TSUI Tak tai
At 19, Tsui Tak-tai married and moved from Shek Pik Tai Tsuen to Shui
Hau Village. Her husband passed away young, leaving her to raise their
three children on her own. Tsui loves singing rhymes as a way to express
her feelings and reminisce about her life experiences. She is skilled in
many things: farming, clam-digging, oyster catching and fishing. She also
helped build the catchwater for Shek Pik Reservoir. Villagers admire her
resilience and optimistic nature.
CHI Tai
Granny Chi’s, originally named Chi Shu-dai and later renamed Chi Tai,
is a ninth-generation member of the Chi clan in Shui Hau. Born in 1928,
she was primarily a farmer in her younger years and also worked as an
amah for a while. At 22, she married fellow villager Chan Sau, who served
as the village head from 1965 to 1995. Together, they had nine children.
Chi describes herself as a bit of a busybody. She has loved singing rhymes
since childhood and still enjoys singing with her relative Tsui Tak-tai,
also from Shui Hau.
CHEN Chun Cheung
Chen Chun-cheung (Uncle Cheung) was born in Shanghai in 1931. At the
age of nine, he was adopted by a Chen family in Shui Hau and has lived
in Shui Hau Village ever since. In his youth, Uncle Cheung made a living
from farming, growing rice, pineapples and sugar apples, and by raising
livestock such as pigs and chickens. He frequently travelled between
Shui Hau and Cheung Chau to sell crops and buy daily necessities. He
also helped build a section of South Lantau Road that runs between
Shek Pik Reservoir and Tong Fuk. In middle age, he secured a job at the
Waterworks Office, where he remained until retiring at 65. Nowadays, he
spends his free time growing vegetables on a small farm and has planted
a wampee tree in front of his home. He finds joy in his own way.
FUNG Shui Chun
Born in 1946, Fung Shui-chun is a native of Shui Hau Village. Her father
Fung Yau-shing served as the village head after the war. Fung, also
known as Sister Chun, was a labourer on the Shek Pik Reservoir project.
At the age of 20, she began working in plastic and garment factories in
Tsuen Wan. With a wide circle of friends, Sister Chun loved going out
and meeting new people. In her younger years, she would gather herbs
from the hills and then walk all the way to Mui Wo to catch the ferry to
Hong Kong Island, where she sold the herbs to Chinese medicine shops.
Sometimes she would accompany her father to social events to meet
government officials, hang out at his friends’ shops, and also ride the
tram for fun.
Retired primary school teacher Chan Yuk-lin is a ninth-generation
indigenous resident of the Chan clan in Shui Hau Village, and the eldest
sister of the village head, Chan Yuk-kei, also known as Kei Gor. Growing
up in Shui Hau, she helped her family with farming from a young age. In
her free time, she played with her siblings and relatives using whatever
materials were at hand. Life in the village was carefree. After completing
primary school, Chan moved to Tsuen Wan with a relative to continue
her studies and work. Although she has been away from Shui Hau for
many years, she remains grateful to her family for their care, and she has
likewise devoted herself to looking after them.
CHAN Yuk Kei
Chan Yuk-kei, also known as Kei Gor, is a ninth-generation indigenous
resident of the Chan clan living in Shui Hau Village. A renovation
contractor by profession, he studied and worked in the city in his early
years and moved back to Shui Hau later. Kei Gor is the go-to person for
many villagers who need help with chores around the house and small-scale
repair work. In 2011, with the support of villagers, he was elected as
the indigenous inhabitant representative, a position he has been holding
for 14 years. He is actively involved in both major and minor affairs in the
village, helping villagers solve various day-to-day issues. Additionally, he
formed Fook Yuen Tong Lion Dance Team with his nephews. Every Lunar
New Year, the troupe performs lion dances and the “plucking the green”
ceremony in the village, keeping rural festival traditions alive.
CHAN Chau Kuen
Chan Chau-kuen is a ninth-generation indigenous resident of the
Chan clan in Shui Hau Village. He grew up in House No. 49, his family’s
ancestral home, which has a pitched roof and is listed as a Grade III
historic building. In 1982, when he and his family ran a holiday home
business in Shui Hau, Chan met his future wife. He later established Fung
Wong Industrial Company, a small plastics factory in the village that
produced plastic goods for export through local trading firms.
CHAN Chau Wing
Chan Chau-wing, born in 1957, is a ninth-generation indigenous resident
of the Chan clan in Shui Hau Village. He is the father of Cecily Chan
Nga-li who is in charge of House No. 49, and has been running Fung
Wong Bungalow Store in the village for over 40 years. His father Chan
Kee-sang founded Kee Kei Store. In the days before television, he would
share stories about history and ghost stories with fellow villagers. As
a young man, Chan Chau-wing studied and worked in the city. In 1982,
he returned to Shui Hau Village to run a holiday home with his elder
brother, hosting local visitors. He also founded Fung Wong Bungalow
Store, which has since become a popular gathering spot where villagers
meet and chat.
Mink CHAN
Mink Chan Fung-ming is a 10th-generation indigenous resident of the
Chan clan in Shui Hau Village. Born and raised in Shui Hau, she moved
to the city after finishing secondary school to pursue further studies and
work. A former social worker and a registered horticultural therapist,
she returned to live in Shui Hau Village in 2017. Since then, she has been
documenting the unique aspects of her hometown in various ways,
including photographing its landscapes and transcribing traditional
mountain songs. Passionate about farming and beekeeping, she often
shares the produce she grows with fellow villagers.
Cecily CHAN
Born in 1989, Cecily Chan Nga-li is the eldest daughter of Chan Chau-wing
and a 10th-generation indigenous resident of the Chan clan in
Shui Hau Village. She grew up in a well-to-do family during the 1990s,
enjoying a childhood filled with all kinds of toys. In recent years, she has
developed a deeper appreciation for her family’s heritage and has been
actively involved in village affairs. As a result, she has formed friendships
with many new residents in Shui Hau. Currently the caretaker of House
No. 49, a Grade III historic building, Cecily hopes to preserve the house
properly so more people in Hong Kong can learn about Shui Hau’s
stories.
WONG Wai Cheong
Wong Wai-cheong (Ah Cheong) is the grandson of Tsui Tak-tai (known as “Granny Tsui”) and grew up in the New Territories West. He usually returns to Shui Hau to celebrate festivals. While studying at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, he documented his grandmother’s traditional pitched-roof house and her village life through various media, including photography and oral history. In this interview, he shares aspects of his daily life with his grandmother, exploring the rural wisdom of the older generation from the perspective of a younger generation.
Originally from Leicester, the UK, Tony is one of the few expatriates living in Shui Hau. He came to Hong Kong in 1997 as a clueless young man, helping to build Chek Lap Kok Airport. Now a father of two, he has been calling Shui Hau home for over a decade and hopes to retire here. Living in a village where everyone knows each other, the Englishman manages to strike a balance between sociability and personal space, an approach that demands occasional resistance to the temptation to go to Fung Wong in the evening…
SUNG Chu King
Former teacher Sung Chu-king is a Cheung Chau native. After graduating
from Northcote Training College, he worked as an English teacher at Tai
A Chau and Siu A Chau Public School and Shui Hau School. From 1983
to 1990, he served as the principal of Shui Hau School until its closure.
Due to the long commute to the school, he lived in Shui Hau Village for
some time. Apart from teaching, he would often go with his students to
catch fish and crabs at Shui Hau Wan after school, and joined villagers
in harvesting rice. During festive seasons, villagers would remind him
to place bamboo baskets at the school gate, which they would fill with
gifts such as chicken, taro and pineapples as a token of gratitude for his
dedication to education.
WONG Kau Kan
Born in 1950, Wong Kau-kan (Uncle Kau) has lived in Tai O all his life.
His grandfather moved from Dongguan to Hong Kong and settled in Tai
O. He founded a funeral service business that served the entire South
Lantau area, including Shui Hau Village. At the age of 16, Uncle Kau
began working alongside his father, learning on the job. He eventually
took over the family business and continues to run it today. The Shui Hau
Diary team first met Uncle Kau when he officiated the funeral of Shui
Hau Village head Chan Yuk-kei’s mother. We had the chance to speak
with him about traditional funeral practices in Shui Hau and across
South Lantau.
Prof. Thomas CHUNG
Thomas Chung Wang-leung is a Professor at the School of Architecture,
the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), and the project leader
of Regenerating Shui Hau: Developing Sustainable Village Revitalization in
Lantau South through Heritage Restoration, Cultural Conservation and Village
Co-operatives.
He is also involved in architectural and landscape conservation projects in areas like Mui Tsz Lam, Kuk Po and Tai Tung Shan. He strives to conserve rural architecture and cultural landscapes over the long term by restoring and preserving historic buildings, documenting local heritage, and establishing villagers-led cooperatives.
He is also involved in architectural and landscape conservation projects in areas like Mui Tsz Lam, Kuk Po and Tai Tung Shan. He strives to conserve rural architecture and cultural landscapes over the long term by restoring and preserving historic buildings, documenting local heritage, and establishing villagers-led cooperatives.
CHEUNG Ka Chun
Born in 1988, Chun previously served as the project manager at the Hong
Kong Bird Watching Society. He developed a passion for birdwatching
during his university years. In 2021, he became involved in the society’s
project, “Between Mountain and Sea – Nature Conservation Management
for Shui Hau”. The young man has spent more time wielding a hoe than
holding binoculars. At the wetlands in Shui Hau, he and his team dug
and loosened the soil, restoring the farmland with bare hands. He also
engaged with villagers and documented local wildlife. Little by little, he
helped revive the paddy field landscape and wetland ecosystem of the
village.
Kelvin SO
Born in 1994, Kelvin So is the Manager of Oceans Conservation at WWF-Hong Kong. Since 2018, he worked on the organisation’s environmental conservation efforts in Shui Hau Village. His master’s thesis focused on clam-digging in Shui Hau. He even collaborated with a local influencer to produce a fun video promoting the use of WWF-Hong Kong’s clam gauge, a tool designed to support sustainable harvesting. A self-described outgoing person, Kelvin says the names of the three phases of the Shui Hau project — “Sustainable Shui Hau”, “Shoring Up Shui Hau” and “Connecting Shui Hau” — mirror how he gradually built relationships with the villagers. He advocates community-based environmental conservation, which values local residents’ participation and addresses their needs.
Dr. Chloe Lai Wing-sze is an urban researcher and curator of the nonprofit
organisation Urban Diary. She is committed to promoting
sustainability through community storytelling. She was behind the
book Forgotten Lantau: Tales of Shui Hau and the documentary Rhymes of
Shui Hau, both released in 2017. In 2024, she returned to Shui Hau Village
to delve deeper into its cultural landscape and document the stories
of local villagers. Her work invites the public to rediscover rural life in
Hong Kong and reflect on their close ties with nature, fostering a shared
concern for environmental conservation.
YEUNG Ting
Yeung Ting (known as “Tai Bin Mui”) is a freelance environmental educator who has practised an eco-friendly lifestyle since 2009. She is committed to addressing the issue of marine litter. She set up a social media page under her childhood nickname, “Tai Bin Mui” (literally meaning “Poop Girl”), to promote environmental protection. Between 2021 and 2022, she helped organise the “Here In Nature” project, recruiting members of the public to carry out regular monthly clean-ups of mountain trails and coastlines. Using a citizen science approach, the project also recorded the quantity and types of rubbish to create a waste database. Shui Hau Wan was one of the main beach clean-up locations. Over the years, she has witnessed the problems caused by marine litter and has called on visitors to Shui Hau Wan to take their rubbish away and help protect the local ecosystem.
KIU Kin Yan Judy
Judy Kiu previously worked at Kadoorie Farm and the Federation of Vegetable Marketing Co-operative Societies (FVMCS) and has over 20 years of experience in nature conservation and education. In 2021, while serving as a lecturer at UOW College Hong Kong (University of Wollongong), she partnered with veteran ecological educators Dr Cheung Sze Man and Dr Chiu Sein Tuck to launch the “Fung Shui Woods on Lantau Island” project. The trio visited ten feng shui woods on Lantau Island to conduct ecological surveys of flora and fauna and promoted the ecological and cultural value of local feng shui woods through exhibitions, lectures, and guided tours.