June Newsletter
June brings the official commencement of Summer in Hong Kong. During the month we will be offering lectures for West Island School and the AWA. Private bookings, writing, autumn planning and some travel will make for a busy time.
Forthcoming Walks:
- Due to popular demand, we will be offering an additional Sham Shui Po Wet Market trip in June. If you have yet to experience this fascinating exploration - now is an excellent opportunity. June in Hong Kong can bring un-predictable weather, but as this trip includes some undercover walking possible wet weather will not be a problem. Fresh-produce markets – popularly known as "Wet Markets" - abound in Hong Kong. Some are municipal markets with everything under one roof – others are located along the street-side. In Shamshuipo one of the most popular – around Ap Liu and Pei Ho Streets, combines the best of both with a wide variety of stalls to be explored.
Other News:
- From June, we are delighted to announce the addition of a credit card payment facility. Through the website, you will be able to use your credit card for convenient online payments for group and private walks, lectures and in the future, books.
- In June we will begin to finalize our Autumn schedule. Please do take an advance look at our Event Calendar, and if you have any specific requests for walks or other activities we welcome feedback. Please note that Autumn 2011 will see more morning and weekend walks being offered directly through the website.
- In addition, a number of new programmes and trips are coming in Autumn... more information to follow...
June Walks:
Sham Shui Po Wet Market - Wednesday 8th June - 10 am
Please visit our Event Calendar for more.
Recent Walks:
Western District - May 14th with The Helena May
Exploring Hong Kong Island's Western District (popularly referred to as Sheung Wan) on a Saturday morning proved both educational and enjoyable, as a group of Helena May members experienced.
Commencing at Western Market, an early municipal market building built in 1906, originally a wholesale market on the waterfront, now an attractively conserved local heritage landmark, we made our way past Chinese medicine shops, marveling at the South East Asian origins of "birds nest" and the obvious economic significance of abalone, sharks fins, sea-cucumbers and other marine exotica.
From Western Market we moved towards Possession Point, the site where the British flag was raised over Hong Kong in 1841, and after some detailed explorations of temples and churches we finished the morning at the magnificent main campus of Hong Kong University.
While the weather was a little ominous at the outset, dark skies quickly turned to sunshine - perfect for a morning of history and culture.
Cha Kwo Leng and Devil's Peak- May 15th with The Hong Kong Club
Stone-cutting and quarrying were significant industries in early Hong Kong, as members of The Hong Kong Club found on their trip to Cha Kwo Leng, Lei Yue Mun and Devil's Peak. The principal quarry areas were located around four small villages along the eastern shores of Kowloon Bay. Two of these - Cha Kwo Leng and Lei Yue Mun - still exist today.
Cha Kwo Leng, in particular, retains numerous old stone houses and one of Hong Kong's best-preserved, authentic Tin Hau Temples, completely constructed of locally-quarried granite. This was an undoubted highlight of the walk, a glorious surprise in among the among decaying warehouses and a cargo-handling basin.
After a steep climb up Devil's Peak, we were rewarded by the extensive ruins of gun batteries. Fortified in the early twentieth century to guard the eastern approaches to Victoria Harbour, Devil's Peak lies abandoned and mostly deserted today, the area was particularly "eery" on the misty, wet morning.
Finishing at Lei Yue Mun after visiting an unusual Tin Hau Temple with surprising pre-Chinese origins, the village's famed seafood restaurants awaited for those who wanted to stay for lunch.