Meet Social Entrepreneurs in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Chiang Rai

Sowers Exchange is a new tour operator in Hong Kong focused on creating trips for people to meet innovative social entrepreneurs working throughout Asia. In the next six months, they have two unique trips planned:

21 to 25 May 2010 -- Phnom Penh and Siem Reap (Cambodia) with Pepy

30 June to 4 July 2010 -- Chiang Rai (Thailand) visiting Mirror Art Group, Population and Community Development Association, and Doi Tung Development Project

For details, feel free to email info@wanliluplay.com.

WANLILU Play is a bespoke travel planner that does not normally represent any particular travel product, but we'd like to support Sowers Exchange's innovative tours. So we are helping to spread the good word on these inspiring journeys, and donating the commission that is usually payable to a normal travel agency to the social enterprises visited on each trip. Each trip already has a mandatory donation built into the price, but if you book your Sowers Exchange trip through us, you will increase your impact by another 10% of the trip price.

Obama & Kipling

I woke up this morning with much anticipation. First, there was the iPad. Then, there was President Obama's first State of the Union address. The first disappointed slightly -- I won't be able to ditch my iPhone and MacBook just yet, but the iPad does have the potential to be a Kindle killer and more importantly re-write how we read, making it a richer multimedia, learning experience. The second did not. Obama was the voice of reason, optimism, and a "we will get this done even if it kills my chances for re-election" determination.

I was reading reactions to his address and came across Bruce Reed's article in Slate referencing this poem by Rudyard Kipling: If. A tall order of a poem, but nonetheless, ideals I hope our Senators, Congressmen and women will aspire to in this year of mid-term elections.

IF

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

--Rudyard Kipling

Chat with Hannah Seligson, author of "A Little Bit Married"

When I told Alex Harney that I would be in NYC for a couple weeks, she immediately made an e-intro to her friend Hannah Seligson, who just launched her new book A Little Bit Married: How to Know When It's Time to Walk Down the Aisle or Out the Door. When I chatted with Hannah last month, we touched on the inspiration behind her writing ALBM, her take on the "soul mate phenomenon" and why the stakes seem higher for her generation when they contemplate marriage. Last night, I finally met Hannah, in the flesh, at her book launch party. She's pictured here with her friends Trip and Edgar.

-- 16 December 2009

WS: so what are you doing in DC?
HS: i'm in dc because i can actually afford an office here
       and i thought i would try to break into some political reporting
       and i'm a little bit married (ALBM) and my boyfriend got a job here
WS: a little bit married?
HS: yes, it's the new romantic rite of passage for young people (born post 1980) today
       the unmarried long-term relationship
WS: is that why you wrote the book?
HS: in part. the book was inspired by a personal experience.
       but then it became about so much more
       it's such a murky life stage
       and i wanted to figure out how to wrap my mind around it
WS: how long have you been in this unmarried long-term relationship?
HS: we've been dating for about a year
WS: ah...in my mind...long-term is much longer
        i know people who have dated 12 years and still unmarried!
HS: yeah, there are many permutations of ALBM
       the baseline definition I came up with is a one-year monogamous relationship
       but it's really more about the attributes of the relationship than the duration
WS: what are the attributes?
HS: in other words, are you doing things that probably in another era would have signaled that you are headed for the altar
       intertwining in each other's families, living together, making career compromises and sacrifices for each other, plotting a future together
       but then there's always this sense that there are contingencies because you are "a little bit married"
       one of my favourite examples is of the couple that buys furniture together but splits the items "just in case"
WS: so why not just get married?
HS: great question
       there's a movement here in the US, among certain demographics, to put off marriage
       people want to establish themselves professionally before they tie the knot
       and cementing a career is a long and arduous process
WS: is it a guy or gal-driven phenomenon?
HS: it's both. but let me elaborate
       men and women are both pushing off marriage, but in most cases, women are still ready to get married before the guy is
       they want to focus on their careers, but they also have biology to contend with
       so being a little bit married has different implications for women
WS: i would imagine that guys don't even think of it in those terms -- ALBM
HS: how do you imagine they think of it?
WS: they don't?
        they just think -- i'm married or not
HS: i think that's true to a certain extent
       but from my research, i also found that men thought of it as batting practice for marriage
       they were not, as the awful saying goes, thinking "why buy the cow when you can get milk for free"
       one thing i found about men and marriage is that the time at which a man is ready to get married is very tied to his income
WS: why do people think being married hinders career advancement?
HS: well, for women, it actually does, because marriage is usually a stepping stone to children, which definitely stymies career advancement
       for men, i think it's a false perception
       because being married actually increases their earning potential
WS: but people can marry and not have children yet...no?
HS: that's definitely true - so i think it's about being tied to another person
       the notion that you can't just pick up and move to beijing on a whim
       you have to operate as a unit
WS: but you moved to DC
HS: i did and it was a tough decision
WS: why did you decide to move?
HS: ultimately, i had to decide what was really important to me. and living in the same city as my partner won out
       remember that hillary clinton followed bill to arkansas, hardly the epicenter of opportunities for a recent yale school graduate
       not that bill and hillary are a shining example of a marriage
WS: so what was on your mind when making the decision?
HS: i tried my best to think about different scenarios
       how i would feel if we broke up
       if i didn't like the city
       if i felt there was a lack of career opportunities
       so i did all the rational thinking
WS: but NYC & DC are not that far...what about long-d for a little while?
HS: that could have worked -- the other part of this was my own personal frustration with not being able to afford new york
       dc is a better bang for the buck
       but the deeper issue here is how two unmarried people try to harmonize and sync their lives
WS: so it sound to me so far that ALBM is an economic phenomenon
HS: that is certainly one read
       we've seen more couples move in together as a result of the economic downturn
       but it's also important to remember that ALBM is a function of the dramatic changes in the institution of marriage
       people get married for very different reasons now than they used to
       it used to be an economic contract
       women needed a man
       or it was too risky to have sex outside of marriage because of birth control
WS: or is it a function of the statistic that 1 in 2 marriages (in the US) end in divorce?
HS: and yes, the legacy of that statistic is very real
       young people today don't want to repeat the mistakes their parents made
       so they spend a lot of time searching out the "perfect" person
       that's, of course, a generalization, but speaks to the soul mate phenomenon we see
WS: can you elaborate on the soul mate phenomenon?
HS: of course. people are looking for that perfect person, someone who has the comedic timing of jon stewart, the looks of javier bardem, and the intelligence of barack obama. it's high-stakes dating out there.
       when you look at national polling in the US, most young people want to marry their "soul mate"
WS: how is soul mate defined by most?
HS: a soul mate is a factor of fun!
       while i don't think there is one agreed upon definition, i think the main attributes are that it's a person with whom you never feel lonely, sad, angry, disappointed, anxious or upset around
       but we all know that relationships are riddled with incompatibilities and tensions
WS: i believe in soul mates, but not your definition
HS: you do? tell me your definition
WS: i believe i have many soul mates
HS: right, i can buy into that
       but what i'm talking about is a version of a person that doesn't really exist
WS: soul mates are people that you just click with...kindred spirits
HS: yeah, i like the idea of a kindred spirit
       but see, the stakes today are just so high
WS: why are stakes so high?
HS: because people don't need to get married
       you don't need a spouse for economic support
       women can have babies on their own
WS: then shouldn't they be lower?
       men feel less pressure to provide?
       people can just "be"?
HS: marriage is no longer a necessity
       so people look for partners to fulfill them in every way
       as my friend helen said to me
       "i want a boyfriend who will be my career coach, gym buddy, stand-up comic, and constant orgasm supplier
WS: LOL
HS: so another reason for the soul mate phenomenon
       is that people are less connected to their communities than they were say even 40 years ago
       so there is more and more pressure on a significant other to fill the roles that were once filled by an entire community
WS: what did you get out of writing ALBM?
HS: great question
       i learned a lot about my generation
       i think looking closely at a generation's mating and dating rituals is a view into their soul
       so that was the intellectual part
       and even though it was inspired by a personal experience
       i was able to make it about something much bigger
       which is very gratifying
       to really delve into a subject and try to explore all the different facets
       it gave me a real appreciation for how difficult it is to write about relationships, not to mention dole out advice
       to answer your second question, yes, i am still ALBM
WS: advice is always clouded, or rather, limited by our own experience...whether lived/heard/seen/read
HS: right
       i think the other thing i got out of it was feeling like i was making a contribution by putting this relationship stage on the map
       so many young people drift in and out of ALBM for their 20s and into their 30s
       naming something is important
WS: LOL...that's another topic altogether...naming something...it's an attempt to control/understand what we cannot control/understand
       do you explain in the book your own process for answering: "How to know when it's time to walk down the aisle or out the door?"
HS: i don't really -- what i do say is the advice i'd follow for ALBM round 2
WS: thanks. loved the chat!

CNNGo NoHo Party: 6:30-9:30pm, 15 December (Tuesday)

Check out CNNGo's unofficial launch party tomorrow: NoHo Streets of Your City.

BYOB Pop Up Party!

BYOB POP UP PARTY!

Come celebrate the completion of Daniel Wu, Edward Huang, Teddy Lo and LED Artist’s installation!

Date	Monday, December 7, 2009
Time	6pm - 11pm
Venue	THE STAGE, West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade
	Guide Map # W59

“We’ve created a very special and unique space with this bamboo structure and we want to share it with you! So…BYOB, bring your booze, bring your skate board, bring your bike, bring a chair, bring your ipod, bring your friends, bring some meat for the bbq that will going, but most importantly BRING YOURSELVES!!!”

Visit http://hkszbiennale.org for updates!

MAD 2010: 22-24 January 2010

I feel old. I just applied to attend MAD 2010 (MAD stands for Make-A-Difference), and at the end of the application form, it stated that applicants under 30 years old would be given priority for the 800 spaces for "selected young people". So I guess I am not a young person anymore. Having said that, I'd still encourage anyone interested in attending to apply. The line-up of speakers is amazing (Sir Ken Robinson, John Maeda and Alex Counts, just to name a few), and the three-day conference to be held at Kwai Tsing Theatre only costs HK$600.

Hong Kong: An Innovative Society?

Last month, when M called to update me on the funding situation for the upcoming Hong Kong Shenzhen Bi-city Biennale of Urbanism \ Architecture, I was stupefied. M and her team of curators had laboured tirelessly for months to put together a world-class event, bringing together international icons such as Shigeru Ban and Diller+Scofidio Renfro with the leading lights of Hong Kong's creative scene to engage the public on issues of architecture and urban development at the West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade. With a rich program of interactive, immersive exhibitions, M found that the original government grant was insufficient to fund everything. So she knocked on many a charitable doors for sponsorship, among them was one of Hong Kong's most well-endowed charities. Excitement was high when weeks ago, the charity was about to sign a cheque. And all of us volunteering to help out on various bits of the biennale were elated. But then came M's call -- the government was not going to give her the approval to accept the additional funding. The biennale had to be scaled down. "WTF??!!" was my reaction. I was at a loss to believe that this absurd situation was happening here in Hong Kong, a city that aims to be a breeding ground for innovation and creativity.

I had been reading John W. Gardner's Self Renewal: The Individual and the Innovative Society. Jacqueline Novogratz's article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review had inspired me to order the book from amazon. And at only 127 pages, I was motivated to read it as soon as it arrived. Like Novogratz, I found Gardner's words of wisdom resonating with me. At every opportunity, I have touted Gardner's book as though it were gospel. When in fact, it is simple common sense. His words resonate because they accurately describe the reality of our human condition, and not just at a moment in time but over the course of our development.

amazon

I had told M and E, both curators for the Biennale, about the book and they invited me to write a brief essay on my reflections for the Biennale catalogue. I still had the bitter aftertaste of M's funding news on my mind when I started to write the essay. I wanted to explain why so many Hong Kong people lament its rigid, almost anti-innovation atmosphere, and how it is no fault of those who settle on conformity and convention. Afterall, I would have understood if none of the four curators wanted to organize another government-funded Biennale. Thankfully, I was saved from my pessimism by my students.

I was reminded that renewal is not the result of one heroic creative act or innovative invention, it is the sum of many seemingly inconsequential decisions and actions (and on a societal level, by many people over lifetimes) that have probably, on balance, lead to more failures than successes. But I do believe that, on balance, the trend line points towards evolution and progress, rather than the demise of our species (that is, until the next gigantic meteor hits and we go the way of the dinosaurs). As a teacher, I have come to realize that the most important thing teachers can give students is not our knowledge but our faith in them. In fact, we all need someone to believe in us in our moments of doubt as we navigate our place in an increasingly complex world.

This is the essay I submitted:

What Teaching Has Taught Me About Creativity and Innovation

Creativity and innovation cannot be imported, transplanted nor taught; there is no masterplan or formula, right or wrong way, to being creative and innovative. These fruits are borne only when nurtured by certain values in a warm and open environment. As John W. Gardner explains in his incredibly insightful book, Self Renewal: The Individual and the Innovative Society, the difference between a vibrant, thriving society and a rigid and decaying one is simply whether it “provides for its own continuous renewal.”

And how does a society continually innovate and renew itself? The answer lies in its individuals, whether they themselves are self-renewing. Self-renewing people share certain characteristics – a sustained curiosity about themselves and the world around them (they understand that their knowledge of both is limited and continually strive to expand and break limiting patterns of their understanding), courage to fail and be wrong, capacity for compassion and an internally-derived motivation to persevere at an endeavour out of a belief that it is worthwhile or meaningful.

These past few months, I have had the pleasure of teaching a class at Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. It has been an enlightening and inspiring experience, where the teacher has been the student. My class of 36, final year Higher Diploma Tourism Management students have taught me to consider what we need to provide younger generations if we are to expect them to inherit the task of renewing our society.
The first day of class, by way of introductions, I asked the students to share their dreams. For most, it was to one day become rich. To understand why they wanted to be rich, I asked them to draw a picture of their image of “rich”. Most drew a free-standing house. In this class about creating and marketing innovative travel products, I also learned that most preferred to travel to new destinations with tour groups rather than explore on their own, because they feared the unknown.

Hong Kong has come a long way in its economic development since Gardner’s book was first published nearly half a century ago. In class, I introduced Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs – at the bottom of the pyramid are survival and safety, at the top, self-actualization. For people to feel free and daring enough to experiment, they must first feel safe and secure. Can an individual feel safe and secure when the notion of a home of one’s own seems but a fantasy for most young graduates today?

When asked to share what their aspirations were, three students replied: “none”. Why have they lost the hope to aspire? Why are they fearful? And how can I, as a teacher, and we, as a society, create a safe and nurturing environment for the younger generation to freely explore, take risks, fail, discover, gain confidence and learn? While the students have raised these questions in my mind, the most important lesson I have learned from them is faith. Renewal is a process, not an event. This Biennale bears testament to that. BYOB -- Bring Your Own Biennale.

Thought from INSEAD Alumni Forum and Being on the Off-the-Beaten-Track Panel Discussion

On arrival in Singapore Friday evening, as I was withdrawing cash from the UOB ATM in Changi Airport's arrival hall, these words of wisdom by a Chinese philosopher flashed on the screen: "A path is made by walking it."

It was particularly apt since I was in town to participate on a panel discussion titled, "Off-the-Beaten-Track Alumni Stories" at yesterday's INSEAD Alumni Forum. When I was first approached to join the panel, two things flashed through my mind: 1. I don't like public speaking and 2. I don't consider myself to be off-the-beaten-track. So I jumped at the opportunity to challenge myself and the assumptions behind the title of the panel.

Preceding the panel discussion, Fabrice Desmarescaux (director of Spencer Stuart Singapore) gave an entertaining and interesting talk, "Debunking career management myths: straight-talking from a headhunter". He made a lot of points that our panel was able to build on: there are three phases to building a career (experience-building, leadership and freedom), it's good to have career accidents (as long as you learn from and survive them of course), and my favourite point was that those who have high ability and low interest in what they do are in "hell".

When I responded to a question about how people find out what their true passions are, I had simply remarked that people know deep down what they want, but simply lack the confidence or courage to admit or act. But it has never made sense to me that these same people, many of whom I would even consider brilliant, would let their fears get in the way of personal fulfillment: why do people who know they are in "hell" choose to stay in "hell"? It only occured to me this morning that the real fear for many people who have succeeded and shone within the system (schools, corporations, among friends and family) might be the fear of no longer being seen as a "star", no longer feeling the warmth and comfort of their brilliance reflected back to them through praise, rewards, recognition and status. It is different from a fear of failure, because they may know they can succeed in their desired endeavour, but they may also know that success does not come with a US$2 million a year package and all the attachments that such money can buy. The real fear is not that they will no longer be successful, but that they will no longer be told that they are successful.

Of course, I believe that each of us is here to make our own path by walking it (hence, there are an infinite number of paths, not just the two options of being on or off the beaten path). And I believe the only way to truly shine from within is to be true to who we are. Having said that, I know this is much easier said than done; it's a lifelong endeavour and one is never quite certain of having achieved it or not (but then, it's always about the journey, not the destination). We all have moments of self-doubt and insecurity. And in those moments, we all crave praise, recognition or even simply assurance that we are good. The trick is to be satisfied with being the best that we can be without chasing for the recognition that who we are is the best among all others.

As John W. Gardner quotes Josh Billings in his very inspiring book, Self-Renewal: The Individual & The Innovative Society: "It is not only the most difficult thing to know oneself, but the most inconvenient one too." And that inconvenient thing is that we are all merely mortal; even the most brilliant star will one day die and fade into darkness.

Cut & Paste Digital Design Tournment Tickets Giveaway!

Little Cream Life is giving away a PAIR of tickets to next Friday's Cut & Paste in Hong Kong! For a chance to win, simply email your dream list of the world's 26 coolest travel destinations from A-Z (one destination per alphabet) to editor@littlecreambook.com by NOON on Wednesday, 13 May 2009. We will notify the winner of the lucky draw by e-mail, so make sure you give us the correct e-mail address.

Cut & Paste, the international digital design tournament organized, is happening next Friday, 15 May 2009. The event is like a battle of the DJs, except instead of DJs, spectators get to watch a host of 2D, 3D and Motion designers duke it out live in a party atmosphere. This is the third year that Cut & Paste has been held in Hong Kong. Winners from each of the 16 competition cities around the world will fly to New York City for the Global Championship on 20 June 2009.

Cut&Paste Digital Design Tournament 2007 from Cut&Paste on Vimeo.

When: Friday, 15 May 2009, 7-11pm with afterparty following competition
Where: Hong Kong Exhibition Centre, China Resources Building, 26 Harbour Road, Wan Chai
If you don't win, you can still go: $80 for students, $100 in advance from HK Ticketing (T: 31 288 288) or $120 at the door.

Chat with Claire Williams, social entrepreneur and marathoner

I've never met Claire Williams, but a few weeks ago, as I was clearing one of my email inboxes, I discovered an unread email from Claire dating back to early February. She was responding to a mass email I had sent out to mediakitty (a site for travel PR and journalists) contacts to introduce Little Cream Book last August. Her email was a simple one-liner to say that she would be interested in writing about Little Cream Book and included her mailing address where a sample to be sent. Normally, I would simply write down the address and post the book. But then, something in her signature caught my eye: "Partnering with Children to Outpace Poverty", which led me to read the rest of her signture:
- 34, 488 Miles Run
- 3, 969 Donated Pairs of Running Shoes
- 31 Marathoners
- First Blog on the Internet Written by Orphans and Vulnerable Children
I was intrigued -- running and poverty alleviation...interesting. I looked back up the signature to click on the link for the organization -- Hope Runs. The first thing I read was: "7 marathons, 7 continents, 7 weeks". Wow, was the sole awe-inspired word that went through my head. Of course, I clicked through to learn more about this crazy endeavour and got side-tracked from the larger picture -- that the team was running in support of AIDS orphans. Hope Runs works with orphanages to provide extra-curricular programs, including running programs as well as computer, art, health, fitness and business-training courses. All with the aim of helping "orphaned and vulnerable children...escape cycles of poverty and conflict to become productive and empowered adults". In addition to Hope Runs, Claire also founded I Become last year that builds on the work that Hope Runs has done.

I was curious to find out more about Hope Runs, so I replied to Claire to apologize for my delayed response, telling her that a sample of Little Cream Book would be in the post and that I would love to chat with her online about Hope Runs. The address she provided was a States-side address. When she replied, I found out that she was in Oxford doing the Said MBA. "Are you doing the social entrepreneurship program," I asked. It turns out, Claire is a Skoll Scholar. But then, as we were negotiating time zones to schedule our chat, she revealed that she was actually in Buenos Aires for the Easter break.

Finally, on Monday night, Claire and I chatted:

10:18 PM
me: hi there!
you still in argentina?
Claire: yeah im still down here
me: in BA?
Claire: yeah in BA - my boyfriend is argentine so we've been living down here
(except for my MBA this year)
me: i'm really interested in the 777!
i'm not much of a runner tho
but i did the nike+ human race last year in cordoba!
Claire: in cordoba!
me: went round and round polo fields
in strong headwinds
Claire: ugh... (but beautiful)
so are you interested in 777 from the perspective of a runner?
me: no, not really as runner
b/c i would never do it…hahaha
Claire: ha
me: but i'm curious about everything about it…how it got started, etc.
i think it's great!
Claire: well basically it's a team of regular and celeb runners. the race begins jan 31 and goes for 7 weeks (6 weeks, 7 weekends)
i started these two non-profit organizations and also work as an author.
me: what do you write?
Claire: 1 book out next year and the second is in talks with publishers this week (i pray it sells!)
one book is about the excess choices of generation y
one book is a travel memoir that includes the first year of starting hope runs in kenya
me: that's awesome!
when is the memoir out?
what's it called?
Claire: its a trip around the world that ends with starting a non-profit...
currently titled 'here there is hope'
me: great title
so what were you doing before hoperuns?
before the year around the world?
Claire: travel writing...i started the blogging thing then... (trippingonwords.com)
before the year around the world was living in mexico and then argentina...brief work in india...basically just more travel...
and writing
ha;)
we're really trying to put the HK marathon in our schedule for 777 - but the directors say they haven't finalized the date yet...
I'm hoping they do soon as we need to get our flights and hotels all planned very very soon
there were some hiccups with the schedule...hopefully the HK marathon will be feb 22
me: what's the schedule look like right now?
Claire: starting jan 31 it's marakech, netherlands, new zealand, hopefully Hong Kong, usa, antarctica, falklands islands
me: wow, so cool!
do you think the hope runs model could work in other places?
Claire: yes i think so
it's a very exportable model
we're in two orphanages in kenya right now
we were in two others in tanzania but aren't anymore
me: how come?
how do you choose the orphanages?
would you do it in s. america?
Claire: it's important to find the right partners. since we don't build our own orphanages but instead enter into existing orphanages there are lots of issues with due diligence, etc.
the biggest problem is that most of the orphanages in much of the world don't have extraordinarily open financial practices - they just aren't run as much of a business as we need them to be for international donors
and since we are entering already existent orphanages there is a careful power and cultural dynamic in the finance stuff
to run our programs efficiently we essentially need to enter orphanages that are already functional - ie ones that are not entirely day to day in terms of needs for basic necessities
we don't have the resources to fully support ALL the needs, and so if we're in a position of supporting basic structural things it doesn't work well
(ie - the orphanage needs to be able to be functionally providing food and shelter for the children if we realistically want to run computer classes)
it's an interesting problem
me: how did you yourself get into running
b/c obviously you must have a passion for runnning
in order to have come up with hoperuns
it's a brilliant idea, btw
Claire: i didn't have the greatest health and was trying to add more exercise into my life
it started very slowly
and then i found such confidence from realizing that i could run
i run very slowly - and always have - but it's empowering to be able to run farther than others...you know?
me: does india have a marathon?
Claire: they do
in february they have the delhi marathon.
and another one as well.
the hardest part is that we need marathons with really involved directors
one of the runners comes with all these security concerns
and everything ive read about delhi marathon is that its really disorganized and they haven't been able to provide a final date (and since we need to have everything very planned, it's hard)
me: well, i do hope you come to hk
would be great to meet u
and perhaps u'll motivate me to train for a half
Claire: definitely!
i think long runs are really more boring than painful ;)
me: yeah...but good music helps
Claire: yes!

18 April: Charity Winewalk

Despite black rainstorm warnings, last year's Time Out-organized Wine Walk was a packed affair. This year, the starting point will be held in the airy, yet covered, atrium of The Landmark. For HK$280 (if you gather up 10 friends to join you, you can get a 40% group discount on the tickets), you get to spend an afternoon sampling fine wines and scrumptious munchies from restaurants all around Central such as Zuma, FINDS, Dakota Prime, Kyoto Joe, just to name a few.

All proceeds to benefit Room to Read and Camp Quality.

For details and to order tickets: www.timeout.com.hk/winewalk

Shanghai: Watching the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States!

I watched this ground-breaking moment in history with 600 other people in the Glamour Bar on the Bund in Shanghai. The atmosphere was electric. While President Obama looked back to his Kenyan roots, I could not help but reflect on my own. During Franklin D. Roosevelt's Presidency, my grandparents had returned to Shanghai after studying in the States. Today, my 95-year-old grandfather watched President Barack H. Obama give his stirring inaugural address from Scottsdale, Arizona while I was watching in a building on Shanghai's Bund dating back to 1925.

I arrived at the packed Glamour Bar around 10pm. A swing jazz band was playing. Through the windows was the alluring glimmer of the Huangpu River and surrounding historic buildings. I was texting my brother who had staked out his spot by the Air & Space Museum near 7th Street. "It is so crowded," he reported. I was lucky enough to get a front row seat with an unobstructed view of the big screen on which the live feed from CNN was being projected. The crowd in Glamour Bar burst into chants of "O-BA-MA!" as he walked onto the inaugural platform. Throughout his address, we cheered and clapped.

It was night time in Shanghai, a world away from the day time of Washington D.C. Yet, it was a very American moment. I was reminded that I am an American simply because my parents and grandparents had been lured to the States by the promise of a better education and opportunities to be on the cutting edge of scientific research. "For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life," the new President echoed our common history.

And as I sat in a room packed with hundreds of other fellow Americans in Shanghai, imagining similar scenes in cities and villages around the world, I was also reminded by our new President of what it is to be American:

"Hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship."

What a week!

I woke up Monday morning to news that Lewis Hamilton became the youngest driver to win the F1 Championship, and the only black person to do so. I watched his dramatic finish on the last lap of the Sao Paolo race and hoped that it would be a sign of things to come a few days later in the States -- close but a win nonetheless.



As I was sitting nervously on the sofa outside of Shangri-La's Shang Palace, watching CNN Live on my laptop, waiting for Grameen Foundation CEO, Alex Counts' luncheon talk to begin on Thursday 5 November, Barack Obama's White House bid was looking more like a landslide. At 12:04pm Hong Kong time, EO sent me the sms that I'd been wishing for all year: Obama won.

Starting his talk, Alex Counts summed up the significance of Obama's win: Just as a microfinance loan to a poor villager changes the way she and her community see her from helpless victim of circumstance to empowered entrepreneur, Obama's win has allowed Americans to see themselves once again as fulfillers of the American Dream rather than voiceless and disenfranchised citizens.

Will.i.am's new song "It's a New Day" expresses what a lot of Americans are feeling:



We're going to be really busy now. Many new days ahead, with many more new dreams to make real.

Serendipity Strikes Again!

The mood this week, unless you're a hermit, has been pretty dour. The week started with the bankruptcy of Lehman, the sale of Merrill Lynch to BoA, the rescue of AIG and stock markets around the world plummeting to unseen depths. Conversations with friends ranging from fellow entrepreneurs to bankers to those in various industries has been filled with uncertainty and anxiety.

Today, as I woke up, the gloomy weather reflected the mood of days past. During my morning yoga class with Wendy, as we heard thunder and the rainstorm pattering on the windows, Wendy observed, "When it rains, change comes". Stretching in downward dog, I agreed with her observation, but I was thinking along the lines of change that might come a few months down the road (i.e. Barack Obama in the White House, stiffer regulation governing short-selling, etc.). Little did I expect, that change would come when the rain stopped.

After yoga, I headed to Segafredo for coffee, free wifi and a dry, quiet, comfortable place to finish writing my blog entries on my recent trip before my meeting with Marie So (no relation to me). Earlier in the month, an e-flyer for a talk by Marie had landed in my inbox: "Yaks for Development: Social Entrepreneurship in China on the Rise" was the title of the talk. The talk was scheduled for 20 October at KEE Club and I thought it was a perfect background talk in the context of my Grameen Foundation field trip to Sichuan scheduled for that following weekend, which also coincided with a recce trip for a client outside Chengdu. In preparation for the Grameen Foundation trip, I've been reading Muhamud Yunus' Creating a World without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism (I had actually said half-jokingly and half-hopefully to some banker friends that perhaps all the out-of-work bankers might find a calling to create more socially-sypathetic businesses, go into microfinance or come up with innovative ways to finance and incubate fledgling social enterprises). So when the e-flyer came, I thought it would be great to meet a practicing social entrepreneur with a business that I found interesting (luxury consumer lifestyle products, see Shokay for their beautifully-designed accessories for home, babies and fashion made from sustainable yak down). Shokay is one of two start-ups created by Ventures in Development, a social enterprise that uses "innovative approaches to solve social issues while applying traditional business skills to achieve sustainable financial and social returns". Marie and Carol Chyau are co-founders of Ventures in Development, a business idea they cooked up while they were classmates at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government three years ago.

I dropped an gmail chat to DA at Time Out Hong Kong and suggested I write a profile on Marie So for their Hongkonger column. "Why don't you just let me send one of our writers. We can't afford to pay you, you know. Unless, of course, you have the writing bug," replied DA. "It's OK," I typed back, "Just come to the talk with me. I do have the writing bug and I want to meet her," I typed back.

So I dashed off an email to Marie and set up the meeting for today. I expected to hear all about yak down and yak cheese. But I was in for so much more. My personal holy grail has been to come up with a project that uses luxury travel as a platform for creating social change and sustainable economic development -- one that combines my interest in luxury travel & lifestyle, consumer technology and microfinance, more specifically, their ability to unleash a new class of entrepreneurs, ways of thinking and doing things. But thus far, the light bulb idea has eluded me.

Within minutes of Marie sitting down, I found out that she was piloting three sustainable tourism projects in northern Yunnan, in the region bordering Tibet, working with the Lisu tribe to help preserve their culture and way of life. Suffice it to say, we had a very productive hour and a half conversation. Now, my October trip to China has further evolved to accommodate the new ideas from our chat over two skinny lattes.

There's a saying in Chinese: "守得雲開見月明," which in English basically means that if you patiently wait for the clouds to break, you will see the brightness of the moon. As I left Segafredo, the sun was shining.

For details and to register for Marie's 20 October talk, download and fill in this form:
OC_Newsletter_-_ViD.doc

Nike+ Human Race

El Colibri, Cordoba, Argentina -- I woke up this morning around 8:30am, puttered about a bit, ate a Dulce de Leche Luna bar before heading out to run 10K for the Nike+ Human Race. Unfortunately, I had to run it alone, because EO, who was supposed to be running it with me, had to cut his trip short and head by to Hong Kong after injuring his knee coming off a chairlift on Cerro Catedral. It was a very windy morning. I had to run circles around the estate's two polo fields just so I could be assured that I could run one side of the polo field in the direction of the wind rather than constantly running into the wind, which was really hard work with dust flying in my face. At times, the wind was raging so loudly that I could barely hear the music piping through my earphones. In the end, I ran the 10K in 1h01.

It was my first 10K "race" and it was amazing to be running it in a beautiful country so far from home, which I am visiting for the first time.

Little Cream Book @ Facebook: Let the Weekly Games Begin!

We've just created a Little Cream Book group on Facebook. Join the group and play in our weekly competition for a prize!

Every Tuesday, we will post a question in our Facebook group's Discussion Board. The answer can be found within this website, most likely within this blog. Reply with the correct answer plus your own corresponding travel address before the deadline for a chance to win. The officers of the group will then select 5 winners each week based on the accuracy of the answer and the merit of your tip (yes, it's a bit subjective. basically, we're looking for coolness, interesting finds, quality...you get the idea). Winners will be posted in the discussion thread on the same day the next question is posted.

And what are we giving away? A Little Cream Book of your choice. Now isn't that just cream!

Here's this week's question:

INAUGURAL GAME: RUNNING AROUND THE BIG APPLE

No, I'm not referring to the big Apple that produces our beloved iPhones, I'm talking about New York City where I'll be for a week as of next Wednesday.

QUESTION: Is New York City an official race city for the Nike+ Human Race?

TRAVEL ADDRESS: Give us your favourite sports-related address in NYC (can be a gym, a personal trainer, a boutique selling cool sports gear, etc.). Addresses must include name of establishment or person and the corresponding website OR a valid telephone number (yes, we will check!).

DEADLINE: Post answers to the facebook discussion thread by 5pm on 11 August 2008 (Monday).

Nike+ Human Race: Running for UN Refugee Agency

I was inspired to join the human race today. That is, the Nike+ 10K Human Race. I saw a poster for it the other day in Vancouver (one of the official race cities) as I walked past the Nike Shop on Robson, on my way to the Lululemon shop. After a gorgeous, leisurely 10K run along Falls Creek into Stanley Park today, I decided to sign up. While there are official races in 25 cities around the world, any runner (with the Nike+ running gear, of course) can join the race and run the 10K from anywhere around the world. As fate would have it, I will be running somewhere I'm visiting for the first time: Cordoba, Argentina (incidentally, Buenos Aires, New York City, Seoul, Mount Fuji, Shanghai, Singpore and Taipei are a few of the 25 official race cities). No doubt, it'll be a memorable run. The idea was just too cool, and too good, to resist.

Based on runners' charity choice, their training miles run on Nike+ gear and on race day, Nike will determine how much it donates to each of these three charities: The UN Refugee Agency, Lance Armstrong Foundation and WWF. Runners can also ask family and friends to sponsor their training miles, raising more money for their selected charity.

I've pledged to run 100 miles between now and race day on 31 August 2008 in aid of The UN Refugee Agency. Click here to sponsor me and help support their work to ensure that refugee children around the world get access to education, sport and technology!

Miele Guide: Cast Your Vote for Asia's Best Restaurants!

Last week, an email invite to vote as a member of the special jury for The Miele Guide landed in my inbox, so I thought I'd have a Skype chat with uber-cool foodies Aun Koh & Sulyn Tan -- who are the embodiment of the Little Cream Life -- about their ambitious project to produce the definitive guide to Asia's best restaurants. While waiting for Sulyn's computer to start up ("Vista!" explained AK for the lag), we chatted about his recent meal at el Bulli and reminisced about the days of Commodore and Atari. When Sulyn finally joined us, Aun explained how the whole project started:


Aun: Both Su-Lyn and I have spent almost a decade each working in publishing. Many of those years have been dedicated to (1) food and restaurants; and (2) covering thr growth of Asia's lifestyle markets. The Miele Guide is something that we've wanted to do professionally for a long time. In 2002-2004, Su-Lyn was the editor in charge of Wine & Dine, and also thus ran its restaurant guide.

LCL: it's quite ambitious to do a pan-asian guide. was it hard putting together the shortlist?

Sulyn: The challenge was in first tracking down the best people to help us put it together. We really wanted to work with journalists who are currently keeping tabs on the restaurant scenes in their home cities/countries; people whose primary focus is to check out restaurants.

LCL: how many restaurants did each journalist recommend?

Sulyn: We ended up working with 84 of Asia's top restaurant critics. Each one was invited to nominate the 20 restaurants they felt were the best in their city/country.
In addition, when voters go online, they still have the option of adding in restaurants they feel are missing.

LCL: did you contribute to the shortlist?

Aun: Nope. We only invited full-time restaurant critics, plus a few others who are considered "local authorities". We actually don't fall into these categories. For Singapore, the panelists were Wong Ah Yoke, Geoffrey Eu, Jaime Ee, and Daven Wu, all of whom cover restaurants professionally.

LCL: any chefs?

Aun: Nope. Full-time restaurant critics! We did have a case in which a Contributing Editor (in Japan) suggested a panelist who is both a respected food writer and a respected chef. We said no but have invited this person to vote as part of the Special Jury. It was very important to have only critics creating the shortlist. Our Special Jury, on the other hand, is made up of regional freelancers, other media, foodies, chefs, hoteliers, restaurateurs and others from related industries that have some authority and know the region's restaurant scene.

LCL: y did you choose to follow the zagat model as opposed to the michelin model?

Sulyn: Actually, we're not following the Zagat model. While the public is invited to vote, we won't be consolidating their comments into our reviews. Each restaurant guide book company has its strengths. Zagat is strongest in the United States. Michelin is strongest in Europe. And while Zagat has had a presence in Asia for many years, its ratings and reviews are not considered significant benchmarks by Asian foodies and critics. Michelin’s own foray into Tokyo, while a success from a sales point of view, has garnered a lot of criticism from some of Japan’s most respected food critics and writers, and even Tokyo’s own mayor. Each guide book company also has its own process of evaluations. Zagat, being American, is entirely democratic. Its results are based on a popular survey. Michelin, on the other hand, likes to employ secrecy, depending on a small army of appointed tasters. Each of those systems work well in their own backyards, so to speak, but in Asia, we have decided it is important to look to other systems in order to best determine what our region’s best restaurants are. I think it will be the readers that at the end of the day decide if we have done our jobs properly, i.e. whether we have put together a guide that most accurately reflects what is happening in Asia’s restaurant scene. Most importantly, we want this guide to reflect the tastes of Asians, and not become an imposition of our own taste judgements on the region’s restaurants.

LCL: i think in Asia, there's the added complication where most international cities have a multi-cuisine focus when it comes to the best restaurants and a lot of great restaurants happen to be western imports. so i think it will be interesting to see how many robuchons or nobus make it onto this asian list
and how many local-grown restaurants make it. for example, a gau gee noodle shop or even a tsui wah hongkie fast food joint

Sulyn: you make a very good point. essentially, we want to create a system that allows for more than just the imports to be lauded in Asia. That said, it is a restaurant guide. So, a hawker stand would not be considered a restaurant.

Aun: we are setting specific guidelines as to what is a restaurant. None of the restaurants that we have allowed into the shortlist are "stalls", so to speak. That said, each panelist was allowed to push the definition of "restaurant" a little, if within their local context what they consider a restaurant is a little outside the box. For example, Naughty Nuri's in Bali is a restaurant to any critic in (and probably voter) in Indonesia. But a hawker stall in Newton Circus clearly is not. When the final results come in, we will look carefully to see if non-traditional restaurants were nominated and then make a decision on a case by case basis.

LCL: were the critics asked to recommend restaurants on food quality alone or also dining experience?

Sulyn: critics were asked to propose restaurants they consider to deliver a complete experience of excellence. In some contexts, whether there are table cloths and a stool for your handbag is irrelevant. For others, the ambience is part of the whole experience. We asked them to judge the restaurants as their fellow citizens are likely to judge them.

LCL: do you think that local "Asian" restaurants might suffer a little in the rankings since sometimes those serving good food have a habit of neglecting the "experience"?

Aun: It is up to the panelists, public voters and Jury members to make those decisions.

LCL: thanks guys, as a final question, i'd still like to get one of your fave restaurants...can be outside of asia if you don't want to compromise the objectivity of Miele Guide

Aun: Su-Lyn would like to qualify our answer: Le Cinq for a chi-chi affair and L'Atelier de Robuchon for everyday eating. Both in Paris. :)

Sulyn: I meant I'd be happy to eat at pretty much any L'Atelier in the world. It is impressive that they are pretty consistent wherever they are.

LCL: wow, so no el bulli

Aun: El Bulli is amazing and a really incredible experience, but I don't think I would call it a favourite. A "favourite" is the kind of place you could go to regularly -- and crave regularly. Don't forget, though, our guide is a determination of Asia's best restaurant not the public's favourite restaurants, which are two different things.

LCL: ciao! thanks for the chat! have a great weekend! i am going for sham tseng roast goose tmr night. can't wait to break this fast from good food!!!

Aun: We'll be dining at The White Rabbit 3 times over the next 3 days.

Everyone is eligible to cast their vote for the 10 best restaurants in Asia until 31 July 2008.

MOCA China

MOCA China, Hong Kong's very own Museum of Contemporary Art, is slated to open this fall on the top floor of Causeway Bay's DNM. Last night, they held an art auction dinner at JW Marriott. RT snapped up Paul Rusconi's pink Kate Moss for HK$18,000. He was ecstatic when he found out that another work by Rusconi featuring Tom Cruise and Kate Moss had sold at an auction in New York this past May for US$19,000.

All in all, last night's auction of artworks by the likes of Anothermountainman, MALEONN, Eddie Hara and Hou Yanyan raised nearly HK$2 million for the burgeoning museum, which hopefully will contribute to making Hong Kong's art scene a bit more vibrant. Word has it that a retrospective of Brenda and Kai-bong Chau's fun and flamboyant outfits is in the pipeline.

Espresso Thinking Series: Travel & Hospitality

Early this year, I received an email from DH at The Disruption Consultancy (a brand consultancy that's part of the TBWA network) asking for 45-minute to chat about travel industry trends over coffee. They were working on the positioning and branding an integrated resort in Singapore and needed some industry context/background info. Because I was still in Vancouver, DH, her colleague BF and I didn't actually meet up until more than a month later.

We met one February afternoon at Caffe Vergnano. We had a very interesting chat about what luxury travellers want and what they might want next, where they get their information and how they make their travel choices. It wasn't immediately relevant to their project, which was more mid-market, but our discussion focused on the shifting landscape within the travel industry. Where traditionally travel agents held much more sway on travellers' choice of destination, today that influence is shifting to hotels & resorts themselves (which are doing a much better job communicating directly and building relationships with guests), new media (blogs, travel community sites, even photo-sharing sites, hotel marketing and booking sites) and new services (concierge services and travel planners such as ourselves). Today's travellers are more sophisticated, demanding, fickle and with very different needs from previous generations' travellers (wifi, phone chargers, iPod docks are just a few of the new things we expect hotels to have in addition to 24-hour room service, pool, spa, gym and remembering the type of pillow we like to sleep on).

Fast forward four months later, TDC has launched a cute concept to share ideas, build networks and of course aid in their business development: Espresso Thinking Series. Over espresso and breakfast at Caffe Habitu, they present tidbits from their research as well as case studies demonstrating how they apply their findings to create innovative branding solutions and initiatives for their clients. I was surprised and grateful to DH for mentioning Little Cream Book as an example of new influencers of travellers in their presentation.

I found the presentation interesting. Here were just a few notes I jotted down:
1. ZMET -- one of the research techniques mentioned. ZMET stands for Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique and delves into how consumers' subconscious reacts to brands and how it affects their purchasing decisions.
2. Bin-sights -- another one of their research techniques. It's very hands-on and involves going through people's rubbish. One very interesting and relevant insight gleaned from going through a guestroom rubbish from a particular hotel client was the prevalance of medications, prescription or over-the-counter. We live the espresso lifestyle, and the fast-paced life of living out of hotel rooms, running for the next plane and eating processed airline food takes a toll on our systems. It's hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle on-the-road (I would know. I've just manged to get through an 11-day detox that would be utterly unmanageable if I were travelling.). So 24-hour room service menus should include options for people on alkaline or low-sodium/sugar/carb diets or perhaps the minibar could include energising or detoxing tonics. In addition to free transfers or room upgrades, hotel might offer loyal guests health/wellness-boosting services or products. This, of course, has implications beyond hotels as seen rise in popularity of spas, yoga retreats, detox holidays and medical tourism. Even airlines have to contend with the health issue of deep-vein thrombosis.
3. What a brand needs to be -- There was a slide with a bunch of words describing what a strong brand needs to be, such as "innovative". As I was looking at this slide, I realised one very important word was missing -- inspiring. All the great brands, and by great, I mean brands that we decide to buy not out of a rational decision-making process (i.e. good value for money, best-in-class etc.), but out of love. And love for a brand (think Apple or Amex or Obama) is created when the brand inspires. It inspires people to see more, do more, be more, risk more, hope more, believe more, love more, which of course, leads people to talk about, buy and consume more.

Which is why I love travel and helping others embark on their own personal journeys; because each journey holds the promise of rebirth and rejuvenation. It's a chance to see, experience or get to know something or someone for the very first time...perhaps all over again. In so doing, we rediscover who we really are and discover who we can become.

The next Espresso Thinking Series will focus on financial services.

Myanmar Cyclone: Appeal for Help

I had the pleasure of meeting Win Zaw a few years back while organizing a Tomb Raider-esque trip to Cambodia. Win Zaw is Burmese, and at the time, he was working for another Cambodia-based local operator. More recently, he started Asia Expeditions and we've continued to work together.

Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar last Friday. Since then, news of the situation has been increasingly alarming, not just the scale and scope of the disaster but also the government's handling of relief efforts. Sitting safely in my Causeway Bay office, it's hard to know exactly what to do to help aside from making a donation to a relief organization. But then, I always wonder how much actually gets to the ground. So when I caught Win Zaw on gmail chat yesterday (fortunately, he and his family as well as colleagues are all fine), I asked what we could do to help. He told me he was waiting to hear back from his contacts in Burma and would send me an email with an update and list of needed supplies. Below is his email. If you would like to help, feel free to send supplies directly to Win Zaw at the mailing address below (NOTE: Please mark all packages "Charity for Myanmar Disaster". Otherwise, he will have to pay heavy customs duties.). I will also be collecting things and making a shipment Wednesday (14 May 2008) morning, so feel free to send items to WANLILU Play Ltd., Room 1501, One Hysan Avenue, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.

----------------------
Hi Winnie,

First of all, many thanks for your concerned and appreciate your hard work.

Here I got the line with Esther and the place is less damage than the main area, however, there are thousands of refugees flows into town.

There are no GOV assistant at all and most of them are at the school, foodball field, church, etc..

People got sick, diarrhea, and the people from the town send daily foods to those refugees and some donors sent rice and other dry goods, that can be use by the time they do not get any support from the town. Nightmare!!!!!

Here she ask me to send if we can:

1) Drinking water: they can mange through localmade pump and we need more purifiers.

2) warm clothes / blankets /mosquito nets.

3) anti-diarrhea tablets and other medicines such as insect- repellant, etc..

4) food, (Esther try to have more rice from Yangon to delta)

5) Candles as no electricity at all.

6) mosquito nets if available

7) Firstaid boxes

There are very less medical assistance.

So far, she does what she can and of course, we will update with more details later.

Do let me know any progress and again, I thank you so much for your helps.

My regards,
Win Zaw

Asia Expeditions
No. 18, Street 370,, PO. Box 957
Boeng Keng Kang I, Chamcar Mon,
Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia
H/P: 855 (12) 732 236
Tel: 855 (23) 726 644
Fax:855 (23) 996 893
Email: winzaw@asia-expeditions.com
website: http://www.asia-expeditions.com

Wyclef Jean @ MO bar

I had been chatting one day with DA and she was telling me about the TOHK launch party preparations. She was telling me that she had spoken to Wyclef Jean's promoter and they had offered to have Wyclef appear at the launch party and play a few songs as a surprise. But Wyclef would only be able to perform on 21 April, so she would have to pass since TOHK's launch was slated for 23 April. "What?" I shouted down the phone. "Move your launch date! Do you have any idea how cool it would be for Wyclef to show up and surprise the crowd with a few songs???" Anyway, to cut a long story short, DA tried to re-jig the gig, but in the end it was not meant to be.

Fortunately for me though, as a result, the TOHK got invites to the invite-only performance at Landmark Mandarin's MO bar last night (MO did a promotion earlier: for every HK$1,000 spent on Veuve Clicquot, they gave away a lucky draw ticket for a chance to win tickets for the night's show). I had only expected Wyclef to play an hour max. That was what he was supposed to do. In the end, he gave an awesome 2-hour performance! I was dancing in the wrong shoes and my feet were killing me, but it was worth it.

Wyclef is a great performer; he had the crowd all worked up and was constantly bringing people to the stage. At one point, he shouted, "I've found my Hong Kong Wyclef!" and dragged a guy up to the stage who then held his own in the rap-along. For all I know, it may have been a Canto-pop star, but I am hopeless at recognising them. The concert started pretty chill, with Wyclef on stage strumming his guitar. But then as he got into Sweetest Girl, he really amped it up and the crowd went crazy. He went from the stage to the top of the bar and, at one point, he was moving through the crowd sitting high on top of the shoulders of one of his crew members. The crowd loved it. He went through a bunch of songs from his latest album, Carnival Volume II: Memoirs of an Immigrant, some Bob Marley, old Fugees tunes, a very crowd-pleasing medley of 80s hits running from A-Ha (Take On Me) to Cyndi Lauper (Girls Just Wanna Have Fun), as well as songs he's done with other artists such as Shakira's Hips Don't Lie and Santana's Maria Maria.

Unfortunately, I only had my iPhone camera, which has no zoom and takes horrible photos in low lighting:

Chat with Desiree Au, TOHK Publisher

Hong Kong finally gets its own Time Out next Wednesday (23 April). Desiree and I go way back. All the way back to her days as a tai-tai journalist covering the arts beat of Hongkong Standard to her evolution into a hard-nosed, whip-cracking editor (typed with a ;-) of course), though never one to compromise on her sense of humour, style or fashions.

I have to blog about TOHK not because I know Desiree, but because, as fate would have it, Little Cream Life has a bit role in the story behind TOHK. Towards the end of 2006, I got an email from AF who had come across Little Cream Life while doing a search for Ingredients (the restaurant). I ended up planning her family's holiday and in the process she mentioned that her husband wanted to bring Time Out to Hong Kong. He was willing to invest, but did I know anyone suitable to get it off the ground, up and running. Basically, he needed a publisher and a team. I sat on it for a little while. At the time, I couldn't think of anyone and I wasn't sure how serious DE really was about the whole thing.

A few months later, AF mentioned it again. By that time, I knew Desiree had left her post as editor of SCMP's Sunday magazine and was finding life as a lady of leisure a bit dull. So I floated the idea to Desiree. While sceptical at first (those who have been in the biz have a healthy scepticism about the profitablity of starting an English-language magazine in a predominantly Chinese-reading city), Desiree agreed to meet DE at a group dinner I had actually organized for an out-of-town guest from Tokyo at China Club last May. DE & DA hit it off and the rest is history. Along the way, I've heard a lot of the birthing stories and am constantly amazed at what ingenuity, tenacity and just plain hard work she and her team have put into this whole endeavour. From the investors to the writers to the ad sales team, there has been no lack of passion driving them to deliver a Time Out magazine for Hong Kong that readers of TO London or New York City would expect. Just a week before TOHK launches with a party at The Pawn, I checked in with Desiree to see whether the office was a circus or war zone:

3:05 PM desiree: actually it's been amazingly calm. we've been pulling 14 hour days but everyone is still joking around'

3:06 PM think of it as gallows' humour, except i don't think anyone is getting executed

3:07 PM me: i think we're all pretty excited about TO finally landing in HK...how long did it take to get here?

desiree: the whole idea started back around May last year, at a small dinner

one thing led to another and we worked with the TO team in London for quite a while.

but the whole basic framework was started around december.

Then the team flew to London to work with the Time Out staff

3:09 PM me: actually, that's pretty lightening speed

desiree: We rented a huge flat and I felt like we were participating in some MTV reality show

well, you know what they say in HK, get this done by "yesterday"

so I guess we've already got the luxury of time

3:10 PM me: what was the funniest reality tv show moment

i.e. trailer moment

desiree: probably me in rollers in the morning

me: no way!!

desiree: i just refused to let any amount of shame get in the way of my hair

me: did the whole team see you in rollers??!!

desiree: hahahahahaahha

3:11 PM probably. but i had no choice

i get up pretty late in the morning and my routine usually encompass putting on my rollers and eating breakfast

let's just say my secret to bouncy hair is out

3:12 PM i have no idea how a conversation with a publisher about to launch a magazine led to hair. this is not good PR

me: who's "the team"?

desiree: well. the "team", and we are also an official football team as of today.......

the guys signed up to play league

me: of course it's good PR...you'll get ads for shampoo, hair salons, etc.

3:13 PM desiree: that wouldn't be half bad!

anyways, going back to the team - Paul Kay is the editor

me: you should post your football team's results in TOHK and open up for betting

hk's fave past time!

desiree: Angie Wong is at the helm of food/lifestyle

Clare Morin is the arts writer (we go way back at the scmp)

3:14 PM Dennis Lai , whom you also know, is art directing

me: yeah, me and Dennis go way back

desiree: and some new faces I've had the pleasure of working with!

me: way back to an obsolete mag

desiree: yeah. remember YA!

me: anyway, have to mention this whole fate/destiny thing

desiree: Actually i wrote two of my best stories for YA

one on Lee Lai Shan

3:15 PM and one on the founder of APC, Jean Touitou

remember?

me: wow, can't believe you remember...i hardly do...but this chat's not about YA

back to fate and destiny

since it's played such an interesting part in the birth of TOHK

desiree: totally amazing

me: what do you think is TOHK's destiny?

3:16 PM desiree: that's a loaded question

can u clarify?

do magazines have a destiny?

most of the time i get asked about "position" or "niche"

so this is a rather interesting question

me: of course! but they may not be immediately apparent...or perhaps your destiny in all this

i bring this up

because there are rumours that Asia City is selling

3:17 PM desiree: well. i don't know what TOHK's destiny is, but I do hope I make some $$ so I can eventually open an animal shelter

whatever I do in publishing, and i usually work pretty hard at stuff, is a means to an end

3:18 PM in the meantime, i hope the magazine will do some interesting features and champion some causes that may not be the most fashionable thing

although i stress that i still aim to do that while remaining fashionable.

i hope that doesn't make me sound too shallow

3:19 PM the fashion reference, i mean!

me: no, not at all...and since we are on fashion

desiree: hahahahaahhah

me: what will you be wearing on launch day?

desiree: oh, funny you ask. i've been thinking

i will attempt to dress in TO colours

red/black/white

i hope i won't look like an extra in High School Musical

3:20 PM me: i don't think you could even if you tried...haha

desiree: thanks for your compliment! it made my day!

me: oops...sorry...just realized that can be taken another way...but i meant it as a compliment on your style

rather than...

3:21 PM desiree: a girl can accomplish anything really, when sh'es got the right wardrobe.

oops typo

me: and hair!

desiree: YEAH, HAIR!

boy, i hope no one reads this.

me: just don't show up in rollers...otherwise, it'll be a bit like hairspray

desiree: i was hoping to engage in some deep conversation about arts and culture

me: this is culture, my dear

desiree: since it's so close to my heart, when i started as an arts reporter in 1994

3:22 PM thanks to YOU!

me: ok, enough...time's ip

up

desiree: ok

see you at the party!

me: it's gonna be a blast!!

desiree: look for the mascot in Red/white/Black

that would be me........

3:23 PM it will be a blast with all our friends and everyone who's been so supportive of TOHK

me: too bad wyclef's not gonna make his special appearance :-(

desiree: i can't thank them enough

yeah, he leaves the day before

but New Pants is cool!

u should watch them on You Tube

punk disco electronic

absolutely a blast to watch

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