155
Even me, I said after working for several years, I would have difficulties in speaking English. Now it's better, in these two years, but really in the early 90's when I first joined, I had difficulties.
In the mood for history...
Appearing on and off stage throughout the day is an elegant woman in her 50's, dressed in a green, form-fitting, side-buttoned cheong-sam. She is the only woman to speak on stage. She is Dr. Elizabeth Sinn.
One of the talking points of the film, "In the Mood for Love”— Tony Leung won a Cannes best actor award was actually the costumes made for Maggie Cheung. Cheong-sams in all different patterns and when worn by Maggie, they looked absolutely beautiful. I decided after seeing the film that I would start wearing them, it will be my signature look...
I am a couple of minutes early for my appointment and wait in the hallway of the Centre of Asian Studies at the University of Hong Kong. It's about 10 minutes before I am asked in. Not surprising that the deputy director would be a busy person.
Sinn is sporting a lovely purple cheong-sam with a floral pattern and with a violet cardigan over top. Sinn sits behind her desk and invites me to sit across from her. It's a small office but has the benefit of a peaceful window view. Sinn looks so classically Chinese, I wonder if it's to make her fit her roles as Deputy Director of the Centre and vice-president of the RAS more convincing, or to unintentionally perpetuate a cliche.
"I have learnt a lot about Chinese culture and Hong Kong history from the RAS over the years,” said Sinn. "It's very different from reading books. Certainly the RAS provides a very different angle for looking at local culture than most Chinese people in Hong Kong have. For me, it's always exciting when I can see things from a new perspective, when there are more options. Of course, I have also made many friends through the RAS, not only the Council members but also ordinary members. They are a self-selected group of people who are genuinely interested in finding out about things."