Since the last three days have been particularly clear, I decided to walk up to Victoria Peak, Hong Kong’s number one tourist destination. Normal people get there by taking a taxi, bus, minibus, or the famous Peak Tram, but I enjoy the exercise!

I’ve been up here countless times already and it’s still a wonder to behold. Walking along Hong Kong’s busy streets you have no idea how the city fits together - building by building, block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood. From the vantage point up on The Peak it all comes together. Peer down from above and you are rewarded with a fresh look at places you dash by every day. I come up here as often as I can to have a look at the city. You can read more about my trips and see additional photos by going here or here. I love this place. It’s rare for a city to have such an inspiring view.

Tuesday night I took a few photos. Wednesday during the day I was back up there again and decided to shoot a short video with my camera (don’t expect vivid colors!) Have a look at the 35-second tour! (more…)

Cyber 8 Disco, commonly referred to as Cyber, officially closed its doors at the beginning of the month. Located near the bottom of Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, it was one of Kowloon’s most infamous discos.

What is a Hong Kong Disco?

A Hong Kong disco is made up of the following ingredients: a cavernous space with a weird theme; a huge dance floor; a large section of private karaoke rooms; a booming sound system; several bars, and an over abundance of disorienting lights.

Depending on your preference, the music found in local discos is either heaven or hell. Traditionally the mainstay was drum-heavy remixes of Cantopop songs - the same throbbing beat you hear pumping from delivery trucks driving around the city. When rave parties became popular, trance music was integrated into the mix. As Hip Hop / R&B became mainstream, it too became part of the repertoire. On a typical night, the d.js. now blend all three genres.

Discos are located mostly on Kowloon-side. Compared to Central’s more upscale clubs, the size of the spaces and quantities of people are enormous. Cyber claimed to be the largest disco of them all. The layout featured several bars, dozens of tables, private karaoke rooms, and a large space for dancing. The decor was based on Hong Kong’s infatuation with the word ‘cyber’ from the Internet boom in the late 90’s. Lots of shiny metal adorned the entrance and passageways throughout the club.

Discos in Hong Kong are typically associated with two things: drugs and gangs. Cyber had both of those, but there were also a few positives. For one thing, the lighting system was excellent, better than anything you can find in Hong Kong’s more haughty clubs. Check out the following video for a look at the scene! (more…)

Volar solidified its reputation as Hong Kong’s top club for cutting-edge d.j. / performers by hosting French dynamic duo Justice, and Ed Banger label owner Busy P on Friday night.

Volar vs. Dragon-i

Competition in club-land is a good thing for music lovers. Volar has recently carved out a successful niche. While Dragon-i brings classic d.j. / producers such as the legends, Little Louie Vega and D.J. Jazzy Jeff, Volar has differentiated themselves by bringing the most up-to-date d.j. acts around. In the past year they have brought forth a smorgasbord of new talents. (more…)

Yesterday I stopped by my friend Nadia’s new shop, Select 18, in Hong Kong’s Soho neighborhood. As the proprietor of a clothing shop, and a bar owner, Nadia’s ventures provide insight into the evolution of Soho. Here’s a little history…

Hong Kong’s Soho neighborhood (which in this case stands for South of Hollywood Road,) is known primarily for two streets: Staunton Street and Elgin Street. The place was a low-rent backwater of printing shops and scap-compacting until the escalator was completed in 1993.

Built on a steep slope, the area slowly began to attract restauranteurs who bet that commuters taking the Mid-Levels escalator home from work might want to stop off to grab a bite to eat. Due to the low rents, individuals (not big corporations) began to open up interesting shops and small, unique restaurant / bars. (more…)

The CLOT third anniversary is swiftly approaching! Rumor has it that the special guest d.j. is one of the hottest global d.j. / producers around. If the info is indeed true, I’m extremely excited since this will be his first time performing in Hong Kong. CLOT’s previous events have historically been my favorite parties of the year, and I expect the third anniversary to be equally amazing!

The past year for CLOT has been a milestone with several huge achievements. In addition to tens of high profile collaborations (such as LEVIS, and EA,) there’s been the Kanye West concert, the wildly successful launch of the CLOT Nike sneakers, and the CLOT clothing line - Alienegra, not to mention all of the action with Soleciety in Shanghai.

Congratulations Edison, Kevin, Pavlos and Billy - here’s to another year of taking giant steps forward! (p.s. I’ll leave the beer-bong home this year!)

Stay tuned for coverage!

Here it comes again… that time of the year when it rains like crazy. It’s a good chance to catch up on movies, practice pool, update your blog, or go bowling! It’s a bad time of the year to plan boat trips.

Hong Kong is said to have several different typhoon seasons, but the majority fall between May and November. Everyone who has a normal job secretly prays for a typhoon to pass through the city every now and then. It’s like getting a day off due to a blizzard - it rarely happens, but when it does it’s fun!

Hong Kong has a detailed ranking of the typhoon threats, with a typhoon 10 being the highest. The signal that people care about most is a number 8, which means that offices will close, and staff will be allowed to leave work. People obsessively visit the Hong Kong Observatory website when a typhoon may be approaching.

Remember the scene of Faye Wong riding Hong Kong’s escalator system in Wong Kar Wai’s Chung King Express? Check out a video of how it holds up in the rain! (more…)

Last Sunday there was a huge food and beverage show (HOFEX) at the Hong Kong Convention Center. I spent the afternoon walking around sampling food from dozens of different countries. All of the booths were looking for people to distribute their products, so there were samples to try every few feet!

My friend Brian is the distributor of Pravda Vodka in Hong Kong, and he had a huge booth set up (equipped with two bars!) in one of the halls. During the convention they sponsored several different competitions including a bartender bottle-juggling contest. Check out one of the routines!

Thursday night I was invited to a party thrown by Hong Kong retailer Lane Crawford in honor of fashion designer Stella McCartney. Immediately the location of the event - an industrial building in Aberdeen, caught my eye. Aberdeen is sort of a wasteland in between wealthier, more modern enclaves on that side of the island. To get there you take a tunnel through a mountainside. The road where the party was held is a barren stretch of warehouses and glum old factory buildings.

The event was from 8 until 12, so I decided to arrive around 9:30. I was told the party would also feature a performance by the band New Young Pony Club. NYPC are a London-based group who play contemporary New Wave music. It’s a very of-the-moment type of sound favored in hipster scenes, better clubs and indie fashion circles. In Hong Kong you can catch this sound at Yumla or Volar when D.J. El Kabong (aka Drafus,) or the Uptown Rockers play.

Rounding the corner from where the taxi dropped me off, I saw a large lighted marquee with ‘STELLA McCARTNEY’ spelled out over the entrance. There was a sort of caravan of vehicles parked outside the reception area and live painting was going on. Live painting is common at events these days, however, this time the painter was using several cars and the side of a large truck as his canvas! As I stood there taking in the scene, the painter casually crossed the street to gain perspective of his work. Here’s a video of how it looked! (more…)

In perhaps the most celebrity-filled event since the Hong Kong Film Awards, Dragon-i hosted the launch of Rio Active Mints, a new luxury mint brand founded by Daniel Zigal, Alastair Lam, and Jaycee Chan.

At the entrance to the event there were five jars of samples to try. I snagged a few boxes with exotic flavor combinations such as guarana and berries, and lemongrass with ginseng. One word to describe them - addictive! Not only are the flavors enticing, but the packaging is both convenient and fun. You release a mint by sliding the metal box-top in a motion similar to opening a mobile phone.

Dragon-i has been host to some wild, raging parties over the last four years, and this one ranks among the top of them. (more…)

Saturday was another busy night and I was feeling a little under the weather. After playing at Volar I still managed to catch New York House D.J. Joe Clausell at Dragon-i and the Uptown Rockers at Yumla.

Joe Clausell was back at Dragon-i for his second appearance. This time around he was going berserk with the equalizer, constantly remixing the highs and lows of each song on the go. I’ve actually never seen someone move so fast twisting the e.q.s with that kind of dexterity and passion. It was almost as if he was dancing with the mixer! The music he played was soulful house, much better than the garden variety often served up by other big-name d.j.s. Dragon-i was not only treated to world class song selection but an energetic and uncommon mixing performance.

I had forgotten that my friends the Uptown Rockers were spinning at Yumla on Saturday night. People go crazy when these guys play. The Uptown Rockers are made up of three people Drafus (El Kabong) Sean (the Prawn) and Simon Pang. (more…)