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If we learnt anything in lockdown it was to appreciate the simple things in life. Take a break from your newly hectic schedule to enjoy this fresh and colourful Asian-inspired salad. PHOTOS COURTESY OF Adobe Stock Serves 4 - 1lb asparagus, trimmed - 2tbsp white vinegar - 1tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce - 2tsp canola oil - 1tsp sesame oil - ½tsp fresh ginger, grated - 2-3 dashes red chilli sauce, optional - 1 bunch radish, trimmed and cut into wedges - 2tbsp finely chopped scallions Fill a medium bowl with ice water and place by the stove. Bring 1 inch of water to the boil in a steamer or a large saucepan fitted with a steamer basket. Cut off the ends of the asparagus, and then steam until tender-crisp, 5 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness. Transfer the asparagus to the ice water. Drain. Combine the vinegar, soy sauce, canola oil, sesame oil, ginger and chilli sauce in a large bowl. Add the asparagus, radish and scallion; toss to combine. Season well, garnish with fresh chard leaves and serve with grilled prawns and rice noodles.

Stefanie Hemshall established Escapade Sport s in 2002 with her husband Keith, and she continues to run the company with her brother Christian Ross. The trio opened Escapade Sports’ Causeway Bay store in 2009, the Central store in 2011 (which recently moved to a new location on On Lan Street) the online store in 2014, and the Repulse Bay store in 2015. The main driver is to help everybody from professional athletes to first-time participants reach their full potential by providing them with top quality sportswear and accessories. Here, as she celebrates Escapade Sport’s 20th anniversary, Stefanie provides some inspirational advice for budding entrepreneurs. Q How did Escapade Sports’ journey begin? We bought the sports shop at the Hong Kong Cricket Club (HKCC) in 2002 in order to give my father-in-law employment. His investments had gone south, and he was looking for income. As an honorary member of HKCC, he liked the idea of working the shop that was there at the time. I took over from him about two years later when he had sorted out his investments and wanted to retire, and I took it from there. Q What are the main characteristics that every successful entrepreneur needs? Firstly, believing that if you work hard, you can make a bad situation good again – and being prepared to work hard. Secondly, being passionate about what you do. Thirdly, admitting that you cannot be good at all aspects of the business and finding help with the aspects that you are not good at or don’t like doing. Q Did you look at your competition when deciding to start-up? When we opened our flagship store in Causeway Bay, we had no competition as we specialised in sports that were considered niche at the time, like rugby and triathlon. Q What’s the most important thing to consider when setting up a business? It is a lot less glamorous than most people think, and you must have stamina. Q What’s the key to entrepreneurial success? There are two: Being able to think out of the box, and being able to reflect your passion to the people around you. Q What’s the best piece of entrepreneurial advice you have ever been given? To improve my forecasting and planning. A lot of entrepreneurs don’t like this part as it’s not much fun. Q How do you reach your target audience? By a mix of word of mouth, print advertisements and social media, as well as collaboration with event organisers. Q What qualities do you look for when hiring staff? A good command of English and a willingness to learn. Ideally too, they are passionate about sport. Q How do you operate in closed markets, i.e. COVID? It’s very hard. You really have to think out of the box. When gyms and LCSD facilities closed, we had to make sure we had a lot more home exercise equipment on offer and get used to the fact that we would sit on rugby and hockey items much longer. When you have a shop on the beach (as we do at Repulse Bay) and beaches close, it is so very hard. You have to negotiate with landlords and limit your opening hours and think of other ways to cut costs. Q Do many of your customers shop online? Our online sales are growing but they are still only a very small percentage of our overall sales. What’s great is that we offer same day deliveries within Hong Kong. Q What value-added services do you provide compared to the existing competition? We believe that our customers are the most important part of our business and we try to make them feel that way. We try to help them, advise them and make their buying experience as enjoyable and smooth as possible. We also have a Super Active VIP membership programme in place so that loyal customers can enjoy discounts and special offers. Q Do you advocate Corporate Social Responsibility? Definitely! That’s one of the best parts of running a business. We love helping others. Even gestures that are small for us, like donating Shock Absorber sports bras for female refugees through RUN Hong Kong, can help people a lot. We always want to help. We’ve been collecting used shoes for over 10 years. We work with Crossroads Foundation Hong Kong to make these shoes available to those who can’t afford them. Q How do you reduce your carbon footprint? For the benefit of our customers and our environment, we apply environmental friendliness as a criterion when selecting new brands and products. We work with our suppliers to reduce packaging by reusing cardboard boxes and we have relinquished the use of plastic. Since December 2019, we no longer offer customers plastic-based shopping bags. If you forget to bring your own bag, you can purchase one of our ‘No More Plastic Bags For Me’ shopping bags. These cotton bags are priced at HK$28 of which HK$12 is donated to Plastic Free Seas to support its education and action campaigns about plastic pollution in society. Q How do you diversify? Diversity is Escapade Sports. We currently employ staff of six different nationalities. We were one of the first signatories of the Racial Diversity & Inclusion Charter for Employers, that was launched by the Equal Opportunities Commission in 2018. Q Once a business is doing well, how do you ensure that it continues to do so? There are no guarantees in our business. We had years of doing quite well and suddenly it flipped. Our best-selling brands opened concept stores next door to us and started competing with us. You really always have to stay on your toes, be nimble and react quickly. For more on Escapade Sports and to shop online, visit www.escapade.com.hk

DB students Dhaanya and Reaha Ganeriwal are challenging all of us to do better, and standing up for climate change action, one Friday at a time. Elizabeth Kerr reports. PHOTOS BY Baljit Gidwani - www.evoqueportraits.com & Sheetal Ganeriwal "Did you know Hong Kong is the third biggest per capita consumer of beef in the world? Ahead of the United States?” demands Dhaanya Ganeriwal, easily one of Hong Kong’s youngest climate action activists. She baffles at that statistic, one of the factoids she shares with passers-by after she and her sister Reaha assault them with her climate action challenge board as part of their Friday strikes – now in their third year. Oh, Dhaanya is 10 years old. It’s a couple of days away from the end of the school year, but Dhaanya and nine-year-old Reaha have found the time to wander down towards the ferry pier for a chat about their busy schedule. No, it’s not packed with summer reading or music lessons that will look good on high school admissions applications, but they do have a couple of speaking engagements about climate action coming up. Demands for action have morphed from din to dull roar in recent years, most often spearheaded by the literal children who have to deal with the increasingly visible fallout of climate change. Dhaanya and Reaha have somehow found time to do their weekly strikes, push Starbucks for an explanation about its HK$4 surcharge for non-dairy milk (they started a petition to get the fee for “making the right choice” dropped), and participate in a TEDx talk at Chinese University of Hong Kong. What did you do this week? CLIMATE ACTION STRIKES Dhaanya and Reaha are now climate action veterans.They’ve been striking every Friday for over 150 weeks. “We stand out with our boards and ask people to pick a number, say number one, which is a five-minute shower. Then we talk to them about how a shorter, cooler shower is good for the environment,” Dhaanya says. It’s safe to assume the girls themselves do all 10 actions on the board, which includes waste reduction and education. “We don’t do this one, girl,” says Reaha, pointing at the “shop local” food tag. They do, however, upcycle (they’re fans of Retykle), and buy clothes made of recycled materials. And they drink tap water. Aside from a few cases of smart mouthed “adults” unfairly sparring with them (“Some people try to bully us and talk to us like we’re climate scientists. We’re 11 and nine,” scoffs Reaha), and overenthusiastic security guards chasing away “panhandlers” (not a good look Hong Kong), they’ve been met mostly with positive responses from people at DB Plaza, the North Plaza and occasionally the Central Waterfront when they approach with their signboards. “Some people ignore us, but just as many participate and take a pledge. Then they come back the next week and ask what else they can do. It’s really quite thrilling,” says Dhaanya. She then launches into a story about an elderly Tung Chung couple who they saw every week when they lived in the area. The couple were clearly supportive of what Dhaanya and Reaha were doing but language was a barrier. Fortunately, their mum, who speaks simplified Cantonese, stepped in one Friday to translate. The next week they saw the couple with their own food containers and cloth shopping bag. “Little changes like that add up and it was really exciting to see we could have an impact,” says Dhaanya. They’ve also gotten great support from their parents, and from Discovery College, where they go to school. Their extra-curricular actives often wind up on the school’s The Explorer page. TWEEN TALK Dhaanya was born in her parents’ hometown of Mumbai, and left as an infant when her banker dad was relocated to Singapore. Reaha was born there, and after two years in the Lion City the family moved to Hong Kong where they’ve been for the last eight. Despite their eco-warrior status, Dhaanya and Reaha are most definitely pre-teen sisters. They constantly jump in with extra details during a story, a story, and they sweetly finish each other’s sentences. There’s almost a riot of vindication when I agree that despite being frequently mistaken for twins, they look nothing alike. Dhaanya is a self-confessed bookworm (she’s read both Helen Keller and Anne Frank biographies) who plays rugby and has an interest in architecture. Her earliest role model was Martin Luther King Jr, followed shortly by David Attenborough. Reaha isn’t as bookish, but she is working through David Walliams’ Gangsta Granny. She fiddles around with a gym set in her bedroom and would love to be a gymnast, but wonders, “What would I do after that?” One thing the sisters do share are ridiculously long lashes that peek out above their masks. @MYGREENMANTRA The lashes and, of course, @MyGreenMantra (check them out on Instagram), the name they’ve given to their strike action. Dhaanya’s epiphany came at around seven years, when an image of a turtle strangling on plastic six-pack rings set her on her path. After asking her parents a few questions and digging into some kid-friendly research (which has since expanded), she hit the street. “I was really tired of hearing news about plastic, and pollution and climate change, and how governments weren’t doing anything about it, so I thought, ‘Why can’t I?’ We made some signboards and went outside.” Ever the curious little sister, “When she went out, I was all, ‘Where are you going? I want to join,’” recalls Reaha. “At first I just held the signs but as I learnt more, I got into it.” That eventually gave birth to @MyGreenMantra. “Mantra is a Sanskrit word for ‘chant’ and when repeated becomes a habit,” Reaha says. “We want everyone to make climate action a habit.” And she really wants to get away from the linear economy that has put us where we are. “We produce, produce, produce, use, use, use, and waste, waste, waste. We’d love Hong Kong to be a role model of sustainability and the circular economy, which is where you produce something and then make it into something else when you’re done with it.” BEING THE CHANGE To that end the girls plan on beating the drum on climate change this summer. They’re off to a smashing start, following a June 18 TEDx event, where they were two of 11 speakers talking about how one person can create a ripple that leads to bigger change. “It was awesome. There were about 100 or 200 people…” Dhaanya says gleefully. The activism continues this month, with Dhaanya and Reaha featuring alongside a couple of their teachers in a Cable TV-produced short, which aims to increase awareness in local communities. The show airs on Channel 77 Open TV at 7.30 pm on July 2 (in English with subtitles), and after a week it will be posted on the Cablewish Facebook page. Watch out too for an Encompass Hong Kong event in August, at which the girls will be talking to other local school kids about climate change (with a translator for maximum impact). Dhaanya and Reaha count Dana Winograd at Plastic Free Seas as someone to aspire to, but the most obvious comparison is Greta Thunberg, who’s not hopeful enough for the Ganeriwal girls. “We’re doing what we can at our level. We don’t want to chase other people’s expectations,” reasons Reaha. “And besides, we should be enjoying our lives, not cleaning up the mess generations before us made. We don’t want our kids living like this.” Dhaanya listens on, nodding, before finishing the thought. “We know individual actions can’t change the world, but enough of them together, as a community, can.”

Kids driving you bonkers this Summer Holiday? Here are some Summer Camps running on Lantau and beyond to keep them entertained.

Discovery Bay is the place to be if you’re into eating local. Raphael Blet meets three residents who are at the heart of it all. PHOTOS BY Richard Gordon - www.richardgordonphotography.com & Raphael Blet Getting hold of local produce in Hong Kong is easier than you think, even more so when living here in Discovery Bay. From eco-conscious residents looking to spread the word about sustainable living to fully-fledged organic stores and farms, the resort and its immediate surroundings set the tone for eating right. And you don’t have to take our word for it, Dana Winograd of Plastic Free Seas agrees. “DB stores from Fusion and Wellcome to il Bel Paese have evolved to supply the growing demand for local produce,” she says. “Star Mart stocks some unusual items as well as everyday staples, and then of course there’s Slowood DB and Garden Artemis .” THE SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE In recent years, residents have become increasingly aware of the need to eat local produce in order to reduce their carbon footprint and, of course, support local providers. One of them is 12-year resident Crystal Lee, for whom wellness and sustainability have become a constant source of inspiration, not to say a philosophy. At the helm of Kapuhala Space in DB North Plaza – DB’s first social training community – Crystal aims to offer members more than a fitness room, and to this end she provides an organic, locally grown veggie subscription service once a week. WhatsApp 9120 0177 to place your order, and you can pick up your Vegetable Marketing Organisation-sourced veggies at the studio on Wednesdays. What began as a trial for members has struck a chord with residents throughout the community – so much so that Crystal says she is sometimes overwhelmed with bookings. “We never thought we would run our veggie subscription for this long, but people always bring new people,” Crystal says enthusiastically, highlighting how residents’ appetite for local produce sets a very encouraging precedent that can inspire the wider Hong Kong community. A runner and avid nature lover, Crystal always favours local produce, as it tends to be healthier, cheaper and non-polluting. “Access to locally grown food is very important,” she says. “I would eat a locally grown choi sum over a veggie that has flown across the globe any day. I get it that there are differences in culture and tastes, but many of the basics are available locally too.” As data demonstrates, such initiatives can have a true impact on our planet. Each year worldwide, food amounts for around 16 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, which adds up to roughly 30% of overall human-produced carbon emissions. What’s more, a study presented last month by the University of Sydney found that global food miles emissions stand at 3 billion tonnes each year, a 7.5 increase from previous estimates. These figures are enough to testify how crucial ecologically minded people like Crystal are to our planet. She isn’t the only one. THE SUSTAINABLE BOUTIQUE Former Marketing Executive turned Licensed Avatar Master, Kannie Lee, took over at Garden Artemis, the sustainable boutique in DB North Plaza, in May. From handcrafted noodles made in the New Territories to toilet paper produced locally and even ‘made in Hong Kong’ sunglasses, Garden Artemis (9137 4833) has all the attributes of a socially responsible store. Amongst Garden Artemis’ bestselling products are locally made kombuchas, with flavours ranging from passion fruit to the more traditional Chinese tea. Vegan ice-creams are becoming increasingly popular too, recent heatwaves driving the demand. Following in her predecessors’ footsteps, Kannie is also planning to support local farmers by helping them sell their organic produce in her store. “Sourcing locally made products takes time and effort. It’s all about building networks and helping each other with passion,” says Kannie. For 18-year DB resident Kannie, Garden Artemis is more than a shop, it is a haven of relaxation designed to do good. “Local manufacturers can’t go to the supermarket because the fees are very expensive,” she explains. “The main reason I took over this shop is to support them and play my part.” When asked why no flowers are on sale, Kannie responds: “I thought about working with flower farms but try not to compete with other DB shops. They should have their own customers too. I believe in collaboration rather than competition. We have to support each other.” The conscientious entrepreneur hopes to spread positivity well beyond the walls of Garden Artemis. “In order to change the outside, you’ve got to change the inside first,” she says. “If your mindset is not changing, nothing will change.” Looking to the future, Kannie plans to turn her store’s lush terrace into a small café. “I want people to see Garden Artemis as a place to relax, enjoy local products and de-stress,” she says. THE NIM SHUE WAN FARMS Whilst difficult to imagine, even for many residents, DB has its fair share of local farms, where you can get your hands on fresh, seasonal fruit and vegetables. Walk 10 minutes from the DB ferry pier, through Nim Shue Wan village and up the hill towards Mui Wo, and you’ll find Grandpa’s Garden, Tung Tung Farm and Zak’s Garden. In Hong Kong, local fresh vegetable production accounts for only 1.6% of fresh vegetables consumed, and the Nim Shue Wan farmers are proud to stand out from the crowd. Of the three Nim Shue Wan farms, Grandpa’s Garden is the easiest to access, particularly for non-Cantonese speakers. You can call the farm (9137 0640) to find out what’s on sale currently, or better, drop by and chat to Grandpa’s head gardener, who speaks fluent English. You can reserve items or ask her to call you when specific items become available. Prices start at HK$20 – cash only. Named for its owner Mr Wong, Grandpa’s Garden has seasonality at its core, and organic fruit and vegetables are grown adjacently – everything from eggplants to tomatoes. Bananas, papayas and green beans are the main crops on sale over summer. “June was delicate for us because of heavy monsoon rains,” says Grandpa who nevertheless remains cheerful as more and more people are starting to stop by the farm to pick up fresh produce, thanks to word of mouth and social media’s outreach. A senior, the farmer occasionally turns into an educator, something dear to his heart. He explains that local primary schools often organise field trips, to inform students about the whys and hows of crop cultivation. Aware of the lack of garden space available to most DB residents, Grandpa and his wife also rent out plots for people to grow the fruit and veggies of their choice. As luck would have it, they also throw in a regular watering service.

THESE 3 ADVISORY COMPANIES ARE CRUCIAL TO YOUR SUCCESS Buying or financing property in Australia as an expat or overseas resident can be a lot easier than you think, assuming that is, you don’t decide to go it alone. You need a team of experts on your side to guide you through the process and help you make the best decisions possible. The right advisors provide the guidance and background knowledge to help you achieve your goals with minimum risk. You need the support of a mortgage broker, buyer’s agent and a tax specialist to save you the cost and hassle of heading Down Under to facilitate the buying process. So how do you choose your dream team of advisors? Well, we’ve done that for you: Read on to discover why Odin Mortgage , Propertybuyer and Connole Carlisle Chartered Accountants are crucial to your success. MORTGAGE BROKERS Purchasing a property overseas can be daunting, even more so when you are unfamiliar with the Australian mortgage market. Mortgage brokers are more than just intermediaries, they use their expertise to ensure you get the best interest rates, lower fees and long-term benefits. As one of Australia’s leading mortgage brokerages for Australian expats and overseas residents globally, Odin Mortgage is well-versed in the complexities of financing property in Australia while overseas – from loan structuring, tax residency considerations, maximising borrowing capacity and foreign income bank policies. A specialist expat broker, they understand your situation and ensure you get the best deal possible. Odin Mortgage offers round-the-clock personalised service to prospective homeowners ranging from pre-approval to loan application and settlement. “We do not charge any fees, we have access to 40+ lenders in Australia and can recommend better products than going directly to a bank, and unlike banks we look after you for the life of your loan. We do annual reviews, whereas banks typically switch you to higher rates after a couple of years,” says Matt Hooper, Business Development Manager at Odin Mortgage. “We’ll look after you from enquiry to settlement to ensure your lending experience is as smooth as possible,” Matt adds. “When you come to us, no stone will be left unturned to ensure you get the best possible deal and access to all the best options available.” Importantly too, Odin Mortgage can help you find the best possible loan for your circumstances. For example, in addition to low interest rates, Odin Mortgage’s brokers factor in numerous other elements such as fees and charges, loan-to-value ratios and the effect of cross collateralisation. A simple process with Odin Mortgage: 1. Get a free assessment from your dedicated broker over the phone, in-person or via email 2. Select your preferred lender from a specific personalised list and finalise your loan structure 3. Upload your documents to a secure online portal quickly and easily 4. Receive the final approval and sign in-person or electronically 5. Enjoy the entire service completely free of charge (they are paid by
the lenders) 
Odin Mortgage’s number one piece of advice: Get a pre-approval! A pre-approval is an important step to get you closer to your new home or investment property. A pre-approval means a lender has agreed, in principle, to lend you an amount of money towards the purchase of a property. It lets you know your maximum available funds so you can narrow down your search and negotiate or bid with more certainty. While you don’t need to have a pre-approval (often due to time restraints), if there is time, knowing with certainty where you stand with your chosen lender will provide added confidence and peace of mind to move forward. BUYERS’ AGENTS Part and parcel of the hassle-free home-buying journey, buyers’ agents can help you save time and money. Through their expertise and local outreach, they can find the best property for you and as professional negotiators can secure it for the best price. What’s more you pay them directly (they do not collect a commission off selling agents), so you can be certain they will always act in your best interests. It sounds obvious enough but one of the keys to success is selecting a buyers’ agent with experience in your desired location. Propertybuyer has a team of 25 experts who specialise in their local suburbs and can give amazing insights into value and property types. The team is well networked and also highly skilled at uncovering “off-market” opportunities. Rich Harvey, CEO & Founder of Propertybuyer believes property investing requires both art and science. The science is all about the data and reading and understanding what drives a local market. The art is learning how to interpret the data and seeing what is actually happening at ground level (as the data is often three months behind) – knowing the tactics in dealing with real-estate agents and having astute local knowledge is essential. “Selecting the right investment property starts with research,” Rich says. “Based on our clients’ investment goals, we help design a strategy for their individual situation. We then conduct extensive market analysis to identify and recommend suburbs and properties likely to deliver the best return using our unique data platform “Suburb Selector™”. This comprehensive investment analysis platform uses over 35 key criteria such as annual capital growth, median rent, rental yield, vacancy rate, number of sales, days on market, population, gross weekly income, median monthly mortgage repayments, online search demand and many more, and covers property data for every suburb in Australia.” Propertybuyer is Australia’s most awarded buyers’ agency with 38 Awards for Excellence. It’s also one of the most established buyers’ agencies with over 21 years in business. “We’ve helped over 3,500 investors find top performing properties so you can be confident you are in safe hands,” says Rich. “What’s more, we are investors ourselves – we use live data platforms to identify the top suburbs for capital growth and rental yield. We understand how to crunch the numbers.” Propertybuyer works to understand your aspirations – whether it be to own a home or investment – and find the right property for you. “We handle the negotiation and even help manage the process to settlement, co-ordinating your other team members to get the job done. Good buyers’ agents also provide ongoing support and advice after sale so you can prepare to make your next move,” says Rich. TAX SPECIALISTS Whilst high compared to some other developed nations, Australia’s tax system is notorious for being one of the world’s most complicated, which is one of the reasons you need a chartered accountant on board to help you buy that dream Australian property. As an expat or non-resident of Australia the complexities become even more overwhelming. Certified and registered with ASIC, Connole Carlisle Chartered Accountants provides accounting advice across the board, but importantly it has specialists in the field of property investment and ownership. You can be sure that the team is up to date with legislation changes and well-equipped to provide expert, tailor-made advice. Once your Australian property finance has been settled is the ideal time to engage a qualified tax specialist. You can then discuss the preparation and lodgement of your Australian tax return. Accounting fees for white-collar accounting firms can be high, so it’s important to understand the fees and charges you’ll be asked to pay. Connole Carlisle advises property investors both big and small, and you can rest assured its services will be affordable as well as first rate. Ensure you have a team of experts you can trust when buying or financing property in Australia while overseas. Contact the team of specialists today.

It’s a year since Discovery College student Parth Sane set up Every Ball Matters, a programme designed to reuse and repurpose tennis balls and the cans they come in. Being passionate about sustainability, Parth keenly followed up on his project. Since June 2021 Parth has shipped 2,000 balls to the Philippines for reuse and over 1,300 balls were collected last month for Sports for Hope Foundation in Hong Kong. Parth presented his idea to Florian Hedreul of Decathlon last year and Decathlon found a way to recycle old balls to make shoe
soles. Ball collection boxes with the Every Ball Matters logo 
are now operational at the Decathlon stores in Central and Causeway Bay. To find out more follow @focusofparth and @evryballmatters , or head to www.everyballmatters.com . PHOTO COURTESY OF Puskar Sane

Lifelong sailor and long-time DB resident Nikolaus von der Luehe is about to embark on a new adventure – but not before a brief campaign on behalf of the Discovery Bay Yacht Club. Elizabeth Kerr reports PHOTOS BY Richard Gordon - www.richardgordonphotography.com & Michele Felder Nikolaus von der Luehe comes to the door of his Sheung Wan office himself. There are other people milling about, but he has no trouble getting the door. He also commits to a now somewhat alien gesture: He extends a hand to shake. Well, he is a sailor. Settling down in his office, the first thing that I notice is how heavily it’s dotted with magazines, books, gauges, tackles, trophies, photographs and maps related to yachting, which is not surprising given Nikolaus’ obvious enthusiasm for the low-key, welcoming Discovery Bay Yacht Club (DBYC) – totally unrelated to the superyacht- focused Lantau Yacht Club. Work, however? He actually trades in industrial thermostats. And for the record that’s Commodore Nikolaus von der Luehe, a position he’s held at the DBYC (www.dbyc.net) for the last four years and which he’s ceded to new commodore Stephen Hart. Nikolaus and his wife Diana are heading back to Germany for good at the end of the year with, as he says, “One crying eye and one laughing eye.” The couple is only semi-retiring – they’ve purchased an old 14,000-square foot manor house close to Rostock on the Baltic coast, which they’ll be living in and managing as a vacation destination ( www.schloss-puetnitz.de ). “It’s going to be hard work. The aristocratic name may still exist but it doesn’t pay the bills. We’ll be washing the windows and maintaining the grounds,” Nikolaus says with a chuckle. That might be where the laughing eye comes in. He’ll be leaving “home” but starting a new chapter. Setting sail on the next adventure as it were. PLAIN SAILING Born in Fürth (the town’s most famous native is Henry Kissinger) not too far from Nuremberg, Nikolaus first arrived in Hong Kong in 1976 at around 11 years old, after his businessman father had moved the family around Germany and to South Africa. He finished school in Hong Kong, did his military service in Germany, came back to Hong Kong for an apprenticeship, went back to Germany, spent some time in the UK as an exchange student (where he met Diana in 1983), and relocated time and again. Ultimately though Hong Kong was always home, and in 1989, while in his early 20s, Nikolaus settled in DB. “That was long before it was Dogs and Babies,” he quips. “Unfortunately, I didn’t buy a flat. “I was always a water rat: scuba diving, swimming, windsurfing, water skiing, and then eventually sailing,” he recalls. “So, when I saw the opportunity to be close to Central, where my office was at the time, and be by the water I jumped at it.” Nikolaus stumbled into sailing after his father joined the Stanley Services Boat Club in the late seventies. He recalls water-skiing behind a friend’s Hobie 16 as a “scrawny teenager” in a strong North Easterly monsoon off Stanley. “Once I discovered sailing, I thought it was so fabulous I wondered, ‘How could other people not want to do this?’ I’ve gone long stretches of time when I didn’t sail but I’ve always come back to it,” he says. The sailing stories are indeed plentiful. Nikolaus once made the trip back to Hong Kong from the Philippines on a yacht he’d purchased with a friend through a storm, without power, and with a dead engine. “To say that I was concerned is putting it very, very mildly,” he understates. Clearly Nikolaus is comfortable living dangerously. Arguing that really, sailing is just a rudder and a sail, Nikolaus is delighted to give a Sailing 101 tutorial. He throws around words like “jibs” and “tacking,” and finishes with a story about capsizing (which, evidently, is no big). He hasn’t seen Dead Calm; he picked apart All is Lost, though he mostly enjoyed it. ON THE RIGHT TACK Prospective members, by the way, don’t need to know about jibs to join the DBYC. Founded in 1999 by Jim Ferney, the DBYC fancies itself the tonic to the tonier clubs that have given yachting its image as a rich man’s pastime. “We aim to draw local sailors together in friendly and social sailing events, and to introduce beginners to the fun of sailing and racing yachts,” Nikolaus says. “I used my previous yacht, Legs 11, as a training platform for many novice sailors in the DBYC. She needed eight crew to be sailed competitively, so there was ample opportunity for inexperienced sailors to hone their skills.” All in all, Nikolaus is very much dedicated to evangelising for sailing, and isn’t beyond trying to gently persuade even non-sailors to sign up – particularly in DB where it’s so affordable and accessible. He marvels at how easy it really is to get on the water in DB with Nim Shue Wan so handy, but worries no one realises how much opportunity for sailing around Lantau there is, or more likely mistakenly believe it exclusive to the wealthy and those training for the America’s Cup. “You can have a HK$3 million boat – but you can have these too,” Nikolaus reasons, gesturing to one of the many boat photos in the office and pointing out the craft he bought cheap and rehabilitated for the club. “You can put some maintenance and a little TLC into an older boat or you can take a share.” With many DBYC members always looking for crews, anyone interested in a crash course on sailing can find one if they commit to the time. And the DBYC really does have the most affordable membership of any club in the city (or at least it probably does) at HK$1,000 per year, which the club keeps down by not having a clubhouse, meeting digitally and advertising by (mostly) word of mouth. “DBYC is volunteer-run and therefore very affordable to join,” says Nikolaus. “There is something for every budget and every level of interest, whether you own or part own a yacht or are simply looking to crew. We are looking for volunteers. We need new people.” Regardless of who’s commodore, after a few COVID- wracked years the DBYC is coming out of its enforced semi-hibernation. The club has events lined up through December, including the 4 Picks Rally on June 4, the Cheung Chau Blast on June 26, the Middle Island Regatta on October 15, and a Christmas party on December 10. Non-members and non-sailors are welcome, and hopefully the social element will inspire Hongkongers cooped-up too long to try something new. “We don’t take ourselves so seriously,” Nikolaus finishes. “And there really is something for everyone.” Let’s just avoid those storms and power outages, yeah?

DB residents Luna Lolita Tetsu and Quincy Lui are digging deep and aiming high to lend a hand to Hong Kong’s underprivileged. Elizabeth Kerr reports PHOTOS BY Baljit Gidwani - www.evoqueportraits.com & courtesy of Luna Lolita Tetsu The rabbit warren of streets around Austin Station are dotted with tiny shops once you get off the main road. The residents live on top of each other in blocky tenements that are slowly getting squeezed out by the shiny towers of West Kowloon. But they’re not all gone yet, and this is where you’ll find Luna Lolita Tetsu and her partner Quincy Lui when they’re not at home in Discovery Bay. To be more specific, you’ll find them at their vegetarian, socially focused café Jazz Bird. “I wasn’t really a ‘charitable’ kid. My family was very normal. Studying art in university wasn’t really a thing they understood. They just wanted me to get a decent government job,” opens Luna with a laugh. “Then I studied Buddhism and decided it was time to give more to others. It’s good for me, for my family, for the soul.” Admittedly Luna is almost a perfect fit in this corner of Hong Kong. Lingering in the doorway of the tiny Jazz Bird Café, the blue and pink streaks in her hair complement the white combat-style boots and shorts combo she’s sporting today. She looks like an artsy musician; what she doesn’t look like is a millennial (she’s 33) who’s devoted to her community. And that’s on us, not Luna. GIVING BACK Luna’s time to “give back” started about five years ago when she was helping out various charitable organisations, while odd-jobbing – working in construction management for a while (she didn’t like it) and insurance (better, given its flexibility to work from home). Time spent with refugees, disadvantaged kids and the mentally disabled, quickly taught her an important lesson: “They do not want you to give them anything. They want understanding, and independence and acceptance.” As it turns out, the arrival of COVID-19 in 2020 presented Luna with an opportunity. What she could do turned into Jazz Bird. The self-financed storefront at 27A Man Ying Street, Yau Ma Tei initially served as a depot of sorts, storing all manner of food, personal care items and eventually hard-to-get COVID-19 rapid antigen tests to be delivered across Hong Kong to disadvantaged children, the disabled and the elderly. The café opened in April. A smattering of Hong Kong celebrities including Penny Chan Kwok Fung, Xenia Chong and Raymond Young Lap-moon showed up on the day. “The café is new. We’ve been working in volunteer services for a while and we opened the space to keep all our stuff in, and to have a place to meet with all the volunteers. It’s a tiny warehouse, and our landlord is generous enough to rent it out under flexible terms at a reasonable price,” Luna says. “Hopefully we won’t need to work in the pandemic area soon, but there’s always going to be elderly, sick and disadvantaged people,” she adds. “We’re going to try and keep it up.” EATING RIGHT As Luna and I chat, Quincy (a teacher by trade) is parked at a table with the new chef, who’ll be adding pizza to the café’s menu. Jazz Bird is first and foremost a vegetarian burger joint, though it has one beef dish (which Quincy pleaded for). The plant-based patties are based on traditional burgers and cheeseburgers, with accents like yuzu, onion rings and portobello mushroom. Luna’s personal favourite is the Filet No-fish burger; the guilt-free avocado carbonara is popular, and there’s a spin on poutine without the gravy. This day’s dessert special is a lemon tart made with almond milk, and the drink selection includes the No Ugly series of wellness tonics, and coffee by socially conscious roasters Square Mile. Jazz Bird is on Deliveroo – handy if you work in ICC – and you can find them on Facebook and Instagram. “We urge everyone to visit our self-sustained café or order on Deliveroo to support our cause and enjoy the vegetarian, low-carb menu,” Luna says. Luna and Quincy work alongside a group of like-minded volunteers and all the money from café sales goes to Jazz Bird’s community efforts and to the charities it partners with. In collaboration with charity group Lifewire (serving sick kids) and social enterprise 1 Roof, Jazz Birds delivers meals and other items across Hong Kong to those that need them. Jazz Birds also works with MercyHK to pass items donated by Henderson Land Development’s COVID Relief Fund to the homeless, elderly and disabled. SHARING THE LOVE If that’s not enough, all the Joe Cocker and John Lennon references on the café’s walls are there for good reason: Jazz Bird, which takes its name from the great Charlie Parker, has live music on Friday nights. “We’re just trying to share music, and get some kids to perform. We slide the tables away and set up the stage in front of the coffee machine,” says Luna, who is also a vocalist, a creative outlet that dried up when bars and clubs closed. “We serve drinks, people can sit and chill. That’s gone well so far,” she adds. “A lot of young people live around here because rent is reasonable and this way, they don’t have to go to TST or Wanchai for live music.” Luna and Quincy have broader ambitions for Jazz Bird. Aside from delivering food to those in need, the café employs at-risk youth, ethnic minorities and middle- aged women who are often denied opportunities, and teaches them something about running a business or simply working in the real world. Coffee is a major element of Jazz Bird, (the duo have plans to do some fair trade coffee work in India), and Luna would love to see her charges dabbling in the café scene on their own one day. “Hong Kong has a great coffee culture now. They can use those skills,” she says. “I want to share all the stuff I know – give it away. What am I going to do with it when I die? Luna and Quincy are well aware that their ambitions are lofty, but they’re also realistic enough to recognise there’s plenty of space, sadly, in the so-called market for them. “We’re not better than any other charity, and there is no ‘number one,’ so to speak. There are a lot of people who need help and we can’t help them all. The more of us there are the better,” Luna says. “If someone tries our service and doesn’t really like it, they have other choices, but we’re here for someone who does like us.” And really, who doesn’t want a burger that actually does some good?

Everyone enjoys a good story and the sooner we teach our kids to start spinning their own yarns the better. Imogen Clyde reports Have you ever wondered what it is about the promise of a story that has us sitting up in our seats? Are you sitting comfortably? Then let’s begin. The truth is, storytelling is at the very heart of human interaction, we literally talk in stories. Every day we each tell, and listen to, hundreds of stories: ‘I had such a weird dream last night; You’ll never guess what happened at work today; I met so-and- so this morning, and she said: Remember that family who lived at the end of our street who...’, and so on. Between teller and listener, a symbiotic relationship exists; we need to tell, and be told, stories. Why is that? Well, it turns out sharing really is about caring. As individuals, it’s impossible for us to be in more than one place at a time, and so we look to each other to share our experiences of the world. Anthropologists tell us we most likely began telling stories as a way of educating or warning others about the beneficial or dangerous situations we encountered. Author Lisa Cron, in her book, Wired For Story, believes story is what first enabled us to visualise what might happen in future situations, and prepare for them. MAKING SENSE OF THE WORLD It seems our brains are hardwired for story and that we use stories to make sense of our world. When information is shared, our brains look for the story in the content, rather than the content in the story, in order to make sense of that information. This is because our brains look for the familiar amongst the new when attempting to assimilate new information. Combining the new with what is already known – familiar places, people or situations – makes the brain more susceptible to accepting and storing it. Long before we recorded information about the world around us by writing it down, we stored it in our brains, committing it to memory in story format. Studies by Stanford University have proven that when we hear or read information delivered as a story, we’re 22 times more likely to remember it than if we’re just given the bare facts. Consider for a moment, how you remember the origins of the sandwich or the wellington boot. It’s most likely due to the stories you heard about the Earl and the Duke, and the reasons for their inventions. Story affects us in ways that fact alone doesn’t. This is because the human brain processes imagined experiences the same way it does real ones. Psychologist Pamela Rutledge says story creates genuine emotions and presence (the sense of being somewhere) as well as behavioural responses. A story has the power to immerse us in a situation we’ve never been in – and are probably never likely to be in – enabling us to experience it, see it, feel it. CREATIVITY AND MAKE-BELIEVE When my brother and I were little, our mum would snuggle up next to us and say: “Alright, tell me a a story.” The tales we told her were thin versions of whatever picture book or early learning story we were reading at the time. But what seemed like just a game to us was really a fantastic learning opportunity. She was teaching us to translate the information and knowledge we had picked up throughout the day into words. Put simply, she was training us to be creative thinkers. Children are imagination machines, and encouraging them to tell stories teaches them to harness that imagination and build upon it. Afterall, creativity is like a muscle – you have to use it to strengthen it and keep it strong. Story opens the door to our very own private holodeck, and kids love the sense of freedom they find therein. It’s fun for them to begin a scary, romantic or fantastical tale and to control what happens – to work out how the prince escapes the tower or the princess slays the dragon. Dreaming up stories can be an enjoyable extension of a game of make-believe; it can also be a way for children to explore any issues they are experiencing in a space they can control and feel comfortable in. When children tell stories they capture and express who they are. Storytelling is a lot like shaking a bucket of stones; the act of doing it brings the largest, the most poignant of our thoughts and emotions to the top. DEVELOPING LANGUAGE SKILLS The best way to learn a skill is to do so in context, and story narration enables kids to practise and improve their grammar and ability to construct sentences in a fun and authentic way. Learning through doing – or in this case speaking – supports what is learnt in the classroom from worksheets and in textbooks. Likewise, telling stories encourages children to widen their vocabulary. The more words they have at their disposal, the more confident they become about putting their thoughts into sentences. The ability to tell a story fosters a love of words and language, which in turn helps children develop good communication skills. More often than not, it also leads to a love of reading – something children will be enriched by for the rest of their lives. THE BENEFITS OF BEING HEARD Children require reassurance and confidence as they take the path to independence. Being able to invent their own stories and discovering that their ideas count builds their self-esteem. It also validates their thought processes. Sometimes kids doubt their ability to learn or explain things, so having someone actively listen to what they have to say gives them a huge confidence boost and makes them feel better about themselves as learners. Everyone benefits from being heard, and every time you have a conversation with your child, you are strengthening your relationship. Helping them tell stories in their own words provides a springboard into fun and meaningful dialogues. When we interact through story, we don’t just share information, we share ourselves, our feelings, our opinions, thus making the messages we send not merely factual, but meaningful to those around us. The stories kids tell when they’re really young come straight from the heart; personality shines through in these stream-of-consciousness storytelling exercises and the experience is something to treasure – and record.

Perfect for barbeques and picnics, buffets and appetisers, do-it-yourself dips are tastier – and far cheaper – than the store-bought kind PHOTOS COURTESY OF Adobe Stock CHICKEN LIVER PATE Serves 6 8oz chicken liver, coarsely chopped 8oz butter 2tbsp brandy 2tsp dry mustard powder ¼tsp powdered mace 1tsp fresh thyme, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped Fry the chicken livers over a medium heat in 1oz butter for about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan with a drainage spoon and transfer to a blender. Add 5oz melted butter and the brandy. Add the mustard powder, mace, thyme and garlic. Season and blend until smooth. Pour into 6 individual pots. Melt the remaining butter and pour over. Chill for 48 hours and serve with hot toast and a sprig of watercress.. MOUTABEL Serves 8 3 large aubergines 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 lemon, juice only 3tbsp tahini paste 4tbsp olive oil 4tsp pomegranate seeds 2tbsp parsley, chopped Pierce the skins of the aubergines and grill them until the skin is charred and crispy all over and the flesh is very hot. Cool, then discard the tops and peel off the skin. Place the flesh and any juices in a bowl and beat by hand until almost smooth. Stir in the garlic, lemon juice, tahini paste and olive oil, and season well. Scatter with pomegranate seeds and parsley. Serve with warm flatbread.

Anna Chan, head of the Oldham, Li & Nie’s Tax Advisory & Private Client Departments, provides an overview of tax implications that Hongkongers and expats need to consider when relocating Hong Kong’s tax rate is low, and the system is simple to understand which is one of the reasons many people overlook tax considerations when they are planning a relocation. The hard reality, however, is that popular emigration destinations, such as the UK and Canada, have a much higher tax rate and more complex tax system. For this reason, if you are looking to relocate, you need to set some time aside to work out how to minimise your tax exposure. Many of these tax-saving moves, can only be done while you are still a Hong Kong tax resident. It is therefore advisable to allow sufficient time before your actual departure to consult a tax lawyer. At the very least you will need to update your current market value (CMV) status, have a Will drawn up for Hong Kong assets and find out whether you will be taxed on any Hong Kong salary and assets in your new country of residence. Unlike Hong Kong, most countries impose tax on residents’ worldwide income, meaning that investment gains generated in a foreign location (i.e. Hong Kong) could be subject to local tax. The good news is that most countries do not tax gains that were generated overseas prior to a relocation, as long as you have proof. For those emigrating to Canada and the UK, this would usually mean providing sufficient record to show the CMV of your investments, such as surveyor reports, immediately prior to your relocation. Likewise, any revenue, including salaries from Hong Kong employment or profits from an ongoing Hong Kong business could be subject to local taxes. That being said, in many countries, including the UK, non- domiciles can benefit from special taxation rules on foreign-sourced income. And in Canada, thanks to the Double Tax Agreements (DTA) between Canada and Hong Kong, the local tax is waived. Canadian tax residents with dual residency in Hong Kong are only taxed in Hong Kong on salaries derived from Hong Kong employment. Further, the withholding tax rate on dividends is generally limited to 15%. On another note, if you are relocating temporarily, you have to be cautious about the length of your stay in order to avoid worldwide tax. In Canada, for instance, a continuous stay of over 183 days in a tax year would make you a tax resident and therefore subject to worldwide tax. Hong Kong employers also need to ensure that they have arrangements in place that permit employees to work from overseas. This is because an employee’s activities could be construed as the company having a presence/establishment overseas, and if such activities generate much profit, the employer could be subject to local corporate taxes. Estate duty is another important factor to consider prior to relocation, and you are well advised to have a Will executed for Hong Kong assets. Inheritance tax was abolished in Hong Kong in 2006, but it can be as high as 40% in the UK. While there is no inheritance tax in Canada per se, in effect the tax exists because the Canada Revenue Agency charges on assets at the time of death. A Hong Kong Will allows you to argue that Hong Kong remains your place of domicile and thus no estate duty should be imposed. This argument is especially strong if you are only a tax resident in the country you have relocated to, and you have not made it your permanent home. Anna Chan heads Oldham, Li & Nie’s Tax Advisory & Private Client Departments. She has over 10 years of experience advising on tax issues ranging from pre-immigration tax compliance and planning for tax efficiency to transactional tax structuring. For more information, email Anna at anna.chan@oln-law.com or visit www.oln-law.com