Finally, to the final photo-essay for the second official Heritage Trail I walked along in Hong Kong -- and, if truth be told, one I actually found less interesting than the first I went on (i.e., the Ping Shan Heritage Trail out in northwest Hong Kong), yet have retrospectively realized has nonetheless yielded its share of nice photos.
And while the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall is the area's undoubted architectural jewel, I also cherish such un-photographed experiences as an encounter and conversation with a friendly gentleman who, like many of his neighbors, has Tang as his surname and proudly talked about being something like the 10th generation of his family to live in that same village.
On the subject of residents of the area, I think it worth repeating the following lines in the free Heritage Trail booklet found at the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall as well as Hong Kong Tourism Board offices: "The Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail is opened with the cooperation and support of the local residents. Please therefore respect them and keep disturbance to the minimum..."
And while the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall is the area's undoubted architectural jewel, I also cherish such un-photographed experiences as an encounter and conversation with a friendly gentleman who, like many of his neighbors, has Tang as his surname and proudly talked about being something like the 10th generation of his family to live in that same village.
On the subject of residents of the area, I think it worth repeating the following lines in the free Heritage Trail booklet found at the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall as well as Hong Kong Tourism Board offices: "The Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail is opened with the cooperation and support of the local residents. Please therefore respect them and keep disturbance to the minimum..."
Next to -- and inevitably physically overshadowed by --the Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall is a Tin Hau Temple
that may be the temple devoted to that goddess
of the sea that's the furthest inland I've ever seen
When viewed on its own, I reckon that the temple building is imbued with its own simple grace and elegance
Among the temple's most treasured itemsare a cast iron bell dating back to 1695
and another that dates back to 1700
The walled village of Lo Wai looks like it'd have a reallyinteresting interior but, alas, it looks to be
closed to the public -- and even has what appear
to be guard dogs at its entrance to deter visitors! :(
Consequently, we had to content ourselves witha visit to the more modest looking walled village
of Ma Wat Wai -- entry into which also necessitated
passing by a dog, albeit one that friendlier than
those observed at the entrance of Lo Wai!
Ma Wat Wai's surprisingly narrow main thoroughfare is bounded by surprisingly modern houses
At the end of the main alley, deep inside the village, is the partially desintegrated communal altar that,
nonetheless, remains in use by at least some people
Near the final attraction of the Heritage Trail(i.e., a historic church-- albeit one that only dates back
to 1926 ), and what I'll end this photo-essay with, is
an interesting -- some might think incongruously --
mixed view of farm land and high rise apartments
4 comments:
What an interesting post and wonderful shots. I love learning about different places through bloggers.
Hi Carver --
Thanks for visiting and commenting on a non-Photo Hunt entry. And yes, I love learning about different places through bloggers too. :)
Hi YTSL! Great pics as always. That one of the cars parked in front of the village wall got me wondering who actually lives in these. Not that I imagined they were agrarian leftovers from the 19th century, but would there, for example, be an office worker who lives here and commutes to Central? Are the people here self-sufficient? Where do they go shopping? etc...
Hi duriandave --
Thanks for liking my pics. :)
Re the residents of the villages along Lung Yeuk Tau: notice the house next to the Tin Hau Temple? Yeah, someone living there could commute to Central -- that would be around the distance I commute to work these days... :S
Re self-sufficiency: Can't imagine all of the people spending all of their days in just that small area of Hong Kong. For shopping: the main big town would be Fanling (where, among other things, the wet market in "Hooked On You" is -- or, rather, was as it has been closed down) -- and the bigger Tai Po is just one MTR stop down from Fanling.
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