Moon Festival Lanterns, Victoria Park

There were hundreds of coloured lanterns hanging in Victoria Park this week to celebrate the Moon Festival. The festival always happens on the fifteenth day of the eight lunar month of the Chinese calendar when the moon is at its largest, lowest and brightest. It's an important family day in China and relatives gather to eat mooncake and tell stories of Chang'e. As legend has it Chang'e flew to the moon where she has lived ever since. Forget the man in the moon, in China the woman got there first!

A deli-icious slice of home life

As insignificant as it sounds, one of the things that I really miss about living in Europe is popping into the local cheesemonger and stocking up on delicious treats at the tiny Italian deli just around the corner from my old flat. To my mind there's nothing finer than a warm, crispy baguette, a crumbling hunk of Montgomery cheddar, a couple of slices of delicious wafer thin ham and a glass of red wine. I can happily spend half an hour in the cheesemonger breathing in the comforting aromas of extra mature stilton and gently oozing brie, and I love the deli for the lingering smells of Spanish legs of ham and really good olive oil.

I've been missing that in Hong Kong, and although I'm a big fan of Cantonese cuisine there's nothing quite like the therapeutic whiffs of ham and cheese to make me feel comforted and at home. I was delighted, therefore, to stumble across Olala in Wanchai. It's a rare find in this crazy city: a small, wood furnished, simple French deli / brasserie tucked away just off Star Street.

For the princely sum of $72 (£4.50) you get two simple, but hearty courses from the set menu and $98 (£6.30) gets you three. The set menu is excellent value and offers bistro staples like steak frites, a plat du jour and a good, but straightforward lamb dish. None of that for me though, I sprinted straight towards the display of hams, salamis and cheeses stacked under the deli counter. As soon as you walk through the small door the smell of them hits you, and although they cost more at about $120 a plate each it's well worth it. There's a good selection of cheeses and cold meats to choose from and they can all be accompanied by decent French wine. I was extra nice to the staff there; I’m going to need them on my side when I end up at the door happily sniffing the air and completely oblivious to anything else that’s happening around me.

Olala – 1 Electric Steet, G/F, Wanchai, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2294 0450.

Oh I do love to be beside the seaside

OK, so Suffolk isn't exactly in Asia, but I thought I'd deviate... Suffolk isn't a place that usually springs to mind when planning a mini-break by the sea either, but if you're a London based beach lover then it's a lot easier to reach than the far-flung paradises of South-East Asia or Sangria soaked resorts in Spain.

Aldeburgh, which is just 2.5 hours away from central London, is a pretty and quintessentially British place with a huge (albeit pebbley) beach, traditional pubs, snug B&Bs and cute boutiques.

Famous for its annual arts festival and being the place where Benjamin Britten breathed his last it's well worth a weekend visit. Aldeburgh is located right in the heart of rural Suffolk and visitors can make the most of miles of unspoiled countryside, historic villages and lots and lots of fresh air.

The best parts of my trip included delicious Ploughman's Lunches, pints of sweet Suffolk cider, bike rides between Aldeburgh and the pretty villages that surround it, walks on the beach, eating fish and chips from Cooney's (a very famous fish and chip shop) on the shingle, the impressive Snape Maltings , rummaging through the little boutiques that line Aldeburgh's High Street and relaxing away from the hustle and bustle of city living.

There are some great places to stay in and around Aldeburgh (Alastair Sawday is always a great place to start) and a weekend break will give you plenty of opportunity to make the most of this little corner of England.