Most of the Hakka houses on the island were built in 1950s and 60s. The houses are usually facing the south for the convenience of drying grain by the sun. With the development of society, villagers gradually moved out to the urban districts of Hong Kong or migrated abroad. As a result, most of the houses left rusted.
The Well
In 1960s, water from the well was the only water source for villagers. In order to tackle the gradually insufficient water supply, the villagers first built a reservoir on the nearby Kau Sai Chau,then laid tubes to lead water to the village. In 1990s, water from the nearby nature was gradually replaced by tap water supply of the government after a water tower was built on the highland of the island.
The hundred-year-old camphor tree
Camphor tree is with a unique meaning to the villagers. In those days, when a family gave birth to a girl, her parents planted a camphor tree. When the tree grew tall in tandem with the girl’s growth up for marriage, the family felled the tree to make her dowry.
The usage of camphor trees is multiple, as materials for buildings and furniture, essences extracted to make mothballs, and as herbs for medical use. In the past, villagers liked to gather in the shade of tree, that the village community office was built nearby the camphor tree.
Hakka village house
Located in the south-west part of the island, Hakka village houses were usually duplex and built two to three in a row. Villagers adopted natural light and ventilation into the house design to maintain a comfortable living environment.
Hakka dumpling
Hakka people will make dumplings when celebrating feast. There are three flavours of dumpling skin: pumpkin, almond and the must-try Chinese Fevervine, one of the oldest flavours.
Salt Field
Let’s come and explore the “white goldmine” that has been forgotten for a century and see how wise the Hakka people were when they harvested salt from the sea.
Sea salt was for self-use by the villagers and also for sales to make a living in the early days. It is considered that the salt field ceased operation in 1920s. A likely reason was that the British Hong Kong government started to collect taxes on salt.