A Wander Around Tai O

Tai O is a quiet, quaint place, but housing is dilapidated

 

Yesterday I took advantage of a day off to wander around Tai O, a small fishing village on Lantau Island. I have visited two or three times previously for work assignments, one on making the famous shrimp paste that has a very strong smell, and one on solar panels used as a pilot project by WWF. But after spending a good part of the day conducting interviews and shoots, we were tired and wanted to go home so I never really got a chance to see the place.

The night before I did some research on places to visit and especially where to eat and noted the names and addresses.

On the way to Fu Shan Viewing Pt

Then I took the MTR to Tung Chung, and then the No. 11 bus to Tai O. I was surprised to see a long line of people at the bus stop, but luckily I got one of the last few seats. I remembered it takes about 45 minutes to get to Tai O, and on the bus it made scheduled stops in places including Tong Fuk Correctional Institute (former lawmaker Nathan Law Kwun-chung served two months there), and another, Shek Pik Prison where pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung is, and independence activist Edward Leung Tin-kei spent some time there previously.

Finally we arrived around lunchtime and I tried to find the shops that sell some snacks, but was disappointed to find they were all closed because it was a weekday! There's Tai O Bakery that apparently sells freshly made doughnuts sprinkled with sugar, and another stall that makes savoury pancakes called jianbing.

The only places open were cha chaan teng or a few western-style cafes selling cheesecake and coffee.

I decided to find the hill called Fu Shan Viewing Point, but not before I saw a woman selling pandan egg waffles. It turns out she had literally just opened her shop and so her waffle iron was not even heated up yet when I asked for an egg waffle.

The woman in her 70s was on the surly side, chastising a trio of middle-aged women who were lured by some palm-sized puddings to snack on. Luckily the three women were in a good mood and didn't let her criticisms get in the way of them having a good time.

The bridge in the distance and a plane overhead

Finally I got my egg waffles that had a tiny hint of pandan, but it was sustenance to keep me going for the mini hike.

The stairs are clean and wide, but I was already huffing and puffing and sweating -- I didn't realize until later it was because it was so humid. Walking along the ridge of the hill, down on one side are hundreds of large Chinese-style graves, and then further down is Tai O village itself.

On the other side is the South China Sea and in the distance is the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge that had no traffic on it. Above it every few minutes a plane took off from the nearby airport, making it an ideal spot for plane spotters.

I continued along the stone path until it abruptly ended, but saw others ahead still continuing along a rugged path and followed them.

The place is a scenic spot for pictures too

It wasn't too hard to climb and soon I was at the top, admiring the view, but then what? Turn back or continue down a dirt path? I decided to be a bit adventurous and thankfully with the help of ropes strung along the way, I managed to get down easier than my experience on Mount Johnston! 

When I got to the bottom, I checked out another scenic pavilion before encountering a temple and then walked back towards the Tai O village.

By now more visitors arrived and I'd pretty much gone through all the main thoroughfares in the village

While it's quaint and some like to call it "The Venice of Hong Kong", it really isn't, surrounded by dirty water, homes on stilts, others on the ground have very basic furnishings. One has to wonder if the government knows about people's living conditions here and will they be upgraded? 

Nevertheless, life here is slow, people ride bikes or walk along the paths, while cats and dogs laze around wherever they feel comfortable. 

Large fish that have been salted are left to dry out

This morning I woke up to heavy rain and was glad that I made the effort to go to Tai O yesterday, though I missed trying those doughnuts!

Mini Hong Kong Brings on Nostalgia

A girl looks on at a street scene that looks quite real, but is very small

My dad bugged me to go see the "Feature of HK" miniature exhibition at Olympian City and I finally got around to it because it's closing in two days. I got to the shopping mall at Olympic station after work and there was a line-up to get in. Luckily it was a short wait, but it wasn't fun having to jostle with everyone else not only to get a decent look of the exhibits, but also take pictures.

A traditional shop decorated with Chinese New Year flowers

Nevertheless it was kind of disappointing there wasn't an introduction to the exhibition -- the general public probably didn't care, but it would have been nice to know who the people were behind these pieces -- they are all locals as far as I know, some of whom have even published books on how they make these miniature dioramas.

Some of the pieces were very large, like a replica of the Tai O former police station that is now a hotel, or a series of stalls along cobblestone steps that looks like Pottinger Street, another about wooden huts for people living on Mount Davis Road.

But many of them were small, specific shops, like a cha chaan teng, or a barber shop, jewellery store, shoe shop, one selling roast meats or a general store. The amount of detail that went into each one was staggering, from the individual pieces of candy or fruit in the grocery store to the old school green floor tiles of the barber shop.

The detail of this grocery story is quite amazing!

There was one store that sold snacks like fish balls and egg waffles, lanterns for Mid-Autumn Festival, and another selling dried seafood and even eggs! Even the tea shop had tea cakes wrapped in paper.

People looked at each one, fascinated with the detail and they would comment about how the scene reminded them of their childhood. For most of the visitors who were over 40, it was a trip down memory lane.

A lot of research when into each piece but also trying to recreate the items with as much detail as possible was amazing. It's definitely a labour of love, but perhaps to see people so fascinated with what they have done is probably rewarding enough for them.

A small barbershop complete with green tiles

Nostalgia about Hong Kong from several decades ago is still very emotional for people. It makes them realize how much things have changed in the city, for better or for worse. It will be a theme that businesses will continue to exploit to tug at the heart strings because most people have fond memories of the past.

Trying to Preserve Tai O

Tai O fishing village is Hong Kong's "Venice of the East"

The other day I went to Tai O for a work assignment, and today I remembered there's a teacher there who wants to try to raise greater interest in the sleepy fishing village on Lantau.

Solomon Au Yeung has been teaching at the primary school there for the past two years and has grown to love the area -- so much so that he has started an IndiGoGo page to raise an ambitious US$150,000 to be able to rent a shop space and sell local souvenirs and snacks, and it would be the meeting point where guides could take visitors around.

On his crowdfunding page he writes: "As more and more of the locals are moving out for work, some of the traditional stores may have to close down once the original owners retire, [sic] it's a pity to see their products/handicrafts (which not only are of high quality, but more importantly, reflect the cultural value of the place) have to disappear all of a sudden..."

Solomon Au Yeung wants to help preserve Tai O's culture

He wants to set up a "Cultural Concept Store" to preserve the local heritage, and take tourists around on tours.

Sounds all neat in theory, but the reality is that so far no one has donated any money because he's asking a lot from donors who don't know much about Tai O. He should really be pitching the Hong Kong Tourism Board which has the money to help fund his cause.

But we admire his willingness to put himself out there and try to sell his idea to potential patrons.

Tai O used to be a thriving area with lots of fish and seafood that the villagers would make into salted fish, fish sauce, and dried seafood. Today you can see some stalls selling dried fish maw and conpoy.

A lot of young people have moved away from Tai O to be closer to town for work, and so elders are left minding the store (literally).

It's a very laid-back place, where you don't even need to lock your door, air conditioning is sparse and people get around by foot or on bicycles.

The only time the place is busy is on the weekends or special holidays like Dragon Boat Festival; otherwise it's a pretty quiet neighbourhood.

We'll have to check back on Au Yeung's page to see how he goes.

Here's his page: www.indiegogo.com/projects/building-a-cultural-concept-store-in-hong-kong-community#/