Yesterday, we had a heavy thunderstorm in the evening. At first it wasn’t too bad, just thunder in the distance and then a few drops of rain for at most five minutes. That was it. Alright, I thought, it’s over, let me call a mate and walk to the dairy farm. The heavy clouds looked awesome, a bit threatening but mostly harmless and just beautiful. We decided on a small detour to the home made ice cream vending machine and got ourselves some expensive, but very yummy pineapple/mint, yoghurt and raspberry/basil tubs. Mint was super strong, had to eat three spoons of some other flavors to actually taste it. A few spoons in and then the thunder rolled in from nowhere. So we quickly headed for the dairy farm while eating our ice creams. Half way there the sky floodgates opened and we took cover under a tree at the local playground. A minute later we decided to climb up the slide tower, because it had a proper roof. A tiny bit of hail cam down, but nothing serious.
About 15-20 minutes the rain stopped and the thunder and lighning rolled past. So we continued our journey and I finally filled my two one liter bottles successfully. Every now and then it drizzled a little bit through the forest. We reached our homes and a couple minutes later rain hit again. Thunder and lighning went crazy. The sky lit up every few seconds and this continued through half of the night.
Right after I hung up to meet my mate, another mate called and reported a few villages north of us they experienced hail sized a bit under golf balls. But he luckily managed to get the car in the underground carpark in time.
Today, it rained the whole morning. This was great since the temperatures stayed below 20°C, so my walk was a real joy. It’s going to get close to 30°C tomorrow, though, gnarf, örks, bwäh. :-(

My June ‘22 in Review
And now June and thus half of the year is over, how fast time flies, blazing fast! Time for a little review. ⌘ Read more
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warns Nato of China’s rising assertiveness
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Hong Kong University of Science and Technology gets approval for Guangzhou campus, in time for handover anniversary
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Nato leaders say China is a ‘systemic challenge to Euro-Atlantic security’
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China tells UN expansion of Nato, or a Nato-like body, into the Asia-Pacific will stir up conflict
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China’s easing of zero-Covid restraints set to release stocks into bull-market territory for first time in three years
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Police in China arrest twin sisters who used each other’s passports more than 30 times to travel the world
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China, Nato and how the Ukraine war is spilling over into the Asia-Pacific
Indo-Pacific partners are joining the bloc’s summit for the first time as the US seeks to counter China’s influence. ⌘ Read more
Singapore man who preyed on disabled children jailed for record 45 years in ‘exceptionally sickening’ case
Prosecutors said the man committed his crimes over the span of 16 years, including from 2005 to 2018 when he worked as a part-time tutor to ‘gain access to a ready pool of children’ – many of whom were disabled. ⌘ Read more
Priced out of Hong Kong, young home buyers look to Greater Bay Area for space and value
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How an expanded BRICS could lead the world instead of the waning West
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US man shoots Subway worker dead over ‘too much mayo on sandwich’
The gunman argued with two female staff before opening fire, killing one and injuring the other; the wounded woman’s 5-year-old son was at the restaurant at the time. ⌘ Read more
Russian missiles hit crowded shopping centre in Ukraine, Zelensky says
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❤️ 🎶: As time goes by [From “Reply 1988 (Original Television Soundtrack), Pt. 9”] by Kihyun
Ukraine war: Russia defaults on foreign debt for first time since 1918
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School in China ditches sleeping on desks at nap time for health reasons and lets students set up their own tents to sleep in
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Why this 25-year-old is not leaving Hong Kong
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The Chinese fact checkers taking on the Covid infodemic – a rumour at a time
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In reply to: Oatmeal - That one time when Buffy the Vampire Slayer maybe saved my life?
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FBI seizes Basquiat paintings from Florida exhibition amid doubts over authenticity
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China jobs: facing lean times, small businesses dial back summer hiring
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Ukraine war highlights G7’s role as geopolitical linchpin
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[Sponsored Article]
Strategic planning is regarded as a popular management approach adopted by public, private and non-profit organisations today to set priorities and steer future development. It helps define the mission of the organisation and establish realistic goals and objectives consistent with that mission in a defined time frame for implementation within the organisation’s capacity. … ⌘ Read more
Hong Kong must not cling to governance structures of the past
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Uneasy times for Hongkongers making their home in mainland China
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Coronavirus: Hong Kong tour group heads to Japan for the first time in more than 2 years after Tokyo eases Covid rules
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Thousands flock to Stonehenge for summer solstice, the longest day of the year
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Wealth gap between Hong Kong’s crazy rich, miserably poor widens since handover
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Next US election may prove most dangerous time for Taiwan, warns veteran US diplomat Chas Freeman
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Japan: 5.2 magnitude earthquake hits west coast’s Ishikawa, ‘no tsunami threat’
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Apple workers vote to form tech giant’s first-ever US union
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Beijing approves Hong Kong Chief Executive-elect John Lee’s cabinet line-up
Long-time bureaucrat Eric Chan becomes chief secretary, Financial Secretary Paul Chan to stay in current post. ⌘ Read more
Ukraine plans to resume peace talks with Russia by August, officials say
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Singapore’s Pink Dot gay pride rally returns, as MP from ruling party attends for first time – and in a pink T-shirt
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Hong Kong vs Shenzhen: a technology tale of 2 cities, and a game of catch-up
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Chinese mRNA booster fights Omicron 4 times better than inactivated Covid-19 vaccines, researchers say
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Thailand wants selfie-taking tourists to stop abusing famous tree on island
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Chinese destroyer on long-distance exercises in Sea of Japan, to deter ‘attack on Taiwan’
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North Korea expands restoration at nuclear test site to second tunnel: report
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