Matheo tu me manques petit frere a moi que j'aime!!!

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Karaoke...2 drink minimum culture!

Ringo is a friend of mine from Hong Kong who left last Monday to Vancouver, Canada, to see his family. He's also going to school over there.

So as he left, we decided to have a farewell party and we were taken to a place Ringo loves: a karaoke bar. I thought I did not know how to sing, now I am sure that I do not sing: I scream... I'm so sorry for myself!!






Anyway, we were told to dress formal and we did try to make ourselves up and look pretty for this embarassing night. Actually it was excellent, I usually dont hold onto the mic during karaoke nights but here it definitely is a culture. Everyone sings. Well, Francois is the King of Karaoke!! Put on the Bee Gees or Take my Breath Away by Berlin and he's gone for sure! He's excellent!!

The karaoke bar is a culture unto itself: participatory, eclectic, convivial, habitual, and liberating. There is singing, drinking, camaraderie, and wish-fulfillment. Karaoke gives everyone a chance to be the star, if only for a night, if only for one song.
Did you actually know that Karaoke is a Japanese term meaning "empty orchestra, and is an import from Japan. In that country, karaoke bars are for both pleasure and business. Taking a client to a bar and singing for them can mean the difference between getting a contract or not; through karaoke you sing for your supper, literally. This particular nuance did not accompany karaoke from Japan.

Why has karaoke become so popular? The literature offers several reasons. One is that it fulfills a person's fantasy of being a rock star. One karaoke disc jockey has said that everyone sings in their car, in the shower, or maybe "The National Anthem" at a ball game, but karaoke gives them the chance to sing in front of an audience. For others, karaoke has corporeal benefits. Apparently some people have physical welfare after having sung here and there. So here I go, trying to make myself feel better at the Karaoke.

I had never noticed it but really, each song is accompanied by a video, which rarely has any direct relevance to the music's lyrics. The music videos are relatively cheap in quality, and appear to be turned out quickly. It is just THAT ridiculous. You see the videos and you start thinking to yourself that you can't be more ridiculous.



As the evening progresses, the atmosphere becomes less structured due in part, no doubt, to the cumulative effects of several drinks but also to the fact that patrons have grown more comfortable and inhibitions have been shed. Non-regulars sing more often, the songs become less predictable, and the singers hit their notes less often. The culture, likewise, becomes more participatory. Strangers will ask other strangers to join them for a song, much as a stranger will ask another to dance at a nightclub. You share a lot without sharing, you know what I mean: you meet people and have no inhibitions, sing together one hand holding the mic , the other one either holding onto your partner or your drink...


Karaoke is fun! Even more in Hong Kong!!

Lam Kwai Fong Carnival

Wicked experience... it was like 2 weeks before Halloween, Lam Kwai Fong has its own carnival with capoeira performers, salseros, bands and brazilian chicks everywhere... Gentlemen, you will love it!

I guess I have been pretty busy lately doing some stuff here and there but I have not forgotten about my blog. Actually I like the fact that updates have been requested, it means people are actually reading my articles hehe.

Anyway, visitors may discover why little pockets of Hong Kong like Lan Kwai Fong have become famous for their fun dining by checking out the annual Lan Kwai Fong Street Carnival. Leading outlets in the other major food districts of Hillwood SoHo, Knutsford Terrace and Knutsford Steps and Stanley will provide special offers on seasonal food and beverages for visitors to enjoy during that time. All I know is that it was the first time I had a doner kebab here in Hong Kong... and it felt good!

Having fun in HK

Hong Kong Island - Causeway Bay and Victoria's Peak

When I was trying to decide whether I was going to Hong Kong or not for my exchange year, my International Contracts professor told me " You'll see, New York is just a farm compared to Hong Kong". And THAT just completely thrilled me. I have never been to New York or the USA actually but, I was going to see something even more big and crowded and alive than what I'd knew from New York that I'd seen on TV.

On Hong Kong Island, you'll see the major buildings in Central, Admiralty, Wanchai, Causeway Bay. It's always overcrowded and Hong Kong sure is a busy place. Buildings are amazing, And even though this place is amazingly urban, it is always very cleaned - also there is a lot of pollution, I breathe and I've smoked a pack of cigarettes already - they also construct new buildings, new roads, new whatever, as long as it keeps people busy.

Here is what you can almost see everywhere in HK:

Victoria's Peak is a place to go. That's where you can see Kowloon from a hilltop across the harbor. The view, at the right spot, is breathtaking and looks just like what you see on postcards. It's right in the middle of Central but it is just so quiet.... so enjoyable... Go there by tram, it's great...

My boyfriend and I went there and we walked down and were amazed by the calm and so many people walking there with their dogs... Peaceful place in stressful Hong Kong City...

They won't let you sleep...!!

Ok... Sorry I am not writing about my boyfriend.

I have to talk and warn you about certain things happening here at Lingnan, oh well, in Hong Kong I guess...

The Chinese never let you sleep…

They say they only sleep so late and it is so true. They are either always on their computers, or listening to music, or playing mah jong, or playing Playstation, watching TV really loud, or mostly always being on the phone… and mostly, running everywhere in the corridors and shouting… just, no wait a minute, … screaming!

And they do that thing too: the Happy Corner, where a couple of guys carry another one and push him into a corner his legs wide open. And thank you for the private parts and the guy’s futures children… I mean, wow, I never thought it would be that fun, hurting that kind of places!!!


But the thing is, Happy corner is definitely a thing going on. I was surprised about it as well as the other exchange students actually. And this guy tells me, a local student , that he is very surprised that we keep asking him what the hell do the local students do the happy corner for?

Happy Corner, also known as Aluba (or "hitting the tree") in Taiwan is a ritual that is popular among Asian male students, especially those in higher education institutes such as universities, as well as among adolescent males in middle and high school.

Even worse, it has also been reported as a favorite hazing ritual amongst military personnel in Taiwan. It is also known in Norwegian primary and secondary schools, where it is known as stolping (literally: poling, derived from the word pole) or gjelling (literally: gelding).

The guys keep pretending they have fun but it did led to :
"Part of its controversy stems from the fact that some students hazed other students not familiar with the practice, or hazed the other gender, as an act of simulated sexual intercourse. Students who refused to participate in such activity were described as being "uncooperative", and were labelled the black sheep of the party.
There are reported cases in which students only participated because of peer pressure, which caused emotional abuse. A study also said that this activity may render the victims INFERTILE.
Some have also criticized the Happy Corner subculture for contributing to an openness in attitude in sexual relationships among students.
Owing to potential danger and the implicit sexual nature of the act, the ROC (Taiwan) Ministry of Education has issued a notice that requires all schools to ban this activity. " It is also banned in the military personnel of Taiwan now.

So can somebody who practises it tell me now what is the fun in doing this? I really do not understand this kind of sadomasochism...