MangoVine
Adventures in East Asia

Entries in New Territories

 07 February, 2009
Saturday Unicorn taking offering
The unicorn has been taken out and used this year a few times already when I came across the guys in the village out and about with it again. Its the gongs and cymbals which get my attention in the otherwise peaceful village.

This time, I've caught them taking an offering from one of the houses near the main square and community centre. This video is almost seven minutes long and I think they extended the dance a bit more when changing over but at least you get to see the whole process.

Read more... 07 February, 2009
Saturday Family Ancestor Offerings
My family has an altar in its own building towards the top of Ting Kok Village. Its a small place about eight by twenty foot, and is shared between my father and his two brothers.

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It in fact used to be my late grandparent's home, accessible via alleyways giving access to different homes and flats pretty much like terraced houses, but smaller and closer together.

My grandparents moved out approximately a decade ago when their three sons (my father and his brothers) pooled their money together and built a new three storey house block between them, much like my parents have in the house we currently stay at.

Read more... 06 February, 2009
Friday Bike riding in the New Territories
At Tai Mei Tuk, which is a place just down the road from where we're living in the New Territories, there are a couple of places to rent and buy bikes. It seems to be a popular pastime, and it seems there are bike lanes every where in the New Territories - certainly where we've been so far.

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Hong Kong seems to be encouraging a greener way to live, with cycling being one aspect of it. They're currently broadcasting adverts for them on TV and on the buses (tv advertising screens). Well, to be honest, they might have been doing this some time, since I'm still seeing other adverts which were broadcast when I was last here two years ago.

During the weekends, the bike lanes from Tai Mei Tuk, past our village and all the way to Tai Po, are full of cyclists, either in groups, pairs or on their own. The people are a mix of casual cyclists to more serious ones with racing bikes, helmets and the full cycling gear. This particular route is not surprisingly popular since its adjacent to the coast and its an easy and pleasant ride.

Read more... 05 February, 2009
Thursday Beijing Opera and the community
The nice thing about the opera on at Ting Kok village is that it feels very much like an informal affair with the emphasis on everyone just having a good time. During the few days that the performances happen, alot of families from Ting Kok village, who have migrated to the UK or The Netherlands usually return for the Chinese New Year celebrations. Its therefore a good time for them all to catch up and so the shows are interlaced with people meeting old friends and family members.

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Read more... 05 February, 2009
Thursday Village Contributions to Chinese New Year celebrations
During the course of the preparations for the Chinese New Year entertainment shows in Ting Kok village, a long horizontal sheet of red paper is put up at the back of the seating area in the performance space.

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On this sheet, a list of all the people and families who have contributed to the New Year entertainment is (hand) written down for everyone to see.

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People from outside the village can also come to watch the shows, which are free, but it seems that the intended principal audience are the village inhabitants themselves. Therefore, its seen to be proper etiquette to contribute some money in some form or other.

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