At the Star Ferry in Hong Kong

It's the little things that make me laugh....!!!!

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Light's out....Spot the Difference....

So where Hong Kong failed...., Sydney looks as if it might get it right...

Hong Kong

Some restaurants and bars resorted to candle-light, but office towers, tourist venues and sports stadiums remained bathed in neon.

"It wasn't what we were hoping for," said organiser Alastair Robins

Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang had refused to back the black-out, saying it would damage Hong Kong's image as an international tourism and business centre.


Sydney

At 1930 (0930 BST) lights will go out in tower blocks, on the iconic Opera House, and in tens of thousands of suburban homes in an orchestrated plan.

The so-called Earth Hour is supported by the New South Wales government, environmental groups and businesses

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News bites....

The definition of a true slapper!!!!

One line from this article about England's sporting hero does bother me...isn't that a line from a song

Graduate Miss Jenkins, meanwhile, had been working as a waitress in a cocktail bar in Majorca before meeting the player.

Somebody needs to explain to me how 2,600 of your turkeys suddenly dying is not something you would immediately raise the alarm about....

It's always reassuring to know that there are 47 criminals roaming around in Mindanao...even more reassuring is the sombre tone of voice the governor of Mindanao used when discussing the issue...."We were caught with our pants down," Emmanuel Pinot, governor of the Mindanao region, told Reuters news agency....only in the Philippines!!

I am sure that this place houses a rather nice selection of wines....none of that naff Jacob's Creek Chardonnay for 3.99 a bottle!

Virgin Medical Services anyone...?

And a picture from my mother...after the recent storms in the UK...this was her view driving home....I'd drive pretty slowly faced with a garden shed in the middle of the road!!!


The bad press of the ASEAN summit is still lurking, it ain't over until the little ladypays!

Hong Kong's special brand of democracy...is....under way

Best title for an article...A quick push, a scream and splat, no guesses who that's about...!!!!

Given that I carry either no handbag or a teensy weensy one...this article makes me feel good!! And the only reason I really carry a bag is to put in the car keys of a certain gentleman who feels it unsightly to put his car keys in his trouser pocket!!!!

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Super Maid.....

From today's SCMP; have copied the articles verbatim as not everyone has access...

Maids lose jobs over Manila policy
Helpers delayed for HK work have contracts terminated
MARY ANN BENITEZ

Several domestic helpers from the Philippines have had their jobs terminated even before they started work because their arrival in Hong Kong has been delayed by a new Manila policy aiming to create "super maids".
There are also almost daily complaints of women being held at Manila airport because they cannot show the training certificates required since December 16.


And in Hong Kong, at least one Filipino was terminated from her job after her boss heard of the policy requiring that helpers must be at least 25.

The incidents follow a Philippine policy reform enforced since last month that includes raising the minimum age of domestic helpers seeking work abroad from 21 to 25, raising their minimum wage to US$400, and requiring them to take a 23-day training course by the Philippine Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.


Dolores Balladares, chairwoman of United Filipinos in Hong Kong, said her group had been receiving complaints about the policy over the past few weeks.

The policy resulted in workers having to pay 10,000 pesos (HK$1,600) on the training course and certificates, the group said. "We have heard of workers being barred from going to Hong Kong because they did not have training certificates. Their contracts were terminated because they did not arrive in Hong Kong on the expected date," she said.

The group plans to hold a protest rally on Sunday from Central to the Philippine consulate in Admiralty.

One woman told Ms Balladares that her job was terminated earlier this month because she was 23. She was given one month's notice.

Cynthia Talamor, a volunteer with the Mission for Filipino Migrant Workers Society, said she was worried for her sister who was coming back to Hong Kong on a new contract. Her boss had given her a January 31 deadline.

"She was expected to come here on January 15. Her visa and papers were in order. But she could not leave because she was told she had to undergo training," she said. The sister speaks Cantonese and had worked in the city for six years.

"In the training courses, they use old models of home appliances when Hong Kong homes are hi-tech," Ms Talamor said.

"As for the language course, they not only are required to learn basic Cantonese but also Putonghua - in just three days."

Philippine labour attach? Bernardino Julve said that the training requirements were "mandatory only for new hires".

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It's the little things...

One of the drawbacks of having my vacation cancelled is the number of items I had planned to purchase either in the UK or in HKG which I just cannot seem to get here, or are more expensive here...

The West Wing Series 7 DVD
Sliding Doors DVD (and yes, I have tried everywhere, including my colleagues 'usual' sources and apparently it cannot be found for love 'nor money)
A new AirPort Express as mine has gone on the fritz and I have got kind of used to wireless internet and music! It's about US$40 more expensive here than HKG - yes, I'm Scottish! And a wireless Mighty Mouse - the latter being more of a real splurge!
Cat scratching boxes my two furry friends adore these things - even without the catnip...the catnip just makes them go into some weird, drooling, drugged up frenzy...bit like me after a few G&Ts I guess!!!
Shanghai Tang's Ginger Flower Room Oil

And the hardest thing to bear of all, is the one beauty product that I actually use and have done all my life (corny and cliched as it may sound - my mother got me onto it!) is the most basic Oil of Ulay moisturiser...and I can't find it here...I can only find all the fancy ones that promise to make you look 20 years younger but are actually so thick I feel like I'm walking around with wall paper glue on my face! It is by far the cheapest of all the products they offer, but I swear by it...and have found nothing similar...ever!!

I know the obvious is to buy most of it online but I can't be doing with online shopping at the moment...because truth be told I really cannot handle the post offices here! In Jordan the post office was as challenging as it is here, but some enterprising soul set up a courier system linked to all the major online retailers outside to of the country, it was similar to using DHL only much, much cheaper and strangely far more efficient.

I believe the Blue-eyed Boy is heading this way sometime in the next two weeks, so he may have quite the shopping list!

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