The World’s Largest Rubber Duck!

This morning when I woke up, I was greeted in emails by 1 video from my sister-in-law and 2 photos from my Dad and nephew in Hong Kong all on the same subject. What can they be so excited about?

The World’s Largest Rubber Duck has arrived in Hong Kong! The Dutch artist Florentjin Hofman designed this giant inflatable “Rubber Duck,” a 46 feet by 55 feet floating sculpture, that is tugged around by a small tug boat. The giant duck started sailing around the world in 2007, and could be seen in St. Nazaire (FR), Sao Paulo (BR), Auckland (NZ), Hasselt (BE),Osaka and Hiroshima (JP), Sydney (AUS), Nürnberg (DE), Amsterdam (NL) and now Hong Kong.

According to the artist:

“The Rubber Duck knows no frontiers, it doesn’t discriminate people and doesn’t have a political connotation.

The friendly, floating Rubber Duck has healing properties: it can relieve mondial tensions as well as define them. The rubber duck is soft, friendly and suitable for all ages!”

Just watching the video, I can already imagine the smiles, happy memories and the wonder this duck will bring to everyone’s face and heart. It is an immediate and simple joy which everyone can appreciate – no complexity in art, no agenda, just a floating duck blobbing around, bringing back favourite childhood moments! I think this is not just artwork, but simple human nature at its best – sharing the joy!

3 Favourite Yoga Poses to Relieve Stress

Since I sit in front of a computer most of the time, stretching and breathing become very important breaks for me.  Here are three of my favourite poses for stress, neck and shoulder relief as well as mind clarity.  All photos are sourced from PocketSports.

1.  Standing Forward Bend (Deep) with Shoulder Opener

Tips: Do not squeeze the shoulders together, but let the shoulders drop to the ground.  This way, you can relax the tension on your neck and shoulder.  Great for those who sit in front of the computers a lot.

2.  Tripod Headstand

Tips: The key is not to force your head onto the ground – whatever height you are comfortable with your head, let it be.  Allow your head to hang free.   This pose brings mental clarity especially after a long day of brain work.

3. Wide Child Pose

Tips: This pose is great for relieving tension in every part of your body.  The key is to spread a wide “V” between your legs, sit and relax onto the ground.  Stretch your arms as far as you can.

Weather + Health

After landing in San Francisco at late night flying back from Hong Kong a few days ago, I woke up to a beautiful and sunny morning.  The first word that came out of my mouth: “How I miss the California sunshine!”

The last few weeks in Hong Kong were exceptionally foggy, rainy and moist with humidity close to 100%!!

Foggy Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong, photo courtesy of Pavel Kiselev

There were occasional thunder storms and very dark clouds – all pretty scary for my young nephews and nieces.

Thunder storm in Hong Kong, photo courtesy of Michael Du

Now, coming back to San Francisco, I am blessed with the sun and breezy weather.

Flowers in the Levi Plaza’s park, San Francisco

Pier 7, San Francisco, photo courtesy of 123RF

Research has traditionally said that sunny weather and higher barometric pressure lift up moods while cloudy, rainy and humid weather depresses moods although rainy weather can help you to concentrate better and improve your memory!

So in order to reduce your body’s sensitivity to weather, whether it is rainy or shiny, find ways to keep your mood up – writing a blog, listening to beautiful music, eating real, whole foods, reading a good book, talking to an old friend or taking a nice bath. When the sun comes out, take full advantage of it, walk around, run a bit and exercise to recharge your batteries in case of a rainy day tomorrow.

A Leisurely Afternoon on Easter Sunday in Hong Kong

Four of my most favourite hotels in Hong Kong are all within a few steps of each other in the Admiralty area near the Central District on Hong Kong island.  They are Island Shangri-la, Conrad Hotel, the Marriott and the Upper House.   There is nothing better than taking a leisurely stroll in these hotels and zip a cup of tea with a childhood friend in a nice cafe in the vicinity on Easter Sunday.

Greeted by a lovely Easter flower decoration at the Island Shangri-la Hotel, HK

A fun type of decorations at the Conrad Hotel lobby

 

A gorgeous view of the HK harbour at Cafe Gray at Upper House (hotel)

Zipping afternoon tea at my favourite cafe – Cova Caffe at the Pacific Place in Hong Kong

Can you spot 5 differences between picture (A) and (B) – courtesy of Marriott Hotel Hong Kong Facebook page

Spring in the Midst of Hong Kong

Coming back to Hong Kong, I find Spring is in full swing in the midst of the busy city.  The trees are green, the flowers are deliciously colourful, the bird’s chirping sound is so musical, and the air smells so sweet.

The city is clearly one of contrast – business versus serenity; sharpness versus softness.  It is constantly displaying balances and offering places for calmness.  I love the parks in the middle of the busy business district of The Central.  In fact, I love most of the parks in Hong Kong.  While buses, vans, cars, trucks are zooming by, the citizens in the parks are always concentrating on their leisurely and family activities and are completely shutting themselves out of the hustle and bustle out there.

Take a look here…

A splash of Spring in front of the pointed Bank of China Building

A little utopia in front of the HSBC Building and the Supreme Court of Hong Kong.

A water fountain in the midst of the Central District – what a nice way to cool down!

My favourite park, filled with spring colours, right in front of my parent’s home.

Perfect Health

Photo courtesy of the Chopra Centre

As I embark on the 21-day meditation with Oprah and Deepak Chopra on perfect health, I learn and reflect on the fact that our natural state is one of perfect health, and the messages our mind tell our bodies affect the well-being of each of our 50 trillion cells day-in, day out.

On the other hand, Albert Einstein once said, “the intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant.”  However, we have created a society where the rational mind is honoured, but the gift forgotten, said Deepak.  What an important reminder!  We should pay attention to our body signals how our bodies are feeling and experiencing, take heart of what messages we are feeding our bodies, and shower our bodies with healthy messages: optimism, kindness to yourself and others, encouragement, determination and confidence, much like we feed our bodies with healthy food.  Our doctors do not heal the patients per se, but facilitate the body’s healing system, supporting our self-healing whenever that is lacking.

We take care of our bodies, and more importantly, we must allow our bodies to take care of us.  We have the co-creative power to optimize our health.

Trust the wisdom of our bodies.

Om, om, om…