VIBErations Podcast

VIBErations Episode 11 - Pushpa Rai

VIBErations Podcast Episode 11 - Deer Horn - Pushpa Rai Broadcast 19th Nov 2020

Shout out to local Lantau business 'Cafe Isara'

Pushpa Rai and husband Robinson have run the Deer Horn restaurant for 11 years now. They have a son Nickson age 20yrs and daughter Anayash 7yrs They’ve been in Hong Kong for 25 years.

VIBErations Episode 12 - Dr. Peter Duchemin

VIBErations Podcast Episode 12 - Peter Duchemin Broadcast 26th Nov 2020

Shout out to local Lantau business 'Treasure Island Group'

BIO

Dr. Peter Duchemin is an artist, magician, scholar, and Tarot reader with more than 20 years of reading experience.

He is a Canadian and Newfoundlander by birth, and has travelled widely to discover his current home in Hong Kong.

10 Questions

1. Favourite book or author? - 'Left Hand of Darkness' by Ursula Le Guin

2. Favourite musical artist? - Beethoven

3. Preferred drink? - Tea

4. Life motto? - 'Do that which you wish to remember yourself as having done'

5. Favourite hk walk? - Above Pak Ngan Han

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - Chun Chun in Mui Wo Village

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Sing Bohemian Rhapsody

8. Best advice you were given? - Slow the f*** down and enjoy

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because… It's rich in experience

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - Sham Shui Po

VIBErations Episode 13 - Xavier Pick

VIBErations Podcast Episode 13 - 'Xavier Pick' Broadcast 3rd Dec 2020

https://www.xavierpick.com https://www.vibehk.com  

BIO

Xavier considers his practice as a bridge between journalism and fine art. His work documents real life situations but rather than depicting events. Xavier searches for timeless themes, the human condition and the spirit of place through visual storytelling based on his unique personal experiences. ​ His work is distilled from many different media.

Xavier combines drawing, photography, film, writing, audio and found reference, and all of these disciplines are tied together through his celebrated sketchbooks. ​ Xavier has been commissioned by many organizations ranging from hospitals to hotels, the police force to charities, most notably as an Official War Art of the UK Ministry of Defence.

London life at night has been the subject of his work for over 10 years. And now based in Asia, Xavier is exploring new motifs and themes around history, the East and the West. ​ Xavier is an active educationalist, teaching and lecturing at various schools and colleges in the UK. For the last 7 years he has been Professor of Drawing, Design and Illustration in Hong Kong .

Xavier trained at Glasgow School of Art and The Royal College of Art in London winning prizes for his drawing and sketchbook journals.

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book or author? - 'Sapiens' bu Yuval Noah Harai

2. Favourite musical artist? - 'Here comes the sun' by Richie Havens

3. Preferred drink? - Salty Lassi

4. Life motto? - Keep the Faith

5. Favourite hk walk? - Mui Wo to Pui O

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - My house - wife's cooking

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Film it and draw it

8. Best advice you were given? - Dad's advice 'don’t rest on your laurels'

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…You never get bored

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - Sham Shui Po

VIBErations Episode 14 - Les Bird

VIBErations podcast Episode 14. Les Bird - Author of 'A Small Band of Men' interviewed at VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo, Lantau Island, HK on 13th Jan 2021.

BIO

Les joined the Royal Hong Kong Police in 1976, and worked in the Marine Police for more than 20 years until June 1997. Originating from Staffordshire in the UK, Bird’s work was diverse – in the late 1970s he was a rural inspector of West Lantau, in the early 80s he returned to launch-going duties, overseeing the influx of tens of thousands of Vietnamese refugees in the years that followed. Among other duties, he also headed the SBU, the Marine Fast Pursuit Unit combating cross-border smuggling of people, arms, drugs and luxury cars.

Born in 1951, Les was the second from his family to serve Hong Kong. His father was part of the British Royal Navy force that came to Hong Kong in August 1945 at the end of the Japanese military occupation and subsequently helped in the policing of the territory throughout 1946. After leaving the police in 1997, Les worked in private security throughout Southeast Asia, spending 10 years in Thailand.

He is an endurance athlete, and has taken part in Ironman events and long-distance triathlons worldwide. He represented Great Britain at the 2009 Ironman World Championship. In 2011 he swam the English Channel and in 2012 summited Mont Blanc. Les is also a founding member and chairman of Asia's Rhinos Rugby Football Club. He is married with two daughters.

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book or author? - 'The Count of Monte Cristo' by Alexandre Dumas

2. Favourite musical artist? - Towa Bird - daughter

3. Preferred drink? - Bird's Bitter - Bird's Brewery

4. Life motto? - Have the courage of your convictions

5. Favourite hk walk? - The West Dog's Teeth on Lantau Island

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - Madame Fu - Central Police station

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Take a photo and contact Will Sargent

8. Best advice you were given? - Never piss into the wind

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…Its home, been here 45 yrs

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? Tai O

VIBErations Episode 15 - Pat Lawrence

VIBErations podcast Episode 15. Pat Lawrence - Colonial ex-Hong Kong Policeman interviewed at VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo, Lantau Island, HK on 20th Jan 2021.

Pat joined the RHKP in July 1974 and worked in a variety of policing work and locations for more than 20 years .,until June 1997. Born in Ireland in 1948 ,but growing up in England , Pat travelled the world as a child being the son of a military family . Prior to coming to HK and joint the RHKP, Pat served six and a half years in the British police .

In HK , Lawrence’s duty posts ranged from initially uniform branch to in the main CID for the rest of his service . Following his initial spell at Central Police division in March 1975,following his graduation from Police Training School he served in the Commercial crime bureau ,and than from 1980 on in Kowloon region posted to CID and served as a senior inspector ,chief inspector and superintendent in districts as diverse as Wong tai sin, Yaumati , Mongkok and Kowloon city.

In Yaumati in the early eighties triad crime , armed robberies on jewellery /goldsmith shops and triad ‘assassinations ‘ were commonplace . However, a brief interlude in his CID postings came in 1987 when he was given the command of the Sai Kung and Clearwater Bay police divisions for a year ,thus experiencing a totally different style of Police work and indeed work more akin to a country copper albeit the one in charge .......during this time a great many expats lived in his area and indeed most of those were Cathay Pacific pilots , the area also contained a large Vietnamese refugee camp ,a prison and countless villages ,where matters were often settled internally and where policing was often looked upon with a lot of suspicion .

After a return to CID in 1989 he eventually was posted in 1992 to the security wing of the old RHKP Special branch , where work entailed international liaison and travel in SE Asia Pat served there till his retirement in 1997. After leaving the RHKP, Pat returned to London (his wife was working for British airways from there) but in 1998 returned to Asia with a international security company to work in Brunei , on matters pertaining to the royal family there . Pat and his wife have returned to HK annually for extended visits and often to live and indeed ,now his wife has retired are planning to return to live permanently once more .

Pat has always kept himself fit and is a keen hiker ,swimmer and poor golfer!.........on the hiking front whilst in HK and after , he and a group of fellow HK police officers walked the whole of the South West Way in England , a distance of 1000km.....over the course of several summers. Despite being 72 now he prides himself on keeping fit and active ,not only excercising but travelling extensively worldwide . Pat is married and has a daughter and grandson who live in San Francisco.

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book or author? - 'Myself a Mandarin' by Austin Coates

2. Favourite musical artist? - The Who

3. Preferred drink? - HK San Miguel - Brown bottle

4. Life motto? - You're a long time in the box

5. Favourite hk walk? - North East New Territories around Double Haven

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - Cooked Food stalls

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Stop look at it & let it go on its way

8. Best advice you were given? Get on with it

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…It's safe & super efficient

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - Lantau Island

VIBErations Episode 16 - Paul 'Jacko'Jackson

VIBErations podcast Ep 16. Paul Jackson - Colonial ex-HK Policeman interviewed @ VIBE Book & Music Shop, Lantau Island, Hong Kong on 27th Jan 2021

Paul was born in Malta and spent an early childhood there and in Germany before his parents decided to return to their roots in Northern England – he still blames them for his love of Barnsley football club (the nearest team) which he can’t seem to shake.

Qualified in Electronic Engineering and Telecommunications, upon graduation from Liverpool University in 1988, Paul naturally decided to seek a career in the Royal Hong Kong Police – there was just something about the uniform!! Thus began a lifetime of adventures! One of Paul’s early postings was as Inspector in charge of Tai O Police Station – Like most who served there, it turned out to be the most memorable time in his career… more on that later!

He also had the honour of being the last inspector to officially live in Tai O Police Station (now the Heritage Hotel). Tai O was also the only place where Paul needed to open fire – three shots… three kills! The rest of Paul’s early Police career was spent on Marine Police boats dealing with smugglers, illegal immigrants and Vietnamese refugees. Mostly working for Les Bird!

In the mid 90s the world started changing as technology came to the fore – Paul’s engineering background suddenly became highly relevant, and he was pulled into technology related policing and this proved to be a turning point. From there on, he helped found the Police’s technology crime investigation capability and supported many major investigations where the technical components proved pivotal.

In 2010, it was time for change and the lure of the dark-side proved too much. Paul moved to JP Morgan and was quickly promoted to run global cyber investigations. Unfortunately, this meant leaving HK for a while to live in New York, but the experiences there were immense. It also set him up for the current phase in his career once he had escaped from the USA to return to Hong Kong.

Paul now lives back on Lantau in Cheung Sha and he is proud to lead Kroll’s Asia Pacific Cyber Risk Practice. Paul has been a keen rugby and football player during his time in HK and holds the proud record of being the least successful Oldbill captain ever. These days he prefers golf, and can sometimes be seen running slowly along Lantau’s many trails, or out in his Kayak off the coast of Pui O and Cheung Sha – that is, when he is not in Vibe Bookshop!

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book or author? - 'Freakanomics' by Malcolm Gladwell

2. Favourite musical artist? - REM

3. Preferred drink? - HK San Miguel

4. Life motto? - Open your mind before you open your mouth

5. Favourite hk walk? - Shek Pick to Tai O via Fan Lau

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - La Pampa in Soho & Wong Wah Tea house Tai O

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Run! Snake phobia…

8. Best advice you were given? - You wanna be a pig why not join HK police

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…It's an adventure

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - Tai O

VIBErations Episode 17 - Dr. Merrin Pearse

VIBErations podcast Ep 17. Dr. Merrin Pearse - Asia Environmentalist interviewed @ VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in Hong Kong on 9th February 2021

BIO

Dr Merrin Pearse began his career as a land surveyor with the New Zealand government just as GPS technology was being introduced to measure land deformation. His interest in measurement science came about following an earthquake in his last year of college where the corner of their family dairy farm had drop 2.05m. So rather than continuing on a path accounting and economics he chose a path with outdoor work and technology.

His government work had him travelling around New Zealand, surveying in Antarctica and working remotely on international boundary projects such as the Iraq Kuwait Border. During his PhD studies in Australia he got to experience a very different kind of nature to NZ, that really ignited his interest in conservation work.

Retuning to NZ he become a very active volunteer in flora and fauna restoration projects. Working within a large engineering consultancy firm he experienced many engineering projects that were working against nature rather than with it. So in 2004 he went out on his own as a consultant. In 2006 an opportunity came up to be part of team setting up a team building and training business in Hong Kong.

In 2007 Merrin and his wife, Louise Taylor, moved from Wellington, New Zealand to Hong Kong and have been part of the Mui Wo community ever since. Both are very active in the community particularly in the environmental and animal welfare areas, through organisations such as Living Islands Movement and Kirsten’s Zoo. Merrin is a Sustainability Strategist consulting within The Purpose Business network to some of HK's and the region’s largest companies and NGOs. When not in the board room or companies recycling bins Merrin loves getting out on HK's trails with their dog Salvadore and other paw mates.

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book or author? - Non-fiction or autobiograhy audio book

2. Favourite musical artist? - Jean-Michel Jarre

3. Preferred drink? - Brown Bubbles

4. Life motto? - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

5. Favourite hk walk? - South Lantau looking down on Fan Lau

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - Mui Wo cooked food market

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Stop watch & go wow!

8. Best advice you were given? - Give things a go

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because… I can make a difference here

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - Anywhere outside probably Lantau Island

VIBErations Episode 18 - Jenny Quinton

VIBErations podcast Ep 18. Jenny Quinton - Ark Eden Project Designer interviewed @ VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in Hong Kong on 23rd February 2021

https://www.arkedenonlantau.org  

BIO

Jenny grew up in Cheshire in England and spent a lot of her childhood paddling in rivers and climbing trees. She started working part-time jobs when she was 12 so she could go on oversea adventures. She arrived in Hong Kong on a back-packing trip with her boyfriend in August 1989 and never left because she fell in love with Lantau. She has now been living in the same house in Mui Wo for 31 years.

Her wake up call for the environment happened a few years after she had been living here when she had to stop her house nearly burning down due to a vegetation fire started by grave sweepers. After that she joined lots of green groups and stood with them on the front-line trying to protect the environment. She also began planting trees. She set up the first English kindergarten in Mui Wo in 1991and then later worked with English Schools Foundation as a primary school teacher helping to set up their environmental systems.

She left ESF in 2006 to start Ark Eden and continued working with ESF as an Environmental Consultant for the next 10 years, organizing many conferences and events. In 2011 she did a Permaculture Design Certificate and got hooked and made permaculture a main focus of Ark Eden. Jenny is presently the Project Designer of Ark Eden and runs programs for children and adults in everything pertaining to saving the planet.

She also has now planted over 36,000 native trees on Lantau and is very pleased when it rains. She is training to become a yoga teacher so the children can do yoga in the forest. She is always working to save Lantau and the planet and her next dream is to create an outdoor forest school in her valley.

10 Questions

1. Favourite book or author? - 'A Permaculture guidebook to East Timor'

2. Favourite musical artist? - The Cure

3. Preferred drink? - Tea

4. Life motto? - Dream Big

5. Favourite hk walk? - Ark Eden

6. Favourite hk restaurant? - China Beach Club - Mui Wo

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? - Avoid it and walk by carefully

8. Best advice you were given? - To chant

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…because I totally love and believe in HK

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? - My valley around Ark Eden

VIBErations Episode 19 - Lantau Siu Yin

VIBErations podcast Ep 19. Lantau Siu Yin @ VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in Hong Kong on 25th February 2021

Jo Lodder & Catherine Cormack charity hike :- https://give.asia/campaign/hike-for-freedom#/  

BIO

With over 8 years of experience supporting many organisations, Siu Yin is currently an assistant to two members of the Legislative Council aka LegCo. In 2019 she stood for the Lantau district council elections as the democratic candidate and lost to long term member Randy Kwan by just 240 votes. Her experience includes: case analysis, appointments/contacts with government departments, petitions, parliamentary affairs, sharing sessions/forums and research publications.

She’s involved in the social needs of the elderly especially those who are mentally handicapped. Recently, she become concerned over the development of Lantau, in particular the new development in Tung Chung and the Lantau Tomorrow Vision. Siu Yin has lived in Tung Chung for 20 years and says living in public housing is like living in a cheap hotel. Her education and work were outside of Tung Chung. But she felt that she just took advantage of the community without contributing to it.

When she was 28 years old, she developed a strong feeling ‘I felt that I owed it to my community - I wanted to contribute to my community’. On a hiking trip from Tung Chung to Mui Wo with members of the Save Lantau Alliance (which she’s been a member of since 2015), she realized that there will be big changes in Lantau. She began to participate in its activities.

She says her life has become full and colourful and feels fortunate to be able to plant in the fields, learn about the history of Lantau, listen to the stories of the people on the island, and learn to create small handicrafts. She says it is her challenge to organize actions, develop public relations campaign, and connect to other networks.

After having done 4-5 years of volunteer work, she has created her persona as ‘Lantau Siu Yin’. She learnt more about Lantau and became passionate in sharing its history, culture, people, stories, and food, etc. She says ‘I am part of Lantau and my friends would say - Siu Yin belongs to Lantau’. She is an island person. She loves ‘Da Yu’, the Chinese name for Lantau and encourages you, in your own way to care about Lantau. ‘Lantau Siu Yin can be contacted at https://www.facebook.com/ChezLantau  or on https://www.facebook.com/LantauCultureWorkshop  https://www.facebook.com/lantauconnects https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdfWIZWxgxq4ipsKrEVBCMzOqxn6YSjAViLbepKcbnX_oSpAw/viewform

- Survey https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=469558097763931  - Mui Wo changes video

10 Questions….

1. Favourite book ? ‘how to draw it?’ dictionary 手繪字典

2. Favourite musical artist? Chet LAM 林一峰 song 'The best is yet to come’

3. Preferred drink? The Water in Lantau

4. Life motto? Follow your heart, Just try to do what you believe , here is something you never know.

5. Favourite hk walk? Lantau

6. Favourite hk restaurant? I don’t know , as I love my mother cooking, now I cook for myself.

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? ‘wow, just walk pass quietly. ‘

8. Best advice you were given? ‘ take care of yourself , family, and community. ‘

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because…I belong to Hong Kong.

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? Lantau

VIBErations Episode 20 - Jo Farrell

VIBErations podcast Ep 20. Jo Farrell @ VIBE Book & Music Shop in Mui Wo on Lantau Island in Hong Kong on 25th March 2021

Jo Lodder & Catherine Cormack charity hike :- https://give.asia/campaign/hike-for-freedom 

BIO

Jo Farrell is an award-winning black and white photographer and cultural anthropologist. Born in London, England she has been based in Hong Kong for the past 12 years. Her photography work focuses on traditions and cultures that are dying out, including the project “Living History: Bound Feet Women of China.” Jo uses black and white film and shoots on a Hasselblad camera.

She has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work on bound feet including a Jacob Riis Award, Black & White Spider Award, Center for Fine Art Photography and Women In Photography International winner juried by Mary Ellen Mark. She has had solo exhibitions in London, San Francisco and Hong Kong and has been included in group shows in New York, LA and Denver, Colorado.

Her project has received critical acclaim and has been published internationally including The Smithsonian magazine, Huffington Post, Wall Street Journal, BBC, CNN, The Guardian, Stern magazine, Time Out, Fast Co., International Business Times and the Sydney Morning Herald. She has spoken at TEDxWanchai and TEDxWarwick and an “in-conversation” events hosted by The Women’s Foundation HK (May 2015) and at Asia House in London (June 2015). She has held talks at Pitt Rivers Museum (Oxford), Barts Pathology Museum (London), the V&A (Victoria & Albert Museum), Rayko (San Francisco), Blue Lotus Gallery (Hong Kong) and numerous organizations such as the AWA, Friends of CUHK Museum, Rotary Club .

Jo has also done live television interviews on RTHK ((The Works), CNN and the BBC News (Insight) and has been a guest speaker on Monocole radio and RTHK3 (Hong Kong). Jo@JoFarrell.com You can view my website at www.livingHERstoryphotography.com

10 Questions

1. Favourite book or author? Wild Swans by Jung Chang & The Private Life of Chairman Mao

2. Favourite musical artist? Nina Simone & Michael Nyman

3. Preferred drink? Gin infused with Earl Grey Tea

4. Life motto? Look the other Way

5. Favourite hk walk? Chai Wan by Cemetery

6. Favourite hk restaurant? Peak Lookout/Boat House/Dai Pai Dongs

7. Faced with a python whilst walking up to the Peak – what would you do? Photograph it in detail

8. Best advice you were given? Focus don't generalise

9. Finish this sentence… I live in Hong Kong because… It's safe

10. Favourite area of Hong Kong? Chai Wan and Shueng Wan