Paul Zimmerman had planned to spend his Easter holiday kicking back at the Blues Festival in Australia’s Byron Bay, but – like many people – his plans were squashed by the coronavirus. Grounded in Hong Kong, he decided it was the perfect time to take up a challenge that has long been on his bucket…
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How Contagion Works by Paolo Giordano Weidenfeld & Nicolson 5/5 stars The coronavirus pandemic has left many of us reeling, struggling to adjust to a “new normal” of school closures, working from home and travel restrictions. Looking beyond the personal impact to the seismic implications for the world as a whole is daunting, but the…
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Hotlines around the world have seen a surge in the number of domestic abuse calls as countries have gone into lockdown to prevent coronavirus spread, and Hong Kong is no different. Harmony House, Hong Kong’s first shelter for abused women, saw a 25 per cent increase in calls to its hotline between January and March.“The…
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Sitting on a beach over the Christmas holiday, Matt Friedman excitedly discussed the upcoming launch of his latest book with his wife, Sylvia Yu. Little did they know that the coronavirus, about to quickly spread around the world, would railroad their plans.Bad timing? Not at all. The physical launch may have shifted to an online…
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As the coronavirus spreads around the world, sending billions of people into lockdown, communities have reacted by panic buying, stripping supermarket shelves of essential goods. That has not happened in the Republic of the Congo. When people in the central African country were ordered to enter a 30-day lockdown this week, most did not have…
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We’ve been hearing a lot about deep cleaning. When the last passengers and crew on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan completed their 14-day quarantine on March 2, following a coronavirus outbreak aboard, the ship underwent a thorough disinfection. Since then, not a day has gone past without mention of a club, gym, restaurant,…
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For people around the world who have shelved their travel plans and are spending more time indoors, virtual travel is the perfect way to explore the world from the comfort and safety of home. You can use this time to research your next big adventure or simply indulge in some escapist armchair travel. Technology can…
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The panic buying seen in the past few weeks as people rush to stock up on essentials during the coronavirus outbreak caught Hong Kong by surprise. First it was face masks – understandable given the nature of the virus – but then it was rice and toilet paper. We’ve seen people queuing overnight for goods, there was…
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The Eyes of Darkness, a 1981 thriller by bestselling suspense author Dean Koontz, tells of a Chinese military lab that creates a virus as part of its biological weapons programme. The lab is located in Wuhan, which lends the virus its name, Wuhan-400. A chilling literary coincidence or a case of writer as unwitting prophet?In The…
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It’s twilight on the Morning Trail and there is a steady stream of hikers heading up the winding path from Conduit Road to The Peak in Hong Kong. Some are regulars and others are new converts who have decided to ditch the gym to exercise outdoors. No one is wearing a mask – despite the…
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An expert, herself one half of a dual-career couple, spent six years interviewing couples around the world at different career and life stages It’s a Wednesday evening and the crowd squeezed into a small function room at Hong Kong’s exclusive China Club are alumni of the Insead business school. Mostly in their 30s and 40s,…
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North Korea’s top end has enough stunning scenery to make you almost forget you are in the world’s most repressive state. Almost. North Korea has been open to tourists since 1987, but it is only in the past few years that the hermit kingdom has seen visitors arrive in any significant number. Those who come…
India-born human rights advocate was sold into slavery as a child. Now she works to end the trade in people in the hope no child will have to endure what she went through
Nigel Collett’s book answers the big questions surrounding the scandal of John MacLennan’s death in 1980, fleshing out the cast of characters and sharing anecdotes and information not covered in previous texts
In her book Eurasians, MIT professor contrasts attitudes towards interracial marriage in three jurisdictions, and how mixed-race families in Hong Kong were able to grow wealthy despite facing discrimination
Tomas Novotny has been in North Korea two days, and he looks frazzled.
Born to Hong Kong parents, Nathanael Wei is the youngest member of Britain’s House of Lords.