A Day in Sai Kung

Last weekend, we went on a little field trip to the Sai Kung district of Hong Kong in the New Territories. The New Territories is a nearly 400 square mile region that borders mainland China. About half of Hong Kong’s 7 million-person population lives in the New Territories. However, the region also filled with green space and mountains. It felt very much like being far out in the country (and not Hong Kong!) as we drove on the tree-lined highway.

Sai Kung was once a rural fishing village. Today, fishing remains central to its identity, but it has a vibrant village area that has plenty of restaurants and shops to accommodate its growing population and increasing numbers of visitors.

As we walked along the outskirts of village, we noticed that it seemed that everyone else who had come to Sai Kung had brought a dog with them. Big dogs, little dogs, and in-between dogs were everywhere. It was a bit crazy.

There were two large piers on the way into the village where fishermen were working hard. Dave pointed out that the people on the pier were sending their fish orders down to the fishermen, then the fishermen were hoisting the “merchandise” up to the customers in containers that were hooked to ropes. I told Dave that I didn’t think I could watch. He said, “It’s kind of like the zoo, but there are only fish to look at.” So, I watched the fishermen at work…until one took out a hammer to stop the fish from flopping out of a container. We quickly moved on. That definitely was not my kind of zoo! Here are some pictures, no hammers included:

Along the waterfront there was an assortment of what I call “pick your critter” kinds of restaurants. Large aquariums were full of fish and sea creatures that customers could select for their dinners. Again, after a quick look, we moved on.

All kinds of boats were on the water – everything from very questionable looking canoes to luxury-liners.

There were lots of small shops in Sai Kung, much like the shops in Stanley Market, that have a little bit of everything. Not being a tourist mecca, the prices were a bit cheaper. The village also had the ever-present Starbucks, McDonalds, and Pizza Hut. We picked up chilled drinks at 7-Eleven. The open plaza area of the village was quite nice, with palm trees and plenty of elbow room.

It was a Sunday so all the domestic helpers congregated in the open areas. While this is a common sight on Sundays (domestic helpers get one day off a week, usually Sundays – since they are required to live with their employers, the only places for them to go are public spaces), the groups we saw in Sai Kung were much livelier than in the center city. There was much singing and dancing, buffet-like food setups, and it appeared that there were several make-shift worship services going on. We tried to take photos discretely, so these aren’t the best. I wish we had recorded the singing – it was mostly a cappella and quite good, flipping back and forth between English and Tagalog (Filipino language).

Finally, there was a playground where Lydia ran around for a while and played tag with Dave.

Overall, the pace of life seemed a bit slower in Sai Kung than other areas of Hong Kong where we have visited. With many country parks and wide-open spaces, I can see why expatriates choose to live there. Still, after our fun afternoon, we were happy to return to the high-rise "suburbs" that we now call home.