2239 This Deva King (Guardian) is armed with a Halliburton and ready to deliver a blow to the throat with is left hand. If that’s not enough he’s brought his dragon along for backup.
2250 This man is using the shaking stick can method of determining god’s answers to his questions. You can see his note paper on the kneeling pad between his legs. If you look closely the shaker there are a couple of sticks almost ready to fall.
2268 This Deva King has come armed for a shower. It’s possible he’s a god because I’ve never seen a guardian with an umbrella before. He was beside a gate so I think he’s a guardian.
2288 This is the Mountain View Pavilion in the Kowloon Walled City Park.
2342 This is the model of the Walled City just before it was destroyed. There are no longer any walls because the Japanese tore them down during WWII to extend the airport’s runway. All the really tall buildings have been added since 1960.
Oct 21 & 22 – At Sea. 21st Nothing unusual during the day today. This evening was Red Lantern Chinese Dinner in the dining room. The staff was outfitted in black, red and gold jackets and hats, waiters black and red, assistant waiters, red and gold. Kathy our tablemate wore a long Chinese red and gold kimono dress, Diana wore a flashy gold sequined dress and I broke out my red bowtie for the first time in 25 years with my white dinner jacket. Our tablemates, Diane and Steve are on an overland to Beijing and Xian. They’ll rejoin the ship in Hong Kong.
Our entertainer was Pingxin Xu He plays the hammered dulcimer and he plays it as well as anyone I’ve ever heard. We’ve heard him before and he’s always been excellent.
22nd Same old routine for sea days. Diana attended the screening for the on-board video shot by the staff of the Photo Shop. As you enter they give you a free raffle ticket for a drawing to win a copy of the first segments video. Diana won it.
Our entertainers for the evening were Graffiti Classics. They were just a good the second time.
Oct 23 – Hong Kong, China. The sail in to Hong Kong is nice. The sun was just rising and it was a little foggy, just enough to give it an air of mystery and intrigue. We passed the old airport where people swore you could see what was on the TV in the apartments as you approached the runway. They had the bow open for passengers to watch the scenery but I prefer to be up on deck 6 at the front of the superstructure. There’s a balcony there that covers the entire front of the ship. Since we’re heading west the sun is rising behind us making the light very nice for pictures except for the haze. It appears to be mostly water vapor, not smog.
Out on the bow they set up a table with coffee, tea, orange juice and Hong Kong rolls, which look and taste strangely like Panama rolls and Glacier Bay rolls. By whichever name they call them those soft rolls filled with cream and fruit are delicious. I didn’t go down to get one but the reports were that the recipe has not changed and I remember them well.
As you probably know the area we refer to as Hong Kong actually has three separate parts. Hong Kong proper, which is on an island just across a small strait from mainland China, Kowloon lies on the other side of the strait (The strait looks more like a wide river.), and the New Territories, land that was leased to Great Britain by the Chinese before the Communists took over. The Hong Kong Colony was made up of Hong Kong and Kowloon, the leasehold only expired on the New Territories. Since the return of that area to China would have strangled the colony the British decided to return the whole thing to China. We are actually docking in Kowloon directly across from Central, which is what they call downtown Hong Kong. We’re right next to the Star Ferry on Kowloon that goes directly across to Central. The pier we are docking at is part of a huge shopping complex known as Harbor City. It’s actually three interconnected malls, Harbor City, Ocean Central and Gateway.
We are on a tour this morning. We’ve been here at least 4 times so we’re taking a tour called Off the Beaten Track: A Day in the Life of Hong Kong. It’s going to some lesser visited but interesting sights around Kowloon. Our first stop is at Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin Temple one of the largest Taoist temples in Hong Kong.
I guess Off the Beaten Track was properly named, our little bus of about 20 people were the only non-Asian faces in the area. There were about 30-40 busses in the parking lot, ever one of them must have been loaded with Chinese tourists because that’s all there was around the grounds. Once we crossed through the temple gate the grounds were very crowded. The gate was guarded by two very stylized bronze lions that looked much more fearsome than the usual gate lion.
Guarding the inner gate were 2 of our old friends the Diva Kings but these were also done in bronze. Most of the ones I’ve seen before were carved wood. This one had a huge koi with teeth at his feet. After that gate was a broad staircase in three parts like you see in the Forbidden City of Beijing. It has two rows of stairs on either side of a highly carved ramp that was used to carry the Emperor’s chair. At the top of the stairs is another gate this time guarded by Diva Kings done in relief. It looks like they are painted concrete or stone.
In the courtyard at the bottom of the stairs is a half circle of large bronzes representing the animals of the Chinese Zodiac. At the top of the stairs and through the gate is another courtyard in front of the temple. Here’s where the action is. Taoism would be a gambler’s delight. The supplicants bring offerings of food to lie in front of the cushioned kneeling pads they use. There are several methods of getting answers to your questions from the universe. One involves two sticks with their sides marked in the same way sort of like heads or tails on a coin. You ask your question and then toss the sticks. If they land so the sides up match the answer is yes. It doesn’t matter if the side is heads or tails, if they match it’s yes. If they don’t match the answer is no. There were quite a few people there participating in one of these activities.
If you just can’t reduce the question to yes or no they have another method. It involves a cup full of sticks. The sticks are flat, thin and not smooth. They’re about a third taller than the cup so they stick out at the top. They appear to have numbers written on them. You hold the cup at about a 45 degree angle and shake it slightly up and down. The motion causes some of the sticks to climb up on others and eventually one falls out of the cup onto the courtyard floor. The number is recorded on a piece of paper and the stick returned to the cup and the process is repeated. I don’t know how many numbers you have to get or what the result is that tells you you’re done. The only paper I could see was a man close to the edge. He had an impressive list of recorded numbers on the ‘shake the cup’ method. If he’d been in Las Vegas I would have thought he was trying to compute a roulette wheel’s bias.
There were people burning incense like they do at Buddhist temples but most people seemed to be involved in one of these other activities. Our guide said that Taoists only come to the temple if they have questions to be answered.
Next door to the main temple was a small building that was a hall for the Taoist priests to meditate. Today it is also used as an interment place for priests. Of course, tourists are not allowed inside but I’m sure many would have barged in were it not for the closed and locked gate.
The very next building is dedicated to Confucius, Master K’ung, and his 72 followers. The building has a veranda across the front typical of Chinese architecture in 1921, the year the building was constructed.
As we were leaving the temple grounds I looked back to see an unusual Diva King guarding that gate. He was armed with a large umbrella. I’ve see knives, spears, swords, etc. but never an umbrella.
Our next stop, Kowloon’s Walled City Park, was a refuge for criminals from the end, but is now a superb Chinese garden. The park is a little over seven and a half acres and follows the boundaries of the Walled City exactly. Near the end no police, no army, no law enforcement of any kind was allowed to enter the walls. In fact, no laws were enforced inside the walls period. Doctors and dentists who were not licensed by the British could still practice inside. Drugs, gambling, prostitution, illegal trade all took place there. Criminals who could get to the Walled City were safe from arrest. Of course, they could never leave. At the peak of its population over 30,000 people lived inside the walls. It was almost a solid rectangle of buildings. Most of the structures were 7 or 8 stories tall although some were taller. Open space consisted of a small central square plus the narrow streets. Of course, no law enforcement meant that there were also no building codes of sanitation laws near the end. Not what you’d call a desirable neighborhood. Demolition began in 1987
The park has displays related to the Walled City. In a plaza area in front of the Yamen has displays related to the Walled City. That’s an appropriate location as the Yamen (Headquarters) is the sole surviving building in the park from that era. This area started out as a walled garrison city and this building was the office of the Commander of the Dapeng Brigade. Inside the building are interpretive displays about the history of the Walled City including an interesting timeline.
In the plaza is a cast bronze model of the walled city at its zenith. That’s where I discovered how densely the area was populated not only by people but buildings. For you Sci-fi watchers it looks almost like a Borg cube, only it’s more of a Borg rectangle. Just next to this exhibit to the east are the preserved remains or the South Gate. It’s mostly the foundations and the first few feet of the walls.
A bit of history is in order. The Walled City’s history started in the Song Dynasty when salt was king and this area was in use as salt fields. The administrative HQ for the salt industry was established here. In the Yuan Dynasty salt production declined and the salt fields were closed. The area became the Office of the Magistrate for Guangfu. He was responsible for keeping the peace in this area. Later the magistrate was withdrawn and the Kowloon Beacon Tower was built here. As the problem with pirates escalated they added a shore battery in 1810 to help with that issue. The greatest use of the battery however was against the British in the First Opium War. At the end of that war Hong Kong Island was ceded to the British. The Magistrate of Kowloon was formed and in order to strengthen Kowloon against attack by the British from Hong Kong in 1846 the area was fortified and the walls that would become the Walled City were built as a defensive fortification.
In June 1898 a treaty was signed between Britain and China leasing the New Territories to Britain for 99 years. Kowloon is at the end of a large peninsula that has a narrow spot further north. The New Territories occupy this peninsula. The entire area is correctly referred to as The Territory of Hong Kong. It can be confusing because there’s also The Hong Kong Colony and Hong Kong City. Unfortunately Hong Kong is often used without any of the rest of the description. Under the treaty the Chinese were allowed to continue controlling the Walled City however after taking over the New Territories the British asked that all Chinese officials and troops withdraw from The Territory of Hong Kong. In 1899 the British issued an order announcing that The Walled City was under their sole control. The Qing government didn’t like this unilateral decision but had so much trouble with rebellion and strife in the rest of the country they couldn’t respond to it. The British became frustrated with Walled City governance and eventually just gave up. The period of anarchy in the Walled City began. Over time the city deteriorated and it was abandoned.
Over time the abandoned buildings were occupied by squatters many of whom were students. During the Japanese occupation during WWII the city’s walls were demolished and the materials used to extend the airport. After WWII the British were back in control and tried to reestablish order in the city by force. Widespread protests, led mainly by students, erupted all over China. The British Consulate and British businesses were burned and the British gave up the attempt and adopted a strictly ‘Hands Off’ policy toward the Walled City. Starting in the 1950-60s a large volume of drugs such as heroin were processed here and shipped throughout the world. Strip clubs, brothels, casinos, opium dens and dog meat stalls flourished. Since land prices were low several factories were established on the west side of the city. Unlicensed dental and medical clinics were founded to provide inexpensive services.
Between 1960-70 the city’s population grew. To cope with the increased demand for housing illegal construction started. By the early 1980s some buildings had reached 16 stories and at least 500 illegal buildings were inside the 7 acre city. At the time of demolition between 40-50,000 people lived here. The British and China started discussions on the Walled City issue. Shortly thereafter the Hong Kong government announced that the city was to be demolished. Demolition was started in 1991 and completed in 1993. The park that was developed on the site opened in 1995.
Our next destination was the Hong Kong Museum of History. This fairly new facility isn’t huge but it is well organized and presents a very nice synopsis of the history of Hong Kong. It has 8 galleries on 2 floors plus a Mezzanine. We will have about an n hour to spend here so some of the galleries, while interesting, will not be visited. For example Gallery 1, the Natural Environment is all about the physical formation of the area by volcanic action could be informative but not on this trip. We did walk through and look around but didn’t linger anywhere. The same goes for Gallery 2, Prehistoric Hong Kong.
Gallery 3, The Dynasties: From the Han to the Qing and 4, Folk Culture in Hong Kong were the highest priority. As explained in Gallery 3, the Han people from Central China migrated south and settled this area bringing their culture and technology. It wasn’t until the Song Dynasty that the Tang clan settled in the New Territories followed by more clans in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. This area has displays on farming, and fishing as well as the migrations. When the Northern Songs were invaded many clans escaped the area and traveled south and are known as the Southern Songs. By the time they reached Hong Kong they had lost their Song identity and became the Punti people. They spoke a dialect of Cantonese that has become the common language of Hong Kong. Most people also speak the official dialect of China, Mandarin in public but at home they speak Cantonese. In 2002 we visited one of the still active walled cities that the Punti built to protect themselves from invaders.
The most colorful and interesting is Gallery 4. This area began with an exhibit that shows the rituals and structures of the area’s religion. They had a small reproduction of a temple that you walk through. In this case the protector Diva Kings were painted on the doors of the temple. As they do today there were altars with offerings of food, mostly fruit setting in front of the statue of the god. In the next room was a wedding processional and just on the other side of that was a display of the wedding garments of the era.
One of the most interesting and colorful displays is the Flower Shrine. Built around a bamboo frame, this riot of color is a portable temple to use in worshiping a god on his birthday. A small image of the god is placed inside and it can be carried around during the celebration. During some festivals they carry large, very colorful effigies of the god around the town.
In the museum lobby they have a display of the history of Hong Kong’s transit system's busses. There were models and pictures with descriptions of the busses over the years. Most were double decked busses like you see in London. Not surprising as the busses used here were built in England.
Outside the museum they are building a dinosaur plaza. Some of them are finished but still under wraps. The brontosaurus was still being assembled and visible. After the museum visit it was back to the ship for some lunch. On the roof of the Harbor Center next to the ship they are having the Marco Polo Bierfest 2013. The entire area is covered with tables covered in blue and white tablecloths, the colors of the Bavarian flag. Signs around the walls are advertising Lowenbrau, a Bavarian beer and there’s a picture of a man in Bavarian costume holding a large stein of beer and an equally large pretzel. I was a bit confused by the reference to Marco Polo until it dawned on me that the hotel in the mall near the ship is the Marco Polo and they’re probably sponsoring the Bierfest. I thought maybe Marco had brought beer to China, but didn’t think so.
After lunch we decided to head over to Hong Kong Island for some exploring. One of my favorite things to do here is ride the old green and white Star Ferry. Their Kowloon side pier is right next to the ship so it’s a short walk over there and onto the ferry. You have to be a bit careful when getting on the ferry. If you go in the wrong entrance to the pier you wind up on the bottom deck. It’s not a terrible mistake but the view is not as good and the accommodations are Spartan. For HK$2.50 you can ride one way across the strait to the island on the upper deck, better view and seats. You also have to follow the signs that say Central because ferries depart to several places along the island from this pier. Every time I get on the Star Ferry I think of the scene when James Bond takes the same ferry from Hong Kong to Kowloon.
We arrived on the island at the Central Pier, a well named location. From this pier ferries leave for all parts of the Hong Kong Territory including outlying islands like Lantau, home of the largest outdoor seated Buddha in the world.
The area by the pier is a tangle of roads and highways but they’ve built an elevated walkway that connects the terminal with several buildings and shopping centers in the Central District. We took that to De Vouex Road and then went down to street level. We turned left on Jubilee Street and headed west to find Queen’s Road. There’s lots of shopping and restaurants in the Financial District of Central. Many high-end brands have stores here. We finally came to Queen’s Road and they are supposed to start there, just to the right. I didn’t see a sign for them and no evidence of escalators so we headed up to the elevated walkway in the area and there they were.
The Mid-level Escalators connect the Financial District with the living areas further up the hill. In the morning they run downhill, after 10am they reverse direction and go up. That’s what we were aiming for. The name is a little misleading. It’s plural because it’s built in sections with short transition platforms between the sections but not all of it is an escalator. The first few sections are not very steep and they use the moving sidewalk, often called a travelator that you find in airports to take you to the gates. When the going gets steeper they have installed escalators. It goes about half a mile up Victoria Peak. It’s fun riding up because you can look down on all the cross streets to see what’s there and you get a very good look at the second story shops in all the buildings you pass. Often one part ends and you cross a street to get to the next section but sometimes you go over the street on an escalator overpass.
When we got to the top we’d gone about 1.5 miles walking and another half mile on the escalator, it’s warm and a bit humid so we were ready for a break. Right at the top of the section we ended with there was an O Café so in we went for a bottle of water, a latte and a slice of fruit bread. Not really very expensive at $36HK (about $4.75US), less than a latte at Starbucks.
Properly refreshed we started back down the hill. This time we have to take the stairs unless we want to miss the ship and wait until tomorrow morning when they start going down again. The walk down was pretty easy although the older I get my knees really don’t like downhill much. They function fine but then next morning they’re stiff and a little achy.
On the way down we got a really close look at some bamboo scaffolding around a building under repair. They don’t use metal scaffolding here, but lash together bamboo for the job. I’m pretty sure OSHA would not approve. It really is just bamboo poles lashed together with cord that looks a lot like shoelaces. I know it’s not but it looks like it. It’s easy to cut, lightweight and fast to assemble so they love it here.
From the base of the Mid-levels Escalator we walked about a half mile to Statue Square. It’s actually a fairly large plaza broken up with water features and planters. A pleasant space. The statue that gives the park its name is of Sir Thomas Jackson, Chief Manager, Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank 1870 to 1902. His guidance helped shape the financial industry here and is largely responsible for the success of the Colony. Each of the ponds has a colorful sculpture in the center, nothing representative, just colorful glazed tiles and sculptures.
While walking about today we’ve seen several tram lines. The trams are double decker just like the busses. So far I’ve seen an all-black (actually it might have been a very dark grey/green) tram and an all-white tram. Maybe I just notice them because they’re different. I know they have some red ones here, or at least they used to.
From the Statue Square we walked a little further uphill to Cheung Kong Park. The park has to be approached by going up a staircase as it’s atop a small cliff in the hillside. It’s a more natural space with trees, plants and pathways. Just on the other side of the park, also on the cliff edge is a large brick building that looks like it’s from the colonial period. It’s a pretty 3-story building with a dome at the front and a short tower at the rear. Our target is just on the other side, Saint John’s Cathedral.
Saint John’s is definitely a colonial structure. It has the initials VR on the west face of the tower indicating it was built, or at least started during the reign of Queen Victoria, putting it sometime in the 1800s probably mid or late. It has a tower on either side of the entrance and no steeples. It has a single nave with an aisle on each side with side chapels in the transepts. The exterior is mainly yellow with white trim and that scheme continues on the inside. The large stained glass window over the high altar is very pretty even though the colors are subtle. It has 5 slim, vertical, pointed arch sections at the bottom with dual trefoils and a small rose window at the top. The ensemble has a pointed arch profile. It depicts Jesus on the cross, in the center three slim frames. There are only two figures pictured observing the crucifixion, one in each of the outer two tall frames. The one on the right appear to be the disciple John and the one on the left Mary, Jesus mother. In the center of the rose window is a lamb symbolizing Christ as the sacrificial Lamb of God. The main hues are blue, yellow and green, the former two being dominant.
The church has a school and I believe it’s a girl’s high school. I didn’t see any boys in uniforms. The girl’s uniform is about the most attractive I’ve ever seen. It’s a long garment evocative of a kimono with a single closure in the front. I’m not sure how it’s closed as the overlapping side hid the buttons or zipper. The neck is collarless and comes to the base girl’s neck. The color is very close to a cornflower blue with dark blue embroidery along the collar and down the front side of the closure. The sole accessory is a pewter color East Syrian Christian Cross (it resembles a Maltese but has four triangular inserts between the cross’ arms filling in the junctions.) cross worn at the neck over the closure. With the girl’s black hair and dark skin it’s a very appealing look.
The floor of the narthex has the same cross as the girl’s uniform in mosaics and the background is the same color blue as their uniforms. I’m beginning to believe the color blue was selected for the uniforms to represent the cleansing water analogy of salvation found throughout the scriptures as well as the water of baptism. Also in the mosaic floor were symbols of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit above and beside the cross and the eagle of Saint John below it.
After leaving Saint John’s we walked back down the hill and across town to the elevated walkway and then across the financial district to the Star Ferry at Central Pier. Unfortunately the didn’t mark the entrance as going to Kowloon, they used another Chinese name like Tsim Sha Tsui but the people going down the ramp confirmed that it was going to Kowloon Side, the local slang for the mainland.
Heading back to the ship through the Harbor Center Shopping Mall I was reminded of the creative benches they have here for taking a break. On some floors they’re chocolate éclairs, on others various toys, here they’re cupcakes. Diana posed for a picture on a chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing.
Hong Kong has a laser show at about 8:15pm so we went out on deck to watch it. When lasers were new it was probably a spectacular event but now it’s just your normal lasers draw images on the sky production you can see in many places.
Our entertainment was the Hong Kong Cultural Arts Show. It opened with two ladies playing traditional instruments, a zither like plucked instrument and a two string bowed instrument. They were very good and the music was very pleasant.
Next a dragon dance team took the stage. The dragon was luminous and they danced in the dark. They had that dragon going every which way, loops, curlicues, waves and squares, always chasing his favorite ball. The dancers had to be pretty limber to jump the dragon when the moves turned it onto itself or looped it over the top and back again. Every now and then the music would stop and the dragon would freeze in a pose. Lots of fun.
The last performer was a mask changing magician. He floated around the stage pulling at two long feathers that stuck up from his headdress like long flexible horns. Every now and then he’d flash his arm and a new mask would be on his face. He must have changed masks at least 10 times. It’s the same show as last year and just as enjoyable this time.
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