Saturday, July 16, 2011

Backwards (This week's Photo Hunt theme)




When out hiking in Hong Kong, one sometimes can feel not so much that one has gone back to nature but that one has gone backwards in time. This is because many a hiking trail doesn't just lead those who follow them out of -- and at times above -- the concrete jungle into the countryside and country parks but also sections of a more traditional, rural Hong Kong bordering, crisscrossing and surrounded by such areas.

Some of the villages close by to or through which certain hiking trails pass look to be still thriving while others look to have been completely -- and sometimes suddenly, inexplicably -- abandoned. Even in quite a few of those that are still inhabited though, one sometimes gets the sense that even if they are not stuck in time, time passes by more slowly there than in other parts of the territory and world!

These are, after all, sections of the Big Lychee where doors often are left open, never mind unlocked -- where ancestral photos are proudly displayed and ancestral temples still looked after, where people have and continue to tend to their vegetable gardens and fields, where fung shui woods still are to be found (and undoubtedly utilized), etc.

Those who aren't into hiking but wish to view and visit traditional villages in Hong Kong can do worse than go along the officially designated Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail up in the North District or Ping Shan Heritage Trail located between the "new town" of Tin Shui Wai and bustling market town of Yuen Long out in the west. However, I have to say that the most interesting villages (including the fabled Lai Chi Wo and Sha Lo Tung) are those encountered while out hiking -- a pursuit that I think that those viewing this Photo Hunt entry realize can give one tastes of culture as well as nature, at least here in Hong Kong. :b

29 comments:

magiceye said...

brilliant concept for the theme and wonderfully executed!

yes i did use a zoom lens for the pic on my post

Luna Miranda said...

it's hard to imagine that there are places like this in Hong Kong. great take on the theme...i had a hard time.:p

Anneke (Mudhooks) said...

Lovely and so interesting!

Mine is "sort of" along the same lines as your choices.

http://mudpuddle.wordpress.com/2011/07/16/photo-hunt-backwards/

YTSL said...

Hi magiceye --

Thanks for approving of my take on this week's theme. :)

Hi Luna Miranda --

I know what you mean. I remember seeing such villages in Hong Kong movies and wondering where in Hong Kong they could possibly exist. Now I know! :b

Hi Anneke --

Thanks -- and yeah, we thought similarly and yet quite differently too with regards to this week's Photo Hunt theme. :)

Annie said...

Backwards in time is great and you found a perfect example with this unexpected side of Hong Kong.

jams o donnell said...

Excellent take on the theme Once again you show us another side of the Big Lychee, one that runs counter to one's image of teh city

Trekcapri said...

Hi YTSL,wonderful photos and a very cool take on this week's theme. Looking at these photos does give one a sense of stepping back in time....so interesting.

Thanks so much for sharing. Have a wonderful weekend.

Susan Demeter said...

Would love to go hiking there!

LifeRamblings said...

it's always great to discover interesting places of HK through your post which are unknown to the average visitor.

YTSL said...

Hi Annie --

Thanks, am glad you like my take on this week's theme! :)

Hi jams --

That's the thing -- Hong Kong isn't just a city! ;b

Hi Kathy (Trekcapri) --

I love sharing with visitors to this blog such as you. (Content thieves, OTOH... and yes, that is still happening, alas! Though, at least, not it's not in full form like before... (This for those of you following the content theft saga. :S)

Hi Sue --

Hiking is an activity I highly recommend people -- visitors as well as residents -- do in Hong Kong. :)

Hi Life Ramblings --

Considering how well travelled you are, I'm glad to be able to keep on showing you parts of Hong Kong/the world you've yet to visit. :)

Carver said...

What a great take on the theme. I would enjoy hiking there. So cool to enjoy nature as well as the cultural heritage.

Gattina said...

Nice post ! never thought about backwards in time !
We had wonderful weather in Istanbul indeed !

Ruth said...

Definitely a step backwards in time! A great take on the theme.

Liz said...

You don't see them very often. I love the antique jars.

Nice take on the theme.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Liz @ MLC

rdl said...

nice step back!

ancient one said...

great post and perfect photos for the theme!!

Colin Campbell said...

Lovely. We went out to some of those communities during one of my trips to Hong Kong.

YTSL said...

Hi Carver --

Based on what I know of you via your blog, I do agree that you'd enjoy hiking here in Hong Kong. :)

Hi Gattina --

Thanks -- and continuing our conversation started on your blog: am glad you had good weather in Istanbul. It was sunny when I visited but a tad on the overly hot side -- so much so that I got heat rash! ;(

Hi Ruth --

Thanks, glad you see what I mean about the backwards in time bit. :)

Hi Liz --

For me, what you specifically don't see that often in Hong Kong -- except out in these old villages -- are single storey homes! ;b

Hi rdl --

Thanks! :)

Hi ancient one --

Thank you to you too for the compliments. :)

Hi Colin --

Cool, am glad you got to see some part of Hong Kong other than the usual touristy bits. :)

peppylady (Dora) said...

There old cabins out in woods around here usual done by the forest service one time my hubby and I looked though one.
What was amazing hardly any dust.
Great take on this week theme.

Coffee is on

Willow said...

Purrty pictures and it does capture a part of the past that was untouched by the modern world.

Dianne said...

I like the backwards in time intrepretation. Very nicely done. And thanks for always coming over to my blog for a visit. Much appreciated.

mariposa said...

Cool take on the theme! It is good to look back in time once in a while :)

Mariposa's PH!

CherryPie said...

Very interesting, a nice idea for the theme :-)

YTSL said...

Hi peppylady (Dora) --

We don't have cabins done by the country park authorities here. Instead, they seem more into building pavilions where you can rest at for a while before continuing with your hike. :b

Hi Willow --

Actually, I think some of the pictured places are still in use to this day! ;b

Hi Dianne --

Glad you like my take on this week's theme -- and yeah, yours is one of your blogs I do look forward to checking out for Photo Hunt. :)

Hi mariposa --

Ya, going down Memory Lane every once in a while can be quite pleasant indeed! :)

Hi Cherrypie --

Thanks, glad you like it. :)

jmb said...

Such a contrast with the bustling modern Hong Kong we all know.

Great choice YTSL. Happy weekend to you.

baroness radon said...

Love these images.

YTSL said...

Hi jmb --

Yes, it's a real contrast with the concrete jungle part of Hong Kong... The amazing thing is that the places in the photographs really aren't *that* far away geographically from there! :b

Hi baroness radon --

Am glad that you do. :)

Anonymous said...

I'm glad that there are places like this still in Hongkong, very surprise but really glad too.

YTSL said...

Hi ewok1993 --

I know what you mean. The funny thing is once you "discover" one, you'll soon find quite a few others too! :b