Pok Fu Lam Village
Pok Fu Lam Village is one of the last villages found on the urbanised Hong Kong Island. Records of the village dates back to 17th century, although it was only included into the world monument fund several years back. While some similar villages are recognised to be conserved by the Hong Kong Government, Pok Fu Lam Village is preyed upon by the government and property developers due to its strategic location. After all, the village lies on the side of a mountain and faces the sea (背山望海); absolute good fengshui in Chinese belief.
Anyways, I'm actually on a tour co-organised by my school and the village representatives. There was a TV crew tagging along to shoot some footage for a documentary too.
The naked fire dragon, as seen from the bus stop!
In Hong Kong, a traditional Chinese practice was to have a fire dragon dance during mid-autumn festival to ward off bad luck. Most people would flock to Victoria Park yearly to observe the 3-day festival, but do consider heading to PFL Village for a more authentic (less-touristy) experience.
Flags outside the village to welcome the mid-autumn festival.
The naked dragon up close.
View from the top of the village. See all those apartments surrounding the village? Those developments are what the government envisioned for this area instead of this run-down village.
The village's wet market.
Winding around the village through the alleyways.
University Hall
The second part of the tour was to visit University Hall, a guy's dormitory for people of HKU. Just to explain, many pieces of land were either purchased or donated to HKU along the years, so the HKU properties were all scattered along the Hong Kong Island. University Hall should be one of the furthest plot of land from HKU Main Campus.
See the distance between HKU and University Hall (red marking)?
The Tudor Architecture and Gothic styles are still preserved.
Those wooden doors are rooms for foreign students.
The castle when it was first built.
The sea view blocked by apartment buildings at the foot of the hill.
The church hall transformed into a dining hall for students.
Bethanie
What used to be a sanatorium for the French missionaries, and some cowsheds for the Hong Kong Dairy Farm are now transformed into a campus to house the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.
Entry into the building is chargeable, so we only took some photos from the exterior.
Cute map designed to promote PFL Village
PKL Village is a place which I would pass by weekly, on my way to my grandparent's house. So glad that I could finally explore this place and appreciate its culture and charm before I leave HK.
PFL Village is accessible via any bus or minibus travelling along Pok Fu Lam Road. There are often guided tours and activities happening at the village, so check out their Facebook page for details and updates.