Vignettes of the World
The Temple Hill is known locally as Tsz Wan Shan. It acquired this name due to the Kwun Yam Temple in the area. This day we climbed up to the Digital TV Transmission Tower at the peak of Temple Hill via the Shatin Pass Road. …
Update: As of December 1, 2022, Haw Par Music will cease operation. Haw Par Mansion will be returned to the Hong Kong government on this day. Haw Par Mansion will remain open for public visits, and activities already planned will continue to be held. For …
On this beautiful autumn day I took a walk from Chuen Lung Village to the Shing Mun Reservoir via the Lung Mun Country Trail, ending at the Pineapple Dam. I have previously walked part of the Lung Mun Country Trail when I became lost in the mid ranges of Tai Mo Shan. I wondered what the experience would be like walking the whole trail, so I decided to hike the whole trail this time.
The trail lies on the east-western axis of Tai Mo Shan’s southern slope at its mid-range. I was very glad that I took the Chuen Lung entrance instead of embarking the hike at the Shing Mun Reservoir. To begin the trail at the Shing Mun Reservoir, one would have to climb at least a continuous six to eight hundred steps up.
The Chuen Lung Village on Route Twisk in Tsuen Wan is known for a few things. There are two restaurants in the village serving excellent dim sum with local produce as its main attraction. The veggies are grown inside the village, and so be sure to order their watercress. Many hikers would stop here for a meal before heading out on the trails in this area. For a view of its food, visit my entry on the Shing Mun Catchwater here.
From the Choi Lung Restaurant, enter the way into the Chuen Lung Village. Walk all the way until you reach the entrance to the Lung Mun Country Trail. There is a gentle incline from the village up. This section takes about 25 minutes. At this point, you will enter the Lung Mun Country Trail.
There were two highlights on this trail. The first was the three bridges, No. 1, 2 and 3, which leads one over some of the more significant streams on the way. Here are the views. They are very pleasant places for a brief stop.
Once having passed these bridges, you will come across this section. Follow signs for Shing Mun Reservoir.
On this section of the trail, the paths are mostly unpaved. Be careful as some of the way are rather narrow. However, the ground is level mostly. The walk was very easy.
The second highlight on this trail would be the brief view of western New Territories with the famous bridges in the Tsing Yi area. There were probably two spots that allow you to take a reasonable photograph of this view.
In terms of views, you would be done on this trail after this point. Keep on going. There will be just a little bit of climbing in the next section. But it is by no means too rigorous.
At this point, you will begin the last leg of the journey on the trail. Going straight for 1.1km will lead you to the Butterfly Garden of Shing Mun Reservoir. The other sign to Shing Mun Reservoir will lead you to a different point within the reservoir. It will not be close to the Pineapple Dam.
It is perhaps a continuous 15 minutes of walk on downward steps. All steps. Then you would be coming to the Butterfly Garden of Shing Mun Reservoir as your exit from the Lung Mun Country Trail. You will know that you are nearly done when you notice many, many monkeys.
Walk through the Butterfly Garden, there is a way down the Pineapple Dam from the garden.
I spent about 2 hours on the Lung Mun Country Trail itself. Including the first 25 minutes of walk from Chuen Lung to the beginning of the trail, the outing took me about a total of two and a half hours.
I took green top minibus Route 80 from Tsuen Wan. The minibuses wait at Chuen Lung Street. Get off at the final stop when you see the Chuen Lung restaurants.
At the Pineapple Dam, green top minibus Route 82 will take you back to Tsuen Wan proper, with final stop at Shiu Wo Street.
From the Tsuen Wan West Station (Nina Tower Bus Terminus), bus 51 goes to Chuen Lung Village, but perhaps it takes longer. It is a circular route and therefore watch out for the Chuen Lung stop.
I have hiked the trail between Wu Kau Tang and Sam A Tsuen Village for three times at least, and I finally had a chance to take my camera with me for some nice photographs on this trail. The trail is properly named the Double …
The red walk of Tai Po Kau is an easy 3km walk in the Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve area. The Tai Po Kau Nature Trail offers five routes of choice. Four are demarcated in the colors red, blue, brown and yellow. The fifth walk …
I spent a delightful afternoon at the Central Library reading one of the few copies of Sunset Survivors available in Hong Kong’s public libraries. A good friend recommended this book to me and I enjoyed reading the stories very much. Here is what I took from the book.
It became quickly evident that these tenacious tradesmen and women – however clandestine against the frantic urban backdrop – were essential ingredients in Hong Kong’s cultural identity. Their fascinating lives, hard-worn hands and steadfast expressions have been the base on which a modern metropolis has been built.
But with almost no willing successors, little chance of competing with larger companies and skyrocketing rents, simply surviving this metamorphosis has proven almost impossible. And so, as these sunset survivors continue to slowly pass away, so too will a unique slice of Hong Kong’s history and character. This book hopes to capture a glimpse of the hardy few who have battled the odds and continue to run their businesses today.
~ Lindsay Varty, Sunset Survivors, Introduction
In this illustrated book, author Lindsay Varty takes readers to the world of Hong Kong’s forgotten craftsmen and their sunset industries. Along with artful photographs by Gary Jones, the author engages readers on incredibly interesting, empathetic and pithy dialogues about a once-significant part of Hong Kong’s history. These traditional skills and businesses will certainly fade, silently, into Hong Kong’s past within our lifetime.
The book contains the introduction of 30 such tradesmen and their stories. Each story brings out some interesting aspects of their trade. Some express regret at not being able to find successors (Chan Lok Choi, at 16); some are happy with their life-long commitment and accept that it will end with them, as the ever-pressing needs for modernity will surely render their trade obsolete (Luk Shu Choi & Luk Keung Choi, at 20).
Look beyond the city’s world famous skyline into the nooks and crannies of the tall buildings and there lies a plethora of ancient crafts and trades largely survived by these older generations. And although they are slowly passing, these tradesmen and women continue to give this metropolis much of its cultural depth.
~ Modern City of Ancient Tradition, at 24
The tradesmen do understand that their industries and the tools of trade would rightly belong to the museum when they retire (Wong Shue Yau, at 34). For most of tradesmen that the author interviewed are, or were, the last few remaining in their industry.
It is often said that a photograph speaks a thousand words, and Sunset Survivors is the perfect illustration. The written stories are pithy and right-to-the-point. The readers are also given the space to appreciate precious imageries of Hong Kong’s sunset industries and the people within. The photographs convey the spirit of a generation past, for many of those photographed are well into their twilight years. Most of them were witnesses to their industry’s heyday, usually when they first took over the business. They have since held the baton for most of their golden years. At the same time, they know full well, and many have accepted, that there will be no one to pass it on.
Surely, there is poignancy in the photographs, especially in the black-and-white ones. Yet the colors of their crafting materials, the unfamiliar images of their tools of trade, the beautiful mastery, along with large personal portraits, together convey positive, optimistic and upbeat impressions. These are people who took true joy in their craftsmanship. They are proud to have partaken in the industry’s flourishing years. The pride in hard work, honed skills, community engagement and a sense of the historic resonates throughout this book. They certainly come alive in the photographs. And finally, they continue to be the woven strands in Hong Kong’s culture. The themes are as much about the continuation of the Hong Kong spirit as they are about the obsolescence of traditional industries.
Photo: I will share just one photograph from the book. This is Kan Hong Wing, Qipao Tailor.
One of the most interesting stories I read was about Cheung Shun King. He is the third-generation owner of Biu Kee Mahjong. Mahjong is often called the “national art of China.” His shop would be the perfect testament to this favorite pastime for most Chinese people. There were very good days when all the tiles were handmade crafts. Not surprisingly, with the rise of industrial production, handmade mahjong tiles became a thing of the past. So does the art of engraving and painting them.
By now, Mr. Cheung mostly sells machine-made mahjong tiles for HK$600 a set. When he does decide to handcraft the tiles, it takes months and they go for HK$4,000 a set. Customers also go to his shop to replace missing or damaged individual tiles.
The story is interesting because “ironically, between work and his personal life, he has never learned the game.” (Cheung Shun King, at 44). While his family love playing mahjong, “I would rather rest than learn to play mahjong… I feel bored just looking at the mahjong tiles as I look at them all day every day at work.” (Id.) He does see the end of handcrafted mahjong as a business and a craft. “I foresee that all mahjong shops in Hong Kong will disappear in 10 years.” (Id.)
Another humorous point was in Kan Hon Wing’s story. Mr. Kan is a tailor specializing in the making of qipao. Needless to say, the qipao has retired long ago as the common dress for women. Demand for the qipao today is only for special occasions like weddings. The wonderful tailor recognizes the value of honest assessment for his customers. “I will give people suggestions if their ‘dream qipao’ is too ugly.”
The Sunset Survivors have a website, where you can sign up to walk with the author to visit these sunset industry locations in Hong Kong for a fee.
Finally, there is a story about the China Café in the book and the restaurant has already closed its doors in 2019. I have written here as well.
In a few hours I read and enjoyed every word and every photograph in Sunset Survivors. I think this would be a collectible on the Hong Kong section of someone’s home library. If only I didn’t have so many unread books on my shelves!
With more than 70 years of history on its back, the Better ‘Ole is a rare gem in the New Territories. It is the oldest British pub with continuous operation in the New Territories, and perhaps in Hong Kong. It certainly was the first in …
I stopped by the Hau Wong Temple of Kowloon City after visiting the Stone House Family Garden just across the street on Junction Road. Even when I passed by the temple, I was quite amazed at how well-kept it was. So I decided to take …
A friend of ours works at the Xiqu Centre in West Kowloon and from time to time she invites us to special events at the cultural hub of West Kowloon. This day we got tickets to the M+ Appreciation Day, which allowed us a sneak preview of M+’s interiors and exhibitions.
The M+ is the art gallery in West Kowloon. As a full-service exhibition venue, the M+ provides ample space (17,000 square meters) for cultural viewing in all forms and manners. From levels B2 to 2, there are 33 galleries, 3 cinemas, a mediatheque, a learning hub and a roof garden. Together these will offer a wide variety of experiences for all age groups.
We began our tour of M+ at the cinema. We watched a screening with four to five short films about different aspects of art in Hong Kong. The films concerned the creative process, including a cartoon rendition of the building of the M+ structure, and interviews with a photographer, an industrial product maker and an installation artist. The short clip “Fly Through M+” shows drone footage throughout the museum. It was pretty cool.
For this screening, we watched a large screen that took up the upper half of the viewing space. The bottom half is a large window pane showing a view of the Hong Kong Island skyline as its backdrop. This was an interesting setup, as the arrangement allowed natural lighting into the theatre during viewing. Also worthy of note is the seating of the cinema. People sit on the large steps freely. I think this arrangement creates a sense of the open and the participatory Together the experience is reminiscent of outdoor viewing of movies, though certainly much more comfortable in an artfully-designed setting.
We finished the screening at the Cinema, and headed up the steps to reach the showrooms on Level 2. Long lines have already formed at the West Gallery. However, we took a quick walk around this level first.
In the middle of Level 2 there is the very beautiful spiral staircase right in the middle of the atrium. When it does open for public access, the staircase leads one to the roof gardens.
In the Focus Gallery we saw this following installation:
As a Christian I viewed this art with an inkling of discomfort. I do think that the image of the cross is sacred. I have general issues with postmodern art, in that I think many artwork these days aim to convey provocativeness at the expense of the aesthetics. This piece would belong to this category in my view.
We did not know what the West Gallery was showing, but the long line there seemed to suggest that it was worthwhile to wait for it. It took us about ten, fifteen minutes of waiting before we were admitted.
Generally, I did enjoy some of the pieces on exhibition there. However, again I take issues with the seeming lack of focus in the collection. Surely, there were prominent themes there, especially in the many pieces in the design category. But throughout the exhibition there did not seem to be a uniform organization of these prominent themes.
One minute I was looking at a Vivian Tam re-interpretation of the qipao, then the next minute I stared into Mao-era pieces, clearly of historical nature. I think the mix-match of the artwork was distracting. Because the exhibition did not progress in a coherent vision, I did not feel like I had a dialogue there. With each piece I had to learn the history, context and purpose of the artwork anew. As such, I got tired very quickly. My attention did not last through to even half of the huge collection there.
I do recall having this same feeling at the Hong Kong Museum of Art as well. I then thought that perhaps this is just the latest trend in museum curation. Maybe the only museum at which I would feel home is the history museum, as I do prefer engaging in a narrative when touring an exhibition.
When the whole group of friends managed to gather together, we lined up together for yet another exhibition within the West Gallery. This was an interesting exhibit for all of us, as it was a reconstruction of an old sushi restaurant in Japan. I was quite silly because I thought this would actually become a restaurant, but it was really only a reconstruction of the interiors of the sushi restaurant Kiyotomo Sushi Bar. According to the captions on-site, the interiors “created a theatrical atmosphere for dining. The contrasts of light, movement, and texture in the design captured designer Kuramata Shiro’s sensual use of materials and forms.” See this for yourself here:
For the brief one minute we spent in this space, I managed to regain my calm. I was getting quite frustrated by the huge collection of seemingly unorganized exhibits prior to this.
After the West Gallery, we proceeded to the Main Hall Gallery on ground floor. Again, there was a long line, and this time I did not join the friends in seeing this exhibition.
The M+ Building is the first structure in West Kowloon if you enter from the way of the Elements. Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron entered an international competition in 2013 and won the project.
To be honest, when I arrived I was a little taken aback by the design of the building. It is basically a wide bottoms block (the podium) with a slender top block upon it, shaped like an inverse T. Because of the horizontal bars that gird the whole slender tower, the structure looks like a CPU of a desktop.
This surely is my humble opinion. I certainly do not have the training to understand and to appreciate how marvelous this design is. Perhaps then I can quote the M+ website in explaining the groundbreaking architecture at M+:
The M+ building is supported by a giant structural system of five high-strength mega-trusses that was installed to distribute the weight of the building across the site without resting any load on the underground Airport Express railway tunnel. The sophisticated engineering system also creates vast column-less spaces that allow for a flexible reorganisation and new perspectives for viewing exhibitions.
Speaking of interesting architectue at the M+, the Found Space is also made to accommodate the operation of the rail link close by:
Found Space is a cavernous exhibition space that was excavated along the contours of the Airport Express railway tunnel running beneath the building’s site. Originally presented as a design challenge to the architects, the pre-existing tunnel became the basis for the building’s form. The space unifies the basement and ground floors with a broad diagonal opening, providing visitors with an open area that extends across multiple floors. The triple-height space offers many vantage points for viewing the works on display. The textured fair-faced concrete and exposed load-bearing structures maintain the industrial character of the site.
The M+ will officially open its doors on November 12, 2021. There was much enthusiasm on this Appreciation Day. And it is certain that the grand opening will draw an even larger crowd. Therefore be prepared to queue up for events!
M+ Map, Distributed on-site at M+.
The Website of M+.
I learned about the Stone House Family Garden when I looked up the free tours for heritage sites under the Heritage Fiesta 2021 programme of the Hong Kong Government. From the pictures the Stone House looked beautiful, and I was keen to pay a visit. …