NEWS

The Grounds at AIA Vitality Park return

The Central Harbourfront venue is a purposebuilt outdoor events area designed for the Covid era. Prior to the current restrictions being imposed, events including movie screenings, fitness classes and the Hong Kong Dining Awards were part of its offering. The outdoor entertainment hub offers 100 socially-distanced private pods, seating two to four people. A large LED screen and state-of-the-art sound system is also in place to give guests a true outdoor cinema experience. “It is our intention to extend this run of The Grounds until after Easter,” said Simon Wilson, managing director of Greater Bay Media Entertainment and organiser of The Grounds. That means that events, film screenings and other events will likely run until April 6. thegroundshk.com

Star ferry converted into luxury yacht

A classic Star Ferry, formerly known as Golden Star, has been converted into a luxury yacht. The yacht, now named Dot, took 18 months to convert with a full-time project manager on board. Dot’s owner is passionate about keeping Hong Kong’s heritage alive. He retained some of the original workmanship from the Star Ferry, including its original teak deck and upstairs deckhead. But added floor to ceiling windows and a mezzanine level. Larger than most Hong Kong apartments, Dot is 6,000 square foot and includes four cabins with en suite bathrooms, a cinema room, office, living room, kitchen and alfresco dining area. The yacht is currently for sale in Tai Tam for $21 million as its owners relocate to Europe.

Cathay Pacific cuts major international flights

As of February 20, Cathay Pacific temporarily suspended a bulk of its flights to Australia, with Sydney now the last remaining destination for the Hong Kong carrier. Other international flights to be slashed include Auckland, San Francisco, Vancouver, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Ho Chi Minh City. Cathay said the Hong Kong SAR government’s latest announcement over hotel quarantine was behind the moves. “Our Hong Kong-based pilots and cabin crew are required to undergo 14 days of hotel quarantine, plus seven days of 10 | SOUTHSIDE

The Hong Kong Education Awards

Hong Kong Living is proud to announce the launch of the Hong Kong Education Awards, a new initiative to celebrate the outstanding achievements of Hong Kong’s top international schools, principals, teachers and the wider education community. For the past six months, we have worked with teachers, consultants and education experts to put together a comprehensive program that reflects the changing nature of education and its importance in the community. The results will be decided by an independent panel of education experts, academics and consultants covering the 2020 academic year. This year’s jury panel will be made up of experienced education experts from across the education sector. Voting for the readers’ choice categories is open until May on our website. hongkongliving.com/education Last month the Hong Kong Government introduced new smart parking metres to onstreet parking spaces across the city. The new metres operate daily from 8am to 8pm and charge $2 per 15 minutes. Drivers can top up the parking metre via the mobile app, HKeMeter for up to two hours. While the classic metres only took Octopus payment, these smart meters can be paid using Visa payWave, MasterCard Contactless and UnionPay QuickPass along with Alipay, WeChat Pay and Union QR.