Dragons and Storms.

There be dragons in these parts.

July first was the twenty-sixth anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong from Britain to China. There were lots of free things going on to celebrate it. I decided not to bother with these, as they were bound to be incredibly busy, so we spent the anniversary swimming in our pool. We were delighted to find that the temperature had dropped below thirty degrees and it actually felt pleasant for a change.

Peter at the pool.

The pool as night falls.

Full moon over the pool.

After swimming we went to the Bounty Bar and had a free combination platter and nachos.

Full moon on walk to the Bounty Bar.

On Monday I had arranged to meet up with Jason and Sheena for a drink in North Point before they headed off for the summer. I decided I would combine this with a bit of wandering and as I had seen there were displays up in Victoria Park to mark the handover, I headed there. I was mainly interested in the many dragons that were on display. However, when I got to the park, I saw that the displays were already being dismantled. It seems they were only up for a couple of days. About half of the dragons had already been taken down and were in a large, colourful heap, but I managed to get some photos of the others. I had to use a zoom lens, as it wasn't possible to get too near any more.

Colourful dragons.

Colourful dragons.

Colourful dragons.

Dismantling the dragon.

With no exhibition to go to in the park, I was too early for meeting my friends, so I decided to take a walk through the park and down to the waterfront. Looking over the harbour from the pedestrian bridge, the sky was blue and life was good. I noticed the Tin Hau Temple boat was pretty close to the shore. I walked downstairs to the waterfront and the sky began to darken. Within minutes a huge storm swept in and the harbour disappeared into torrential rain and mist.

View from the bridge.

Tin Hau Temple boat.

The calm before the storm.

Rickshaws by the waterfront.

More dragons by the waterfront.

The storm rolls in.

A storm rolls in.

Stormy weather.

Where did the other side of the harbour go?

I had a raincoat and an umbrella, but even so the rain was torrential and the ground was incredibly slippy. I sat under a flyover, watching the rain cascade down from the road above and waited for the storm to pass.

Under the flyover watching the rain.

When it was finally safe to venture out, I decided to take a quick look at The East Coast Park Precinct since it was very nearby. I thought it might be decorated for handover but it wasn't. It was still very nice though.

Victoria Harbour in Fortress Hill.

East Point Precinct Park on a rainy day.

The Dubai of Hong Kong.

The Dubai of Hong Kong.

Boat passing East Point Precinct Park.

I still had a bit of time to spare, so I wandered into Electric Road Municipal Services Building which has a market and a library inside.

Indoor market.

Indoor market.

Indoor market.

Indoor market.

Indoor market, pet shop.

Then I went to Oi! a place I have walked past many, many times, but it has always been closed due to covid, so this was the first time I got inside. Oi! is a modern art gallery that is housed in the former clubhouse of the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club.The beautifully preserved buildings here date from 1908. They were originally on the waterfront, but due to land reclamation are now quite a long way inland. The art gallery here opened in 2013. It's called Oi! as it's located on Oil Street.

Painted plan of Oi!

The old buildings that make up Oi! plus an artwork called branching benches.

The old buildings that make up Oi!

The old buildings that make up Oi!

I don't normally like modern art that much, but I actually really liked this place. First of all I loved the old buildings, then I enjoyed the very relaxed and friendly atmosphere this place had, plus it was more interactive than a lot of places, plus there were a lot of locals actively, or in some cases passively, using the facilities here.

There were several exhibitions on. I started by visiting 'Hush Rush' by local Hong Kong artist, Choi Sai-ho. This art work uses LED screens and 360 degree projections. In the 'Hush' part of the exhibition, a room has images of the sea projected onto its floor. As you 'paddle' across it, the waves rush in and out, lapping over your feet, flocks of birds fly across the sky and all you can hear is the sound of the sea. It's incredibly peaceful and you don't even get wet feet while enjoying it. Then when I entered the 'Rush' part in the adjoining room, I found myself travelling at speed down a constantly changing city street with the insane roar of traffic all around me. The point of the exhibition is to show the two sides of Hong Kong. Most tourists and many residents only manage to see the 'rush' side, but there's plenty of 'hush' here, too, if you look for it.

A visitor relaxing in the virtual sea.

Waves on the floor, birds on the walls.

A quiet moment to check her phone.

Rushing through the city.

Noisy city streets.

There was an exhibition by Nadim Abbas, but this does not open fully on Mondays for some reason, so I could only peer at it from a distance and couldn't really appreciate it.

Then there was 'Doku' by Chinese artist Lu Yang. Lu Yang is described as: 'a new media artist who specializes in integrating elements of imagery, animation, video games and pop culture through digital technology'. Doku is short for 'Dokusho Dokushi' which apparently means: 'we are born alone and we die alone.' Lu Yang created an avatar based on his own face and sent it on a journey through the six realms of Buddhist reincarnation.

Downstairs in the exhibition, the techniques Lu Yang uses in his work are explained and upstairs you can watch the animations he has created. There was a little boy in the audience who sat through the whole thing asking his helper: 'Why is that man's face moving? and 'Why is he doing that?' and 'Why is that like that?' and 'Why, why, why, why, why?' I found him quite funny. I just wish his helper could have explained it to him, then I might have understood it too. However, although I may not have entirely understood it, I still found it quite fascinating to watch.

Poster advertising 'Doku'.

Part of the Doku animation called 'animal'.

To create this sequence Lu Yang used computer technology to analyze Balinese dancers.

The boy who wanted to know 'Why?'

Back outside I explored the organic garden. I should have photographed the sign that warned people to beware of fresh produce falling on their head.

The organic garden.

In Oi!'s garden space you can find 'Joyful Trees' an artistic project involving sixteen Chinese juniper trees, three of which are planted in slowly revolving planters. This is supposed to show that nature is ever changing, rather than static.

Some of these trees slowly revolved.

Then finally there was a movie about another art exhibition projected onto an outdoor screen. There were various deck chairs scattered around the grass and it was possible to sit in one and watch the movie, however the local residents had taken them over for sunbathing and relaxation purposes and many were happily fast asleep in the chairs. Again I rather liked this. I've been in several museums here where you are scared to breath in case an attendant tells you off, but here the local residents had claimed the space as their own and were enjoying it in ways they chose to and no-one seemed to mind.

Locals making the most of the facilities.

I suddenly realized I had lingered here rather a long time and had to rush off to meet up with Jason and Sheena. We had a drink, snacks and a good gossip together, then it was time to head home.

Jason, Sheena and I.