T,,
,""r. in Seoul, the world will come together to compete, to set new records and to break barriers in a spirit of friendly competition and co-operation. And wherever the world comes together, DHL is there. Also striving for greatness, breaking barriers and setting new records
while always increasing our distance from the competition.
Like the athletes competing this year at the Seoul Olympics, DHL not only encourages excellence in every respect. We actively pursue it. NEGIONAL OFHCE TELEPHONE NUM9ERS: Fat Ea6t: 271010. Un¡¡ed Kingdom: bndon (01) OgOgSgJ. tt.S.A.: (415) 593-7474 A422N. AÍtí@: Ltñon (O1) O7O+æ,7O . C & S Atuticø: Hodde (3O5) 493-9404 (6 lines) . Cdnada: Torcnìo (416) 873-2230 . Europe: Brus*ts Z3SBOSO
Hong .
NO. 1 THE WORTD OVER.
LETTERS
A small magaztne
Where are they no\il? IT occurred to me a few weeks ago that a close-knit club as the FCC could make gooduseof l/re
Correspondenr with a regular feature: 'Where are they now'. In my own case there are quite a few old members that I would be delighted to find out about,
other than
by reading their
obituaries.
Could anyone tell me
the whereabouts of some these old reprobates from the mid- and
of
late '50s and the early '60s? I have listed the organ that they worked for at the time. Scott Leavitt (N ewsu,ee k) John Dominis (Time-Life) Rawle Knox (The Ohserver) Roy Heineke (USIS) Frank Robertson (The Daily Telegraph)
that guarantees
GREAT REACH A cross-section of businesses, both big and small, have noticed it.
Among them: Airlines, Banks and Financial lnstitutions, Computers and Communicat¡ons Services, Hotels and Restaurants, Manufactu rers and Suppliers of Photograph¡c Goods, Property Agents, Publishers, and Large Corporations. The revamped, relaunched Correspondent is now in its 11th issue. And just consider those who have already advertised in it. Air lndia American Express Asiaweek Brilish Ainrays
Gregg McGregor
(NewYorkTimes)
Canon Cathay Pacific CL-Winf ull Laing & Cruickshank Securities CSL Datacraft Asia
Jim Robinson (CBS) James Bell (Time-Life) James Wild (Time-Life)
Forrest Edwards (AP) Bud Merrick (UPI) Ian lù/ilson (CBC)
DHL
Frank'Wolfe (Ti me-Life) Bob Elegant (N ew
sv, e e k)
Rex Ellis (ABC) Stanley Rich
Dragonair Duty FreeShoppers Far Eastern Economic Review
Holidaylnn
(Los AngelesTimes)
Kyes Beech
(Chicago Daily News) Steve Dunleavey (New York Post)
This will save me wasting money on postage stamps at Christmas on those who have passed on to better things. Ted Thomas
Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corp Hongkong Standard Hongkong Telecom Hongkong Telephone Hong Kong Trade Development Counc¡l Hutch¡son Whampoa lnternational Herald Tribune Johnnie Walker Kent Kodak Martell NewWorld Hotel
The style debate
P&OTravel
YOUR competition "How do you rate as apedant or acopy editor?"
San Miguel
proved to be most entertaining and a wonderful cure for stylistic hubris. Having spotted only some 60% oftheerrors, I hesitate to challenge Brian Neil's definitiveversionpublished in theJuly edition of The Correspondent; butthere are three points whichl would like to raise. First of all, I am surprised that Brian Neil believes that the word
"article" in
the second line
of the
(continued on page 6)
Reuters
SchrodersAs¡a Ltd Swire Properties Toshiba
Unisys Yves Saint Laurent
Are you in this league? Consider it.
THE CORNDSPOilITINT 601 Fu House,7 lce House Street, Central, Hong
Kong. Tel:5-237121 Fax:5-8453556
WOR¿OWOE EXPRES.S@ SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT 3
YOU COIJIDN'T Ð(PBTSS IT BETTER.
T
SEPTEMBER 1988
THE
VOLUME 1 NUMBER 1I
COMT CONTENTS MEDIA Eyewitnesses at Kaitak crash scene
I
London FPA marks its centenary
9
Hong Kong's
latest-
a
10
magazine on education
COVER STORY\SPECIAL REPORT
Many an option for Ski resorts
a
11
mid-winter holiday
13
ahop from Hong Kong
-just
T4
Globe trotting executives are an adventurous lot REMEMBERED I-IOLIDAYS
All the way up Mt. Shirouma in oversized yellow wellies
16
Busing across Europe
18
Half-ton bulls, crowded streets and a splendid Spanish festival
T9
Timbuktu, Tamil Nadu, and the GreatWall of China
2l
CLUBNEWS
22
Pool-room champions claim their trophies
DEPARTMENTS
3 6
Letters The Zoo
Stop Press
22
People
23
30
Crossword Corer Des¡gn: Peter Wong
Editor P.
Viswa Nathan
Editorial Supervis¡on Publications Sub-committee P¿ul Bayfieìd (Chaimân)
Editor¡al Olfice 601 Fu House
Club Manager: HeinzGrabner,Club Stevard: Julia Suen.
James
CORRESPONDENTS'
Ball, Wendy Hughes, F C C. Schokking,Tim Williams
CONIMITTEES: Professional Comm¡ttee - Derek Davies, Paul Bayfield, Wendy Hughes, Perer Seidlitz, S¡nan Fisek. EntertainmentComm¡ltee-lreneO'Shea,PeterSe¡dliaz,paulBayfield, Richrdtly'agner,BobDavies. Membersh¡pComm¡ttee-GrahamLovell,BrianJeffries.Teciniql Committee-Paul Bayfi eld,KeithMillef, Kef, Ball,Robin Moyer,F C.C Shokking,
Ken
THE FOREIGN
BOÂRD OF COVERNORS: Pr6ident - Derek Davies, F¡rst Vice.Pres¡dent -Sinan F¡sek. SecondV¡ce.Pres¡dent-lrene O'Shea.CorrespondentMemberGovernors-PaulBayfield,James Forester, Brian Jeffries, Craham Lovel l, Keith Mille¡Robin Moyer, Petqse¡dlitz, Richard Wagner. JournalistMember Governors - BobDavis, Karl Wilson. AssæiateMemberGovernors --Ken
Ball
Forester
7 Ice House Street
Central, Hong Kong Telephone: 5-237 l2l Fax: 5-8453556
The Conespondent is published monthly for and o¡ behalfofThe Fore¡gn Corespondents' Club, by:
Pr¡nll¡ne Lld,
60 I Fu House, T lce House Slreet, Cenlral, Hong
CLUB
Telephone:5-237121,5-255579
Nodh B¡mk 2
l¡wer Albef
O The Corespondent
P ViswaNathan, Operationsl)irector: DebbieNurtall,
ManagingD¡rector:
Road
Hong Kong Telephone: 5-21 15 I I Fax: 5-8684092
Opin¡ons expressed by writers ùe not necessarily those ofthe Foreign
Corespondents' Club.
Kons Fax:5-8453556-
Advertis¡ngManager:
Anthony Marklard.
Printed by Kadel Print¡ng Co , Block 4,7Æ, Shui Ki lndustriat Building, I 8 rJy'ong Chuk Hang Road, Hong Kong
4 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
Ctimbing the Japan Alps.
SPECIAL REPORT
Soon the Christmas-New Year holidays will be upon us and many of us will be
going away -- some, perhaps, homeward-bound for the traditional family reunion; but many to vacation lands. For the benefit of the latter group, travel writer LisaBickerdyke put together aSpecial Report on holidays in the winter. Apart from looking at some of
photo: Richard\{iliams
the popular holiday
destinations, she also spoke to some Hong Kong executives who went on some exclusive tours, and one who strayed away from the beaten track to trek in the jungles of
Northwest Thailand and ended up, accidently, in Burma. Four other Club members, meanwhile, report on their memorable holidays. (See page 1l-21)
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT 5
_T-LETTERS first
Local detail. Global perspective.
BYARTHUR HACKER
THE 7OO
sHAKEN OR SfIRREÞ SIR...ORSHALL IPUT
introductory paragraph
should be lollowed by a semi-colon. Surely a comma is sufficient, and if asemi-colon is insertedthe second clause reads most awk-
BAVARIAN BEER SOUP
11 IN
THE BLENÞER ?
CIÞEREÞ PORK CHOPS RUA^ BABA ANÞ BRANÞY,SNAÞS
wardly unless the words "you can" are repeatedbefore "win". I would also prefer a comma to the semi-colon after "non-existent" in the seCond introductory paragraph, given that it is then
lollowed by the conjunclion "and". The Complete P lain Words by Sir Emest Gowers, revised by Sir Bruce Frase¡ discusses the use of the semi-colon in such circumstances quite succinctly. Secondly, is Neil really happy that a "copy editor" should "copy-edit"? The Shorter OxÍord English Dicf ionary is silent on the matter of whether a copy-
editor is akin
to a copy
( tU
X \)
{ \
desk
Gulf of Thailand (or, for that maÈ
answers and that correction was
sue is so complex that it
(specified as being US usage) or a copy-writer. I would suggest that if the substantive is indeed two unhyphenated words (as given in Webster's dictionary), then the
ter, the Bay of Bengal orthe South
inadvertently left out (the fault
pointless to try to discuss
what disconcerting
briefly; no two refeÍence works will ever totally agree on every aspect ofthe subject. It is basically a question ofpersonal prelerence and style, combined with
China Sea), he would not have been in a Thai jungle but in the middle of China. Peter Geldart
verbal formation "to copy-edit"
Deputy Managing Director BA Asia Limited
must be regarded as an unacceptable Americanism. The elegant
(or at least pedantic) solution would be to rephrase the clause as
follows: "a conglomeration of from stories, the copy of
extracts
which I have edited in the past six months." Lastly (and with greathumility, since ldid not spot the inconsistency myself) I would like to
point
out that
Thailand spans
only some 16's of latitude, and if the author had indeed travelled 2,500 kilometres inland from the
l',r
Brian Neil replies:
A
score of 60 per cent is a very creditable one compared with most of the entrants. The winner scored little more than that and only four people reached 50 per cent.
Geldart's comment about the 2,500 kilometres is, of course, quite correct and the statement was deliberate. Unfortunately, gremlins got to the final text of the
was mine. nol The Correspondent's) though it was some-
to find that
only three people, out of almost 30, spotted it.
is really
The point conceming "copyediting" and "copy editor", really depends upon which reference sources one uses. My three "bibles" are: The Collins English
educational background and the reference works one uses. I must. however, disagree that a comma is sufficient after
Dictionary, Copy-editing, the Camhridge Handhook and
"win", then a full stop would be necessary after "article" and a new sentence
Fowler's Mr¡dern English Usage.
"article". And if "you can" was repeated before
Fowlerhas nothing to say on the subject, but the first two works
started with "You can".
show quite clearly that my usage
agree,
was correct and that to
"copy-edit"
is by no means an unacceptable Americanism. Now to punctuation.
The second semicolon, I is not mandatory but
merely follows my own style. Semicolon is never hyphenated, except in that pathetic volume The Economist Pocket Style Book
)¡
.W{ CL-WinÍull Laing & Cruicl<shank Searities
This means that through any of our 1,300 offrces in more than 50 countries, you can get access to advice from people immersed in
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6 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER
it
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Intimaæ local knorvledge. Global perspective. A management sffucture which produces fast decisions. That's our strength.
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MEDIA
London FPA marks its Centenary Started with 18 members as a private dining club, it is now the liaison point between foreign press and the Central Office of Information.
1z --=-l$=_
--
HE Foreign Press Association of London. is this year, celebrating its centenary making it the oldesl foreign press association in the world The originator and founder of the FPA
T I
was T. Johnson, who had been the London correspondent of Paris-based Le Figaro for almost 25 years.
a
i'
s
crash scene NEwSMEN, like disaster rescue teams, are called to perform theirbest in
times of disasters, natural calamities and other tragic incidents.
On the rainy morning of August 31, Hong Kong's single-runway Kaitak airport suddenly turned into a scene oftragedy.
A c,cnc Tridentattheendof
its
short hop fromGuangdong skidded off the runway after touchdown, in
visibility badly maned by a heavy rainstorm, and plunged into the nullah by the side of the runway. Soon reporters and cameramen from newspapers, radio and television stations, international news agencies, etc., were on the move. From barges floating in the harbour
of the embankment they witnessed the wreckage and the rescue operations. Radio Television Hong Kong interrupted the and from the edge
popularmid-morning weekly talk show of Leon Richardson to relay the newsflash. These pictures taken by Ho ngkong Standard cameramen Patrick Lo and Richard Ng show the newsmen at
work.
8 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER I988
In 1888, he was elected the association's first president. The association then acted as a private dining club which provided the opportunity for professional and social dlscourse for
its l8
members.
Most of them
were French correspon-
dents and French remained the associations' official language for the first 50 years. One of the first subjects tackled by the
FPAatthattime wasits treatment by British Parliament. As a rule, foreign conespondents were banned from the press gallery atWestminster. The issue was addressedby the FPA, but was not followed up until the House of Commons was bombed during World Vy'ar II and association members produced evidence in the official "blue book" that amenities were improved. Official recognition came in 1904 when King Edward VII sent a message to Gabriel de Vesslitsky, then president of the FPA, expressing his approval of the efforts of the association members in London to promote harmony.
Membership in the association was still small when the second world war broke out about 50 - and the association was run from the president's private address. The FPA was later given a small office in London University's Senate House and journalists were invited to work at Number l2 Carlton House Terrace. Soon afterwards they were offered the building next door - Number l1 - and this
remains the FPA's home today, provided rent-free by the British Govemment.
Over the years, the association has organised working lunches for world personalities including Kosygin, Jordan's King
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT 9
MEDIA 400 correspondents based in
London FPA continued
London Hussein, West Germany's Willy Brandt, Prince Philip and Charles Chaplin.
Harold MacMillan
ad-
70th anniversary dinner andball. These days, there are about dressed the
and the FPA ananges
briefings, seminars and guest speakers for their benefit. The association also provides computer terminals and desks and acts as a liaison point between the foreign press and the Central Office of Information.
SPECIAL
Hong Kong's latest a magazine on education The old adage: 'You only get out of life what you put into it,' also applies to the results you get from your advertising.
Put it in the right place, with the right momentum behind it, and there are no limits to what you can achieve. Think of The Review as a high performance vehicle. A means of rapidly transporting your product or service straight to the top. As Asia's most respected and highly regarded publication, The Review reaches more leading figures in government, finance and business, more decision makers and top management, than any other publication. And does it more cost efficientlY. For your product or service, the environment of The Review adds to the mileage you get out of it. Outstanding editorial content and a mix of other high octane advertisers make The Review well received in influential circles, aII over the world. Now there's fuel for thought.
Two Hong Kong school teachers have identified a publishing opportunity that no one has yetexplored. f F the brain drain induced by opportunities, the magazine I the 1997 jitters has provided also carries articles on health, FCC member Merle Hinrichs the opportunity to launch the new monthly joumal, The Emigrant. a different soft of brain d¡ain
travel, etc., and contributors include Hong Kong's anti-smoking campaigner, Dr Judith
has inspired two Hong Kong school teachers to plunge into
Sold on subscription (six months: HK$80; one year:
publishing.
With
being circulated
in the US, Canada, Australia, the
well as the polytechnic and the two universities. And as every subscriber student will carry the magazine home to show to
UK and other places, the teachers, Derek
Bailey (a teacher of
physical education at Hong
Kong's King George V school for seven years) and Derek Conbeer (a teacher of mathematics and ca-
988
as
parents, Bailey estimates that
the publication could well
reer master at King George V)
dents.
formation about schools and colleges overseas. And they have launched The Inrernational Education Review, a 10-issue-a-year English-language magazine. With 50,000 young people leaving Hong Kong last year alone to study abroad, Bailey, who is the editor, and Conbeer, the publisher, seem to be on the right
The idea for the magazine. says Bailey, came f¡om a friend who works in the advertising business. But it took a year of
says also
provide information, for people looking to begin their caree¡s,
I
and Anglo-Chinese schools
have seen a distinct need for in-
Bailey. The magazine will
10 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER
throughout nearly 60 English
readership of 35,000, mostly parents rather than stu-
reers, and education,"
For further information, please contact Elaine Goodwin, General Sales Manager. GPO Box 1.60, Hong Kong TeI: 5-2931.23,TLx: 62497 REVAD HX, Fax: 5-8656197
$150), about 12,000 copies are to students
of thousands of young people leaving Hong Kong each year l"or education tens
track. "We hope to provide the kind of information young people will need in deciding about their ca-
Duríng the past year, 9leading automotive manufacturers invested in B7 pages of advertising with The Review.
McKay.
on how to present themselves and how to get started. A forthcoming issue will focus, for example,
have
a
planning before Bailey and Conbeer decided to launch the idea.
Having published six issues since December, Bailey is now in the process of expanding and developing the magazine's spe-
cial character. In
essence, he wants to make the magazine the
recognised medium through
which educational institutions and large employers can reach out to students with inlormation
about educational facilities and career opportunities.
on career oppofunities offered by Cathay Pacific, a leading
On the advertising side, in view ofthe special nature of the magazine and its audience, Bailey and Conbeer have de-
Hong Kong employer. Apart from articles on educational facilities abroad and career
alcohol cided to be selective a¡e and tobacco adveftisements not welcome.
REPORT
MORE THAN 60 per cent of FCC members spend holidays lasting l4
-t
to
45
days outside Hong Kong.
Their vacation lands include Asia, Europe, America, Australia, New Zealand, etc. Vy'ith many people expected to travel during the coming Christmas-New Year holiday, The Correspondenl commis-
sioned LISA BICKERDYKE, assis-
tantregional editor of AsianTravel Trade,to put togelher this special
report. Four other FCC
For sun-seekers and fun-seekers alike, vacationland Asia offers many choices for a Christmas getaway. There is something in the region of 60 that beach hut-stylebungalowsandtwosmallupChristmas inevitably means a return market resort hotels, varying in cost from tothebosom ofthe familyinLiverpool,Los US$15 toUS$50pernight,onthe island. The
tothe old homeland sostrong
:1:
ß
Many an option for a mid-winter hotiday RE you oneof thosepeoplewithties
members -
A. C.
Davies, Mike Smith, Vijay Verghese and Murray Bailey Derek
bungalows offer basic accommodation with fans and
a
shower room while the hotels offer
such luxuries as quality fumishings, air conditioning and room service. The majority ofthebungalows are located along Lodalam Bay and Long Beach in traditional Thai-style settings. Anabundanceofinexpensive Thai restaurants serve freshly caught seafood including the lobster that you probably saw swimming earlier that day in the transluscent waters surrounding the limestone cliffs of Phi
PhiDon.
Winsurfing, scuba diving
and
snorkelling facilities are available on the islandand,forkeenhikers,there are lime-
Angeles, Melbour ne or wherever for an overdose of drink
stone cliffs to climb while taking
and debauchery? If you are, tum
tire island. I can recommend the sunrises and sunsets from per-
over the page
because the
fol-
in a spectacular view of the eni
lowing is unlikely to be of much
sonal experience.
Both Dragonair and Thai
lnterest.
If, on the othel hand, you
Airways fly from Hong Kong
arenot similarly committed to a
direct to Phuket three times a week. It is necessary to stay
prodigal's retum, you might want to make this Christmas one
to remember with a mid-winter 'i:::'.:.
holiday.
,ìlr-=,f,,
I'ROM HIKING TO SCUBA " ' DIVING: Thailand's Phi Phi
Don island, located in
whensnorkelling
ovemight in Phuket and catch one of the many early moming boats from the southem port of Chalong for the two-hour trip to Phi Phi Don.
A PLACE FOR FUN-SEEK-
the
Andaman Sea between Phuket and Krabi, ìs afavouritewintertime getaway spot. Many Phuket hotels and tour operators promote the place in terms of
day-trips
:
ERS: Although Pattaya, southofBangkok, is no longer the sleepy fishing village it once was, it's still a place to consider when comtemplating your winter break destination. Only east
I
,
among the coral reefs, visiting Viking Caves and collecting birds' nests for soup can be
Pattaya is now pitched more towards the fun-seeker than the
wrapped around a 2-hour stopoverfor lunch. In reality, Phi Phi has a great deal more to offer
packed holiday you v/ant there's
those wishing to dally a little
longer
on
this breathtakingly beautiful island.
sun-seeker.
Il it's an action-
plenty to keep you occupied in t'James Bond" Island - a favourite scenic spot just a day trip from Phuket.
SPECIAL
Globe
just a hop Ski resorts from Hong Kong
-
'World's
only sub-tropical skiing region is just away - in Taiwan
O \!
k: ":r"å, nearest ski resort Y"-1
toHong Kong? Theconect answer, improbable as it
this thriving beach resort. Jomtien and Pattayabeaches aredotted with numerous hotels
-
from first-class accommodation offering
private beaches and swimming pools to simple lodges at the lower end of the range. Pattaya provides the water-sports enthusiast with everything he or she may possibly crave. rhis i ncl udes amenities
H;l'*;|.iln
skiing, para-sailing,
INFLUENCE THE INFLUENTIAL
water scootering, snorkelling and scuba diving, as
well as Pattaya's own version of Hong Kong's Water World Pattaya Park.
Do you have something to saY but nowhere to say ¡t? How about writing a guest column?
-
There is a vast number restaurants
expressing themselves. All members, writers or non-writers, are welcome to hammer out a Piece to influence the influential.
THE qNRDSPfNDEIUT 601 Fu Huse, 7 lce House Street, Central, Hong Kong
1
2 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
those who prefer to spend some time in Bangkok, regular bus services leave for the resort throughout the day from several embarkation
points in Bangkok.
Visitors wishing to stay in Thailand for more than l5 daysshould obtainavisa. For staysof l5 daysorless, novisa isnormallyrequired lor nationals of most counlries.
HOT SPRINGS, SANDY BEACHES: ThE
seventy or so Okinawan Islands of Japan offer a wide range of holiday options. A
awake until the sun rises. Gentlerrelaxation is
athandonthe sands
beach has its adherents.
offering delicacies from all over the world and plenty of
keep one
of
one
of
the two
beaches, where sublime luxury means being waited on hand and foot-not to mention mouth
I
Many
of
the hot-spring resorts can be southem island of Kyushu which also boasts fine, white sandy beaches. There is plenty of accommodation tochose
found
on the
massage or a frosty cold beer!
Airlines (JAL) and All Nippon Airways (ANA) operate at least seven luxury resort hotels complete with yachting, canoeing, water skiing and windsurfing facilities. Seafood is plentiful, with Korean, Mexican, American and Chi-
Dragonair now
nese restaurants adding a cosmopolitan touch.
shape of- a pedicure, manicure,
in the
flies direct to
Pat-
taya (Utapao) - three
times aweek or, for
from, while
Japan
JAL flies direct to Okinawa twice a week or one can take China Airlines via Taipei, which also operates on atwice-weekly basis.
trip
vides accommodation in the Korean style. One of the largest ski
resorts in Korea
is
Yongpyeong with a skiing
comlex that includes
though Mount Hohuan, at 3,416 metres, is not Taiwan's highest peak, it's the
floodlit ski slopes for all levels of skiers. The Dragon
only mountain where skiing
rooms, caters forboth Westemers and Koreans while the
two months of the year giving credence to its reputation as the only sub-tropical
skiing region in theworld.
Comfortable accom-
seemingly endless choice of whiter-thanwhite sandy beaches and hot-spring resorts, set in a sub-tropical climate averaging 23 degrees Celsius, offer a pleasant backdrop fora few days' sun andrelaxation. On the main island of Okinawa, the most popular beach is Moon Beachfollowedbythe Manzano, a particularly scenic spot, whi e Manza
entertainment to The Correspondentinvites allwho have an opinion on anything - from the Hong Kong Basic Law to the international arms race, from women's rights to women's hemlines, from the value of lawyers to the value of no lawyers - to try their hands at
Beach hut-style bunglows on Long Beach, Phi Phi Don.
trotting
may seem, is Taiwan. Al-
is possible. Locals and tourists ski there for about Many an option continued
a short
modation is available at the Sung Hsueh Hostel (Pine Snow), Mount Hohuen.
ChinaAirlines (CAL) and Cathay Pacific fly to Taipei several times a day, of course.
Korea, on the other hand, offers five purpose-built resorts to choose from, no less than three ofwhich are only an hour's drive from Seoul. Most of Korea's ski resorts have already opened for business by December 6 and the seasonruns until midMarch. An hour's drive northeast of Seoul lies Bea¡s Town Ski Resort, which offers four floodlit slopes to facilitate night+ime skiing. Theresort also offers swimming
pools, tennis and volleyball facilities with the added attraction of mountaineer-
ing for
the mo¡e adventurous.
The Chonmasan Resort, 40 minutes drive northeast of Seoul, has two slopes
for
advanced and intermediate skiers and one for beginners which offers ski-school activities. An all year-round artificial skislope, originally designed for beginners, nowcaters for skiers ofalllevels. Thereis a lodge hotel at Chonmasan with 37 rooms (both rùy'estem and Korean style) as well as bunk-bed dormitories. The lodge also houses a swimming pool, health centre and sauna as well as volleyball,
football and table tennis facilities. Yongin Ski Resort has three floodlit slopes for nighttime skiing plus a ski school. The Yongin Leisure Hotel pro-
10
Valley Hotel, with l9l
nearby Yongpyeong Hostel provides dormitory-style accommodation or condominiums.
Last, but not least, Alps Ski Resort
REPORT
executives are an
adventurous lot. One Hong Kong business
executive started a5-day trekking holiday from Northwest Thailand last November and found himself, accidently, in Burma.
the
be-trot-
a four-
- from and-a-half hour drive Seoul in Kangnan Province four floodlitslopes to -has offer. It's a very picturesque resort that attracts visitors at all times of the year. The resort provides much in the way of facilities, such as ski-equipment hire, a discotheque, a supermarket and games halls. Korean Air and Cathay Pacific fly direct to Seoul several times a day. UNCROWDED: Kashmir offers
an in-
expensive skiing holiday at the Gulmarg ski resort. It must be one of the most uncrowded, relaxed skiing spots in the world. Accommodation is available at the Highland Park Hotel, atourist bungalow complex and at several cheaper hotels. Aprésski usually means watching avideo atthe local bar, which specialises in Kashmiri tea and hot punches, or a dance at the small crowded disco. Pistes are created by locals stamping the snow flat with their skis and skiing in Kashmirmustbe unique inproviding si,tis to caûy your ski equipment and bags. For a small fee, naturally. Access is viaNew Delhi by IndianAirlines, followed by a one-and-a-halfhour drive to Tanmarg village where one must transferto a jeep for a further 5km drive to reach Gulmarg. Altematively there
are helicopter flights available from Srinagar aþort. Airlndia flies from Hong Kong direct to New Delhi twice a week.
ïFåi
One might expect to find thËm on remote quiet beaches, well away from the hustle and bustle of Hong Kong city life but many, it appears, find equally crowded cities like Bangkok and Manila irresistible. The Oriental Hotel in Bangkok and The Westin Philippine Plaza in Manila are still the senior executive's favourite places in which to spend a long bank holiday weekend. One might assume that many businessmen and women would be sick of the sight of yet another hotel but it ain't necessarily so, as Gershwin would have it. As long as there's
it all?
plenty of parnpering to be enjoyed around the pool and the idea of a stress-filled business lifestyle can be forgotten for a couple of days,
Hong Kong's executives can be relied on to keep retuming for more. Other types who have been there, done that, got the T-shirt, might require something a trifle more challenging or exotic. Robert Sinclair, an import/ export executive who spends only four or hve days a month at home in Hong Kong, last year managed to squeeze a trekking holiday into his busy schedule.
BURMA THROUGH B
TIIE
JUNGLE:
ack-packing through the jungle around Mae
Hong Son in Northwest Thailand, Sinclair crossed into Burma without even realising it. He set off in November with two friends, travelling first to Bangkok and taking the ovemight train to Chiang Mai. After a few days in Chiang Mai, the trio flew to Mae Hong Son and chose a guide from the many
SEPTEMBER I98S THE CORRESPONDENT
1
3
The Swire Group
El
Y\btve arrived!
We trekked into Burmawithoutrealising we had crossed the border
tour agencies lining the main sร eet of this misty town close to the Burmese border. After determining what would be needed for the trek, they set off the following day for a fiveday adventure with nothing morethan sleeping bags, a change of clothing, a toothbrush each and enough food and water for one day. Furtheยก meals, they were assured, would be provided by villagers along the way' Dang, their guide, led his linle party through bamboo groves and actoss knee-high rivers. They climbed over steep hills and ambled through teak forests, passing buffalos and peasants on the way. "We didn't see another tourist for five-days" says Sinclair' The party slept on haystacks or on the floorof villagers' woodenshdcksand, on thethird day, discov-
ered they were inside Burma. As Sinclair observes, "It was an adventure holiday that isn't really possible outsideAsia."
FROLICKINGWITHSEA LIONS: A
16'-
day cruise aboard an ocean liner to the Pacific's unique Galapagos Islands off the South Americancoast is how managing directorEd Corvey and his family spent their three -week holiday. The Galapagos is a fascinating archipelago where one can swim and frolic with friendly sea lions, walk among nesting blue-footed booby birds, climb volcanoes to see the giant tortoises that live in their craters. And there is no better way to explore the totally unspoiled Galapagos Islands than as a passenger on the luxurious Santa Cruz, a oneclass 9O-passenger cruise ship operating out of its home base of Quito in Equador. It's impossible to set foot on any of the islands without being under the ever-watch-
ing around their breeding grounds. Strict rules which control touristactivities (80 per cent of the islands remain offlimits to tourists, for example) have allowed much of the tame and trusting towards human beings. Observes Corvey, "They seem to be as inquisitive about you as you are about
wildlife to remain
them." Back on board the Santa Cruz, passengers
can enjoy
all
the luxuries an ocean-going
linerhas to offer including relaxation on the sun deck, a swim in the pool, plenty of games
facilities and cocktails at the bar.
A DATE WITH THE DESERT QUEEN:
Merchant banker Frank Andres and his wife Lily opted for India's "Palace-on-Wheels". In
ful eyeofthelocal tour guides, whosepur-
otherwords, they chosea romantic trainjour-
pose in life is to escort small groups onto the islands to observe the nonchalant wildlife, permost of which has become quite blase
ney that took them in style from Cantonment railway station in Delhi to Jaisalmer and back. Travelling at a leisurely 25 mph for some
haps through naivety
-
-
about people wander-
1,500 miles through the Thaยก Desert, on a train
for state visits and Maharaja's honeymoons, they sipped cocktails in crystal glasses served by red-turbanned waiters. Crystal chandeliers tinkled above the plush velvet chairs and divans surrounded by Burmese teak panelling in the rail cars. The train travels mainly during the cool desert nights and stops during the day at tourist attractions like Jaisalmer, where one undergoes a radical change of transportation in designed
In bet
embarking on a camel trek over the sand dunes, while eagles and falcons hover over-
head. Visits are made to Jain temples followed by anotherchange oftransport, this time taking the2pm elephant to Amber Fort near Jaipui. On the retum joumey the train stops at Agrafor the not-to-be-missed visit to theTaj Mahal before the old steam engine "Desert
Queen" pulls its 13 rail-cars back into Delhi's Cantonment station to complete the
Playing with sea lions in the waters of Galapagos Islands.
14 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
Joumey.
Cathay Pacific has been named 1987 'Airline of the Year' by Air Transport World, America's foremost aviation magaztne.In 1988 we will do everything we can to make sure that when you fly with us you will arrive in better shape.
Arrive inbetter shape
CATHAYPACIFI
SPECIAL
REPORT P/¡olo: Richard Williams
like
goats, and keeping up an endless stream
of
chatter which I found hard to respond to. The oldest member, my mother-in-law, at-
tacked the mountain
with quiet
and
steely determination. concentrating on each step with no apparentthought ofthe thousands (perhaps millions?) that lay ahead and wasting no breath on chat.
We hoped to reach the hut by a high
mountain lake lr )/ rl
t
DEREK A.C. DAVIES
A memorable holiday
mountaln sun. The warden at the hut offered me pliers and wire but my boots were beyond such help. As an altemative, he gave me an old pair of large, yellow, rubber fishing boots which came up to my knees and were still too big with five pairs of thick socks on my
Mt.Shirouma in oversized yellowwellies DON'T like climbing mountains.
stop
ments at the hut was a question that had been buming in my brain under the hot
Atlthewayup
f
for our first night's
around midday, to avoid the aftemoon thunderstorms, but it was two or three hours later before we staggered to our first cold beers and the joy of taking off our boots. In my case that joy was particularly intense since the sole of one of my China Products walking boots had almost ripped off and I had tied it to the uppers with string. Whether I would be able to get repairs or replace-
feet. Prospects for my plates over
the
next two days were not favourable.
A PLACE FOR EVERYONE:
Sleeping
arrangements in Japanese mountain huts can kindly be described as cramped. One tatami
is about the area required for a person to
I
I aon', have the physiquã tbr it, nor a lnea¿ lor heights. Éut to have ducked out of this one would have meant big loss of face with the family climbing team, all nine members, including my Japanese mother-inlaw of 72 years and young nephew aged nine. It would have also meant admission of physical decrepitude, mental turpitude and plain funk. And so I found myself, at dawn, prising my body out of a gleaming Toyota taxi in the foothills of the Japan Alps at the base of
Mount Shirouma, White Horse Mountain, heaving an overweight rucksack on an overweight body.
sleep on comfortably without moving about
I
ï ;
ALPINE SCENERY: Ourplan was to walk with the slowest members of the team in the lead, stopping every half hour for five minutes to catch our breath, rest our limbs and for a few swigs of precious water. That fi¡st half hour, climbing through
picture-postcard alpine scenery with the rays of the rising sun glinting in our eyes.
would have been supremely enchanting were it not for the dreadful doubt that one might not be able to keep it up for six more hours that day, six the next and six the day after. The youngest members of the team had no such worries, scrambling over the rocks
16 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT I 7
SPECIAL
SPECIAL
R E P O RT
Climbing Mt. Shirouma c oilinued
VIJAY VERGHESE
too much. Two people on one tatami have to sleep on their sides or on top of each other, and any more bodies on the same space
A memorable holiday
make a sardine tin seem spacious. OrrI team of nine slept two-Io-a-tatami tn a bunk-like box with a floor area about the size of a billiard table and enough head-
room
for a dwarf.
Climbers are never tumed away from mountain huts, for obvious reasons, however packed they get. We
were lucky - nobody came in to share our box, though the next moming Richard, my nephew, said he had woken up in the middle of the night sucking on my son Ken's toe.
We
packed our rucks and scoffed a breakfast ofhot soup, rice and pickles in the grey, pre-dawn light and were on our way again up White Horse Mountain as the sun rose. Ablistering heat was soon upon us and the yellow wellies flapped about my legs making me feel like a fisherman in a fastmovlng trout stream.
Busing across Europe
KT f,iå t
î,,..",i..iJ:Jj;rï:":::
rhà counrry ciose up, and rr's cheap. I'd peel my raisedeyebrowsoffthe ceiling with studied disgust and offer a polite: "Thank you but it's really not my style." Thus it was that I found myself hurtling through the flatlands of Holland on an epic
we were on the summit and were soon drinkìng snow-chilled beer in
we thought,
the hut, on the other side.
THE BEGINNING OFTHE END:
GOiNg
down the next day was equally torturous as we struggled for several hours on a treacherous ice flow with crampons on our boots. But I know that these painful memories will fade as quickly as the aches in my legs and I
will be left with pictures in my mind of shining mountain peaks, alpine flowers and tree-flanked valleys. I will remember the sound of nightingales and the tinkling of icy rivers and the sweet, clean air. The agony of my feet will tum into a joke and, God willing, one day I'll be back there again. Derek A.C Davies is the ed¡tor-¡n-chief at (HK) L¡d, publßhers o/Discovery, the inflight
Emphasis magazine
ofCathay Pacifìc.
1
8 rrrB coRRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER
trated.
of
"So we all liked Venice, yes?". We brooded helplessly. Until Tivoli. It had been described as a romantic castle but our venue for the evening more resembled a bombed-out fort from Beau Geste. Our four-course Italian dinner tumed out to be a soggy fish 'n' chips affair. Even the hardened American girls, reared on an unwavering diet of the best in McDonald's, were outraged. The mutiny was on. "I ain't goin'to no
a murderously uncomfortable
lently promiscuous bunch
of
American women seemingly intent on ravaging all the
to the
guide book, it would be a matter of five or six hours to the summit, but by early afternoon I was wondering whether we would make it by nightfall. Hana, my l2-year-old daughter, was totally exhausted, stopping frequently and reluctant to go one step further. At this point, Kosuke, our team leader, produced a small canister of oxygen from his magic pack of tricks in an attempt to revive her. We also made ice-packs from snow gathered from drifts. It was an effort even to say "konichwa" to trekkers passing us in the opposite direction. I seriously wondered whether we should call mountain rescue on Kosuke's short-wave transmitter. That was the low point, which occurred not long before we reached the highest point of the mountain. More quickly than
was afoot inthe dark rearrecessesofThe Empire where the microphone and steely gaze of our tormentor had not yet fully pene-
contraption packed with hooligans, retired Aussies, shy Eastemers,Indian families with a year's supply of papaddums and chutney and ä vio-
voyage ofdiscovery, ensconced in the back
occupants one by one.
THE LOWEST POINT: According
By the time our coach had lurched onto the hot northem ltalian plains (the air conditioning was off to enable us to savour the warm sensuous breezes of the peninsula) rebellion
30-MINUTE THRILL: Amsterdam was our first tour. It lasted 30 minutes. We were bused throughDam Square and offered the luxury of an exterior view of the Van Gogh Museum (the interior being left to the imagination which fortunately was free and - no-nonsense drone of a- Nazi the strict schoolteacher cunningly disguised as a tour escort). "Well then?" she beamed at her shell-shocked audience, "We all liked Amsterdam, yes?" The coach sped on. A cheese factory was the next halt, a longer one this time. Encouraged no doubt by her commitment to the EEC rather than any shallow interest in com-
mission, our guide pronounced this depressingly mundane establishment and its rather unspectacular products to be the "finest in Europe". Under her watchful and unwaverin9 gaze we all duly lined up to purchase small amounts of "the best" in
more cheese factories man," howled an irate Texan; while the Indian families
looked up from their pappadums and chutney wondering at all the fuss. She stood up and tried to stare us down. It didn't work. The congregation rose as one and headed for the bus. We tumed on the microphone. We glared at her.
I
could have swom
Germany was a shade smaller than Liechtenstein. The Alps, Luceme and
Innsbruck were one continuous indistinguishable blur and "close ups" were left to the occasional victories of my 200mm lens. But
bludgeoned into
our
memories were the
Swiss-watch shop, the Austrian Swarovski crystal shop, the Beethoven memborabilia shop, and other nameless establishments too numerous to mention, where we were relentlessly mugged by our stentorian guide whourgedus on tobuy"thebestandfinestin Europe".
1988
!Ï'
when the gates are opened and six half-ton bulls begin their mileJong charge through the crowded narrow streets of Pamplona from thecorralto the plaza de toros. Pamplonais a sleepy Spanish town, deep in Basque coun-
try,
night.
That was a gloriWe spent hours at Piazza Na-
vonna, strolled unhurriedly through St Peter's Square, sampled choice risotto and pasta. The Japanese heaved sighs of relief and changed their shutter speeds from a l,000th of a second to a leisurely 100th. I took out my anorexic wallet to calculate the damage of our four-second tour through the Continent. That was our brief "finest" hour,
de San
run in the hope they can beat the bulls to the tunnel which
leads from the road, calle
Hemingway, through the stands into the arena of the plaza de toros. The truly
known festival. The¡e's no way to find a room to sleep, unless you've booked a year or two earlier. Most enthusiasts sleep rough some stretch out at night on the grass of the plaza castillo, others doze off in a comer of a crowded ba¡ once they find a
li
'moment
Churchill once said, "is to be shot at and missed". For many though, this thrill will not be fulfilled the way they planned. Getting hit vvith the
pointed end of an enraged bull can be nasty. A side-
swipe against a wooden barrier, or a misplaced hoof of the 500-kilo beast are also not recommended.
Running not being my strong suit, I decided to take
in theaction frominsidethe plazade toros. ThePamplona plaza can hold around 1 0,000 people. I searched for my fila, bara and seat in rhe sol y sombra section. It was 6.30 a.m. with the sun still low so that the circular arena floor was shaded. The packed stadium was in pandemonium. Com-. ing to my seat was like join-
the
washroom is as easy as opening the car door.
THE BEGINNING: Anyway, on
a
cool July moming
I
wokeup in aPamplona park, just outside the town, to the sound
of the
ing an enoromous, wild pafy. Once-banned Basque
dawn chorus -
fromtimeto time.
it's amazing how
France was a blur. I could have swom Liechtenstein was bigger. "Did we all like
birdsong can be - and looked out as the trees became silhouetted against the dawn sky. My watch read 5:30 a.m. Time to get up.
take
stretch of road
sides, without exit or any possibility ofescape. "A man's biggest thrill",
Getting a good night's sleep in a small car is not as difficult as you might think. It's more comfortable than
fresh. And getting to
of truth' to
a
which is boarded up on both
the old part of town.
down a bit, the air is cool and
crazy, however. plan for their
place in
I arrived in my Ford Fiesta, courtesy of Hertz, Madrid, and managed to park it in a quiet wooded area near
awakening the next day. Bleary-eyed we
Vijay Verghese is the edítor of Business Traveller.
of
a
bull over 100 yards, but a bull beats him over a mile. The 'moment of truth' comes when beast passes man. Some mnners plan their start point so that they can leap over the barrier as the bulls reach them. Others plan their
Fermin', Spain's best-
She struck back with apreemptive 6 a.m.
France, yes?"
checked the car was secure and my stuffout
THE REALTEST: Aman runs faster than
visitors once a year who come to enjoy the week-long'Feria
trying to sleep inaplane. You don't get the noise and shaking about. With the windows
lookedat meimploringly; but the rebelarmy was in total disanay. We slouched despairingly in our seats nodding grimly at fellow sufferers in other coaches who sped past us
The real soap and water performance will haveto waituntil later, once I getinto abarand use the washroom. I didn't bother to shave. Machobull-runners don't, of course, shave. I put on my red Basque-style neckscarf,
sight(hordes of gypsies throng Spanishfestivals), and headed off towards the plaza castillo in the old part of town. They say that only two things start on time in Spain - funerals and bullfights. I guess it's the Spanish respect for death. As I got to the old part of town the runners were already moving quickly to take up positions on the route along which the bulls will sooncome. This mile-longroute, only l0 feet wide in parts, has a few sharp turns as it winds uphill from the corral to the plaza de toros. The moming dew on the cobblestones made it slippery.
which overflows with
ning
ous
staggered to the coach to be informed of an ingenious seat rotation system where each row moved one forward each day. It was only a matter of time befo¡e the rebels had been flushed out from their rear-end sanctum. They
fast
I
I took aswig from abottle of cool distilled water, brushed my teeth and splashed my face.
HEs
THE FINEST HOUR:
lasted 10 minutes and Bavaria and the so
({T
seat. Some bringtents. Some rent cars. On July 6 in the late eve-
"the best in Europe".
by
a splendid Spanish festiYal
the air conditioner. We turned off
fermentedmilk. Then we were speeding down a crisp German autobahn. CologneCathedral Rhine sped
narrow streets and
REPORT
loud
flags
-
looking remarkably
similar to the Union Jack, though in green and red
t:ií
were being waved to the rhythm of patriotic songs.
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT
1
9
SPECIAL
SPECIAL
REPORT
REPORT
MURRAY BAILEY
rate
Timbuktu,
A memorable
major concem was not my likelihood of survival; it was to avoid a period of intense personal embarrassment. After
all, this was a railway bridge, and I
Tamil Nadu and the Great Wall of China holiday
MOST memorable holiday? Staning, as I do, with a poor
memory, I brief to be a record tnps.
must modify that of incidents within
of the same side trip.)
I
was bemused at being in Timbuktu. The English education I received had left me, somehow, with the impression that Timbuktu didn't exist. It did; presumably, it still does. No town in the Sahel can be attrac-
tive. Timbuktu was
no exception. It was dusty (where does dust come from in
Feriade San Fermin continued
The local wine is a sort of champagne sparklinganddry andcool. Itgoesdown very smoothly. At the equivalent of HK$12 a bottle, one cannot grumble. Bottles were being shaken andfizzed all over. The whole arena was one gigantic champagne shower. Everyone joins the party. No sooner do I finish a long refreshing draught or two of champagne from a bottle passed down to me when someone else offers a bite of freshbaked crusty bread stuffed with local cheese. This was developing into a moveable feast (to coin a phrase).
THE CHASE: Almost7.00 a.m., and ahush
lell over the arena, as if expecting someone to speak. Then a distant cannon-shot announced that the first bull was out ofthe corral and into the street. A few seconds later anothershotsignalledthatthe lasthas left. It's a tight, safe pack that moming. The run had begun and
a
huge cheer went up. Now all eyes
are on the door ofthe narrow tunnel through which the bulls enter the arena. They'll be here in a few minutes. An ofhcial walked slowly across the arena and pulled the heavy bolts to open the door. The crowd roared as a flood of men ran madly inside, as if chased by demons, and leapt over the surrounding fence without even a backward glance. They wereprobably tourists andfirst-timers, just waiting outside the
20
rrrr
arena forthedoors toopen. There's no sign
of
the bulls. A second group of men burst through and then a third. The arena crowd
roared as one man tripped and a dozen others fell over him and each other in panic. Still no
bulls.
ing in the wrong dilection who goes flying through the air to thedelightofthecrowd.
HEMINGWAY ALIVE!: At about 8.00 a.m. it's ove¡ and the people streamed out through the exits of the plaza de toros and went in all
I headed for the nearby Casa Marceliano, Hemingway's favourite Pamplonabar. It waspacked. I squeezed through and ordered a cafe con laiche and a tapa of morzillo sausage with bread. I was just about tochattoagirl with ajacket advertising the 'Club Taurino' of New York, when I was shocked to see my first Hemingway clone at dirctions.
BULLS, MORE BULLS: Then they a¡rived, along with runners clad in the white and red Basque costume. The bulls were enorrnous, theirhoms level with aman's head..Agroup of bulls galloped in together, trundled across the arena and went out through the gate opposite. A lone bull entered, then stopped, tumed and charged a man nearby. The man rose
gracefully l0feetintheair. Thebull wentfor him again after he flopped onto the sand, pushing him along with his snout, but unable to gorebecause themanknewhe must remain flat on the ground to avoid the upward curving homs. Other bulls entered and then all galloped together across the arena and went out. They'llretum intheevening, to bekilled by three of Spain's top matadors. The first and most dangerous part of the moming's run was now over. And the fun part has begun.
Young, aggressive bulls, homs safely padded, were released into the crowded a¡ena.
Unabletokill,they still packed anasty
wallop. From high in the stadium, you can see the action in perspective. Men scattered as a young bull charged, a nearby group likewise and another, but there's always someone look-
coRRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
the other end of the bar. I knew he was a Hemingway clone because he was standing next [o an enoromous woman weaflng a 'Sloppy Joe' T-sh ir t with papa's portrait on it. I could compare the two - fishing jacket,
cropped white beard, wire framed specs. Identical! Amazing! I saw four more Hemingway clones before leaving Pamplona. 'Sloppy Joe'is a bar in Key West, Florida. I've been there - but long after Emest was there. Come to think it, Hemingway got sloshed in interesting bars in towns all over the world - Paris, Mad¡id, Venice, Key West, Havana. Of the towns Emest apparently missed, booze-wise, one must be Hong Kong. An omission that would surely have been fixed if he had ever wandered into the old FCC bar. Mike Smith is a business executive based in Hong Kong
different sand dunes
(because
the train passed.
strong.
lected the car later.
But we survived to travel the unpresflight back to Bamako, and later
to another memorable holiday.
AN INDIAN EXPERIENCE: It was the time in India, in Tamil Nadu, where we tried to do a version of Canute. Not quite tuming back the waves, but ignoring them. There was an island (I presume also it is still there) connected by a railway line. What better way to get from Rameswaram in India to Talaimannar in Sri Lanka than to drive there, we surmised! The car was robust. So off we set to drive across the single-track railway line
bridge, with
the
car straddling
one
camel steak and pommes fritters. If nothing else, the French taught their outposts to cook fritters better than any British colonial chip.
frequent, but they
THE FIRST VISITOR: The barman
mately
had Evian water (this was pre-Perrier),
(cook and owner) told us about the first visitor to Timbuktu. He was an Englishman
and he was killed. Why?
and when the membecame
ory of the town's- first visitor
the desert?) and deserted. We checked into the hotel (if a hotel is referred to as just that, with no name, then beware as it's the only one in town). It
-was a visitor;
car slowly
surised
One was in Africa; Mali to be more specific. Timbuktu to be precise where else? I was travelling with a companion (not a Philippines-style "companion", but Naturally
was
driving a car in an attempt to drive over the sea to Sri Lanka. But embarrassment could not be avoided. The train stopped, I reversed the
of
those gaps
be-
tween the sleepers), pulled to the side and
Y
a photographer
perhaps l5kph.
My
Because he
of
the
took the boat to Sri Lanka, and col-
Closer to home, China in 19'72. The year of Nìxon's visit. I got there on a flight from Addis Ababa (it seemed a reasonable way to go at the time). Funnily enough, the parts that made this trip so memorable now seem so normal - Forbidden City, Great Wall.
But I did manage something that is probably difficult today. I cycled around Berjing (well, part of it) on a bicycle borrowed
from the
Australian embassy.
Nothing particularly unusual in that, but the bicycle was importedl From England! Mut t u)' Bq¡lct
¡s
I
he
puhlisher
rfTnvd
Business Analyst.
lines.
Trains, after all, were not only inwere slow.
Two difficulties became apparent after approxi-
10
metres
of this exercise (perhaps I exaggerate). One the
single-storey mud dwellings, we might have walked passed it. So, off on a camel to a nearby Touareg
proaching.
(that's Timbuktu when you're in the Sahara looking for a village) seemed out of reach. Well we found the village (sorry, no ears cut off, or similar), bought some trinkets and retumed with escorts (not Philippines-style escorts). That became worrying when they split the two of us by taking
40kph. This particular train, albeit
stance
between
the sleepers. The second was slightly
mofe pressrng;
trarn was
New range of posters from the NYC...Metropolitan Museum of Art
was
fact that there ceased to be earth or a similar sub-
obviously the natives at the time (this was only 100 years ago) hadn't been told what to do with visitors. With this very much in mind, we set off for some sightseeing. It was not pleasant, courtesy of the sand/dust storm. So we gave up trying to find the Moslem university; in a town where all the buildings were
village (at least I think it was a nearby Touareg village; my French never was much good). Over a few dunes and too far away we went, until civilisation
I
a
And for your holiday... Guides, maps, phrase books, travelogues, mood literature
ap-
Fortunately, express trains in India can be identified by the fact that they travel at speeds of up to
a passenger traln, was not an exp¡ess
train, thus it
was
travelling at a no-
ticeably
slower
OpenTdaysaweek 30 Hollywood Road, Meczzanine Floor, Central, Hong Kong
fel:5-232042
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT 2
1
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I
PROMDTION(...
HEY ßARMAN-TELL us soMETr{/I\/É
rNIERESrfAJ6 ./
LIFETIME of joumalism and numerous battles won and lost have done nothing to dull Jack Spackman's excitment about a break-
A
unionisnotstrong where it should bestrong. "I can understand that from Chinese journalists, who are unfamiliar withthe im-
with no problem and it worked and I found that I liked it."
ing story or the possibilities of starring life
portanceof an organisation like a union, but I was disappointed with joumalists coming from Britain, Australia and the United States who should know better."
ful radio show in Hong Kong. A longtime member of theFCC,Spack-
afresh.
Spackman spoke to The Correspondanr af the end ofAugust in a series of short bursts during his live radiobroadcast about ajet that veered off the Hong Kong airport runway and plunged into the nearby "fragrant" nullah. "My mother told me, people would never pay money to hear me talk," laughed the effervescent Spackman immediatley after a broadcast. "I love radio. I love the excitment and the immediacy. I love the fact that you can report what is happening right outside your window and that someone with a portable telephone can repon from anywhere in the world. "And especially love the fact that you
.,
CLUB
I
NEWS
THE Club's pool-room
don'thave to takenotes." Spackman, who last year celebrated his
"20
habin¡es fought again
phies in Billiards, Snooker,
claimed two trophies in Billiards and 14-l Straight Toumament and Lisa Cheung who last year lost the Eight Ball game to Paul Ba-
1
ran. Gilhooly now lives in the Philippines
-
this year for the annual championship troEight Ball and 14StraightToumament. A total of 46 players took part in the competition. Missing from the scene this year were David Gilhooly who last year
and Cheung in Harare. Baran was the only winner of last year who was able to keep his title again this year as the champion of the Eight Ball
game. He also won 14-l
Straight Tournament beating Andreas Panayi.
The only other player claiming trophies this year was Tony Craig who had lost the l4-l Straight Toumament to Gilhooly last year. Like Baran, Craig also claimed two
trophies. He won
against Baran in Snooker and against Gul Mirpuri in Billiards.
The presentation of trophies took place on August 5, following the traditional annual luncheon for
the world
profes-
sional players, includ-
ing several times world snooker champaigion Steve Davies, visiting Hong Kong for the LEP Hong Kong Masters touma-
988
Lowenbrau's Suzanne Jenkins, includes "two very attractive German
ladies"
to
sing traditional and other
songs.
Oct24-282
THAIWEEK
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, in-
troduced by the director of its Hong Kong office and our member, Narong Pornpiriyakulchai, together with Thai Intemational Airways are sponsoring a Thai week at lunch and dinner in the main dining room from Monday, October 24, to Friday, October 28. The chefs arebeing flown in especially to prepare the a la carte menus they are bringing the ingredients with them from Bangkok. There will be a gala evening on Friday, the 28th, with acultural show
by four Thai dancers. Dinner and
(See alsoPeople,page 25 ).
der research.
Haworth, standing in for Paul
1
Sponsored by Lowenbrau the evening will feature the Hans Gerhart Oompah Band from Munich which, according to
Baran (inset) who could not be present at the prize giving.
Steve Davies, who tumed professional l0 years ago, is seen here presenting the trophies to Tony Craig (Left, above) and to Merv
SEPTEMBER
Oct.14: OCTOBERFEST
dancing afterwards. Lucky door prize during the evening. Flowers and buttonholes flown in by Thai Intemational. From Monday to Thursday the chefs will be giving cooking demonstrations on the veranda from 3.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. (free). Bookings for all activities accepted (prices not confirmed at the moment). Special Thai coconut cocktail un-
ment.
22 THE CORRESPONDENT
COMING EVENTS
of
simple living in Hong Kong" withanight-longbashat his home, isleaving the territory at the end of September for the west coast of the United States. years
"l'm going over there to represent a whole Iot of newspapers and magazines and radio stations," he explains.
"l
plan to function as a freelance corespondant/communications person doing stories about business and migration, concentrating mainly on Pacific Rim trade. "I expect to spend a lot of time among Asian ethnic groups in Califomia, which is where I will be based." Born in Grenfell, New South Wales, Spackman, now 53, arrived in Hong Kong in 1967 and worked briefly with The Star and then moved to the China Maí1- both papers are now defunct. He was, at the time, already a skilled and respected joumalist in Australia. "But I figured," says Spackman, "Asia was where all the fun was going to be and I wa¡ted to be there
With the
closing
of the China Mail,
Spackman moved into the magazine publishing scene edited a few computer magazines including Asia Computet' Monthly, Computer
Asia andComputer Year Book. "I still have a thing about computers and it's one of the rcasons I want to move to
Califomia.
I can picture
myself driving around Silicon Valley and getting myself all the latest technology for my freelance work." Spackman joined the Sunday Morning, Post in 1984 as its first business editorand is now its news editor.
"I must say that mostly I am looking forward to writing and being a reporter again. I have spent a lifetime quitting jobs at newsþapers because the editorwouldn'ttakeme off the sub-editors desk." Spackman's love affair with radio began when he was working for a newspaper and sent stories fo Lhe Sydney Morning Herald and¡he Melbourne Age. "l was doing a series of stories about an Australian journalist
that disappeared in
Spackman later went on to host
a
success-
man says that he first joined the club when it was leaving the Hilton Hotel for new quarters in Sutherland St¡eet. "I never acted for the club in any official
capacity although I did get involved unoffically with the committee that was tÍying to arrange luncheon speakers. "I guess I was one of those people who
usedtobridle at thebar aboutbeingalocally employed journalist but being grouped with linoleum salesmen in the "associated member"category. Butthat's all changednow and alljournalists are in a separatecategory." Spackman's
fondest memory of Hong Kong, he
:i.:
says,
could very
well be assocrated
with the FCC.
"Back in
China. I guess they had him locked up and wouldn't admit it and it was my story. "Anyway, I was contacted by a radio station in Australia to do some live broadcasts and was told all I had to do was tell people in my own words what had happened.
" Wel I,
It Came naturally
too."
Shortly after aniving in Hong Kong, Spackman leda group ofjoumalists in establishing the Joumalists Association. The association was registered as a trade union in April 1968 and itrecently celebrated its 20rh anniversary with a function that featured the gov-
emor of Hong Kong, Sir David Wilson,
as
guest speaker.
His union activity was not without costs, for Spackman says that he spent years on "the black list". "If I have any complaint about Hong
Kong joumalists,
it
would be their lack of
commitment. So many people come and go, but so many people do not show commitment to their jobs and their profession while they are here.
"As far as suppofing the union, again there is that
lack of commitment and
the
Spackman: Tooyoung lo spend much tíme
lookingback.
SEPTEMBER 1 988 THE CORRESPONDENT 23
CLASSIFIED R
ESTAU RANTS
PEOPLE
CLASSIFIED
early 1985 I was in hospital in Brisbane where I had a bit of cancer removed from my bowel and it was touch and go for a while, Of all the things I'll remember, I will remember the absolute deluge of get well messages I re-
ceived from people at the FCC." M,A,BUHAY SINGING LOUNGE THE ONLY NATIVE FILÌPINO AND SPANISH
RESTAURANT IN TOWN DAtLYBUSI\ESSHOURS
9.00â m
-rriop.m.
AFTER ENJOYING YOUR MEAL COME AND VISIT OUR SING-A-LONG LOUNGE. OPEN 6.00 p.n. TO 2.00 a.m. (MajorCredit Cär¿sAccepted) t
t Minden
Av€nue,
G/I, Ts¡mshâtsui, Kowloon.
already in Califomia. "I'm too young to spend much time looking back right now. The new world beckons."
ARMSTRONG, 32, decided to qllìt Tatler
H
o
ng ko ng
Standard and NigelArmstrong of
KongTatler. Fallander, 32, winner of two Australian national awards forphotographers, has been the pictorial editor of the Standard for the past
months. Moving in June last year to head a three-man photo depafiment, his first concem was to build up a good team and help it gain 15
respect
in its own
work in the
according to qualifications and experience as cadet photog-
raphers, photographers, senior photographers, chiefphotographe¡ deputy pictorial editor and pictorial editor.
His success as pictorial editorand ateam leader has beenevident in the pagesofthe Standard for more than a year. Photographers, says Fallandel are now "an integral part of the newsroom; they fight for space for their pictures the same way reporters and editors make their pitch for space; and, they are happy". Why, then, is he leaving? The reason is a mixture of achievement and disappoint ment. Says Fallander: initially set out to do
E9 Kimberley Road, lsfunshatsui,
Kowloon. Tel.3{EE554, 3{E{Xn3. Beside St. Mary's Canossian College. Parking Sewice from 7pm onwards.
Let Vegetation Feed The Nation Go Vegetarian
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1o
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"I
have achieved what I the photo department is well established, photographers have developed their talents, strengthened their confidenceand haveeamed the recognition they deserve." The outcome of these achievements, according to Fallander, is that the pictorial editor's position has become more air administrative post. That, he says, doesn't suit him. "I'm basically a photographer. I want to be on the action front with my mates." The timing of his departure, Fallander admits, is, perhaps, a little disappointing because the Standard's new office at Kowloon
Bay has state-of-the-art darkroom facility. Another factor is,
in
the 15 months he has been
with the newspaper, Fallander has seen
a
large tumover of editorial staff. He was inter-
viewed inearly 1987 andhiredbyeditor-inchief and general manager, Robert Chow,
24 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
It was from Hong Kong that he directed news coverage of the Vietnam war. He returned to the United States in 1973 and retired
who should have the final say over editorial matters, and "I couldn't accept the fact that as editor I did not have the final say,"Armstrong says.
Tatler,he points out, has been a moneymaking machine for a long time. But in the nearly three years he has been with the glossy
magazine, he says, he has also made it a better editorial product, and it still continues to make a lot of money. "But, unfortunately,
it any further...to
Meanwhile, Mohindar's reaction toArmstrong's problems with Ross, according to Armstrong, has always been: "Sympathetic and positive but, in the long run, not overly effective." The projects which Armstrong hopes to do as
joint ventures with Mohindar include two
books which Armstrong will produce through
his own company. "Apart from these ventures, I will bedeveloping my ownbusiness line. I am interested in anything involved with publishing," he says. Armstrong started his joumalism career as a trainee newspaper photographer in the UK in 1973, and subsequently worked on weekly and evening papers in Kent and on Tyneside. He later joined British Railway's hovercraft operations as its liaison and PR man based in Dover. In those days he made a lotof tripsacross theEnglish Channel. Says Armstrong: "Hovercrafts need a minimum they called it number of crew for sailing flyittg. And everynow and then when someonereportedsick,I hopped in as asubstitute. And, I've never been sea-sick in my life," he laughs.
Leaving British Rail he moved to Hong Kong and joined Eurasia Publications and thenmovedtoAsian Finance Publications as editor of Young Execul¡ve, now known
as Executive, for three years. Afterwards, he joined the Tatler.
l-3 Wyndham Street, Central, Hong Kong
last year.
He dicd at his home in suburban Washington, He
of
higher planes of editorial quality." While it is this untenable situation that has forced him to quit, Armstrong says he has had no problems with Publisher Mahabir Mohindar. "Vy'e get along fine and we will be doing some projects together in the future," he explains.
department, all graded
Live late nightjazz, from after ten, till two am. Oldies but goodies, thirties to fifties, every day of the week. Open for happy hour, dinner, late night drinks or just coffee.
was a question
they will not let me take
right. Today, 15 cameramen
it
RESTAURANTS
Kong.
because, he says, of interference in editorial matters from advertising boss Lina Ross.
Essentially
in Rome, Vi-
enna and Frankfurt he came to work in Hong
Now, joining that outflow himself, Fallander is going to "tackle the nasty world of freelancing" based in Hong Kong.
ALSO moving on are Marc Fallander of the
assignments
come and go," he says.
Spackman, who remarried last year, said he will be catching up with his wife who is
Íhe Hong
A delightful bistro presents:
but before he started work Chow had been replaced by Alan Armsden. "I've also seen four features editors and so ma¡y other people
Tel:5-265293
wâs 6ó.
worked for some publications for the elderly.
Gilmore who once worked in Hong Kong as Asia editor
his brother summed it up best at Danny's funeral
Says
when he said,'Danny had
tional.
a happy life. All he ever wanted to be was a re-
According to UPI genMichael Keats, who knew Gilmore
well in Europe, even after he retired at age 65 Gilmore
\das still a reporter.
He
take a drink on a hot day at
the FCC. In the photo above Gilmore is seen in
Keats: "I think
for United Press Interna-
eral manager
lÆ Kowloon Centre, 29Ashley Road,
Gilmore was known to
VETERAN journalists in Hong Kong were saddened at the recent death of Daniel
Tsimshatsui, Kowloon
TeI:3-684021
one of his more serious attending a moments
wine-tasting
in
London
back in the '60s. The youthful looking bloke with his eyes shut, lost in the beauty of it all, is the current UPI
porter.'And he was." Daniel Gilmore joined the âgency was then known,
United Press, as
vice president for Asia and former FCC president, Mi-
in NewYork in 1941. After
chael Keats.
CANTONESE LESSONS FOR BEGINNERS & ADVANCED. Language foreveryday use e g office, shopping, transport, dining-out etc $550 for 1 0 lessons.
Contact Teresa Chan. Tel:: 5-723997, Happy Valley. Free parking.
CLUB pool-room wizards Tony Craig and Paul Baran who took all the four titles between them in this year's pooì competition,
are no
strangers
in the winner's circle
at
club pool tournaments. Craig already has his name engraved on the club trophy three years running, in 1983, 1984 and 1
985.
A
marketing consultant in the insurance Craig finds himself in the strange position of not having the time to play the game because of his love for the sport. For four years, he has been the president of the Hong Kong Macau Amateur Billiards and Snooker Association and now serves as the association's vice-president. "I joined the association for love of the game," he lamented, "and now I am too busy to play." Although not quite in the same league with the masters, Paul Baran showed he knew a thing or two about the business end of a cue by beating out heavy competition to win his two titles.
eller and Asian Travel Trade magazines before retuming to the SCM Post where this time he worked in the business section, and later struck out on his own as a freelance edìtorial and public relations consultant. Both Baran and Craig have been active
FOR SALE The follow¡ng items can be purchased from the Club office: T SHIFT, white cotton/polyester, Club logo on lront Small or $25 00 eâch $33 00 each
N¡edium Extra-Large
in the club working with Pe-
UMBFELLA
Andreas Panayi in organising the annual pool toumaments.
ter Wong and
27" longi wooden handle; 100% nylon; Navy'Blue and Wh¡te w¡th Club logo on white background$35 00 each
business,
Explained Baran about his pool-room prowess: "We used to have a pool table that my father bought me when I was young to keep me out of the pool halls." Baran left Canada in 1980 where he worked as a joumalist with the Vancouver .Sun and took up a position as a repofler with the South China Morning Posl where he later worked as deputy news editor and a feature writer of the Sunday Morning Posr.
He
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SEPTEMBER I988 THE CORRBSPONDBNT 25
CLASSIFIED
P E
TRAVEL
o
P
L E AUGUST 8, 1988, one ofthe
AUTHOR-JOURNALIST Anthony Grey has just
ing,
most auspicious days in the Chinese almanac, was espe-
Mang group public relations
trades.
manager of Hutchison
violent struggle out of mediaeval feudalism to its presentday pre-eminence as a hi-tech
Whampoa andadvertising
superpower.
veteran John Rittger. Mang, 45, chose the day
Grey, the first intemational hostage of modem times, was Reuters correspondent in Beijing at the height of the Cultural Revolution when he was taken prisoner by the Chinese in a tit-for-tat gesture for the imprisonment of a lefrwing joumalist in Hong Kong during the 1967 communist riots. For 26 months he was kept in solitary confinement, without trial or charges being laid against him, in an eight-foot-square room whose windows had beenpaintedblack. Peking (publishers: Wiedenfeld and Nicolson) is as much a story of that incarceration as it is an epic that captures in a comprehensive marmer half-a-century of the most turbulent period of China's history (1921-78) and the revolution that changed the political bal-
:":Yå:il,""i[: ï:*:l_ designing and who thìnks up just plain good ideas might easily be referred to as a jack of all
cially auspicious for two FCC members, Vincent
But Arthur Hacker who does all that prefers to think of himself as a Renaissance man. Why not? In the past 20 years he has, indeed,
lt
conconde
travel
1r0 0EsTrilATloll ls T00 llltHcutT 8/F, 8-10 On Lan Street, Central. 5-263391 Licence
to wed
Rebecca Wong, excutive housekeeper at the Royal Garden Hotel, whom he has been courting for the
=il ril
changed the dimensions of humour in Hong Kong.
Take the FCC
past 10 years. Mang says that Rebeccatold him more than a
for in-
stance. His sense of humour and creativity is very much
they were ever to get married
it should be on August thisyear.
created
many years ago adorns one of the walls in the Main Bar. He desìgned the Club's crest as well as the neck-tie. And year after year he has been
No 350343
BOOKS
Guides, maps, fiction, posters, phrase books, cookbooks, gift books.
OpenTdaysaweek.
ings which
30 Holly'wood Road, Mezzanine Floor, Central, Hong Kong Telephone: 5-232042, Telex: 61730 IFR HX, Fax: 5-8450142
These books can be purchased
from the Club office: FACES OF JAPAN by Derek Maitland
LAND OF HOPE by Bob Davies THE CHINA LOVERS by David Bonavia
ANTARCTIC FANTASY by Rebecca
Lee
$1
00 00
$49 00
$30 00 $160.00
CHINA TODAY AND HER ANCIENT TREASURES by Joan Lebold Cohen and Jerome $400 00 Alan Cohen
THE NEW CHINESE PAINTING, 1
949-r 986
by Joan LebolC Cohen
$1
89 00
persons of the opposite gender were recommended to consider exchanging: Anatomical juxtaposition of their two orbicularis oris muscles in a state of contraction. And who else but Hacker could have seen the Main Bar as Th eZoo-the title of his regular cartoon in T h e C o r re spo n d e n r? For his enrployer for the past 20 years, the Hong Kong Government, his creations have chanrpioned many causes. The most memorable of these is Lap Sap Chung, the green monster he created in 1972 to achieve what was then thought to be the impossible: make Hong Kong a clean place. Lap Sap Chung, the syrnbol of everything dirty, became a lallying point to make the Keep Hong Kong Clean carnpaign a loaring success. And even Hacker, a man of great humility, could not help but say: "It flatters rne to think that the work we do here may help a little to make Hong Kong a bettel place for people". But as from nextApril the Government Information Services, where Hacker is now creative dilector, will have to do withouthim. He is leaving the government at the end of his contract. That, however, doesn't lrean that he is joining Hong Kong's unstoppable braindraìn and that the tenitory will lose him. Farfrom it. Hacker will continue to live in the temitoly and will do a lot of things including cartoons, illustrations and design through a
26 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER I988
"Itis
8,
an easy date
to remember, I suppose, and
I
will not forget to give her
a
wedding anniversary present each year" he laughs.
producing creative menu cards to liven up the New Year's Eve dinners. In 1984, to match the spirit of the year, the Sino-Bri tish agreement on the future of Hong Kong, the board offare inscribed on the card included such creative suggestions as One Chicken Two Systems Soup and SpeciaÌ Administrative Roast, not to mention the style of greef
if
year-and-a-half ago that
1t
in evidence everywhere in the Club. The "FCC Battle
Flag" which he
published Peking, the second volume of a trilogy that follows his intemational bestseller on the Vetnam wal Saigon. The third in the series willbeToþo, the story of Japan's
private consultancy company which he plans to set up. The first priority atie r leaving the gove mment, however, is to take a holiday and see how things run when he gets back. Says Hacker: "You never know just how things will turn out. I just might end up going off in a different directìon." About the consultancy firm he says: "After much deliberation I decided to call it simply Althur Hacker Ltd.
"I had
thought of calling it Arthur Hacker Worldwide or something like that. But, then, I'm not really sure that's me." MEMBERS who were active in the club during the Sutherland House days will remembet' George Mackenzie. Now living in Sydney, he runs a business in gifts and advertising specialities. And, recently, he was seen perform-
ing his famous kilted bagpiper act at
The couple first met at Hutchison Whampoa where Rebecca was Chief Executive Bill Wyllie's social secretary and Mang the newly appointed public relations manager. Mang went to HutchisonWhampoa after two years in public relations and seven years in joumalism starting as a repofter atthe Hongkong - and finishing as the business editor Standard of the now defunc¡ C hi na M ai l. Rebecca later left Hutchison to work in two other companies before joining the Royal Ga¡den in 1980 to work in its purchasing department. Now as executive housekeeper she manages astaff of 160 in addition tooverseeing the operations of the purchasing depaftment and coordinating a new hotel now under construction in Shatin. So no wonder she rushed back to work after the brief wedding ceremony at the City
Hall Marriage Registry
that Monday noon; and the honeymoon was a hurried one-week in Bangkok.
the
Rugby Club in Sydney's Crane Place. What gave Mackenzie the chance to bring out the kilt andbagpipes andmarch to the skirl of "Oh Flower of Scotland, when will we see your likes again" was a celebration lunch to rnark the sale of MAC's chain of retail liquor stores, Several'heavies' fi'om theAustralian lìquor industry witnessed the act as they washed down an excellent fare with liberal amounts of, you guessed, Scotch. Mackenzie's performance, a Johnnie Walker presentation, was partly a tribute to one of MAC's previous owners - a burly Scot from Glasgow and an avid Celtic supporter to boot.
FOR RITTGER, 50, August 8 was a day of double happiness he won a little money on the Mark 6 lottery and he started his new job as business development manager at
-
fhe Hongkong Standard. He has been in the adver-
tising business for most of his working life so far. But no\¡r', he says, it's time for a change. In his new job, Rittger says, he has an open brief- "to contribute to the growth and development of the newspaper".
Rittger joins the Stan-
Mang and his bride dard af a time of change and improvements. The paper has moved its office from Laic-
hikok
to new premises at Kowloon Bay where latest computer technology has been installed
for editorial and production processes. And Rittger's development plans forthe paper will include, he says, "taking fulI advantage of the new
facility". Bom in Detroit
and educated in Southem
has been living in Asia since I 967. He first went to Japan from San Francisco in 1967 and worked on the worldwide advertising campaign for the Osaka
Callfomia, Rittger
World Expo besides doing some work for Japan Airlines among other large companies. The years that followed were spent moving between Singapore, Bangkok and Manila before moving again to Japan.
Most of that tlme was spent working for New Yo r k - b a s e d
ulti-national Bozell, Jacobs,
Grey
m
ance of the modem world.
Kenyon and Eck-
sincethat ordeal inJune, and retumed to the house and room where he had been imprisoned, to make a television documentary to be released shortly. About six months before, the Chinese had formally apologisedto Grey forhis imprisonment and granted him special permission to revisit China. At a state banquet, held in his
herdt where
worked in
he
the
agency side of the business. been
"I've
committed to Asia
for about 2l years," says
Rittger about his
Grey revisited China for the first time
honour, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, Li
making that kind
Zhaoxtng, presented Grey with an omamental plate and said: "I am very happy to be able, at last, to give you the present we give all permanent correspondents when they leave. This is a
of commitment is
little bit late."
past and his future
plans.
"I
important."
think
That
gesture notwithstanding, Grey re-
SEPTEMBER 1988 THE CORRESPONDENT 27
T-
PEOPLE THEY SAY it's almost impos-
calls with a shudder the trauma of his 26month imprisonment. Now comfortably lodged in an old flint granary deep in a fold of the Sussex Downs in Charlton, near Chicheste¡ Grey talked to Vernon Ram, who was visiting Britain. He has a vivid and total recall
sible to keep a secret around the
FCC, but Merv Haworth's many friends managed to pull it off during the first two-and-ahalf weeks of August. The effort was worth it. The occasion was a surprise birthday celebration for Haworth, who
of every single event of those nightmare days and nights. He had been Reuters correspondent in Chinaforonly amonth orso, Grey said, when slogans denouncing hìm were plastered over the gateway of h is home. Then, a paper tiger, a crude insult to him, was hung above the en-
turnedT0onAugust
17.
Organised by his wife Susan and a small band of downstairs "irregulars," the sur-
And at an age when most fellows would have long
ago
"hung up their cues" to sit by the
sidelines (to play Yantze'?), Haworth remains a dedicated pool player, often pulling off shots that stop opponents in their tracks.
Here's a typical exchange following one of Haworth's "trick"
shots.
Haworth: What a shotl Did you see that?
trance. One sweltering summer night, Grey heard shoutingand screamingin the street outside. Peeping out, he saw a frenzied mob smashing
prise bash caught Haworth, one of the most popular denizens of the downstairs ba¡ totally unpre-
Opponent:
pared.
down his courtyard gate. "Next, they swept
The reasons for his popular-
grin): Oh, did I forget to call it? But yeah, that's the only way it
into
the house breaking windows, dragged
me down the stairs and bent me double on the courtyard steps in what's called the 'jeþlane,' because of the way your affns are held out by
two guards on either side of you.
"They kept hitting me in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me to make me stay bent double. So much sweat poured down my face that it made a pool on the step and I could see my face in it." Then they doused black paint on Grey and stuck politicalposters downhisfront and back. Then they hanged his cat from the balcony and smeared its blood on his sheets and all ¡ound the room he was going to be kept in. "It was so very Kafkaesque," Grey says of
SURPRISE! SURPRISE! When his wife Susan suddenly switched the birthday dinner reservations from the Ladies'Recreation Club to the FCC Haworth thought that it would be a very private dinner for the family of four. Then, suddenly, he was led to the WyndhamRoom, instead of the main restaurant, where a crowd began cheering him.
The first person to greet Haworth,
as he came in, was the US Consul-General in Hong Kong, DonaldAnderson, who has been waiting with Haworth's long-time friends Li Ru Tung (on the right side of Anderosn), a former colleague- of Haworth at the US Consulate-General in Hong Kong, and Liu Ming (on the right side Li), head of the Chinese Language Department at the Hong Kong Chinese Unversity.
ity are well known to all who are lucky enough to know him. He can be found downstairii most days and he brings with him the winning combination of an engaging attitude towards life and a keen sense of humour. He also never shies away from "shouting" for more than his share of rounds.
the '60s Mao had become quite mad in
to
Alfred
Bosshardt, the only surviving Westemer to make the Long March. As a result Kellner's harrowing trek hasaringof authenticity. The picture that emerges of the revolution is disturbing. The marchers, though brutal, are tough idealists prepared to make heroic sacrifices for what they believe in. The young Mao starts off as an inspired, idealistic leader who later betrays the sacrifices of his followers on the altar ofpersonal ambition.
The formalities and the fÌrst round of greetings over, it's time for the favourite tipple, a glass of cold Heineken (left). Ãnd,then, he had to just stand up and listen to everything others had to say about him. A member of the FCC Board and Club treasure¡ Fred Shokking (above left),was the first to take the Speakers' Corner.
Then it was pool-room buddy Paul Baran's turn to bring out a whole set of pi ctures(courtesy: Hugh van Es) to prove how the guest ofthe evening has been behaving in the basement poolroom.
28 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER 1988
him
the
nickname "Minnesota Merv," after the legendary pool hustler
It
was in Taipei in the early
1960s, that he met his wife-tobe, Susan. Assherecalls: "Iwas giving him private Chinese les-
sons, and we started going out together."
"After
dating for several
day we were out driving in his ca¡ and he just came out and asked me if I would marry him. I was so surprised; I said yes." years," she says, "One
Golf, not pool,
was
Haworth's game inTaiwan. And on thelinks, he managedtoplay with a few people who later in
Ironically, the people who survive the communistholocaust arethose who draw on Taoist or spiritual values of some kind - lends creChristian. Grey's own survival dence to his belief that the spiritual aspect of human nature is fundamental to all our lives. "That," saysGrey, "isthepointofthenovel in many ways."
the club. This perform-
Kong.
-
Grey spent time talking
at
ance quickly eamed
true, I was born in Minnesota, but I grew up in Wisconsin." A fluent Japanese and Mandarin speaker, Haworth spent almost his entire career in the Far East, as acultural attachefor the US in Japan, Taiwan and Hong
up to clear out the people who opposed him.
changed lifestyles.
tion
Such praise, Haworth
in the Cultural Revolution. "Mao stirred it
Peking capires this a¡d otherinteresting aspects of the revolution and how it has
would have gone in. Another reason he's so popular is his humility. A good example of this was the day Haworth held the table for the entire aftemoon - a rare event given the keen spirit of competi-
thinks, is misplaced - at least geographically. He says: "It's
Looking back on the experience, Grey is convinced there wasneither logic nor sanity
many ways. The revolution had precisely the opposite effect to what its creator intended it has killed all interest in politics."
Haworth: (with a wink and a
Minnesota Fats.
that encounter.
By
Jeez, were you actu-
ally playing for it?
life have become powerful and influential. Among his golfing
Noq the real test. But, then, And, there was more to come...their way of appreciating a champion (left and above).
Susan came to his aid, as she always does, and together they put out the candles in one single blow to a thunderous applause from the well-wishers.
Finally, it was Haworth's turn at the mike: Thank you all forbeing so kind and caring, and particularly for the tankard. How thoughtful ofyou!
partners was a then minor government official named Lee Teng-hui. He is now Taiwan's president. Photos: HughvanEs
SEPTEMBER I 988 THE CORRESPONDENT 29
A BOTTLE OF
THE GORRISPOIUENT
CHIVAS REGAL
CROSSV/ORD"", Compiled by Brian Neil O 1988
illuminating (9)
CLUES
IIII illlltt IIII llrt II lI
I
Measures part of split residue (6) 4 Most rode, some 1
watked (6) 7. Some answers get
nlr
only average resuìts (4) Complex toe dance that tells a story (8) 9 Casually amputate an appendage (7) Brick carrier backs into a note (3) t4 Lacking intestinal forritude? (6) 8
Not the kind of bowling tolerated by Lords (6) Ditto, otherwise and also (3) 18. Confused women's
direction to the
RULES
1.
Entries must be sent to:
THE CORRESPONDENT CROSSWORD,
Printline Ltd, House, T lce House Street, Central, HongKong. 601 Fu
2. Entries must reach the office not later than September 28. 3. Entries must carry the name, address and the club
abominable (7) 22. Abun Dante ate is more than enough (8) 23. Urban knowledge of riverside (4) 24. Makes amends, partly at one's request (6) 25. Silly Dot! She threw a party (6)
CLUES
l.
will be awarded a bottle of Chivas Regal. 5. The solution and winner's name will be published s po
nde
n
t
¡he f
ll,Padre-amenable,to some extent, to an 12.
ideal (5) A crude pendant needs partially
supporting (9) Planted a light kiss on and was torbird mented (9) a
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A part for bits and pieces to go round in
(s)
r
19. One arsonist comes
quite close to it (5) 20. Halfwit chatters away and produces a
flatfish (5) You want a piece of an onion? Soon perhaps (4)
The winner is: Anthony Nedderman Crossword No. 6 correct solution
membership number of the contestant.
4. The firstcorrect solution drawn from the entries received
T he C orre
Might pall, perhaps, but could well be
What a pair of Scottish golfers might order? (3,3,3) The dirtiest ashtrays usually contain a secret hoard (5) Only a mug would th¡ow bits of waste into the sea (5) for 5 A better idea - like those who don't walking (4) 6 You've got to hand it to him, it's almost identicat (5) 10. Almost baffle escape plans, but escapes anyway (5)
2
winning the Canon Asía Photo Youre looking at a memorable moment e "Unguiltl'. Mr. Tan Som Tjhiang of winner with his Canon at l/250 second lús a snap
ollowi ng month.
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PRINTLINE LTD 60
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prev¡fl / give any photographer Hardly surprising. The EOS is so
THD GORRISPOIUIIENT
30 THE CORRESPONDENT SEPTEMBER I 988
Announclno the Canon Asla Photo Contest'88. gust lst accepted frõm August tst un carnerã deaer deaþr ¡þr ûbr canon camerã Canon tor ân lh€ cont€st wlll be held Éld ln Flong Fþng
Thelland, Malelala, Brunel and AustraÌlå.