Yuen Long
Yuen Long in the northwest of the New Territories is said to have Hong Kong’s youngest population, perhaps because cheaper rent can be found in HK’s farthest flung locations. The district is home to many traditional villages, including Ha Tsuen, Kam Tin Heung, Ping Shan Heung and Shap Pat Heung. In fact, the Tang clan (which has more to do with royalty and less to do with rap) has been living in Pat Heung village since the Tang Dynasty. There are various historical buildings to see in this former traditional market town.
Every year on the 23rd day of the third month in the lunar calendar, the district hosts the Tin Hau Festival, which celebrates the birth of the local deity of the same name. Residents from the various villages take part in a street procession to the 300-year-old Tai Shu Ha Tin Hau Temple.
Yuen Long has a lot going for it in terms of natural attractions, including the Hong Kong Wetland Park in Tin Shui Wai, which was originally used purely as an ecological mitigation area; Nam Sang Wai and the Mai Po Marshes, which are both very popular with bird spotters; Tai Lam Country Park, home to pangolin, barking deer and Chinese leopards, and Yuen Long Park with its seven-storey pagoda aviary.
For some Tang-related sightseeing, check out Kat Hing Wai in Kam Tin, one of the most famous walled villages in the district. Spanning 100 metres by 90 metres, it was built by the Tangs, one of Hong Kong’s “five great clans”, 500 years ago.
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