So without further ado, please check out the Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre's production of Sex in Vancouver*: Episode Two - Other Women

Both Sunday and Saturday dinners for Gung Haggis Fat Choy were incredible. Lots of positive comments. People who saw the CBC tv special also raved. 3 Nights of Gung Haggis. We had a rave comment from a Seattlite who watched the show and is asking for copies. I have passed on the message to CBC Regional Director Rae Hull. If you want to see the show re-run, or want to give compliments - please call CBC television in Vancouver. If you post comments on this web blog - I will forward them to CBC.

I will post a review of the Sunday show here later, as I am still very fatigued. But I am still hearing great kudos for our 3 wonderful co-hosts Adrienne Wong, Margaret Gallagher and Heather Pawsey, as well as Sound Engineer Noah Drew and Associate Producer Jim Wong-chu.

If you would like to see more of Heather - She will be performing the principal role in the Burnaby Lyric Opera production "The Elixir of Love" which opens Feb. 14 at the Shadbolt Centre and is also on Feb. 19 and 21 at 8:00 p.m. and Feb. 16 & 18 at 2:00.

Adrienne Wong is directing The Plum Tree at the Firehall Theatre - details tba.

And check out the production of "Sex in Vancouver: Chapter 2 (Other Women)" by Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre, opening on January 28th at the Roundhouse in Vancouver. We saw Chapter 1 and it was a lot of fun. For more information. Check the website for Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre, otherwise known as VACT.

The food was even better this year. Haggis Wun-Tun, and haggis spring rolls were new and excellent additions (even better than on our haggis test drive)! And I loved the crab and chicken.

As always I was blown away by Brave Waves! Their new tabla player blew Barb and I away. We liked their music so much we bought another one of their CDs. At $10, it's a bargain! One of the few CDs we will buy in 2004 since I no longer buy music from record stores because I don't want to support the music business. I only buy direct from artists at concerts or events like this where you know the artist not getting ripped off by a middle man.

Here are some of my GungHaggisFatyChoy2004 Sat24Jan2004 photos.

This year's program:

Deb, Todd's girlfriend, and grace under pressure:

Highland dancing from Cameron and Vincent Collins:

Cameron Collins is the 2004 North
American champion and the 2004 Ohio State Champion
and the 3rd Runner up in the WORLD Junior Highland
Dancing Championships which he won this past summer
in Dunoon , Scotland.

Vincent is the Former British Columbia Champion, lst
Runner up in the Ohio State Championship and the lst
Runner up in the Western United States Championship
which he won this past Summer in Pleasonton ,
California.

Both brothers are students of the Former
World Adult Highland Dancing Champion, Angus
MacKenzie.

See you at the Flamingo Restaurant tonight and tomorrow night. Doors open both nights at 5:30p.m.

• Stuffed Haggis Tofu
• Haggis Wonton Soup
• Haggis Spring Rolls

Wow... we are making the Arts and Cultural Society pages now.  Jim Wong-Chu is president of ACWW, and my arts and cultural mentor.  He has been instrumental in helping to guide Gung Haggis Fat Choy from the first fundraiser dinner in 1999.

From Malcolm Perry's Vancouver Sun column, Saturday, January 17, 2004)

Here are my photos from the 2004 GungHaggisFatChoy Poetry night. It was a great evening. I enjoyed it all including the overly dramatic but strangely appealing stylings of this poet. Lots of magical moments from many cultures in many languages.

I need to go to more poetry readings! The power of the spoken poem straight from the author is something that everyone should experience live.

Here are some photos of the Gung Haggis Wun that Todd mentioned earlier.

First, Deep Fried:

Second, in soup:

The date is set, the time is set... sit back on Friday, January 23 at 7:30pm with your haggis wun-tun and the haggis potato chips and get ready for the unexpected.

What will happen on the tv screen, I cannot say...  but it will included juxtapositions of Scottish Canadian and Chinese Canadian cultures that will make you marvel at the marvel we call Canada.  Everything was filmed in Vancouver, BC.  On locations, performers and props were in Vancouver - with the exception of George Sampson from Ottawa.

More info in my previous post about the Gung Haggis Fat Choy TV Special.

Toddish McWong and the good folks at the Flamingo Restaurant are on the case and getting ready for Gung Haggis 2004.

Here's a picture of Toddish and Michael Loh, Flamingo Restaurant manager, on Wednesday taking a break from the delicious Gung Haggis research and development tasting dinner.

Tim Pawsey's article about Chinese New Year that I wrote about Sunday with a prominent mention of this year's Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner is now online at the Vancouver Courier Website. It's called Gearing up for Chinese New Year. Check it out!