Rice and Rock Concerts

 

Not so long ago Rupert Murdoch was just another name in print. Big, bold, brash, and seemed intent on taking over the world both on the presses and on the web. Fast forward to 2011 and things aren't as peachy for the CEO. Myspace.com was bought by News in 2005 for US$580 million, two years later it was valued at a staggering $US12 billion, and it was sold last month for an equally staggering US$35 million. Should have sold when on top eh Rupert?

After that calamity Rupert has been rocked by the news that not only did staff at his London Sunday tabloid 'News of the World' listen into voicemails of celebrities, but also into victims of the 7/7 terrorist attacks and most incredulously, to the voicemails left by parents into missing child, Milly Dowler. It is reported that staff listened into voicemails left by her frantic parents, and then deleted them to create more room in her inbox, so that they could continue their story gathering.

Finally a tipping point?

 

Wow. I was last in Hong Kong 20 years ago. Back then central was a skyline to beat skylines, but now Hong Kong's suburbs, Central, Causeway Bay, Happy Valley, Kowloon, Mongkok - the entire 360 degree view is commerce and skyscapers...

Sometimes when travelling the opinion of the city is often as good as the accommodation that you've scored for yourself, and staying with my cousin has given me a great start to my trip. To those who've done some travelling in dodgy places you'll appreciate the comfort that you get from safely leaving your bag in your room and knowing that it won't be empty upon your return. So Bec and Ryan, I'm extremely grateful for the bed - the fact that it's on Peak Rd is just an added bonus!

Culture and news haven't made it my agenda yet - knowing that I'm in Hong Kong for a week has given me the chance to just relax and explore the place without worrying about seeing 752 different sites per day, and ensuring that the day is filled from dawn to dusk. A culinary journey though is still a culinary journey and plenty of time has been set aside for the senses to be amazed by the guandong chefs. So far my only 'rookie' mistake has been to go to a dim sum restaurant where you ordered dishes rather than just grab them from the passing waitress - loving everything I generously ordered four dishes for myself; unfortuantely each dish could have served at least 3 people, so I ended up with quite the banquet (and bill) for myself. Regardless, no one is really going to knock a serving of Chinese food that is fit for a dozen men, so I bravely marched on best I could, washing it down with litres of tea until I could leave feeling as though I'd at least dented the bowls of food.

Another thing I've also fallen in love with since arriving in Hong Kong - the MTR. Seriously, Hong Kong, or the Brits, or a crafty engineer, someone, they knew how to move a lot of people fast, and it was underground in trains. The system just works, swipe a card, get on the train, get off at your stop, swipe your card, and head off. Rann, you could avoid Portland, Oregon and take a look at Hong Kong, China.

I'm not sure if Asia is Long Necks, or if Long Necks are Asia, but the only continent I've visited where serving 640mL bottles of beer mid afternoon is acceptable is Asia, and I love them for it. After much seeking I've learned that bars are expensive (dearer than Australia), so if one finds themselves in need of lager then one heads to the street food vendors on Temple Street in Kowloon. The choice between standard and premium is an easy one, as it's 60c for a serious improvement over the $2 offering. A big thank you to Sarah for the forwarding of the Guardian's article on cuisine in Hong Kong; the dim sum that we enjoyed yesterday in central was to die for, even if our choices were predominately desserts rather than savouries (furher, I'm not convinced this was a bad thing.) The market in Mongkok yesterday was so-so, but the Temple Street market was a lot fun where bargains on jocks, headphones, antique watches, beer and bok choy with garlic occurred. Today was spent on Kowloon but when it comes to writing about the day's adventure I'm coming up short - it was just one of those days where time flies and you have a great time and you tick none of the aforementioned 752 boxes.

We did do one touristy thing - the lightshow in the harbour. In all honesty I couldn't tell the lights from the normal lights. Let's face it; Hong Kong with a light show is a little bit like Ben Hur with horses - big deal, it's kind of what I was expecting. Don't get me wrong - the harbour at night is like a piece of art, I just don't think it needs a bad soundtrack and some lights flashing to improve it. The quest to find a different angle to joe tourist seemed to attract attention though. Simply walking down the steps to a foot or two above the South China Sea raised the ire of the 'pilot' boat and I was given my own lightshow with a spotlight flashing in my face. As the boat approached the pier with numerous government men aboard I realised that some press freedoms are worth fighting for, and other battles are best to be walked away from. I chose the latter; sorry Reporters without Borders. We might duck off to Macau tomorrow, and I'll be sure to give an update on the Vegas of the East.

As the numbers on the distance marker on the Dukes Highway to Adelaide tumbles the reality of my departure is slowly absorbed. That and the fabulous little countdown widget on my mac which indicates hours rather than days till I get on Qantas flight QF97 to Hong Kong.

I’ve been working as a professional editorial photographer for a relatively short time; five years, but in that time I’ve had an exhilarating career, covering The Ashes cricket, AFL Grand Finals, PGA Golf, Federal Elections, ATP Tennis, music festivals, motor racing, Asian Champions League football, and countless press conferences and photo-ops for agencies and newspapers. And Adelaide has been good to me, so why leave it behind to pursue opportunities in Asia and Europe? Newspapers and traditional media have been suffering from budget cuts, closures and redundancies long before ‘Global Financial Crisis’ had been coined (by someone with the wit and creativity as the sub-editor who insists any political scandal be a gate.) Adelaide will always be a one-newspaper town, with Rupert’s Advertiser dominating the market, and with major events disappearing from Adelaide (ATP Tennis, PGA Golf etc) and major restrictions being placed on the remaining sports events by the organisers mean the news agencies (quite rightly) are vetoing the coverage (AFL, Cricket Australia etc.) All in all it seems like the perfect time to be testing the water overseas while Australia sorts itself out.

I hope that by taking myself out of my comfort zone and challenging myself in a new environment my photography will develop further. I’ll be in China for the next couple of months before heading to Vietnam, KL, onto London and then Europe. At this stage the first stop in Europe will be Budapest in Hungary to cover the fantastic Sziget Festival for Getty Images & WireImage. I’ll do my best to keep this up-to-date, but I am guessing that the internet in some rural areas will be lacking. A big thanks to everyone who has supported me in endeavors in Australia at Getty, AFP, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, AAP, Slattery Media, News Limited, Inside Sport and others.

Cheers, Jamie

Back from Asia and back to work.

The AFL launched their Indigenous Round at Kuarna Plains School in Adelaide today and I covered it for GSP Images. Port Adelaide was chosen as the team to launch it with AFL Indigenous great, Michael Long speaking also.

Pix attached.

 

Three Suits, Four Dresses, Five Skirts, Four Jackets, Three Coats, Thirty Six Shirts, and Six Pairs of Shoes; Hoi An of course!

There is more to Hoi An than their tailors, but we certainly ensured that we had plenty of time to get everything made that we wanted. We arrived in Saigon last night from Hoi An, and I'm about to head down the street for some pho so I'll update some pix now, and do some writing this afternoon, but this means the blog is almost back up-to-date.[gallery]