November 29, 2006
November 15, 2006
My first "sight-saving" trip
From July 24 to July 28 the organization I work at had the seventh Student Ambassador sight-saving trip that joined forces of Denise Ho, our Student Ambassador Captain, and the four young and smart winning students, to Hanoi, Hai Phong and Thanh Son of Vietnam. I was so delighted to be part of the dynamic team together with my colleagues, the videographer, as well as a professional and long-term volunteer photographer. Along with the team were two reporters from Ming Pao and a Portugese newspaper who were specially invited to tour with us.Prelude
Just two weeks before the trip we organized the Student Ambassador Campaign Award Ceremony. It was perfect to have the ceremony held not long before the trip because I could get to know the students and warm up with them. This also served as a mark to get involved in the upcoming tour and the post-trip activities. Since this was my first "sight-saving" trip, I was, to be frank, excited but at the same time a bit nervous. Luckily, my boss was a genuine guide who built me up with confidence. I carefully worked step by step, and managed to get things prepared before meeting the group at the airport!
The hostIt was late evening when we arrived at Hanoi. The next morning, we were invited to the Vietnam Office and were warmly welcomed by Thinh, the Country Director. Different from Hong Kong office, Vietnam office is a multi-storey European-style building with a cozy atmosphere. We met with Thinh and all the Vietnam office staff in the conference room located at the roof of the building. While there, Thinh gave us a brief overview of what they had been doing in Vietnam, which was a simple but powerful support to our understanding of our work during the rest of our visits.
We were extremely fortunate to have Hue and Hang, two nice ladies from Vietnam office as our tour guides and interpreters. Without them, we would not have had such a smooth and safe visit. In appreciation of their effort of all arrangements and re-arrangements (yes, we were just “too flexible”), Venus and I presented to each of them a specially designed Student Ambassador T-shirt and a our own made-in-Hong-Kong mobile strap with a collection of "PinPin"s with on it, and they returned to us with big big hugs! May I grab a little space here to express once again my gratitude to Hue and Hang!
The placeWe had been to the Hai Phong Provincial General Hospital and an outreach eye care centre in Thanh Son to witness an eye examination and an eye surgery. Back to Hanoi, we went on to Vietnam National Institute of Ophthalmology (VNIO), the largest hospital of its kind in Vietnam. There were thousands of visually impaired patients, both old and young, queuing up for hours to wait for maybe only a ten-minute eye check-up. A girl wearing an orange shirt squatted on the ground alone. She must have been waiting for a very long time. If I had some candies on hand, I would have given her a treat.
A tragic story…The most shocking scenario came to me when we visited Tran Thi Thuy, a two-year-old baby who was born two months prematurely. Suffered from retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), it was already too late when Thuy's parents brought her to the Orbis-subsidized eye hospital. Her eyesight would never be restored. Later on, her father abandoned the family. Hugging her beloved daughter, her mother cried when she recalled the grievous memories.
Just arrived at Thuy's home we were treated by Thuy's grandmother some cold drink. I still remembered its taste. It was sweet.
Coda
It was a rewarding experience, both to my exposure and to my better understanding of our sight-saving work. Now I can tell others even more confidently who we are and what we do. It is my privilege to be in this family.
Something extraYou'reright, that's me with the Student Ambassadors in the photo! It was taken as a rehearsal of the series of shots which were supposed to feature NOT me but Denise and the four youngsters. When they took the real shots with
November 14, 2006
cheap and easy pasta (a recipe)
a simple lunch dish with lots of fragrance that guarentees MY satisfaction. while it seems to require a lot of ingredients, any stuff other than the pasta is optional, in fact, having two or three of them will already be great. and you can rescale them according to your palate and availability of resources.
Serves 1, that is yourself
125g thin pasta (linguini preferred, but spaghettini is alright. cappellini might be too thin for this. a standard pack of pasta measures 500g, so that's a quarter of it.)
1 shallot, sliced
2 gloves of garlic, thinsliced
1 piece of sundried tomato soaked in oil, thick sliced
5-6 olives (black or green to taste), pitted, crushed into paste
1 anchovy (with oil), crushed
a few capers in vineger, rinsed with water
olive oil (extra virgin is worth it)
salt and pepper
i. do the al dente pasta
a. boil 1.25L of water with 1 tablespoon of salt added.
b. put in the pasta, keep water from boiling too hard.
c. cook for the recommended time MINUS 2 minutes, then drain.
d*. if you can't sychronize with step 3 below, i recommend you to cool the pasta down under running water, drain again, then apply oil evenly on it and reserve.
ii. build the amazing fragrance
1. heat pan with oil (fish oil and tomato oil), sauté shallot and garlic until golden.
2. add olive paste onto the pan until you are drunk with its rich bouquet, then tomato slices, then capers.
3. add your just-done pasta with the anchovy, stir until pasta is uniformly coated with other stuff.
4. add 30mL of water, and stir again until reduced. Season and enjoy right now!
Note:
1. this is a pasta dish without a definite "red or white" sauce. If you feel uneasy without one, add about 100g of can tomato onto the pan before step 3, which makes a typical "roman" sauce. But in this case, you'll need tubed pasta like rigatoni and penne, and halfing (or ringing) the olives instead of crushing them.
2. don't overlook the delicate steps of cooking pasta. the difference is heaven and earth. read this.
(i'll take some photos of it later. so do come back)
Serves 1, that is yourself
125g thin pasta (linguini preferred, but spaghettini is alright. cappellini might be too thin for this. a standard pack of pasta measures 500g, so that's a quarter of it.)
1 shallot, sliced
2 gloves of garlic, thinsliced
1 piece of sundried tomato soaked in oil, thick sliced
5-6 olives (black or green to taste), pitted, crushed into paste
1 anchovy (with oil), crushed
a few capers in vineger, rinsed with water
olive oil (extra virgin is worth it)
salt and pepper
i. do the al dente pasta
a. boil 1.25L of water with 1 tablespoon of salt added.
b. put in the pasta, keep water from boiling too hard.
c. cook for the recommended time MINUS 2 minutes, then drain.
d*. if you can't sychronize with step 3 below, i recommend you to cool the pasta down under running water, drain again, then apply oil evenly on it and reserve.
ii. build the amazing fragrance
1. heat pan with oil (fish oil and tomato oil), sauté shallot and garlic until golden.
2. add olive paste onto the pan until you are drunk with its rich bouquet, then tomato slices, then capers.
3. add your just-done pasta with the anchovy, stir until pasta is uniformly coated with other stuff.
4. add 30mL of water, and stir again until reduced. Season and enjoy right now!
Note:
1. this is a pasta dish without a definite "red or white" sauce. If you feel uneasy without one, add about 100g of can tomato onto the pan before step 3, which makes a typical "roman" sauce. But in this case, you'll need tubed pasta like rigatoni and penne, and halfing (or ringing) the olives instead of crushing them.
2. don't overlook the delicate steps of cooking pasta. the difference is heaven and earth. read this.
(i'll take some photos of it later. so do come back)
November 08, 2006
November 06, 2006
Bravo Latata
又名邋遢遢。呢間野多年前0係銅鑼灣禮頓道開過一陣子舊年0係soho重開，同比小姐食lunch，神心地行上半山食。
清清地0既裝修，幾casual，不過可能今日公眾假期（10月31日），會蒲soho0既人都未有耐起身，所以算靜。
一坐低，侍應就俾左杯我以為係cocktail0既野，心諗應該無0黎錯啦，事關0係銅鑼灣食0個次都有一杯荔枝mimosa。飲落先知無酒精0既（可能係lunch關係），我估係西瓜溝熱情果之類。
因為未食早餐，早到0既我就叫0左個goat cheese on toast。焗得0岩0岩好，出黎0既時候，仲係吱吱聲，好鬼吸引~ 不過事先聲明，羊奶芝士0既氣味唔係人人都受得住架，叫之前要諗諗先喎。
兩個都叫0左business lunch。湯同沙律都ok，驚喜0既係個主菜。我0既羊架可以做到一滴哽口既榨都無，而且話medium就真係medium---須知最好0既扒房都成鬼日overcook。比小姐條聲稱係hand-caught既grill魚，有0的似鯖魚0個類，都feel到個番茄sauce整0左好耐。羊架絕對唔算難做，所以0係咁平凡0既野俾我食出佢既誠意，都真係算係咁。
甜品---哈哈哈，homemade0既玫瑰雪糕食到我地lem lem脷~ 到呢個時候其他客走晒，剩低兩個傻人0係到heh，又影下相，如是這般，又過了愉快的一個下午。
清清地0既裝修，幾casual，不過可能今日公眾假期（10月31日），會蒲soho0既人都未有耐起身，所以算靜。
一坐低，侍應就俾左杯我以為係cocktail0既野，心諗應該無0黎錯啦，事關0係銅鑼灣食0個次都有一杯荔枝mimosa。飲落先知無酒精0既（可能係lunch關係），我估係西瓜溝熱情果之類。
因為未食早餐，早到0既我就叫0左個goat cheese on toast。焗得0岩0岩好，出黎0既時候，仲係吱吱聲，好鬼吸引~ 不過事先聲明，羊奶芝士0既氣味唔係人人都受得住架，叫之前要諗諗先喎。
兩個都叫0左business lunch。湯同沙律都ok，驚喜0既係個主菜。我0既羊架可以做到一滴哽口既榨都無，而且話medium就真係medium---須知最好0既扒房都成鬼日overcook。比小姐條聲稱係hand-caught既grill魚，有0的似鯖魚0個類，都feel到個番茄sauce整0左好耐。羊架絕對唔算難做，所以0係咁平凡0既野俾我食出佢既誠意，都真係算係咁。
甜品---哈哈哈，homemade0既玫瑰雪糕食到我地lem lem脷~ 到呢個時候其他客走晒，剩低兩個傻人0係到heh，又影下相，如是這般，又過了愉快的一個下午。
November 03, 2006
一夜歌 一夜情
呀老死又叫我去頂人地張Drama飛。平時的星期四一定唔得閒，但係咁arm今日得喎，所以就去jor睇《一夜歌 一夜情》。
劇場變成歌廳，大家邊喝酒邊吃花生邊看show。講情、講愛、講溝通、講珍惜，以歌聲代替說話，其實通通都濫得老掉牙。不過，它偏偏有一股魔力，就是老掉牙的故事，就是一切都是以料之內的故事，才叫你感動，才讓你醒悟，才教你的腦袋猛烈轉動。
戲一開始便很狂野，充滿SM味道，還邀請觀眾上台作樂，氣氛輕鬆愉快。想起數年前一女星因為被人「爆大鑊」，沾上3P事件，結果要娛樂圈最吃得開的獎門人出 面，叫大家給她一個機會 - 她已經「悔悟」了。為甚麼她要對公眾悔悟？SM、3P，甚至45678QRS也好，與閣下何干？為甚麼大家只針對女星行為「有傷風化」，而不追究爆大獲者侵犯私隱？
兩個戴著牛仔帽的男士眉來眼去，你唱我和，還彈起piano duet來，肉麻動作駛得觀眾"kit"聲發笑。我也有笑，但我隨即便後悔。為甚麼他們斷背便要笑？笑他們因為同性而產生跟「正常異性戀行為」有落差的「趣怪」畫面？還是用笑來掩飾社會對同性戀的「畸視」？我想起了我的朋友，特別是那位很懂我的好朋友。很內疚啊。
兩對男女分別對望唱和， 憑歌寄意。接台位一轉，他們交換了對手，但歌聲依舊，依舊是愛的訴說，是真心的、幸福的訴說。我猜導演是想揭示多元關係的正面吧。甚麼？多元關係也可以幸 福嗎？你不敢答「否」；單對單的關係就一定幸福了嗎？你也不會隨便答「是」。一段感情幸福與否，坦白才是關鍵。發現身邊好友並非「唯一」，先別叫人傻妹/傻仔，可能人家day one已經講清講楚呢。人家有的是面對多元關係的灑脫，你有無丫？我就無喇。
上面三段是群戲，都不很長，但很有 impact。接著是四段獨腳戲，有感動位，也有「對白抵死」位，有笑有淚，不過沒有群戲搬叫我腦振盪，所以寫到這裡就開始有便秘徵狀。加上酒氣過了，那「嘩啦嘩啦寫下洋洋千字」之勢漸漸轉弱。再加上我掛住呀水水，係呀，唔駛望隔離，係你呀水水。待續~
劇場變成歌廳，大家邊喝酒邊吃花生邊看show。講情、講愛、講溝通、講珍惜，以歌聲代替說話，其實通通都濫得老掉牙。不過，它偏偏有一股魔力，就是老掉牙的故事，就是一切都是以料之內的故事，才叫你感動，才讓你醒悟，才教你的腦袋猛烈轉動。
戲一開始便很狂野，充滿SM味道，還邀請觀眾上台作樂，氣氛輕鬆愉快。想起數年前一女星因為被人「爆大鑊」，沾上3P事件，結果要娛樂圈最吃得開的獎門人出 面，叫大家給她一個機會 - 她已經「悔悟」了。為甚麼她要對公眾悔悟？SM、3P，甚至45678QRS也好，與閣下何干？為甚麼大家只針對女星行為「有傷風化」，而不追究爆大獲者侵犯私隱？
兩個戴著牛仔帽的男士眉來眼去，你唱我和，還彈起piano duet來，肉麻動作駛得觀眾"kit"聲發笑。我也有笑，但我隨即便後悔。為甚麼他們斷背便要笑？笑他們因為同性而產生跟「正常異性戀行為」有落差的「趣怪」畫面？還是用笑來掩飾社會對同性戀的「畸視」？我想起了我的朋友，特別是那位很懂我的好朋友。很內疚啊。
兩對男女分別對望唱和， 憑歌寄意。接台位一轉，他們交換了對手，但歌聲依舊，依舊是愛的訴說，是真心的、幸福的訴說。我猜導演是想揭示多元關係的正面吧。甚麼？多元關係也可以幸 福嗎？你不敢答「否」；單對單的關係就一定幸福了嗎？你也不會隨便答「是」。一段感情幸福與否，坦白才是關鍵。發現身邊好友並非「唯一」，先別叫人傻妹/傻仔，可能人家day one已經講清講楚呢。人家有的是面對多元關係的灑脫，你有無丫？我就無喇。
上面三段是群戲，都不很長，但很有 impact。接著是四段獨腳戲，有感動位，也有「對白抵死」位，有笑有淚，不過沒有群戲搬叫我腦振盪，所以寫到這裡就開始有便秘徵狀。加上酒氣過了，那「嘩啦嘩啦寫下洋洋千字」之勢漸漸轉弱。再加上我掛住呀水水，係呀，唔駛望隔離，係你呀水水。待續~
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