- Job - done
- Flat - done
- Bank account - done
- Visa - done
- ID card - done
- Gym card - done
- Credit card - done
- JCC card - done
Wandering Jew
Here, there and everywhere
Here, there and everywhere
Fri, 27 Jan 2006
On... Getting legal and settled
Doing the paperwork, piece by piece
[19:38] | [/Hong_Kong] |
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Mon, 16 Jan 2006
I'm quite tired.
[07:52] | [/Hong_Kong] |
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Drinks in Lan Kwai Fong, escalator, sleep. Taxi, dim sum, Starbucks, ferry to Lamma, walk from town, beach, walk back to town, sweet'n'sour tufo, ferry to Hong Kong, ferry to Tsim Sha Tsui, taxi, bowling, MTR, escalator, wine bar, taxi, sleep. Weetabix, taxi, ferry to Macau, bus to town, coffee and snack in nice Portugese coffee shop, walk around town, church, walk, ruined church facade, fortress, walk, bus to Coloane, lunch at Fernando's, bus, egg tart at Lord Stow's. bus, casino, casino, Fisherman's Wharf, casino, ferry to HK, taxi, sleep.
Zzzzzzzz....
Tue, 10 Jan 2006
A Fragrant Harbour by any other name...
[19:47] | [/Hong_Kong] |
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Bah! This is the sort of thing I expect to happen in London, not Hong Kong - and I've been bitten by it twice now, so it's I'm annoyed with myself.
In a couple of places in Hong Kong, there are two train stations in pretty much the same place, but with different names, and, crucially, the same sequence of exits, (A, B, C, etc.) but in different places. I got caught by it a few months ago when I planned to meet someone at what I consider to be Central station - the one below the IFC - and we ended up playing phone tag for a while since he was at exit A of Central Station and I was at exit A of Hong Kong Station. And I messed up again this morning, when I went to find the Palm drop-off place (actually a DHL office) which is at exit F of Central Station - which is, of course, at the very opposite end of that transport hub from exit F of Hong Kong Station. I won't make that mistake again - at least, until the next time.
On the other hand, I do have a replacement Treo 650, which seems to be in better condition than the one I turned in, although the new one is reconditioned, and which will hopefully managed to run for a few hours (maybe even days!) without freezing up and needing a poke of the reset switch...
Sun, 01 Jan 2006
2 days in Hong Kong
[03:41] | [] |
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Earlier this month, I attended a local Limmud event in Hong Kong - not in any way associated with the UK organisation and events of the same name, but very much in the same spirit. The Hong Kong event had one distinguished international speaker, Dr. Daniel Polisar, "president of the Shalem Center and publisher of Azure", a quarterly journal which "offers essays and criticism on Israeli and Jewish public policy, Jewish philosophy, cultural trends, religion in public life, Zionist history and much more".
Dr. Polisar spoke 3 times over the weekend, on the past (Biblical archeology), present (ideas given to the world by the Jewish people) and future (what can and hopefully will unite the Jewish people), the Rabbi of Ohel Leah synagogue spoke on his experiences of aliyah, a pair of Israeli educators lead a discussion on the Israeli Declaration of Independence, I heard the Rabbi of the Chabad shul in Hong Kong speak on The Case Against the Bible, and there was also a session on Jewish music and one of textual study.
The event was much smaller than most (though not all) Limmud events I've attended in the UK, but it was well organised, had appropriate and high-quality content, and the best food of any Limmud event I've ever eaten. I enjoyed it, and it was an excellent warm-up for Conference in Nottingham.
2 days in Nottingham
1905 - Einstein's Miraculous Year - presented by the President Emeritus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem who is a theoretical physicist
Self, Other, God: The Philosophy of Martin Buber - presented by the director of academic studies at the London School of Jewish Studies, whose academic field is Jewish thought and philosophy
Wrestling with God - presented by (Lord, Professor) Robert Winston, one of the highest-profile scientists and scientific ethicists in the UK, whose field is fertility and reproductive medicine
The Time Has Come To Begin Telling Stories - the first session of a pair examining the Chassidic tales of Rebbe Nachman of Breslav, presented by a British Rabbi and teacher, and father-to-be
Hadassah Gross: Unwrapped! - a 'Judeo-Kitsch' drag act - 'nuff said.
I skipped the midnight to 1am slot...
[03:10] | [] |
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This is now the sixth year I've been at the Limmud Conference in Nottingham over Christmas, and it's the first year I haven't been there for at least the 5 days of the full Conference. On Monday, I attended the following sessions:
- Ethics and Aesthetics - Photos in Media - a panel consisting of one photojournalist, one writer and two editors, all Israeli
- A Voice from the End of the World - a study of a Rabbinic poem, presented by an Israeli student and teacher of Biblical and Rabbinic literature
On Tuesday, I attended:
- Skipped the early morning (8am) slot...
- Ango-Jewry: the Pre-Expulsion Community - presented by "Director of the Office for Small Communities, former President of the United Synagogue"
- Demography in Israel and Palestine: Trends and Policy Implications - presented by the Hebrew University demographer who has been at the centre of the demography furor this year
- Beyond Belief: Doctrine in Contemporary Jewish Thought - presented by the same teacher as the Buber session above
- The Academic Boycott - presented by the President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews
- Genocide and Denial in the 21st Century: What Have We Learnt from the Past? - a small workshop presented by a former teacher and phsychologist who is now a "Freelance Racism and genocide Educator", helped by a friend of hers who is a black policeman in Leicester
- Heeb and the New Jew - presented by the editor and publisher of this modern Jewish culture magazine, which describes itself as, amongst other things, "a sweaty prizefight between hip hop and sushi in this corner and klezmer and kugel in the other"
- Speed Chavruta - a series of short 1-on-1 discussions about various Biblical texts dealing with love, moderated by a young community activist who is part of a family of 4 presenters at this year's Conference
- History on Trial: My Day in Court with David Irving - presented by Deborah Lipstadt, who was sued by the notorious racist, anti-Semite and Holocaust denier for libel, and not only won, but destroyed him professionally and financially in the process, with quiet determination, honest intelligence and astounding humility. The only time I've ever seen someone get a standing ovation at Limmud.
- The Israeli Media and the Occupation - presented by the same writer who sat on the panel at the first session above
- Again, I skipped the midnight slot...
For those who don't know Limmud, note that this was 2 days of a 4.5 (or 6 if you include the pre-Conference Shabbat) day conference. In any one of these slots, I could have attended other sessions of different types on very different subjects - at the peak of the day, there can be 30 or more organised sessions, as well as an open library and study area, a marketplace and expo, a bookshop, and hundreds of people just relaxing, sharing a coffee and socialing in an open atmosphere. There are special programmes for younger people, sessions aimed at parents and families, and a lot more creative and arts-related stuff (particularly dance, music and other performance) which I tend to avoid, simply because I prefer more intellectual sessions, and the choice is there.
While it certainly wasn't the only reason, attending Limmud, and seeing the friends I'm made and see there every year was one of the major factors in my flying approximately 20,000km (12,500 miles) to be in the UK at the end of 2005. If you have the chance to attend future Conference or local One-day events, run - don't walk.