The reception for Canada 150 was a grand success, with special guests Consul General of Canada to HK and Macao Jeff Nankivell and CY Leung who both gave speeches celebrating Canadian pride in Hong Kong.
Photo Credit: Jasmine Lee
The Canada 150 reception was held at the Island Shangri-La Hotel on the evening of the 21 June. The event was decorated in Canadian gear from top to bottom, with gift bags of goodies, Canada 150 pins, and a Powell River totem pole standing just outside the ballroom.
Special guests at the reception include the Consul General of Canada to Hong Kong and Macao Jeff Nankivell and HKSAR chief executive CY Leung, who both said a few words in celebration of Canada’s milestone birthday. Bernice Liu, Hong Kong celebrity and Canada 150’s ambassador, also made an appearance at the event.
Nankivell surprised the crowd by beginning his speech in Cantonese, which received a chorus of cheers for his impressive yet humorous stab at the language. In Leung’s following speech, he joked that in the one year that Jeff Nankivell has spent in Hong Kong, he has mastered Cantonese pronunciation just as well as his parents have after 50 years of living in the city.
Nankivell was mindful to mention that 21 June also coincided with National Aboriginal Day, which is a day dedicated to celebrating the heritage and diversity of Canadian First Nations, Inuit, and Métis cultures. He acknowledged that there is still a lot of work left to be done with the rebuilding of relations between the government and its aboriginal peoples, emphasising the importance of these reparations moving forward. Nankivell hit the right spots during his time on stage, speaking on Canadian values and its role on the global scale.
Joyce Lee, a Toronto-raised singer, performed a powerful cover of “Summer of ‘69” by famous Canadian singer Bryan Adams, raising the spirits of the crowd and the overall mood of the night.
The buffet tables had Canadian goodies such as burgers made with Canadian Beef and the popular west coast Nanaimo bars, along with Asian specialties such as sushi and sashimi. The drinks served at the event included a Canada 150 cocktail, Canadian wine, and Boreale beer, which is a brew that is made in Quebec-based microbrewery Les Brasseurs du Nord in Quebec.
That’s not all though – there are two other Canada 150 Celebration events that will take place at Shore Steak Lounge Terrace. On 1 July, Canadian Club will be hosting a Celebrity Pancake Brunch in the morning to early afternoon, which will then be followed by the Celebration Party that begins in the evening.
n the evening.
