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Leslie Cheng, an 18-year-old cosplay enthusiast, transformed into a male anime character from the popular Japanese TV series. She first put in red contact lenses, concealed her long hair under a wig, and slipped height-enhancing insoles into her shoes to make herself 1.77 meters. She was about to go to Mongkok for a date with a woman she had met online less than a month ago. Tonight Cheng will make HK$200.  “This is my new side hustle, which we call cosplay commission,” said Cheng.“Through cosplay, we bring characters from anime into reality and go on dates with the character’s female fans.”  Cheng is one thousands running cosplayer commission businesses through social media, especially Xiaohongshu and China’s TikTok, which have made their way to Hong Kong. Many young people here say this new job not only brings in extra cash but also a sense of fulfillment for their female clients and themselves.  The cosplaying apparel segment dominated the Asia-Pacific role-playing and otaku apparel industry in 2022, valued at US$ 1.5 million, and the segment will likely getting 7.2%, according to market research company Astute Analytica.  “I'm happy that more and more people like the service of cos commission,” Cheng said after first posting photos with her clients and receiving many positive comments on Xiaohongshu.  A post titled “Daily Life of Maid Rin Matsuoka” on Xiaohongshu has received over 20,000 likes. Some of Rin Matsuoka’s fans asked in the comment section if they could get the poster’s autograph and have an opportunity to date.  Rin Matsuoka is a male character from the Japanese sports anime Free!, recognized for his appealing appearance, intelligence, and loyalty to friends, which attracted groups of female fans, according to the Free! Wiki, a character's science fiction website.  “I seek a painter to create an anime-style drawing of …

A dazzling array of lights and colour lit up the Hong Kong Cultural Centre piazza and foyer on Friday night as the city celebrated the Lantern Festival. This year’s theme was “Chinese Lanterns: An Enduring Heritage,” co-organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office (ICHO). It featured animal-shaped lanterns, including pandas, peacocks, and koi fish, that symbolise prosperity, strength, and good fortune. At 7 pm, a two-person youth group from the Boys’ and Girls’ Club Association of Hong Kong Mei Foo Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre performed classic songs including Jace Chan's “Born to Be Different”, “People Life, Ocean Wild” from Mayday at the installation for around half an hour. “I feel that this year’s Lantern Festival is a combination of traditional and modern cultures,” said Chloe Yang, 29, a primary school teacher from mainland China.“These lanterns present a modern twist on traditional paper-craft skills, and the animal theme is also very appealing to me,” she added “As a tourist, I am glad to see Hong Kong placing so much emphasis on Chinese culture and bringing it to different people with fun and lively animal symbols,” Yang said. Local paper-crafting Master, Mo Cheuk-kei, was invited by ICHO to make one of the lanterns with the theme of  “Glittering Fish – Lanterns with Abundant Blessings,” according to the programme details from LCSD. The lanterns designed were based on traditional New Year paintings in which two little lions play with fish on a pond while holding fortune sticks to pray for the New Year. “I come here to watch the wonderful lanterns every Lantern Festival, and this year's vivid animal lanterns that symbolize China were a big surprise,” said Lau Sui San, a 64-year-old retiree. “I am happy that Hong Kong has so many …

At a cozy Shenzhen bar, soft jazz music plays as colorful cocktails glimmer on a Sunday night. The audience was focused on a speaker discussing the dichotomy between materialism and idealism with a few slides projected behind him on a screen. Neighbor House, Shenzhen's first “academic bar," hosted its first event on Sept. 27, exploring the question “Is life a wilderness or a track?”. “The bar was packed that night,” said Yu Yang, 32, a bar partner of Neighbor House. “I wanted to open a bar with spiritual pursuits, like in the movie Midnight in Paris, to make social drinking more interesting and intellectual.” Academic bars blending intellectual discussions with socializing have become popular in China’s first-tier cities this year, mostly in Beijing and Shanghai, before recently finding their groove in Shenzhen. People recruited from social media gather at venues like Neighbor House for lectures and debates on various topics, all while enjoying drinks. On Xiaohongshu, a popular lifestyle social media platform in China, topics related to "academic bars" have gained more than four million views, with more than 6,000 related posts. “At least 30 people attended each event, which is beyond our expectations,” Yu said. “We had to turn up the speakers so that people gathered outside could also hear.”  “I want to get away from work and learn more things other than making money,” Xu Yihua, a 30-year-old participant, said. “I expect to have discussions with others and make more like-minded friends through this platform.” Xu Yihua, a human resource manager, participated in the academic salon held at the Neighbor House for the second time. She said she cherishes it because there are few opportunities to participate in such activities after graduating from university.  Academic bars originate from “Science in a Bar” in the UK. The SciBars are …