By Alina

After the Dragon’s Back hike from Friday, many of us are still feeling tired and exhausted. However, nine other students and I are willing to take the challenge to hike under the 93 degree Fahrenheit of heat today in Lamma Island. Lamma Island sits in the South of Hong Kong, so from Hong Hum, we will need to take a bus to Aberdeen “Little Hong Kong” and take the ferry there to get to Lamma Island. As we pass by Aberdeen, its Chinese name “Heung Gong Tsai” meaning “little fragrant harbour” with “fragrant” being a reference to incense wood for burning in worship. This wood was grown in the New Territories, collected at Tsim Sha Tsui and then sent in chunks to Aberdeen for export. There’s still floating houses and restaurants there, but they used have floating schools as well. Because more people are moving out to the city, that makes an end to the floating schools and other floating businesses.

Aberdeen, “Little Hong Kong”

After 20 minutes of the ferry from Aberdeen, we are on the Lamma Island, we have about 2 hours hike, and we see a lot of gravestones from the ancestors and elderly of Lamma Island and many old houses that previously lived by the Hakka. Many houses there are abandoned, because many people from Lamma Island have moved to the cities.

Abandoned homes of Hakka village; burial shrine

Bananas + banana flower (!), large spiders, “screwpine” fruit (part of the pineapple family)

Lastly, we spent our time at Lamma Island with a seafood lunch. For seafood, we ordered steamed fish, broiled shrimp, and steamed scallop. It is very fresh tasting seafood. We enjoyed our seafood lunch!