I have always liked the idea of growing Bonsai and, for my birthday last week, I was set up for the challenge and given this beautiful little tree called Syzygium buxifolium or Chinese myrtle. As today is China’s national…
The people of Hong Kong are still out there on the streets demonstrating, illegally but charmingly, for full democracy for their state within a state. They want free elections and object to Beijing imposing a list of ‘suitable’ candidates on…
In my eyes down mode, I’ve been coming to the final pages of my new novel’s first draft and yesterday, June 4th, went by without me recognising the 24th Anniversary of the tragedy of the Tiananmen Square riot, demonstration, or,…
Even though I have been lucky enough to have spent most of the last weeks abroad on holiday, first in Sicily and just recently the USA, I have been on a determined bid to get back into my martial arts…
The Chinese dissident artist Ai Wei Wei is an unconventional man living and making his mark in a highly conventional society. He believes that you should let it all hang out but the Chinese government disagrees especially when he takes…
I went to China in February 2008. It was my first visit to Asia and it was unsurprisingly one of those great moments in life that changes your perspective. The purpose of the trip was to study a branch of…