Before Hong Kong

One of my favourite places in London is the Barbican centre and I can’t help but feel that part of the reason may just be because it is so unpopular with most people - the desire to be contrary. It was designed to be modern, forward facing and almost self contained with a mixed use design encompassing residential in amongst commercial and cultural space. It is a remarkable space for being simultaneously foreboding yet welcoming to all that enter. And, although it cannot have been the first time I went there, I remember feeling a great sense of nostalgia with my first memories of regularly visiting in the late 2000‘s - but it was a nostalgia for Hong Kong.

The Barbican and Hong Kong feel interconnected with each other due to a great, overarching sense of planning from the same ethos and a similar timeframe. I don’t know if it actually was the case, but the densification and social idealism in creating both seems the case.

I first visited Hong Kong in 2005 as a stopover when I went to Bangladesh^[1] and I stayed for a short while but did a lot of walking and travel - this may, possibly, have been where I started my template of travel^[2]. Needless to say, I got lost regularly with enjoyment and gay abandon. My memories of that particular trip are of staying in Kowloon and enjoying the night atmosphere and the neon lights and signs. In fact, I decided to get the bus from Kowloon to the airport just to enjoy the top deck journey through the bright lights.

The second visit was only a few years later to meet someone. It was a different trip with company and my two strongest memories are of how boring I found gambling in the casinos in nearby Macau and how massively frustrating I found the city layout when I wanted to walk somewhere and there would always be a shopping centre in the way.

On the basis of the two previous trips, I felt that any further visits to Hong Kong would have to be for stopovers only - and this is what I told my friend that I was originally supposed to visit.

In the spirit of the densification so prevalent in Hong Kong, I have decided to densify my trip from inception and am flying on a work evening and leaving direct from my office (which is in the Kings Cross area). The rush hour journey across London on the Piccadilly is always a great start to a holiday...

As I started the journey, I received some news about a later part of my journey - or my planned journey. As I mentioned in my pre-trip post, I was hoping to travel from Busan in South Korea to Fukuoka in Japan on a boat and had even gone to the trouble of booking it - which is a rarity for me. what I thought was booked was not booked and I was informed that my booking had not been made and that there were no longer any more spaces on the boat or any other boats that day or the day after. This was not great news and so I had think of what else to do whilst travelling to Heathrow. Thinking is not really my kind of thing so this was less than ideal - at least I had time to think about it on the way to Hong Kong.

In order to plan my trips, I use a “grid” that has four columns representing morning, afternoon, evening, night and then rows for each day so that I can work out where I will be each day and plot it on the grid. I think more granularity than those four portions to the day complicates the process. I find it quite useful but it does end up quite a puzzle sometimes trying to piece together a trip out of finite ingredients. I would have to consult the grid to see how to fit the detour in. You’ve got to have a system (below is a simplified version).

One of the benefits of the airlines forming so many alliances is that the ticketing possibilities are massively increased so my Air France ticket is actually Air France to Hong Kong and KLM on my return from Japan. The flight on Air France entailed a change at CDG but this was fairly short followed by the flight to Hong Kong on an Airbus A380^[3]. I was pleased with this aircraft (having only been on a few before on Emirates when travelling via Dubai) and did actually check before booking.

A late departure and the time difference meant that I’d be settled in Hong Kong itself in the evening so it would feel a little like a full day travelling. Or a full night seeing as it was in the dark and the shutters stayed down for most of the flight. I was pretty fortunate with the flight as I chose seats at the back and few others did so I ended up with a section of three on my own. the flight itself was wonderfully unremarkable except starting with a particularly lovely safety video which is apparently tres chic which I enjoyed tremendously.

<sup>1. This trip sticks in the memory as I travelled from Japan to Bangladesh via Hong Kong and so it is one of the rare opportunities for me to pass through airport customs and security using the three languages that I can (could) actively use.↩
2. I also remember taking my luggage and leaving it at the airport in Hong Kong to avoid carrying it around. I don’t think I would have considered that as an idea until I lived in Japan and saw the convenience of coin lockers, but it is something that I search for these days and makes a lot of travel much, much easier.↩
3. Who could have thought that European cooperation could be so productive? What a long time ago the idealism of the Concorde and Airbus projects seem now.↩</sup>

An Oriental [Limited] Express

Like so many stories, this probably starts in Nando's.
I lived in Japan for 3 years and in many ways, they were possibly the most formative years of my adulthood^[1] as they felt like a time of both renewal and excitement even though I didn't really have anything to renew. Much of this is besides the point - that three years allowed me to create more friends and acquaintances than is apparently normal for adults and, although many have fallen by the wayside due mainly to the attrition of time, I count myself fortunate enough to have retained contact^[2] with a decent number of them. Whilst assisting one of these friends with some passport application issues and reminiscing away, I suddenly felt that Japan was a place to visit again - without a wedding to attend to.

As it happened, another friend of mine moved away to Hong Kong and I said, as I am wont to do, that I would come and visit at some point. And at that point, I would go elsewhere too as Hong Kong doesn't seem to have enough for my tastes on holiday for a lengthy stay (are those enough qualifiers so that I don’t get shot down?).
And so, two ideas coalesced into one with potential to be a nice shared trip of about two weeks - into Hong Kong and then out of Japan (Kansai International being preferred) and it was in the gaps that, the bit in between, intrigue could flourish.

As it happened, my friend was unavailable in Hong Kong after booking, and so I was at a loose end. And over lunch at work, I wondered how that loose end could be tied up - where would be an interesting stopover? Often, the way that I think about the gaps in between is by considering the surface travel opportunities - basically the question is “which train lines are connected?” This was not fruitful for Hong Kong starts, yet it sparked a thought and I decided that the knot could be Korea. South Korea.

So I consulted my virtual Rolodex to see whether people I knew had any advice about South Korea. Surprisingly, quite a few of my acquaintances had been so I was able to harvest some interesting stories which were enough to make my decision. Well, part of my decision about locations but not about timings or details. That comes later, if at all. The skeleton plan becomes:
London - Hong Kong - South Korea - Japan - London

Hong Kong SAR
Hong Kong is a place I have visited a couple of times and I found it hugely frustrating in the past which is why I had not really had a particular desire to go back. It strikes me as a good place for a stopover as it is different enough to most places but not big enough (for me) to enjoy for a long period of time. Yet some of my later travels, most notably to Singapore (which I have described in the past as similar to a Hong Kong without the charm), have made me feel a nostalgia for the memories of Hong Kong and so I am keener on this than I was before. At the very least, Hong Kong is particularly photogenic.

South Korea
I had not been to South Korea and much of my knowledge of the country would be old-fashioned and coloured by my past in Japan. In the early 00‘s, Japan went through something of a “Korean boom” where many aspects of Korean culture became fashionable and popular ranging from the food to the television dramas. I may never have got into the dramas (they looked a little too melodramatic for my taste) but the food was very popular with my taste buds with a nice mixture of spice, heat and tang.

As it stands, I am not entirely sure of where to go within the country but I would like to visit Seoul^[3], the DMZ and am aiming to take a boat to Japan via Busan. It is in the gaps, that excitement may lie.

Japan
I’m a big fan of Japan generally have enjoyed travelling around there a few times. This means that there are not so any major locations that i have not been so I imagine there will be some retread but I am happy to do so. One of the best things about Japan is the incredible rail infrastructure with fast, regular connections throughout the country and this is something that i will be looking to use as much as possible. There are a few choices for where the boat from Korea goes to, and I am presently leaning to Fukuoka^[4] where I do not think I have been. From there, I need to get to Osaka and Kyoto at some point within ten days so that leaves a lot of opportunity for travel and even, potentially, for socialising - though this seems out of character.

Well, those are the plans, now to see how the reality merges with the plans. If anybody else would like to add to my list of ideas, please feel free to comment below.

<sup>1. This only really means that they were more formative than University - a time that I didn't particularly enjoy. I didn't really dislike those years either but I spent a lot of time wondering what the fuss was about. Maybe, in hindsight, they were my most formative years of all.↩
2. Presently this often means little more than being invited to weddings due to the complexities of modern life.↩
3. I have been very fortunate in that when asking around, a friend’s family used to live in Seoul and they have provided me with a list of place to see, places to go and places to eat.↩
4. The three letter codes for this trip would be PUS-FUK which I rather like.↩</sup>

Euro 2016 Group Stage round 3

Permutations

Isn't it a lovely word? I can imagine it as a huge Kevin Keegan monster. There are certain words that have an association with football that I can't shake and it feels like the third round of group matches has always been about permutations. Is it better to win the group or not? Which side of the draw would be better to be on? This is a classic point near the halfway point of a tournament and it feels alive with possibility and glee. This time, with the third place team wildcard option on the table, it made this particular set of matches even more difficult to assess until it was all over. As I heard someone say, it makes filling your wallchart in a real annoyance. 

I thought that this would add some extra excitement to the round with almost all teams still, potentially, in it to the end (and how appropriate in a group stage so tight in individual games). I'm not sure it has in all cases but it has in some and that should be applauded. I think UEFA have really added some spice into the mix here. For every time we complain about the Slovakians playing for a draw (against England) , you can also see the Spaniards and Croatians going toe to toe in the relative safety of knowing they'll both make it. We can be a little sniffy about who makes it out of the group stages but I think it really means something to some people - that is worth remembering. The joy of Iceland making it out of the group stages (and to be fair, they didn't need the third place for that) and what that must mean^[1] in a country with the population of a borough of London is truly amazing. Look at what it means to third place Northern Ireland to get through to the last 16. Theoretically, these are the teams that should have got through in the previous system of having sixteen teams in the finals stage, but there is so much more glory, it is a joy to behold. The third round of games is less about what happened, and more about what could happen. Even so, there were some great games with my personal favourite being Spain vs Croatia as the two teams were clearly high level and they made their passes count - I also rather enjoy watching Spain lose these days. The Portugal vs Hungary game was also good - the highest scoring game (although my point on goals being overrated still stands!) as it had drama to the end as a result of the Hungary vs Austria game taking place in parallel - which in the end, comes down to the effect of those results.

And what permutations we have with a nice, uneven round of games in keeping with this slightly more open tournament than we thought. That last gasp winner for Croatia setting up a wonderful last 16 game between Spain and Italy which will have to be the tie of the round. Who'd have thought we would get a rematch of the last final? Both have been wonderful in parts (arguably, each delivered the performances of the stage against Belgium and Turkey) but the tightness of the continent's level sees them flung together. The "home nations" tie between Northern Ireland and Wales will be an intriguing contest with Wales probably able to exert pressure from a position of relative strength for them and it should see Bale, Ramsey and Allen continue their fine form. The draw has been split in two with one side heavy with potential champions and the other side, relatively light - these are the permutations making it exciting.

Kits

I am quite a fan of football from the aesthetic point of view, I really love the shifts of space and momentum when you see the mass of players interacting but I am also quite a fan, usually, of the details - the kits. I say usually, as some of the kits in this tournament are just horrible. The England kit is genuinely terrible with the pointless blue sleeves, the ridiculous looking white shorts and stupid red socks. 

It is a real shame to trample over the traditional colours but at least there is only really one shade of white. France have got a blue that isn't even their normal blue! They have two blues on their shirt and neither is the correct blue! They still have blue shorts too which is just wrong. There seems to be a rule in the World Cup where the teams must have the same colour (or close) shirts and shorts but it seems not to be the case for UEFA and so we have seen teams with contrasting kits again. That is much better, but some teams (and it seems the Nike ones - they got rid of different shorts colours many years ago, seemingly voluntarily, for many of their kits such as Portugal and the Netherlands) have still got the rather silly looking monokits. It is like playing in a onesie.

^{1. If you want to know what it mean for Iceland, the commentary in this link will surely give you some idea. Iceland has a population similar to the London borough of Lambeth - this is some achievement.↩}

Why to bother with blogposts?

I'm often^[1] asked about why I write blogposts and I've recently thought about this a little more. Prompted, somewhat, by an article I read about the purpose of sharing on social media, and how we are all writing our own obituaries. Is it just a desire to be remembered, a desire to have left something behind?

As I said on a previous post when I started reblogging some of my past and then also when I've been more recently trying to trim my photo collection, it is pretty nice for me to remember the past sometimes. I don’t think that it is to be remembered myself. Or I'd like to think that it isn't. But, then why is it public? Why is it out there at all and not kept in my personal space? Why not a diary or journal? 

Maybe, just maybe, it is showing off in some way. I had never really thought about it like that but it must be that at some level. But I haven't really got anything that I'm showing off about - being able to construct sentences and putting pictures online is not really a skill in the modern world. I do like adding to discourse though, it may be more that.

Tatemae

Japanese social norms have the concept of honne and tatemae which is the idea of having a public, visible face and then your real thoughts and feelings are behind that. Social media does promote this quite a lot and, of course, many do try (and succeed) to do this with their profiles on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram et al. But probably not Google+.

There is a different way of looking at this, I think though. Unfortunately, it may be a little more nuanced and that is harder to represent in text, but it is still a way. In many ways, you could think of it as the backroom dealings before a public relations exercises - negotiations to reach a compromise before presenting to the public. At a personal level, this means considering the many competing thoughts swimming and swilling about in your head so that you can reach a coherent (or hopefully coherent) conclusion. It is that, which is the reason for my writing. 

Now, again, this is something that does not need to be public but there is worth in making it so in my opinion. First of all, there is a difference between dressing up and making yourself presentable. My attire at home on my own will be different to when I collect the milk from the doorstep to when I get the papers from the local shop to when I go to a dinner party^[2]. Going to the local shops still requires some form of respectability and I think it is that level which I am striving for in most of my blogposts. 

That it is forcing me, entirely of my own volition, into a structured form has been really positive for me. Some people have told me that I can be fond of a rant^[3] but that is not my aim at all - rants are unstructured and uncontrolled which is really not my desire at all. I am not necessarily writing about anything important (although I have to say my post on immigration is one that is relevant now and regularly since) but it is great practice for bedding down my opinions and giving me a reason. It has also made me approach things slightly differently - the constant thought of "is there material in this?". And you know what? There is material in everything and we'd all do well to recognise that. Now, watching a film means that I think about it as a whole, what it is trying to do and how it is trying to do that. I may have thought and felt that subconsciously before but now it is a thought process. I guess you can achieve that through conversation but what if your interests don't always intersect with those you know? It is the same for many of the things I have blogged - you might be interested but you probably are not. And if you are interested, I'll be ready to discuss as I'll have laid the foundations. I'll be ready for real life.

Does everything just end up being practice for real life?

<sup>1. Not true, they haven't. This is what you call poetic licence, I am not asked this as very few people read what I write, and it is a vanishingly small subset of people I actually see regularly. But as an introduction, it works by riffing on a standard phrase.↩
2. These are all universally understood things that we do, but I have to say that I don't do any of them. Again, some slight poetic licence.↩
3. Who better to judge my actions than other people - my self-awareness is not totally up to speed - but examples were thin on the ground. I wonder what the blog equivalent of subtweeting is? Or vaguebooking?↩</sup>

Euro 2016 Group Stage round 2

Second album syndrome is a pretty standard phenomenon and there is a little bit of that about the second round of group games. It was always just a matter of time, but now we've had some tight games without many chances and a few heavier defeats yet, the tournament is still pretty open. It isn't, however, as refreshingly footbally as the first games. The third team qualifying changes the whole dynamic and no team is definitely out - and only a few (Spain, Italy and France) have recorded two victories - though not definite group winners.
So, those heavy victories - were they mismatches? I'm not really sure they were and if you take three goal victory to be a heavy win, Belgium and Spain are the only ones. Turkey and Ireland could count themselves unlucky to be on the end of a flurry to be honest, although they were eventually outclassed.

Goals are overrated
Once the enjoyment at the tightness had gone, for whatever reason, it was always a quick jump to saying the games are low scoring and so dull. 

Low scoring games, and high scoring games in fact , are only a guide to whether games are good or enjoyable to watch for me. This is classic correlation not being the same as causation material. I have really enjoyed seeing the organisation that means each goal, each attack, is difficult and it means each successful movement is essentially of such a quality. This is not a "pop it into the mixer" kind of level and for that I am very pleased. The joy, as they say, is in the struggle.

Standouts
There is a little bit of the 2010 era Frank Lampard of Ronaldo at the moment - so many shots, so many chances, so few goals. It won't last, but there is an element of schadenfreude that I cannot deny, especially after the ungracious comments about Iceland in the first game. He does, as far as I'm aware, pay his taxes though...

Daniel Sturridge is one of the finest constructors of a shot that I have seen in football, his ability to work a shot or get a shot away is truly exceptional. England have a number of strikers that you think can do the job, but it is nice that they can approach their roles in such different ways. The 45 minute performance was superb but it did highlight the dearth of attacking quality (in the game) being supplied when he had to keep dropping deep. He did a great deal to get that win for England.
Modric provided a true all-action display in the middle for Croatia and can be considered pretty damn unlucky to be on the drawing team - the Czech Republic were on a hiding to nothing, until it became a hiding to a point. He passed, created and shot beautifully throughout. Croatia have been a joy to watch.

With all the groups being finely poised and no dead rubbers in the third section, there is plenty to look forward to. And in many ways, the tournament doesn't really start until the knockouts. With the Tour de France starting soon, this has the feel of the peleton, jostling for position, readying itself for the finish.

Euro 2016 Group stage Round 1

So “matchday 1” is over and it is worth a quick review, I think.

I am a huge fan of tournament football and I make every attempt to watch every single game, which is possible due to the importance given to football in the UK^[1]. Having now seen every team in the tournament, what have we learnt and what have we seen?

Expanded competition.

The naysayers said that this would be a weak tournament with too many weak teams and mismatches throughout. Of the twelve games so far, I do not think a single one could be described as a battering with all teams making a good account of themselves. The largest margin of victory is two goals but all games have been kept alive (i.e. only a goal in it) into the last few minutes with Hungary killing the game in the 87th and both Germany and Italy into injury time – all on counters. And I think it is also fair to say that Italy and Hungary were seen as surprising victors in their games.

It has been a very good, tight tournament so far. The level has been high and that is in both attack and defence and this has reminded me, more so than a few recent tournaments, of my youth. The tactical discipline and awareness is of a great level and the teams have all had solid, understandable gameplans going into their matches and this is in an era where club football, with its ability to get a far greater cohesion, is in the ascendancy. This does suggest a general improvement in the overall level of European football. 

Europe has a number of teams of quite varying standards over time – look at who is not even in this mammoth tournament – notable teams to have failed to qualify are: the Netherlands ('88 champions), Denmark ('92 champions), Greece ('04 champions) and other sometime major teams like Norway, Scotland etc. But, and this may be where I differ from others in terms of the purpose of tournament football, there are also teams with potentially brighter futures that should be nurtured. In my opinion, the purpose of the regional confederations, like UEFA, is to promote the sport and improve the quality of that region. I think this view may be shaped by my time in Japan, but the way that football can flower in previously quiet places is truly amazing. And I think UEFA have a responsibility, a duty of care you might say, to help their nations do well and improve - which they do with providing practice for the European nations for the World Cup. For example, if Wales make it to the next World Cup, they will be far better placed to approach that with a Euros under their belt. If you agree with that, in many ways it does not matter too much if the games are close or not - less established teams are practising their tournament approach and getting goals or working on their defence in order to prepare for the future.
Whether the games remain as tight is up for debate - for many teams the focus on the first game is different to the group. Smaller teams may be aiming for a solid start, or concentrating on on their introduction to the big scene where bigger teams may want to ease themselves in like Italy of yore...

Never underestimate Italy

The last terrible Italy team managed to get to the Euro finals in 2012^[2] so we should not be too surprised that their mentality can make up for a weakness in playing talent. They are not lacking mid-level quality but there are few that would be namechecked as the best around unlike the teams of the past. Even so, they took the hipster's choice (maybe for 2014 - possibly too mainstream now) of Belgium for a lesson in tournament football. I think Pelle's is probably my favourite of the round. Beautifully cutting through on the counter and then a pass for an open goal yet emphatically finished.

Roll on round 2. The fact that up to three teams can progress means that it really is all to play for going into the round.

^{1. I think I may have seen every single Euro match on TV since the final of 1988, definitely every game since Euro 96. In all honestly, I was a week ago wondering whether it was going to be worth it - watching an England friendly against Portugal was almost enough to put me off. Almost.↩}

^{2. It was also, rather bizarrely, when it felt like the commentators on TV seemed to discover the wonderful Andrea Pirlo (and this article is almost as wonderful). I had spent many years admiring Pirlo and many of my friends shared my love of his finesse - this was not always the case with people I knew less well.↩}

A short trip to Yorkshire

Apparently, Yorkshire is God's own country and so I felt like I should probably visit^[1] as I had not spent any real time there previously. I cannot say that this trip was exactly an extensive route, but it was definitely in Yorkshire.

I was on my way to Scarborough, Britain's first seaside resort town, but I was going to be picked up in York on the way by a friend of mine. I took the train to York and ended up in York a little earlier than my pick up time so I could have a quick walk around. I knew that I would return on the way back so I was pretty relaxed in my walking around until I got in the car to Scarborough. I saw the walls and the cathedral but, truth be told, I had a little work to do.

We got to Scarborough a little later than expected so when we got there, the options for food were quite low – so we went and had some fish and chips from a local chippy. Waiting outside, and then eating outside, it did not feel like a well-to-do area. This was not helped by the people that joined us at the table (although another was also free) and proceeded to shout random, drunken abuse and suchlike at passer-by. The food was alright though.

The next morning, at about 8:30, we made our way out for breakfast, but without cash, and so we looked for cash machine. A few were out of order so a search was necessary. As we were walking, a woman shouted to me “Asalaamalaikum” (Greetings in Arabic) so I waited for her to walk over. This was a mistake. She came over and I was able to give her the brush off quite easily but my friend was less lucky and after an unwanted hug and a kiss, an escape was sought. She walked in the same direction asking if she was being rude, so we entered a local shop. As did she. It wasn't even 9 and she was a little drunk. We got away (after another “chat” in the shop) and headed for a breakfast in a café that had been freshly painted. Apparently, we were the first ever customers.

Whitby is famous for its ghostly atmosphere^[2] and we made our way there after breakfast. 

We made our way into Whitby (and I was struck by a hotel offering "en-suite parking" – I am genuinely not sure what this means) where we saw the infamous “Vote Leave” red battle bus. Emblazoned with the £50m per day lie and the chutzpah of saving the NHS too^[3], it summed up the hate of EU regulations by parking where it was not supposed to in front of the Tourist Information (per discussion overheard inside asking them to move), and not for the first time. Whitby has a very impressive Abbey that is reached over a 199 steps. It is worth the walk. We continued that walk for a few hours to Robin Hood’s Bay which was a Cliffside walk with lovely views and gradients that were unexpected.

Returning to Scarborough via Whitby again by bus, we got back to Scarborough for a far more enjoyable evening than the one before as we took in some classic seaside treats like doughnuts and arcades.

Having decided to walk the York city walls later that day, we spent only a short time in the North Bay of Scarborough but it was enough time for some Adventure Golf (best course according to CBeebies) and breakfast.

York is a very old place and many of the city walls are still standing and can be walked along and the trail is 3.2 km. I thought that this was exactly the kind of thing that I would do. The walls are not unbroken with a few bits along roads or paths where the wall was but it is an interesting trip affording some nice views of York Minster and a few other things around the city.

The National Rail Museum is also based in York and I felt that this was also worth a quick tour before heading back to London by train. It is an OK museum but it felt more of a nostalgic view of train travel from a certain time with more evocative imagery than information about rail. I know museums are supposed to be about history, but it is a little sad how it does not seem to cover much about the rail network as a whole or non-steam trains. It does contain a Shinkansen train though so that was a bonus.

A short trip to Yorkshire - click for album

<sup>1. I hasten to add that this does not mean I am referring to myself as God, or his son or anything like that. That is for other people to say.↩
2. I had no idea of the Dracula connections but it seems most other people do.↩
3. Overhearing some of the arguments as I walked past later, it wasn't just the side of the bus that was reserved for nonsensical lies.↩</sup>