Sam Tung Uk

May 9, 2007
HK - Day 4

Today the class took off bright and early to the Sam Tung Uk museum in Tsuen Wan. Sam Tung Uk is the remains of an old Hakka village built by the Chan clan family. Interestingly, it was a British official who fought for the preservation of the building.

According to Professor Johnson, Tsuen Wan was a rural village that blossomed into an industrial town after World War II. The Communist takeover of China and the subsequent changes in policies gave incentive for many Shanghainese industrialists to migrate over.

Front entrance of Sam Tung Uk - a contrast between old and new

A bedroom

Hakka chicken manure creeper dumplings

Afterwards, the group headed towards the nearby temple of Ma Zhu. Our visit coincided with her birthday. The place was bustling with villagers carrying incense sticks and dishes of goods for offering. The altar overflowed with food and in every direction people were maneuvering and pushing past bodies. It was quite a sight.

Most of the people present were elderly or middle aged women. Maybe this gender bias was because we were visiting in the mid afternoon and the men were at work and children at school. I wonder, however, if the younger generations of the village still adhere to these religious activities.

Ma Zhu Temple

The offerings

I also met the village leader of Tsuen Wan. I was extremely surprised village leaders still exist in Hong Kong. His title seems so out of place in my culturally naive mind. I am aware of the use of a village leader in China, but to meet one in Hong Kong, an international business hub, caught me off guard for a second.

A group of us headed to the Hong Kong Heritage Museum afterwards.

At the Hong Kong Heritage Museum

At night I chowed down some Japanese fusion food at Watami. Once again, I'm pleasantly surprised at how comparatively good Chinese food in Vancouver is. Watami did have some interesting concoctions though. My favorite was their spinach lasagna - meat sauce and cheese on top of a layer of gyozas.