Hashing

Molly introduced me to the world of the Hash House Harriers, a truly bizarre running group that has clubs all over the world. To hash is to run a course that some sadistic mofo marks out beforehand on the sidewalk in chalk. We ran for over almost an hour, often having to backtrack if we missed a marker or took a wrong turn. The hash, being an invention of the British, concludes with a beer session–at a bar or in a park or at someone’s apartment–and often has a beer stop midway. Since we started late, we never got to see any of our fellow harriers, but the run was damn good and took us through the less manicured sections of the city.

Ah, smoking in restaurants.

Nothing like good Swiss food marinated in a film of tobacco smoke after a long and sleepless flight. But it’s a small price to pay for free wifi. I’m gearing up for a climate change conference for journalists that is being held here over the next few weeks. The roster includes reporters from almost every corner of the globe, and I’m looking forward to learning about what they think are the important climate and environment issues back home. My goal is to utter the phrase climate-risk management no less than a thousand times in 4 days.

Maps plugin

[gmap map:1]In preparation for my trip to Mongolia, I’m testing out a neat new plugin called GoogleMapper that allows me to insert custom Google Maps into my pages. My hope is to add pointers to each place we stop at, and later add some links or photos. I’ll probably keep the map on a separate page and just link to it from the home blog page. Stay tuned!I haven’t seen many examples of other sites using this plugin, so please share if you have. Thanks to chiggins for creating a wonderful utility.

Gentleman’s Farm

We spent this MLK weekend down at G’s farm in Raphine, VA, a place cupped by the Appalachians and the Blue Ridge Mountains. The landscape is stunning here, even in the middle of winter. Soft hills in the foreground and the sharper cuts the mountains make in the background, and the hills themselves have been mostly razed to make them amenable to grasses and the pasture animals that feed on them.

The road leading to the house is narrow and snakes along the base of the hills. The house itself was built on the crest of a wooded hill, so that, sitting on the porch, one has pretty views in all directions. At night, the silence is so complete that it was difficult for me to ignore my heart beating as I sat writing. Continue reading »

Pictures from Hong Kong

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Dispatch from Hong Kong #2

Just thought I’d share some more experiences. My time in HK is quickly drawing to a close, and I’m going to miss this place. In the last few weeks, Nik and I have seen a fair bit of the S.A.R. Her first weekend here we took the train up to Tai Po, halfway between HK island and the Chinese border. From there, we rented bikes and rode to a county park centered around an immense dammed reservoir and surrounded by mountains. The terrain is jagged, and isolation comes remarkably easy here. Last week I hiked the ridges of some of the mountains on HK island–on part of a trail that bisects the island north to south. Although I was never more than 5 km from the city center, I didn’t meet another soul for 2 1/2 hours.
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First week in Hong Kong

I woke at 5:30 this morning, a signal that despite having slept normally for the last two nights, the jetlag isn’t finished with me yet. in the dim light, i got up and made some espresso (yes, I brought an espresso maker and beans from home), stretched and did my morning exercises. tried to reach nikki but couldn’t get through.

I ran down to the promenade along Victoria harbour, following it east toward Causeway Bay. The temperature was bearable, so long as I kept to shaded areas that hugged the buildings. no rain this morning so the air wasn’t as heavy with humidity. i’ve been weaning myself of a/c so that i don’t overheat so easily when i leave the apt. Continue reading »