Hong Kong Dragon Boat Carnival July 23, 24, 25, 2010 Its First Ever

The Hong Kong Dragon Boat Carnival, taking place July 23, 24, 25, is its first dragon boat carnival ever!

And four of the more than 200 local and international teams, from 12 countries and regions are Canadian dragon boat racing teams from the province of British Columbia.

The newly launched Hong Kong Dragon Boat Carnival is one of the three Mega Events earmarked by the Hong Kong SAR Government from now until mid-2011, one of the highlights of the Hong Kong Tourism Board’s (HKTB) annual Summer Spectacular.

The other two Mega Events are the Hong Kong Tennis Classic 2011 World Team Challenge, which will be held January 2011, and Hong Kong’s first ever international women’s golf event, The Hong Kong Women’s Open, from late April to early May, 2011.

Canadian Teams from False Creek :
More than 60 paddlers of four Canadian teams, sponsored by the HSBC Bank Canada and the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office (HKETO) in Toronto, are all from the False Creek Racing Canoe Club, in Vancouver, B.C.

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False Creek Racing Canoe Club Team in Action

The False Creek Racing Canoe Club is one of the best known breeding grounds of Canadian paddlers.  The club’s dragon boat teams have competed in many international events and have won the Hong Kong Championships for five times in previous years.

False Creek Racing Canoe Club Team Photo

These teams will join three categories of races including Mixed, Open, and Women’s International Championship in the first ever Carnival.

Ms Maureen Siu, Director of the HKETO, described Hong Kong as the birthplace of modern dragon boat racing.

“Dragon boating in Canada began at the World Expo in Vancouver in 1986, when the city was given six dragon boats by Hong Kong,” said Ms Siu. “Now dragon boating has become a popular sporting activity in major cities across Canada, and evolved beyond festivals to include community, charity and sport racing in many combinations.”

 “Having four high-calibre Canadian teams joining this event could further promote the Hong Kong-Canada relations,” she added.

Jointly organized by the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association and the HKTB, the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Carnival will be held along the East Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade this year. The Victoria Harbour will be in carnival form, with fun and many cultural entertainment programs.

Michael Lim, HKTB’s Director of Canada, Central and South America, said,

“The carnival celebrates our traditional Chinese culture with modern elements by enlarging the scale of the Hong Kong international Dragon Boat Races while instilling new programs of different nature to attract even greater participation of visitors and local residents.”

For anyone lucky enough to be traveling to Hong Kong this week, this is one more wonderful event in this fabulous city! Wish I were there!

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For more information, see Hong Kong festival site

Photos this page/ post courtesy of Hong Kong Tourism Board.

For pictures of Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui, see my website Hong Kong section.

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Update June 2, 2011

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) and the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association (HKDBA) are organizing the annual Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races (June 17 - 19, 2011) and Canadian teams will be there!

Expo 86 in Vancouver BC was the start of Dragon boating in Canada, when Hong Kong gave the city six dragon boats. Sponsored by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, eight Canadian teams, and about 150 paddlers from the False Creek Racing Canoe Club (FCRCC) will take part

The four top teams are the FCRCC Premier Men, Premier Women, Starbucks Waverunners Komodo Dragon and Creakside Masters. The remaining four teams are known as recreational paddlers: Lifescan, Riptide, Dragon Hearts Beat and Starbucks Waverunners Sumatra.

Some groups are experienced international award-winning teams, while for others the Hong Kong competition will be their first on the international circuit. All of Canada wishes our False Creek Racing Canoe Club dragon boat teams good luck!

Google Map Hong Kong:

View Most Popular Attractions in Hong Kong in a larger map

Hong Kong Food, Wine, Mid Autumn Festival, China National Day Holidays

Hong Kong is a busy city --there's really no best time of year to travel there. But that's good, too, because it means that there is always something cool to do!

That's one of the reasons Hong Kong is my favorite city to visit. But what this does mean is that you have to book your hotel well in advance or risk finding no room at the inn of your choice.

Like this fall: October 1 is China National Day, which means lots of Chinese travelers will be moving around the country. Another really busy travel time is the Mid-Autumn Festival (a movable feast also called Moon Festival or Chinese Thanksgiving).

Crabs for Sale Hong Kong Market - Mid Autumn Festival

In 2009, the Mid Autumn Festival is October 3, 2009, which means, with two major holidays so close together, that transportation systems as well as accommodations will be stretched to the limits.

If your travel times are flexible, you may want to time your trip for a bit earlier or a bit later, say, towards the end of October when holidayers will have gone back to work.

Hong Kong residents are embracing Halloween -- no trick or treat -- but many will dress up and go walkabout, which is really fun to see. And then the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival is scheduled for October 30 to November 8, and that will be a great event to take in.

Culinary Special Jasmine Restaurant Jardine House

I was in Hong Kong several times at this time -- Sept-Oct-Nov. The weather was still very warm and humid, but quite lovely for touring around. I was treated to some great meals (Jasmine Restaurant at Jardine House was one), as well as in the SoHo (south Hong Kong) area.

On weekends, the SoHo streets are given over to pedestrians and the place rocks! Festival events mean that some roads will be closed, and the streets decorated and filled with performers, with food booths and restaurants offering their wares.

Sai Kung Seafood a Specialty

Fresh, fresh, fresh is the hallmark of Cantonese cuisine, and Sai Kung is the place to be. Well, there and Lamma Island. Especially after a walking tour from one end of Lamma to the other, you deserve the reward of fabulous seafood!

Bird's Nest Soup ~ Hong Kong

The Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival food event is organized by the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), and offers celebrity chefs, wine experts and food critics a chance to do their thing. Festival events go from the downtown area and beyond:

• Victoria Harbour Pre-dinner Sunset Cocktail Cruises
• Hong Kong Island Tour with a special dim sum lunch
• Lamma Island seafood and wine buffets
• Wan Chai’s Revolving 66 Restaurant special menus (only revolving restaurant in HK)

Prayer Tree Hong Kong New Territories

A lot of activities and events are centered around this festival, including

• street carnivals
• food-district promotions
• Sai Kung Seafood Festival
• a hotel dine-around program
• an International Wine & Spirits Fair
• wine appreciation classes and ‘walks’
• cooking demonstrations by renowned Hong Kong chefs.
• live entertainment: jazz, dance and rock music
• mime artists, clowns and jugglers
• multi-media sound and light show

If this is a little overwhelming, then you can take a tour to the New Territories and toss a prayer into this famous tree!

Hong Kong Wine and Dine Travel Specials
Two Canadian tour operators have Hong Kong’s outstanding food and wine in their plans. Silkway Travel (Vancouver, BC) is offering a five-night Hong Kong trip at prices from $1,160 CAD (Cathay Pacific from Vancouver, hotel package, Hong Kong's great Cultural Kaleidoscope program ). This is a really good price, IMHO.

For travel from Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal, Jade Tours has a five-night Culinary Tour, at prices from $999 CAS via United Airlines, which includes a half-day Hong Kong Island tour, a night harbour cruise with dinner at Lei Yue Mun Seafood Village, a Museum of History visit and – from 31 October to 8 November – a Wine Appreciation Class at the Hong Kong Food and Wine Festival. A bargain!

If I can swing it, I am SO there! (and No, I get no $ from any of these agencies, though I wouldn't say no to a free and fabulous meal when next I'm in Hong Kong!)

More Info
Silkway tour
Jade Tours
Hong Kong travel, visa, pics info on my travel site
Maps, brochures and online goodies see Hong Kong Tourism Board
Really cool 3D map of Hong Kong

Easter Egg Hunt Hong Kong China ~ Easter Brunch Port Credit Canada More Signs of Spring!

A few more signs of the Easter (read: Spring) Season in today's mail:

From Hong Kong, a reminder of the annual Easter egg hunt and from right here in Port Credit, Ontario, of the annual Easter Sunday Brunch at TEN Restaurant.

First, news from Hong Kong Tourism Board :

Over the Easter weekend, families will descend on Discovery Bay for the ever-popular Easter Egg Treasure Hunt. Some 20,000 eggs will be buried on Tai Pak Beach, including the prize eggs that entitle finders to some great prizes. So hit the beach or the nearby Fun Fair, and don’t forget your camera. Those who prefer treasure hunting of a different sort should check out various shopping malls in town, which will be offering a range of holiday promotions.

More info (choose your language) at HKTB.com Hong Kong has no low season so book hotels, etc well in advance. And if you are transiting via Hong Kong over a holiday, make allowances for even more traffic and possible closures. Hong Kong also celebrates other western holidays such as Halloween, Christmas, New Years, Mother's Day.

And Easter Brunch info from TEN Restaurant and Wine Bar in Port Credit. Here's the poster.



As I get more info on other restos' Easter Sunday Brunch in Mississauga, I'll post it here.

March 14 2009 ~ Waterside Inn Breakwater Restaurant

For more info see my web site page Ten and Breakwater Restaurant
For more pics and info, see my website page Hong Kong
Earlier post re: Signs of Spring

May Means Festivals in Hong Kong

I admit it -- I love Hong Kong! It's hard to believe a year has past since I was last winging my way to my favourite city. (By the way, I flew over the Pole from Toronto on Air Canada -- an amazing view of Canada's North!) If you have any vacation time coming up for May, and are looking for a great new destination, then have a look at my photos from this trip and previous trips at Snapshot Journeys Hong Kong to get a feel for the city and outlying islands.

This year, Lord Buddha's birthday is commemorated on May 24, though celebrations run over the course of a week. The main celebrations are at Lantau Island, the largest outlying island. (I have two pages of Lantau Islands photos, including the one on this post).

There's so much of interest to do in Hong Kong -- from Disney to the cable car to Lantau and the ferry to Macau to shopping and dining and Victoria Peak tram rides -- the list goes on and on. Two weeks is barely enough to scratch the surface, and there's something for every age group.

I'd go again myself, but work is keeping me close to home until summer, so someone please go on my behalf, and tell me how it went.

Chinese New Year 2007 :: Year of the Pig (Boar)

At last, my year has come along in the Chinese Zodiac. Only once every 12 years, so it's been a while, and I for one am ready for the Year of the Pig on February 18, 2007. New Year celebrations are huge in Asia, especially in Hong Kong. It’s a festival full of ancient traditions and cultures combined with stunning lighting effects and fireworks that runs from February 12 to 28. Residents and visitors alike celebrate with special foods, flowers, shopping, lights, a fabulous parade and a spectacular fireworks display. Sure wish I could be there.
If you are planning to travel to Asia at this time, expect busy airports and fully booked hotels, so get your reservations early.