Back in 2016, I went with my daughters to visit the Cavite Provincial Jail in Philippine. Without thinking too much, we just took some unwanted clothes and items for the people in the jail as well as showing the kids what would end up if you’re not behave (haha..a mother thinking!)
These people are mostly convicted from drug abuse, bribery, rapes and assault. However, they are not giving sentences by the judge. Without money to get a lawyer, you might be waiting for a while. Some even wait for years!! Without money, you probably sleeping on the floor or on top of each other in a small space with 1200 people there. On the contrary, where you see windows and their little space is kind of luxury. I didn’t prepare my kids well (so as to myself), we all got a bit shocked. Didn’t know what to think or say. We just followed the guide take us from place to place with mixed feeling. I hope these photos can speak itself.
All photos are shot with my cell phone due to permission.

After a long month of fasting, prayer, and reflection has come to a close. Today is Eid al-Fitr, a celebration of breaking the fast. It is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide. Today 15 June 2018, many Muslim wearing their traditional clothes gathering in Victoria Park since 7:30am to start their prayer. Others are hosted in the mosques around Hong Kong.
This is my first time to witness this wonderful celebration. Very much like the Chinese New Year in some sense. After victory park, I quickly walked to Ammar Mosque (the Wanchai Mosque). According to Mr. Kasim Ma, there are many Hong Kong Muslims as well as Indonesian, Filipino, Pakistani and Malaysian. To accommodate the majority , they severe dim sum as their breakfast feast.

Few years after I was born, my shanty home, built by the bear hand of both my grandma and granddad, was burned down coincidentally after the government failed to reclaim. The government allocated us to one of the public housing in Yuen Long. My sister and my brother together with my mum sharing 350 square foot for the next 7 years there. The everyday life and the emotion we bond between neighbour are much more brotherhood like than the private building I lived in today where all closed door and secured. Perhaps, I might never meet who lived next door!

​Currently, there are about 750,000 families, around 2 million people, living on public rental estates. The architecture, the way of life and the culture in public housing estates have been evolving over the decades. It really is a collective stories of Hongkonger.

​I didn’t live in this ‘Twin Tower’ type of public housing. However, when I saw those little kids playing around in the hallway, it reminds me my childhood where we played marbles balls, plastic bag kites during typhoon, making fire with burned candles and fire crackers during the festival. It really bring up tons of memories. Have you lived in one of the public housing? Let’s share your most memorable story here.

Uncle Fu (Chinese: 富叔), the owner of Chan’s store (Chinese: 陳記士多) died 4 years ago. And Gil PoPo (Chinese: 嬌婆), the last villager who lived in Fan Lau Tsuen (Chinese: 分流村), was passed away 4 months ago. Both of their children take turns to come on the weekend just to visit the village’s dogs and serves the local sausage/ egg noodles and selling drinks to the hikers. Will this be the last generation to keep this abandoned village, once home for 200 people, the last breath of life.

陳記士多的店主富叔於4年前去世。而唯一住在分流村的嬌婆也於四個月前離開塵世。他們的兒子於週末來探望一下村里的狗及為行山人士供應香港經典的腸蛋麵，多士和飲料。這幾個後繼人會否是成為這個曾經擁有200人居住的村落最後的一口氣。

Kim Shin Lane, a lane join between two long row of buildings, accompany with scramble of cables, antenna, awning and clothes, composing a rare urban landscape contrast amongst all the newly developed high-rise. These buildings are build in the 50s where the thick of construction period after the postwar. Most of its now are beyond repair! Despite the poor conditions, there's certainly still full of live when I was there.
The sad thing I found is that under current regulations, URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority) is obliged to compensate each owner for letting go their flat with an amount equivalent to a seven-year-old flat. Since Kim Shin Lane is a high-density project with around 1,000 flats, the amount of compensation for the reconstruction might looking at the loss of 3 to 4 billion HKD. Will the hope of redevelopment becoming a forever lasting project? What happen to those who live under?

In the hustle and bustle of this hectic city, it is difficult to stop, look and appreciate what's around us. A moment is all too easily ignored and histories could be forgotten.
Follow me and I will show you the beauty around us and find out stories behind the scene.