leaking acid runs towards the schools.

I propose roads 12 metres wide
criss-crossing the concreted island,
tourists twisting and turning at the sculpture in the sky,
the Yung Shue Wan bypass flyover interchange.

It's eight pm on the eighth day of the eight month,
better shut off the lights.
Join the campaign.

I propose a bridge, the biggest bridge ever made,
from the pier right into a Japanese 4x4 factory,
the latest models direct to our door.

I propose to take away the pile of gleaming anthracite
from outside the coal-fired power plant,
and replace it with a dense sulphurous oily peat,
and as I consider a proposal
to roll a hundred thousand tonne golf ball
of a pressurised water nuclear reactor
onto Hung Shing Ye beach.

I figure three minutes must be up by now,
the capacitors will surely all be drained.
I flick the lights back on
because I like the smell of burning coal.

I've asked James about the unflattering lines above about the Lights Out campaign we've featured 3 days ago. He said, "...switching off and re-starting all the fluorescent and neon lights in Hong Kong would use the same amount of energy as running Lamma coal-fired plant at full tilt for around 35 minutes.

Maybe no big deal on a world environmental stage but it's 35 minutes of coal-burning to make what point exactly? What exactly is Lights Out calling on the government to do, other than vague calls about "air pollution"?

Maybe you could ask them these questions for the website?"

I did, of course, getting the following reply from the Lights Out campaign:

Lee Fan - Lights Out campaign [Highlights below by Editor]:

The purpose of the Lights Out campaign is simple. To show the government and the CEOs of the 65,000 HK registered companies across the border in the Pearl River Delta that we are not happy!

That pollution is the number one public concern at the moment and by gathering everyone to speak through this campaign, we will manage to speed up the much needed legislation.

If over a million people turn off their lights at the same time, this message will be heard!

As for the figures stated about 35 minutes and the extra power usage, I highly doubt the facts stated by your correspondent, but to make an omelet you have to break a few eggs.

Would I be correct in assuming that the question came from someone either extracting the urine or someone quite willing to complain their arses off about the pollution, yet do nothing about it.

This is not a tree hugging hippy venture, it's a simple yet possibly very effective way of getting action sooner rather than later.

Give us a hand you may just enjoy yourself. I am.

P.S. Sorry about the extra few minutes of power.

P.S. A heated discussion about this topic has just started in our forum...

June 26: Do Praying Mantises Like Full English Breakfast?

Sitting in Tropicana (the breakfast/juice place close to Nick's Corner) for my usual mid-afternoon lunch, Ah-Can announced their new menu and full English breakfasts for $45, including coffee and juice, see above. I tried it and liked it a lot, best breakfast value for money in the village at the moment!

While enjoying a leisurely breakfast at 3:30pm, we noticed a 2-inch-long Praying Mantis climbing slowly up the ceiling-high fridge at the restaurant's entrance. The missing 6th leg might have slowed it down, giving me enough time to shoot a few Macro photos. The Mantis might have mistaken the green fridge for a tree where these totally harmless insects catch other insects. The Mantis photo above is NOT to scale and is a composite of two photos to make it look more dramatic! Of course, Ah-Can and I didn't hurt it and let it continue on its way.

I remember an even bigger Praying Mantis than this one 1 year ago. It jumped from a tree branch above me straight onto the top of my head. At the time, I was sitting in a comfortable and relaxed pose in the pretty garden outside the police station headquarters on Cheung Chau Island, after doing a story on last year's police publicity campaign for burglary prevention. The Mantis got me out of my chair amazingly quickly... I like insects and bugs, but try to keep them out of my remaining hair...

June 25: Photos of the Day - June 2006

3 weeks ago, I've called for Lamma photos for our Photo of the Day section on the home page (see top left) and in the growing Photo of the Day gallery. Since then, a regular stream of great photos has been arriving in my email inbox and in our forums, more than I could publish so far. See the shots published this month below. Many thanks to all the following talented photographers for submitting this month's great photos:

Birdface, Vicky Baker, Martin Elliott, Anonymous Guy, Ingmar, ChaBo, e, Josh, Nadine, Wingman, Jay Scott Kanes, Leggova, Eric Sampson, HarryLi, Jocelyn, Andy Griff, Bud!

Keep the photos coming, so this photo gallery can grow into a definitive archive of the very best photos of Lamma Island! I'm not just looking for pretty nature and landscape shots, but anything shot on Lamma: parties, people, pets, etc. Any photo that shows something special, typical, unusual, creative, artistic, funny or rare about our home island.

I'll select and publish one photo per day on the home page and add it to the Photo of the Day gallery. Full photo credits for you, of course, including email and website links, if you like. What are you waiting for? Find your best shots and get them published as "Photo of the Day" with your name or nickname! Post them yourself in the Photo of the Day forum or email them to me directly.

June 24: Lights Out Volunteers Wanted!

Alastair Robbins - Co-organiser of Lights Out HK campaign which wants HK people to turn out their lights on Aug 8, 8pm, for 3 minutes, to push the government to get serious about fighting air pollution:

Volunteers Needed!

Lights Out HK will be holding a press conference on the 2nd of July to fully launch this campaign.

Our success depends upon the volume of people we manage to inform.

The logic being every man and his dog wants a vast improvement to our air quality and this will give them a chance to be heard.

We have designed this poster so that it may be mass e-mailed to every contact requesting the recipient to do the same (after 2nd July!)

However, through small groups of volunteers prior to the press launch we wish to contact the heads of major organisations within HK:

Chambers of commerce, Social clubs, Religious Groups, Associations, The media, Consulates, Sports clubs, Housing developers, etc, etc.

These posters can be sent to the heads of these groups and their support requested. We have also written a cover letter to help with this task.

If you wish to lend a hand and help do something that I believe could well work in creating a better Hong Kong.

Please phone, 2982 6003 or 2982 1264, leaving your name and number.

Failing this, write your information down and leave it with the bar staff at the Deli Lamma. We will get back in touch as soon as possible.

Poster in PDF format: English, Chinese. Image format: click poster above!

June 23: Fighting Juvenile Crimes!

Our valiant local police force is launching another heroic campaign this year! After last year's Anti-Burglary campaign, they're organising a big roadshow, campaign and competition for the "Fight Against Juvenile Crimes". They have asked me to publicise it to our law-abiding citizenry. Well, I'm glad to do so, as this law-abiding publication and its law-abiding editor, writers, photographers and all our contributors strive lawfully to remain on the law-abiding, lawful side of the law!

The campaign is about the fight against "Juvenile Crimes"? Juvenile Crimes on Lamma? Do they refer to the vicious, blood-thirsty gangs of juvenile delinquents indulging in horrendous crimes like bragging, loitering and even graffiti, terrorising Yung Shue Wan after nightfall, rampaging and pillaging the fruit shops and frighten us good, law-abiding citizens into staying in-doors? Only the most foolhardy among us ever dare to go out and frequent almost-empty, fearful bars and restaurants, even in those World Cup-feverish days! Shudder & Tremble!

Well, fortunately, this is not the case at all and we live in a safe and peaceful community (Hip-hip-hooray to our valiant local police force, securing law and order day and night and sometimes even on weekends!). Everybody can go for a safe walk even after midnight; or so I've heard, being one of those early-to-bed, early-to-rise, healthy-living, obnoxious types myself.

There'll be an opening ceremony for this Islands District-wide police campaign (Cheung Chau Sports Centre, Aug 3, noon-5pm) and a roadshow (Yung Shue Wan City Hall (Rural Committee Office), Aug 12, noon-5pm), displaying the winning entries of the Poster/Colour Drawing and Slogan Creation Competition. Colour drawing forms available at the Police Box! Here are the English and Chinese posters, plus the competition entry form (Word and image format).

June 22: Lammaites in Tuxedos & Evening Gowns

tux�e�do (tŭk-sē'dō)
n., pl. -dos or -does.
[Short for Tuxedo coat, after a country club at Tuxedo Park, a village of Southeast New York.]

A man's dress jacket, usually black with satin or grosgrain lapels, worn for formal or semiformal occasions. Also called dinner jacket.
A complete outfit including this jacket, trousers usually with a silken stripe down the side, a bow tie, and often a cummerbund.

This definition above has been included as many Lammaites might not be familiar with the upper-class concept of a "tuxedo", or even actually own one...

Let's look at some pictures of the "high society" of Lamma today, people who actually own tuxedos or beautiful, expensive evening gowns. They congregate at so-called "balls" (not referring to footballs!), where they meet fellow members of high society, sip champagne, award each other medals and freely give away goodies like iPods, vacations and other luxury items unaffordable to us mere hoi polloi. Let's hear about the Lamma CC's "Cricketers' Ball" in their own words:

Kevin Bishop - reviewing the Cricketers' Ball on June 17, 2006, Novotel Century Hotel, Wanchai:
3 bands (9th State headlining), top-class buffet dinner, black tie/formal dress code, $590, tickets only from selected Lamma CC members, none at the door. See poster for more info.
Above right: Lamma CC Men's team Vice Captain Mark Burns & fianc�e/ cheerleader/chair & manager of Lamma's victorious Women's Cricket team Kim Leung, getting married this summer!

Cricketers' Ball photos are already on the website: www.Lammacc.com.

There must have been close to 100 people in the end - members and friends. There were three bands - headline act was the superb 9th State, who as you can see from the photos got people onto the dance floor.

We had a whole list of prizes including spa treatments, gym memberships, an iPod, restaurant meals, sports equipment, etc. - the generous sponsors who donated them are listed at the top of the photo gallery.

I have it on good authority that the party continued into the wee hours, although I'm pleased to say I was long gone by that time!

June 21: Diesel's Has NOT Been Sold!

Time for a public apology and correction:

On June 16, in a story about the 3rd anniversary of New Holiday Mood, I mentioned a short list of changes in local bars and restaurants, including that "Diesel's has been sold".

This is totally incorrect and has caused Lucy and Malcolm a lot of unnecessary questions and confusion. I'm very sorry about this mistake and sincerely apologise to Diesel's for not triple-checking this information before publishing it. The remark has been removed immediately, of course. The writer (myself) and the editor (myself) have been severely reprimanded and have both promised to the publisher (myself) to be more careful in the future. Otherwise...

This also serves as a good lesson that MOST local rumours turn out to be distorted, misleading or just plain and totally wrong!

This has been the first major error in this blog this year so far, I believe, let's keep it that way! Freelance researchers, proofreaders and fact-checkers are most welcome to apply to this weblication (web publication)!

The news was based on several "correspondents" and usually reliable news sources. Diesel's had "almost" been sold just before the World Cup, but Lucy and Malcolm are very committed to grow their fine business, working very hard to improve it and make it into a big success! All the very best from the Lamma-zine! Hoping that my friends (and former advertisers) Lucy & Malcolm can forgive me for this stupid mistake, here's a little free promotion for them. Malcolm says:

"With a great atmosphere, superb food and three screens showing all the matches live, Diesel's Sports Bar is the best place to watch the World Cup 2006!"

June 20: 'Alok Scratches and Claws at His Guitar'

Nick the ReviewMan - Nick's been doing all the reviews for the biweekly Underground concerts from #12 - #27, all published on the UndergroundHK website. Time for a little rest...

From now on, Nick's Underground reviews will only be published on his own website (part of this website, maintained by L-G), uncensored and full-length! Nick's latest review of Underground #29 on June 9:

"Welcome back my friends, to the show that never ends..." This long-running local rock experience is back at The Edge, to end its tweens in fine style. "We're so glad you could attend, come inside, come inside..." The sky is a wall-to-wall bruise, leaking intermittent spizzle and there's some over-hyped soccer tournament starting in Germany any moment now. "The show's about to start, guaranteed to blow your little heart..." (Yeah, that's enough Emerson Lake & Palmer from this mid-70's prog-rock trio).

Luke Chow, from show #22, is the latest guest MC. Yan can't do it. She's performing later with her band Hard Candy. ATV are back, filming some more of their forthcoming (?) program.

The opening act System Kick provide a touch of international flair (well, Macau anyway). About 50 people are inside to support this awesome foursome. Band leader Geoff the Edgukator asks "How the hell are ya? This first song is called The Truth" A fluid 2-minute overture/intro leads into a speedy rap by Geoff. They sound part Led Zeppelin, part Midnight Oil. Geoff even looks like a smaller, chubbier version of Peter Garret, the Oil's vocalist. There seems to be some politics in this song. When Geoff sings "You can't handle the truth", he's like Jack Nicholson putting down Tom Cruise in A Few Good Men.

The music veers from Juicy Lucy funk-rock, to hints of Genesis and Wishbone Ash in the guitar riffs. DJ Jamie tells me about his new band Bonetable, playing soon at The Wanch. Drummer Paul from The Academy has arrived and seems to be enjoying himself. System Kick play a 7-song set and really put in the hard yards. There's good interplay between Ryan (guitar), Fabbio (bass) and Fai on drums. Now they sound like The Who playing some early U2. Quick switch to bar-room boogie with a tinge of bossa nova - a real Pink Panther moment. Other songs recall the heavy mellow vintage Blue Oyster Cult jamming with Terry Reid. The noise/calm/noise dynamic is well handled. System Kick are hoping to launch the Macau leg of this rock showpiece later this summer and "hope to see you next time".

Here's a totally gratuitous plug for teen-band Spermatic Chord whose debut EP is blowing some minds as Hard Candy set up. I've seen James, the drummer, do 2 solos at Rock It 1 and 3. Half the band (drums and bass) also played at the School of Rock gig in Pokfulam last March. Now, they sound like the Chemical Brothers fighting Joe Meek in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop (think Telstar and the Dr. Who theme). Ultra-rare late 60's electronic band White Noise spring to mind as do the mad Swedish Moogsters EHIF from the mid-80's. The late John Peel would definitely have played them on his BBC Show. It's a pity they're still under-age. I am really looking forward to seeing them in full. Possibly Rock It 4 will find some room for them.

Hard Candy are a tasty girl trio who specialise in experimental rock. Yan is on guitar and vocals. Renee's a powerhouse drummer, despite her innocent appearance and Alex play's some seismic bass. Yan dedicates the first song "to my boyfriend who I don't have, so fuck him" It's jagged folk-punk with some anguished screeching on top. This whole show is turning into a Therapy Rock Session in some ways. Song 2 is more like Wire's funk-punk, though a bit of unintended feedback causes problems on stage, but not for long. The 3rd song is I Wish (?) and it's chilly-sounding vocals are part nursery rhyme, part Kim Gordon's breathy singing from Sonic Youth's Goo LP.

The final tune is my favourite. Dedicated to the late and very unhappy troubador, Elliot Smith, it's a tour-de-force. A mutated riff like Pink Floyd's Interstellar Overdrive blends into what sounds like Ghost Riders in the Sky meeting Liverpool indie-goths The Chameleons. Yan's vocals are steeped in misery, a megaphone rants in the background. Renee's drums are funereal, while Alex plumbs new depths of despair on her bass. Copies of their new CD are on sale. Well worth collecting

It's a double-bill tonight as An id Signal are stable mates of Hard Candy and helped produce their CD. Their brand of slightly fey howling psyche-rock ups the Therapy quotient of the night. The singer has great presence, roaming and strutting the stage like an amped-up Brett Anderson of Suede. There are some vintage Motorhead moments, crossed with the slow space-grunge of Type O Negative. The drummer batters relentlessly at his kit, the guitarists are head down, churning away in a frenzy of fret-wankery. (this is not a bad thing to hear either).

ATV are getting into the groovy, filming from all angles, and Willem is matching them snap for shot with consummate ease. The crowd is 100+ by now. John Transnoodle has arrived with his usual big grin. Chi, a Lamma mate who works for ATV is in the house to see how the film crew are panning out. He's a big fan of tonight's final act. I'm chatting to Stan the Man who's also here for the next band, but is having fun anyway. My friend Mike Davis is matching me gig for gig and we high-five our approval of the entertainment. An id Signal tear through some vicious ballads before bludgeoning the audience with a Metallica? inspired slow, heavy section. The kids are all-right, moshing away up front and preparing to greet the final act.

Alok is a veteran of the local music scene, forming his first band a decade ago. This latest incarnation, Alok31G, comprises members of UNiXX, My Stoned Playground and Luxury and is about as perfect a HK supergroup as one can get. There's a lot of Joy Division references in this set from the band's name to the guitar soundscapes. Alok scratches and claws at his guitar, producing a thunderous, droning opener before the band cut loose. There are lots of tasty hints of classic UK bands, ranging from the glam-metal of T.Rex and Sweet, to the classic punk of Eddie and the Hot Rods, The Members and Slaughter and the Dogs. The singer invokes memories of Feargal Sharkey (of The Undertones) cross-bred with a brawnier Brett Anderson of Suede. The 4th tune is part nu-metal "Sympathy for the Devil" clatter-drums and throbbing bass with guitars echoing sections of The Great Banana Hoax by The Electric Prunes.

The group finish early, so fans can catch the World Cup opener and Luke sums up the general feeling of appreciation by saying that was "an orgasmic pleasure". Guilty, therapy rockpunk at its best.

The next meeting of like minds is on June 21st, at Les Visages.
See you there.

June 19: The Tiger Roared... and then Started Tap-Dancing!

Coming soon...

June 18: 'Wild Lives', by Eric Sampson

June 17: 'Nagged, Nudged & Brow-Beaten into Action'

Official Court Glutton - Review #4:

Due to a depleted bank account <gasp!> and market forces, the Official Court Glutton has been actually having to generate income by working and traveling like a dog to customer's locations around Asia. This all started rudely at 9:30 AM on January 2nd while I was in "sloth mode". Thus my attentions were focused on filthy lucre and gluttony charged to expense reports for the last six months.

During the year, eating conditions in the village seem to be in flux. Places I have written about in the past have dropped their standards (shame!). Even worse, some places no longer exist or have made major menu changes.

Fortunately, a new place has opened and the Official Court Glutton has been nagged, nudged and brow-beaten into action.

Yung Shue Wan now has an interesting alternative to the usual Chinese/ Western/Japanese/Thai/Indian fare.

It is refreshing to see a creative idea as far as food is concerned. Another Chinese noodle shop we do not need.

So to have a kebab place is a delicious idea. Best Kebab is a new place to replace the Kiwi restaurant.

So wandering up Back Street, I step inside and plant myself down. Yes...air-conditioning is a good idea in the humid weather. Scoping out the place, I see stainless steel kitchen appliances, clean floors, clean walls, NO TV belting out Chinese TV shows. Clean tables and chairs (though the 1970s lime green chairs are almost OK and definitely better than the 1970s burnt-orange colour!). Real metal knives and forks are a good thing.

Surveying the menu: various lamb or chicken dishes. Next page: pizza. A whole page of pizzas! Turkish pizza and Italian style pizza. So... a limited choice of lamb, chicken, pizza. After minimal thought, a lamb shish kebab was ordered. After a short wait, my meal arrived and I can start my review.

Initial impression is quite good. A large plate mostly filled with lean lamb pieces (7), a pita bread, salad, some tomato and cucumber and two small containers of sauce. One sauce was a mild chili sauce and the other was a white salad dressing that was a not too exciting. Tried the salad and it was good. Kind of like a coleslaw texture without the mayonnaise. Pita bread, was fresh and not sour from baking powder or baking soda. Lamb was very nice, not fatty, lean but not too dry. Good flavour and texture. Completely finished my plate.

Obviously very competent people who know how to make a decent, simple, tasty dish. So, a very decent kebab for HK$45 including a drink. Good value for quality and quantity of food delivered.

Looking at the other people placing orders for take-out and staying in to eat, I can see that I am not alone in my thinking. Congratulations for the owners to execute a new and original idea in Yung Shue Wan!

I would recommend a condiment platter for each table with salt, black pepper, Tabasco sauce, chili powder for those who like to add a bit more spice to suit their palate.

Would I go back? Absolutely!

Do I recommend to others? Definitely!

June 16: 'Teatime Inside, Outside Seaview!'

Today, New Holiday Mood on Main Street is celebrating its 3rd anniversary under the current management of Ricky Choi and his charming wife (see right, at last year's anniversary party). One of the local originals, everybody knows Ricky standing out on Main Street trying to lure in customers with his incessant English/ Cantonese shouts of "Teatime inside, outside seaview!". Well, it works on quite a few tourists. He's even been known to sing Karaoke very loudly in the afternoons when business is quiet, inviting locals to join in and party with him. As a long-time Lamma.com.hk advertiser, I've been following their progress with interest and like to stop by for teatime and a chat occasionally.

3 years is a long time to survive under the same management in the very turbulent local bar & restaurant scene. In the last few months, The Full Monty closed down, the former Bistro re-opened as an electrical appliances shop, Aroy Thai/The Corner Pin changed ownership/management on July 1st (after almost one year under the current leadership) and The Water Front is changing its daily management to Hazim (from the Deli Lamma) TONIGHT with free snacks!

New Holiday Mood is putting on an All You Can Eat Buffet tonight for just $88, including beer & wine, just $188. Parents even can bring one child for free! We'll be there, helping Ricky to celebrate his long-time survival through turbulent times. Here's the menu, you can reserve at 2982 1880. Leave your own opinions in our Index of Bars & Restaurants (incl reviews & ratings).

A few little-known facts about New Holiday Mood: Besides their Western coffee shop-style menu they also serve Indian food from Spicy Island and Chinese dishes from Lung Wah Rest., quite suitable for any group of guests with widely differing tastes. The entire place can be rented for an evening for a special event which seems to be happening quite frequently. They also cater for parties and events.

June 15: 'Aging Bikers, Hippies & Drunks'

Remember Andy Maluche, the Official Court Artist of Lamma.com.hk? After surviving cancer a while back, we thought he'd lay low for a while, contemplate his own close brush with mortality and become a wiser and quieter person. Far from it! Quite the opposite!

See the poster from his latest art photo exhbition "Tribal Warfare" in Manila on the right! Plus a few more of his recent photos, often showing him engaged in wild shenanigans at wild parties. He seems to be still partying his ass off as if there's no tomorrow!

Even when visiting Lamma quite frequently these days from his Manila home, he's always attending the hottest, fanciest parties in town or is engaged in some glamorous photo shoot with beautiful models. Das ist sehr gut, mein Freund!

Some recent quotes from his website, aptly named www.dont-touch-my.com:

"I have a photographic memory.
I only remember what I did the night before once I see my photographs.

"I like humor. Particularly "tongue in cheek".
And especially the tongue of a pretty girl in my cheek.

"I always wondered if I am so insecure that I constantly need to reassure myself by putting myself as an artist in the center of attention.
But then I realized it is something else.
I do it because of the thrill. I am addicted to fun and excitement and being the target of adulation is a thrill."

Truer words were never spoken...

Re: "Tribal Warfare": Would somebody like to write a story about Lamma's various tribes, their looks, their rituals and their interactions?

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of our cute, little home planet, Andy's best buddy Mr DickStock sent me this update from his frequent world travels (pictures posted on his Flickr pages):

"I just hung out with one of the greats: George Frayne, A.K.A. "Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen" (see left).

"They were a hippie band back in the day; their biggest hit was "Hot Rod Lincoln". When I saw that they were scheduled to play this little dive up in Silverton, Oregon, I decided to Be There. Got there on Friday afternoon and got the last room in the only motel in town.

"The bar was a smoky dive {without the smoke these days} which has been a saloon at least since 1910, and the crowd was full of aging bikers, hippies and drunks.

"Next morning I hung out in the parking lot of the motel (see right), talking to the band and decided to follow them over the mountains to Seaside, Oregon, where they played Saturday night to a 'muscle car' convention.

I got a backstage "all access" pass, and tried real hard to drink up all the band's beer backstage. Failed."

"Full of aging bikers, hippies and drunks"? No wonder Mr DickStock felt so much at home in there! Come back soon, Dick, Lamma's very own aging bikers, hippies and drunks are awaiting you eagerly to rejoin them!
Hey, wait a minute, Lamma-Gung is not a drunk!

June 14: Royal Wedding @ Confluence Castle!

What has Lamma's "Confluence King of China" (as the SCMP called him in a feature, see left) been up to since we've heard from him last in the Lamma-zine, when he was setting another record for most confluence points visited in China? Targ has successfully visited 144 confluence points so far, mostly all over China and is planning to conquer a lot more. He's been building a veritable 18-room "castle" in rural China and getting married there in the traditional style of the home village of his charming bride and co-confluencer aFeng!

He's the undisputed "Confluence King of China", marrying his queen (see right) in a new "castle-sized" house, that's how the title of this story was inspired. We've got a first-hand account from his good friend TonyB who took along his eldest daughter. She's already fluent in Mandarin and attended the village school (see the brown-haired girl below, being the center of attraction)!

There are also loads of wedding pictures I've selected personally from Targ's huge hard disk at home. Their flat, up a hundred (or more!) stairs in Tai Peng, overlooks the luscious Yung Shue Long valley with a sunset view that is not so different from the all-green views from Confluence Castle. Click below for TonyB's full story and the wedding photo gallery. (TonyB on the upper left. Mr DickStock below him.)

P.S. After reading this story, Mr DickStock emailed me with the following 2 amendments:

"Notice I was wearing a red corsage (see above)? Targ don't drink, so I was the Designated Drinker. We had to go to each table and say to everyone, "Man Man Sick". {Eat slowly, enjoy} and I had to down a glass. Luckily they allowed me to drink beer instead of the local "Rocket Fuel".

"Also, Ah-Feng, the bride, has two brothers, so aside from the formalities, I also had to sit and drink with each of their group of cronies. Many many beers at each of two {or more} tables. All in the line of duty....."

Why Mr DickStock felt it necessary to set these things clear in public, Heaven only knows... His amazing affinity, capacity and tolerance for beer is a widely known fact of Lamma Lore...

June 13: Register for Lamma Eco-Tourism Forum!

Doris of the Conservancy Association - a non-governmental environmental organisation - sent me this invitation for a free eco-tourism forum in Yung Shue Wan on Sat afternoon, June 24. These are the people behind many nature conservancy projects all over HK and also the 3-year Green Lamma Green tree-planting project at the pavilion above Hung Shing Yeh beach, on the way to Sok Kwu Wan. There have been at least two former Lamma-zine stories and a photo gallery on this topic.

The Conservancy Association would like to explain that project and share our ideas of developing eco-tourism from all walks of life. They're hoping to get in touch with any local organization on Lamma from different sectors, like food & beverage, shops, green groups, youth clubs, etc.

Discussion topics will be how to develop sustainable local eco-tourism, how to utilise the natural ecological resources of Lamma, how to tie in eco-tourism into the daily lives of the local residents. Some very controversial issues, indeed! Expect some fireworks!

Here are the invitation letter and the agenda of the forum (both in pdf format).

Sat, June 24, New Holiday Mood, Main Street: (besides Japanese rest.):
4:30 - 5:30pm: Cantonese session; 5:30 - 6:30pm: English session.

If you know interested friends and local groups and businesses, please let them know about this forum. But the seats in New Holiday Mood are limited to a maximum of 25, so you'll have to register ASAP (by fax or email to Doris Pang). Click here for the reply slip (English, Chinese, Word and PDF format only; email me for text or html formats).

June 12: 'An Ode for Your Mag's Delectation'

And now for something completely different: a fictitious, sad but beautiful ode set on Lamma in verses. Tjungarayi emailed it to me a few days ago, with a great subject line of "An Ode for Your Mag's Delectation". Let me know if you like this type of fiction and would like to see more!

Background for the ode below, from Tjungarayi:

"Mrs Kay was an attractive Englishwoman and had run away to the orient leaving her husband and 5 children behind. She looked a little like Mata Hari, before the children (see right).

"You see, she had contracted syphllis in an adulterous affair with an Eygptian truck driver and was shamed beyond despair. She arrived in Hong Kong in 1919. Luckily she played the banjo like a hillbilly and earned money serenading rich Chinese, English and Portuguese gentlemen and was thus was able to survive quite nicely.

"Her formerly wanton youth and lascivious ways turned her to religion whilst living on Lamma. Her untimely demise happened many years later."

(Photo fro