Vignettes of the World
I suffered from a pretty significant injury at the hike at Kai Kung Leng. I walked this trail in order to re-train my knees. The first part of this trail consist of the main part of the Tai Lam Chung Reservoir Mountain Bike Trail. I …
Kat O was part of the Hong Kong Government’s celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark’s inclusion into the Global Geopark Network. The celebration comes with special arrangements for ferry transport, storytelling by the natives of the islands, interesting workshops, …
In celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark’s inclusion into the Global Geopark Network, the Hong Kong Government has organized a number of activities in various interesting Geopark locations. The activity period comes with special arrangements for ferry transport, storytelling by the natives of the islands, interesting workshops, lion dances and other celebratory initiatives.
The activities for Kat O (Crooked Island) and Ap Chau (Duck Island) have already concluded in November. My father and I went island-hopping with a group of his friends. We visited both Kat O and Ap Chau on this day.
The itinerary was to first meet at the Ma Liu Shui Pier (note that the boarding point for the Kat O ferry is about a hundred meters toward the Shatin direction). The ferry departs at 9am sharp. The ferry would first make a stop at Kat O, then to Ap Chau. We skipped Kat O on our way there, and boarded off the ferry at Ap Chau instead. At 11am we were at the pier in Ap Chau and stayed there until the ferry would take us to Kat O at 12:30. For the rest of the afternoon we stayed in Kat O, which is a significantly larger island, until the ferry would leave for Ma Liu Shui at 4:30pm.
Both Kat O and Ap Chau are islands on northeastern New Territories. Ap Chau is the outlaying island closest to China. Therefore at most points in the island, one can observe the well-developed, busy port of Yantian, Shenzhen. At a mere 0.04 square kilometers, Ap Chau is also the smallest inhabited island in Hong Kong’s UNESCO Global Geopark.
Ap Chau is called Duck Island for a reason. The landscape of the island looks like a duck lying flat on its tummy. In fact, I thought it looked more like a roasted duck than a living duck. Even from afar, you can tell first the sea arch that makes the Duck’s Eye (more below).
There are also views of other smaller, uninhabited islands nearby. There are the Duck’s Egg and the Small Ap Chau within view.
There are some remarkable natural features of Ap Chau that are observable even as we approached the island from the ocean.
Photo: the small sea arch on the right is the Duck’s Eye, and the large fracture on the left is the Duck’s Neck.
The first one is what people call the Duck’s Eye. According to the pamphlet on Ap Chau, sea arches are formed when “the weakest point of a coastal cliff is eroded into a cave. As wave erosion continues, the cave deepens, eventually forming an arch.” The Duck’s Eye is the most visited site on the island. Literally every tourist rushed there to take photos. As such, prepare to queue for long lines there.
There have been warnings against visitors climbing up to the roof of Duck’s Eye for photos. The arch continues to erode and the top part is weathering away constantly. Any weight on the arch could cause it to collapse eventually. Yet we still saw people doing that.
After visiting the Duck’s Eye, visitors can backtrack a little and visit the Duck’s Neck. Geologically, the Duck’s Neck phenomenon is a fracture zone. “The rocks are fragmented and easily weathered and eroded, resulting in a narrow channel.”
The island is full of reddish-brown sedimentary rock called “breccia.” The breccia is formed when the sediments in a sheet are cemented by calcareous minerals. High pressure from layers of later sediments solidify them. The surface of the breccia is coarse, showing the angular rock fragments that form them.
The reddish brown color indicates an oxidation process in a semi-arid environment, perhaps some 100 to 65 million years ago. I believe it is a similar formation process as the red earth of Chek Chau. The breccia is rare in Hong Kong. You can see them in Kat O, Ap Chau and a few other islands in Starling Inlet. I believe I have come across them in Ma Shi Chau.
Finally, outside the Duck’s Eye lies the wave-cut platform. It is formed by continuous wave erosion of the rocks in the intertidal zone. The wave carry the rocks away, “eventually leading to the formation of sea cliffs and a flat area above the water surface.” The wave-cut platform protects the cliff by reducing the force of the sea waves, thus slowing down the erosion of the cliff.
After lining up for photos in Duck’s Eye, I hurried to the only high point on the island for open island and sea views. The highest point of the island is a mere 28 meters. You will see the stairs up behind the True Jesus Church. It took just a few minutes to walk to the viewing point. I saw great views there.
The Ap Chau Story Room stands at the former site of the Ap Chau Fishermen’s Children Primary School. It is a great pity that the Ap Chau Story Room was closed when I visited. I will draw on the pamphlet on Ap Chau and the guided tour I heard on the ferry for the island’s story.
The village in Ap Chau had its heyday during the 1960s and 1970s. The population then were more than a thousand strong. Villagers were once fishermen. It was around this time that missionaries of the True Jesus Church from Taiwan approached the island. They promised the villagers that, if they were all to turn to Jesus Christ, the missionaries would provide economic assistance. One of the initiatives was to provide housing for the whole village.
The Ap Chau Fisherman’s Village consist of four two-storey blocks and 48 units. They were built in 1961. Because the missionaries of Taiwan built these for the fishermen at the same time, these buildings in the island had a uniform design.
The tour guide that introduced this story said that the Christian tradition remains strong in the island today. Unlike many other former sea-faring islanders, the villagers of Ap Chau do not worship Tin Hau, the Goddess of the Sea. As such, there is no Tin Hau Temple in Ap Chau. In fact, the village head has complained that some people come to the island and do odd things like blowing trumpets and worshipping deities in the open areas. He does exercise his power in forbidding these kinds of practices on Ap Chau.
Currently, there are about twenty families still living in Ap Chau. Like so many of Hong Kong’s villages, many villagers gradually moved out of their rural homes in search for better education and opportunities in the urban areas. Some have gone abroad to live as well.
The Ap Chau Story Room opens only on Sundays and public holidays.
Finally, the celebration of the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark will include a guided tour of Sam Mun Tsai and Ma Shi Chau on the weekend of December 18. I highly recommend doing this guided tour. Without proper training it is very difficult for anyone to find, recognize and appreciate the special geological features in Ma Shi Chau.
Guided Tour on the Ferry.
Pamphlet on Ap Chau, Agriculture Fisheries and Conservation Department.
Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark 10th Anniversary Website.
Ferries depart at the Ma Liu Shui Pier Landing No. 3 for Kat O and Ap Chau. The easiest way to get there is by walking about 15-20 minutes from the University Station on the East Rail Line. Again, this landing point is about a hundred meters toward the Shatin direction from the Ma Liu Shui Pier.
The tickets to Kat O and Ap Chau cost $90 return, and $45 one way. The staff will check your tickets when you leave Ma Liu Shui and when you do your return trip back to Ma Liu Shui. There is no ticket checking between Kat O and Ap Chau. People usually do visit both islands in one go. Please visit (and study carefully) the ferry schedule for Ap Chau.
See also the same website for boarding for Kat O and Ap Chau at the Sha Tau Kok Pier instead.
Located within the Lam Tsuen Country Park, Kai Kung Leng prides the highest peak in northwest New Territories after Tai Mo Shan. With its highest peak at 585 meters, the mountain range provides an exceptional opportunity to view the landscape of northern and northwestern New …
After visiting the Chuen Lung Family Walk, I had about ten photos left on my film. I was eager to develop the film soon, so I looked for easy heritage sites in Tsuen Wan for picture-taking. Since the Jockey Club Tak Wah Park is in …
The Tung Shan Temple is an easily accessible site in San Tin, Yuen Long. It lies right at the village entrance, next to the restaurants of San Tin. I have seen signs pointing to the temple and finally had the opportunity to pay a visit. It has quite an unusual beauty as a temple.
Along with the Tang, Hau, Pang and Liu clans, the Man’s were recognized as one of the “five great clans” of the New Territories by the colonial government of Hong Kong. Scholars have suggested that the colonial government made favorable policies for them because of their joined resistance against the British takeover of the New Territories during the Six-day War of 1899. The main clan residing in the San Tin area is the Man’s.
Tung Shan is the name of Man Tin-shui, the descendants of whom established the Man villages in San Tin of Yuen Long. Originally, Tung Shan Temple was a Tin Hau Temple. After its restoration in 1905, the temple was dedicated to the original ancestor Man Tin-shui, as such it acquired the name Tung Shan Temple.
The Tung Shan Temple of San Tin became a Grade 3 historic building in 2010. It is believed that its earliest existence began during the Chenghua Reign of Ming Dynasty (1470). Man Sai Kor, who was also the founder of the Man villages in San Tin (see below), founded this temple. As such, the temple prides a history of more than five hundred years. The former structure was restored during the Guangxu Reign of the Qing Dynasty (1905). It underwent a restoration in 1970. Finally, the former structure was rebuilt in 2013, with most of the items replaced.
Photos: Items inside the temple. The plaques on the two photographs on the left show the details and contributors to the restorations.
The Man’s of San Tin shares the same lineage with Wen Tianxiang (pinyin), who was a very famous historical figure in China’s ancient times. He was the prime minister (standing on the right side of the Emperor, as the highest-ranked official during the Southern Song Dynasty) for the Song Emperor. He was a loyal politician and also a poet. History books laud him for staunchly opposing the forces of Kublai Kahn, leader of the non-Han Mongolian tribe, who would establish the Yuan Dynasty after Song Dynasty fell.
Kublai Khan’s forces captured Wen Tianxiang in 1278, and offered Wen a post as an official in the imperial court of Kublai Khan. Wen refused to succumb to the “barbaric mongols,” and suffered greatly for four years in prison. He was eventually executed, but left behind a great patriotic poem known as the Songs of Righteousness for posterity.
Now, the Man’s of the New Territories were not direct descendants of Wen Tianxiang, but they do take pride in the shared lineage with this peerless hero in Chinese history. The founding father of the Man’s in San Tin, Man Sai Kor, was a descendant of Man Tin-shui. Man Tin-shui was Wen Tianxiang’s cousin on the paternal line. Man Tin-shui himself was a noted official, although in no way as famous as Wen Tianxiang. He served in Guangdong during the Song Dynasty. His descendants ended up establishing a number of villages in various locations in the New Territories, including Tai Po and San Tin.
When I arrived at the site, I came from the back of the temple then onto the front. I simply did not expect to see the grand appearance of the temple. I was very much amazed by how well-restored it was.
Tung Shan Temple: Views from the inside.
First of all, no one can miss the beautiful wooden plaque right at the entrance. The name of the temple in gold sets against a red background. This color combination really accentuates the words. The red, blue and gold theme conveys a brilliance and liveliness unusual for the temples of Hong Kong.
Figures of dragons, lions and an array of other auspicious animals greet visitors, giving an impression of authority. Right away, I straightened my back and prepared myself for a solemn entry.
According to a report online, the villagers did not think so highly of the Tung Shan Temple. They thought that the temple did not have good feng-shui, and the incense-burning turned cold there for a long time. I suspect the abundance of auspicious motifs are there to turn the feng-shui around.
Finally, also exceptionally beautiful are the figurines that line the top of Tung Shan Temple’s roof. These ones seemed to depict scenes of Chinese folktales. I wish I could tell what narratives they are.
First of all, I do think quite highly of the homey restaurants that line the entrance of the Wing Ping Tsuen Village in San Tin. They are right by the bus stop and offer good food with very reasonable prices. It is a good idea to stop there for a regular or a light meal.
Secondly, there are quite a number of heritage sites in this area. The best-known is Tai Fu Tai, which is a Qing Dynasty mansion for Man Chung-luen, the 21st generation ancestor for the Man clan in San Tin.
Last, but certainly not least, there are other sites. The Man Lun-fung Ancestral Hall, the Man Ancestral Hall and the Man San Ye Ancestral Hall lie in proximity within the Fan Tin Tsuen village. They are testaments to the Man clan’s history in the area. The Man Lun-fung Ancestral Hall has a notable scholarly bent to it, and I will explain in another entry.
This is part of the series on the Man clan’s history in San Tin, Yuen Long. See also the entries on Tai Fu Tai and Man Lun Fung Ancestral Hall. Consider doing all these sites in one trip. It is doable within a half day.
The easiest way by public transport is to take bus 76K from either Yuen Long Station (Yoho Mall 1) or Sheung Shui Station. The location is perhaps somewhat halfway between Sheung Shui and Yuen Long. Get off at the San Tin stop (note that it is the same stop for both directions, therefore watch out for which direction the bus is going when you leave). The Tung Shan Temple is right at the bus stop.
By private car, you may park at the small parking lot next to the San Tin Post Office but it is usually very crowded there.
Baidu.com.hk, Prime Minister on the Right.
The Wikipedia on Wen Tianxiang.
Chan Tin-kuen, The Ancestral Heritage of the Man Clan in San Tin, Yuen Long, Thinkhk.com (Chin), April 6, 2017.
Hugh D. R. Baker, The Five Great Clans of the New Territories, 6 Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 25-48 (1966), From the Wikipedia’s entry on the Five Great Clans of the New Territories.
When visiting Hong Kong’s heritage sites, I find most of them to be very beautiful in their restored state. This visit at Yam Wah Lo, also known as Pun Uk, brought forth a different kind of appreciation. The unrestored historic Hakka structure, very much in …
The Chuen Lung Family Walk is the shortest family walk in Hong Kong at 0.5 kilometer. I was curious so I decided to pay a visit. The Chuen Lung Family Walk is a loop. I walked from the Chuen Lung Village minibus stop so the …
After visiting the Hong Kong Railway Museum in Tai Po Market, I headed out to Wun Yiu, in another part of Tai Po. It is a much lesser-known exhibition as compared with the Railway Museum, but no less interesting.
The exhibition center lies behind the Wun Yiu Public School. It is a very small venue, but it serves all educational purposes. It shows a history of the village way before the colonial times.
I spent about a half hour to read through the captions. I then asked the lady whether I can visit the archaeological sites on show in the exhibition. She said only the animal-driven grinder is in the vicinity and open to public visit. The other archaeological discoveries, including the china clay pits, the watermill, the washing basins, paste-making workshop and the kiln are not open to public visit.
This is mainly because the public has no way to know actually where they are. Some of them, she told me, were actually re-covered with soil and buried again in order to prevent weathering and other damages. I found that to be incredulous, but I would have to take her word for it.
The San On Gazetteers of 1688 and 1819 contained entries that referred Wun Yiu as Wun Liu and Wun Yiu respectively. This fact indicates that the area was known for making porcelain during the early Qing Dynasty, for “wun” in Chinese means bowls.
The Man’s and the Tse’s were the founders of the Wun Yiu Village. The imperial edict of coastal evacuation of 1662 had displaced them. By the time the Qing emperor lifted the edict in 1669, only the Man’s returned to their home village in Hong Kong. Although they were makers of porcelain here before the coastal evacuation, they were not able to revive the industry after their return. As a result, production ceased.
In 1674, the Ma’s came to Tai Po from Changle in Guangdong. They purchased the kilns from the Man’s, and revived the porcelain-making industry in Wun Yiu. “It was recorded in a government document that the production of Wun Yiu amounted to 400,000 pieces annually” by the mid-Qing Dynasty. These pieces were sold locally as well as for export to places as far as Southeast Asia.
However, as time progressed, the Wun Yiu production met fierce competition from the coastal production of porcelain in Guangdong. Production continued to decline, and by the 1930s it ceased completely.
Wun Yiu is “the only kiln site that produced porcelain in underglaze blue currently found in Hong Kong.” The study of Wun Yiu’s archaeological sites had begun as early as the 1950s. Archaeological teams continued to unearth pottery-making sites in the Wun Yiu area into the 1990s. With the help of the villagers of Sheung Wun Yiu and Ha Wun Yiu, the archaeological team located all the sites that were required in the porcelain-making process.
Rich deposits in china clay and china stones in the Cheung Uk Tei area in Wun Yiu has enabled the emergence of the porcelain-making industry in the village. Archaeologists have discovered mined quarry pits for raw materials. Close to the quarries were the watermills. The site shows 16 remains of the mill, each equipped with 3 to 6 sets of pestles and mortar. The mortar was hammered from granite.
At the animal-driven grinder, the china is ground to fine china powder (see more below). Next in the process is washing. The archaeological team has discovered washing basins, where the villagers washed and soaked the china clay powder. After rounds of washing and precipitation, the resulting mixture was the fine clay for porcelain-making.
Then the clay is kneaded and formed at the paste-making workshop. The archaeological team has discovered just three stone pillars, of the same height and shape, in the village that could have held the horizontal planks where villagers laid out the pieces for drying.
Next comes the kiln firing. There were two dragon kilns found in the area, both built on slopes. The ascending steps along the kiln were what gave them the name of “dragon kilns.” Photographs of the kiln sites show clearly the ventilation holes.
Photograph: these are firing tools
Photographs: these are the porcelain shards found at the archaeological sites. Apparently, there were heaps of them.
Photographs: the kendi discovered in Wun Yiu is indication that products here were made for exports. Kendi is a popular water container for the Muslims.
The museum displays a cow pulling the grinder in a pictorial illustration. In fact, the Chinese name of this device means “the cow grind.”
This grinder comprises of a circular trough and a grinding blade, both of granite. It was used to grind china stones into fine powder to make clay. In those times, the most common animal that pulled the grinder was the water buffalo.
To visit the animal-driven grind, which is the only archaeological site available for public visit, exit the museum and go pass the Fan Sin Temple. Next to the temple, there is a slope leading up. Make your way up and then you will see a set of stairs going further up, with a gray railing. Go all the way up this staircase and you will reach the grind. It is well-preserved.
The Fan Sin Temple
There is only one temple in Hong Kong dedicated to Fan Sin and it is this one in Tai Po. Fan Sin is the God of Potter. According to descriptions at the Wun Yiu Exhibition, this temple was built before 1790 during the Qianlong reign. The 16th generation ancestor, Ma Choi Yuen, of the Ma clan invited Fan Sin from Guangdong to come here and protect the potters.
Villagers used to celebrate the Fan Sin birthday on the 16th of each fifth month on the lunar calendar with significant festivities such as operas. Now the celebrations are simpler with a ceremony and communal offerings.
Next to the Fan Sin Temple proudly stands the Wun Yiu Public School.
The stone plaque Ng Sheung Dai stands before it. According to introduction on site, Ng Sheung Dai was a private study for the Wun Yiu Village. The five Ma ancestors with the name “Sheung” established the private study during the Daoguang Reign of the mid-Qing Dynasty (“ng” means five in Cantonese, therefore the school name was dedicated to these five Ma brothers).
In the 1930s, Ng Sheung Dai evolved into a public school called Man On School, and provided full-day primary education for the villagers. However, education ceased completely during the war years.
The current site was established in 1949 as the first school ground for Wun Yiu Public School. The school had its heyday during the 1960s and 1970s. There were many students and the school had to expand its campus. As such, it has educated the modern generations of the Wun Yiu villagers. Due to the push for urbanization, the Wun Yiu Public School ceased in 1994. As the school building was preserved, the villagers collected the funds to restore it in 2014.
Finally, I highly recommend doing both the Hong Kong Railway Museum and the Wun Yiu Exhibition in the same day, as I did. I spent about 1.5 hours at both locations and it will make a heritage trip out to the New Territories more than worthwhile.
Green top minibus Route 23K runs between the Tai Po Market Station and Wun Yiu. Get off at the Wun Yiu stop, then cross the street. You will see these following views, with the aqueduct and the bridge. Cross the bridge, and you will see the signs pointing to the Wun Yiu Exhibition and the Fan Sin Temple.
This is the staircase that will lead you to the Fan Sin Temple and the Wun Yiu Public School. The museum is behind the Wun Yiu Public School.
Historical descriptions on site.
Please refer to the pamphlet of the exhibition here.
The World Ma Clan Culture Data Center, The Wun Yiu Public School in Tai Po, Hong Kong and its History with the Ma Clan.
I spent a delightful 1.5 hours at the Hong Kong Railway Museum in Tai Po Market. I have been there once, but I did not study the museum exhibits last time. This time, I allowed myself a leisurely walk in the museum and the train …