Sharing space in HK

Maximising space in HK - a few fishes sharing a small tank

Hike : Bush-whacking in Sai Kung

Today, I joined another adventurous hike in Sai Kung.  This hike is different from the previous few because it is literally whacking bushes and creating new paths.  I’d heard alot about Sai Kung but never took the trouble to visit before.  This is because there is no direct MTR connection, instead you’ll have to take the MTR to either Diamond Hill or Choi Hung and then change to a bus.  Sai Kung is famous for seafood, the novelty being that you could choose fresh (still flipping, alive) seafood from the ferry pier and then bring it to the restaurants to be cooked.  I heard that seafood is cheaper here than in HK Island but I didn’t have any and can’t tell if its true. 

Fisherman selling fresh seafood by the pier. The customers are standing above at the railing, pointing and shouting out their orders

 

Some of the previous hikes were on concrete paths and we never strayed too far away from signpost.  This hike started off on a well-defined grassy, mostly uphill path.  It was quite streneous for me and I was struggling with the constant uphill.  Luckily the group was considerate and stopped several times along the way, mostly for photo opportunities and to rest the heart!   The hike is considered hardcore for me because it was trully back to nature.   About 2/3 through the hike, we came to the bushes – this is why the hike was called a bush-whack.  Some of the bushes were taller than me and I didn’t know where to look, down where I was stepping or side, to hold the branches from swinging at me or front, to see what to expect! 

I sure am glad, I wasn't clearing the path

The views at the top was wow, I don’t know enough words to describe the feeling of seeing GOD’s creation :

View of outlying islands

 

Visit to Lantau Island

I visited Lantau Island today for the first time.  Its the largest island in HK, although with less residents compared to HK island.  The weather was cool with very high humidity, i.e. foggy.  I spent almost the whole day here but still didn’t visit all the tourist places, like Tai O (a traditional fishing village).  I did do a few things – visit the Giant Buddha, eat vegetarian and walk on Cheung Sha Beach.  Here are some pictures, I took: 

Its quite a hike up to the Big Buddha but you get a nice view

  

A deserted Cheung Sha Beach on a saturday

Photolog: Sha Tin, Hong Kong

I’ve spent the last few days in Sha Tin, on a review.  As soon as I exit the MTR station, I am greeted by a view of the mountain and fresher air.   On the way from the MTR station to the client’s office, I would pass this old-style village.  Here’s a glimpse of old Hong Kong: 

Pai Tau Village

Hiking from Tsuen Wan to Tai Po

I hiked today, starting from Tsuen Wan and ended up 4 hours later in Tai Po.  This hike was a little harder than the one up Tai Tam Reservoir, because there are more uphills than downhill.  This is a picture of the Shing Mun Reservoir within the park.  Spring is about the best time to hike, as the sun is shining, hardly any rain and it’s not as cold as winter.

 

View of Shing Mun Reservoir

Photolog: Cyberport

Seaview at Cyberport

I took this picture, while in Cyberport.  Cyberport is located at one corner of HK, and has some really nice (and expensive) condos.  Incidentally it is also where the Dog Shelter is located.

“Barfly mom gets two years after baby dies”

I read this in The Standard, this morning and it’s news like this that make me sad :

Nickkita Lau

Friday, March 13, 2009

A woman who a judge said treated her four daughters worse than pets was jailed for two years yesterday.  Her estranged husband, a sewage worker, was given one year and 10 months.

Man Ching-yee, 29, and Lin Ka-shing, 31, had pleaded guilty to four counts of ill-treatment and neglect after the youngest of their four daughters – aged just three months – died of infant death syndrome in 2007.

The court had been told that prior to the girl’s death, the children had been looked after by the oldest daughter, then aged eight.  She had to cook and feed her younger siblings. The four girls were often at home alone. Even when the couple was at home, they did not feed the infant, help the girls change or give them clean clothes to wear.   At the time of the youngest girl’s death, the mother was at a bar with friends while the father was asleep.

In passing sentence, District Court judge Joseph Yau Chi-lap said he could not accept the defense’s contention the mother had less than average intelligence.   “I don’t believe her intelligence could be lower than her eight-year-old daughter,” Yau said.   Yau said the couple was irresponsible for having four girls regardless of their economic situation or their abilities to take care of them.

He said he accepted the death of the infant was not the direct result of child abuse. Nevertheless, the care the infant received prior to her death must have been a very bad experience for her.   He said the greater responsibility in this case lay with the mother, hence the two-year term, compared with one year and 10 months for the father.  The couple filed for divorce after the death of the child.

Neighbors complained to social workers about the children being left alone at home as far back as 2006.

On one occasion a social worker found the diaper of one of the daughters, 10 months old at the time, to be completely soaked and no food nor clean water at home. The eldest and the second youngest daughters were then being looked after by relatives, but the eldest returned after Man gave birth to the fourth daughter.

The three girls are now under the care of their grandmother and an institution. 

Jeff Dunham and the Dead Terrorist

Mother Teresa said..

“Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired.“

Marrying 4 wives

Recently, the South China Post (HK’s English Newspaper), wrote a long article on a muslim  man’s right to marry 4 wives and profiled a man with his 4 wives, from Malaysia.  It was refreshing to read an unbiased report on this social phenomena and its effects on the wives, something which many Malaysians may not be aware of.  The reporter interviewed a Muslim wife who was filing for divorce, after “tolerating” her husband’s other wives.  She explained that, although it is a religious right but her civil rights as a wife has been violated, since she had to share her man with another.  I don’t know any saints would willingly (in mind and heart) share their partners with another, so I can understand her feelings. 

I must admit that I’m not qualified to comment on this, I don’t know enough to make a judgement.  However, I found this article very interesting and wanted to share my thoughts of it.  From the little that I know about this muslim right, it does appear lop-sided.  For e.g., a muslim man can divorce his wife by uttering a word (talak) 3 times in front of a witness.  In fact the wife doesn’t even have to be present when he is saying the word, 3 times, he could say it over the phone (e.g.) and they would be divorced.  However, he would need to confirm the divorce by filing the necessary documents in a Shariah court.  If a muslim wife wants to divorce her husband, she would need to go to a Shariah court and give compelling reasons for doing so.  In Malaysia, I heard that before a muslim man can marry no. 2/3/4, he would need to get his 1st wife’s consent.  The twist is, she cannot reasonably withhold consent.  If she does, then I guess that is grounds for him to divorce her.  The woman that was profiled in the article said that although on paper, it appears that she has the upper-hand in giving/withholding consent for wife no. 2/3/4, however in practise, this is not always the case.  The muslim wives are normally pressured into giving consent, often because of religious implications.

I’ve also been told that, in Malaysia at least, a muslim man must show that he is able to care for all 4 wives, fairly.  My interpretation is that, in terms of wealth, the man must be of sufficient wealth in order to afford 4 families, in terms of his personal time – he must divide it equally among his 4 wives.  The intention is there must not be any biasness in treating all his wives.  The reality of it, is of cause different, with some wives suffering neglect, both financially and from lack of affection.

The US is currently showing a mini-series on a Christian sect that practises polygamy – Big Love.  I’ve seen a few episodes and initially, it felt weird, seeing these 3 families live together and watch how they try to contain this secret from their neighbours.  I think the mini-series attempts to portray the real challenges faced by polygamist, however for someone who has only known monogamy, I find it hard to understand.  There was a roster, specifying each night & the wife that the man would stay over with, i.e. Mon was with wife no. 1, Tues with wife no. 2 etc.  In one of the episodes, the man was so tired from work, that he chose not to stay the night with any of his wives and this caused the 3 wives to argue among themselves and with the man too.   The idea I get from watching the few episodes was that, the 3 women believe that it is a religious responsibility to have 4 wives, in fact in one of the episodes, some of his wives were helping him to select wife no. 4!  And maybe this is the reason that a woman would agree to share her man with another woman.