3 July: Met by the HK branch Chair and others from the branch Executive and we head off to the meeting with the Deputy Director of Housing, Hong Kong Government. This went exceptionally well, and we discussed a number of issues of mutual interest.
I attend the HK Branch seminar and a “Meet the President” evening. I was very pleased to present two Presidential Distinguished Service Awards during the course of the evening to Vincent Ho, the Immediate past chair, and another to Frankie Hau. Both awards are richly deserved and reflect the dedication and hard work put in by both to benefit the branch, the Institution and the profession. I was also able to show a further mark of respect by presenting certificates of appreciation to branch executive committee members for their hard work. Too many to mention by name but they know who they are and my thanks go to them once again.
It was also my pleasure to present a chairman’s pendant. It was then on to the main business of presenting a “state of the nation” address to the branch members, quickly followed by “designing in safety and keeping it there.”
4 July: Two more governmental meetings today - with the Deputy Director of Buildings in the morning, and then the Director of Architectural Services in the afternoon. During the evening there is a chance to unwind a little and attend a BBQ with Andy Lo (IOSH Council member) and his wife Anita.
5 July: Now we come to the really fun part. Frankie Hau invites a number of us to visit Ocean Park where he is the Environmental, health and safety manager for a behind the scenes look. Now this is an impressive set up with cable cars, tethered balloons, animals, fish and a range of the usual park rides. I was particularly interested in the Panda’s (my daughter who is 27 is a Panda fanatic – and has been since she was about 6 months old). So we took lots of photos (which I emailed back home) and spent a fortune on panda souvenirs. There was a ride in a tethered balloon (couldn’t go all the way up – a bit too windy), a ride in a cable car, a visit to see the dolphin show, a look at the jellyfish and shark exhibits. We also saw the construction work currently underway to enlarge and improve the parks facilities.
We then move off to have a look at Stanley Market (and a welcome cold beer). In the evening we attend a gathering of the Executive Committee to have a traditional Cantonese style meal – I will master the use of chopsticks.
6/7 July: Spend a couple of extra days in HK at my own expense to do a bit of sightseeing – unfortunately on the first of those days I have “man flu” (which has been sneaking up on me for about 3 days) and spend most of the day in bed. The next day it’s raining stair rods and sightseeing is out of the question, so I have a bit of a potter about locally before going off to the airport.
8 July: Fly back to Heathrow.
9 July: Personal admin day.
10 July: Respond to e-mails and try to update this diary.
11 July: Meeting at the Grange with some MEP’s and also for a photo shoot.
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