Lamma Island

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Lamma Island
Traditional Chinese 南丫島
Sok Kwu Wan, Lamma Island
Lamma Power Station and Hung Shing Yeh beach
Tenement homes of Yung Shue Wan reusing building materials.

Lamma Island (traditional Chinese: 南丫島), also known as Pok Liu Chau (traditional Chinese: 博寮洲) or simply Pok Liu (traditional Chinese: 博寮), is the third largest island in Hong Kong and part of the Islands District, Hong Kong.

Contents

Description

Fishermen on the rocks of Hung Shing Yeh beach

Lamma Island is in the southwest of Hong Kong Island. It is 13.55 square kilometers and an estimated population of 6,000. Lamma is, in contrast to Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, peaceful and tranquil, with relatively natural scenery. Buildings higher than three storeys are prohibited and there are no automobiles, but diminutive fire trucks and ambulances, as well as distinctive open-back vehicles to transport construction materials. The community's only transport means is by foot or bicycle. Lamma provides an alternative to the hectic life in the city. Property and rents are cheap compared with those of central Hong Kong. Partly in consequence, there is a significant expatriate community on Lamma Island. The seclusion offered by the limited ferry schedule sees regular expatriate beach parties at night. It is also popular with younger people and a haven for artists, cartoonists and musicians. There are regular ferry services to Yung Shue Wan and Sok Kwu Wan from Central on Hong Kong Island, as well as to Yung Shue Wan via Pak Kok, and to Sok Kwu Wan via Mo Tat Wan, from Aberdeen. It takes about 25 minutes by ferry between Yung Shue Wan and Central.

Overlooking the fishing boats and restaurants at Sok Kwu Wan

Lamma was named after the shape of the island which looks like the limb of a tree, or the letter Y (corresponding to the Chinese character of "a"), and Namm (n is allophone of l) means "south". The name can also mean "Southern Peninsula Island". The northern village is called Yung Shue Wan (Banyan Tree Bay) and the eastern village is called Sok Kwu Wan. The southern part of Lamma Island has minimal population, with access limited by treacherous hiking or private boat. Sham Wan, an important breeding site for sea turtles, is located there. This bay is also the site of an important Bronze Age settlement which was unearthed by archaeologists in the 1970s. It yielded evidence of people living on Lamma during the "Middle Neolithic" phase (approximately 3800-3000 BC).

Mount Stenhouse is the tallest mountain in Lamma (353 metres above sea-level), situated between Sok Ku Wan and Sham Wan. Unusually shaped rocks can be found all over this mountain, but a gruelling hike is necessary to access these.

example of a naturally formed rock found near the summit of Mt. Stenhouse

In fact, Pok Liu is the original name of the island. The island shapes like two Y in opposite direction. The north Y is Pak A (北丫) and south Y is Nam A (南丫). When British first came to the island, it was mistakenly using the degenerated pronunciation of Nam A, i.e. Lamma as the name of the island. The Chinese names of East Lamma Channel and West Lamma Channel are still using Pok Liu is instead of Nam A. Another folk etymology also states that Lamma Island's name came from a former lamaist monastery that used to exist on the island, which produced a number of lamaist monks for which the island was named.

Actor Chow Yun-Fat grew up on the island in the village of Tung O in Yung Shue Wan. His family still operates a seafood/pigeon restaurant called "Shau Kee" in the main village.

Lamma has a significant Western population. These residents are regarded by some[who?] as hedonists and 'lotus eaters' as many of them live an alternative lifestyle. This gives Lamma a certain reputation as a hippy island although many of these residents have been there for many years and have become pillars of their community.[citation needed]

Northern part

Hong Kong Electric's power station

Yung Shue Wan (Banyan Bay) is the most populated area on Lamma Island. Several decades ago, it was the center of the plastics industry. The factories have now been replaced by seafood restaurants, pubs, grocery stores and shops which sell oriental and Indian-style handicrafts, environmentally friendly products, clothing, homewear and art. The area has become popular among young people and expatriates owing to the peaceful setting.

Hong Kong Electric's power station is located at a 0.5 km² site at Po Lo Tsui, to the immediate south of Yung Shue Wan. With its distinctive three tall chimney stacks, the power station is visible from the surrounding islands. Lamma Power Station is a modern coal burning plant and has supplied virtually all the power for Hong Kong Island, Ap Lei Chau and Lamma Island since 1990. Gas turbine has been added in 2005 to fulfill overall emission standards.

A stone circle was discovered in the northern part of this island.

Eastern part

Walking the trail between Sok Kwu Wan and Yung Shue Wan

The big street of Sok Kwu Wan consists mainly of seafood restaurants. Sok Kwu Wan has the largest fish farming site in Hong Kong. Tourists can barbecue and fish at Lo Shing Beach which is a ten minutes' walk from the village. The trail between Yung Shue Wan and Sok Kwu Wan, surrounded by grassland, offers a picturesque walk. From there, one can see the coastline of the island. It takes roughly an hour to walk through the trail. Walkers may notice a few 'caves' on the trail near Sok Kwu Wan, labelled on tourist signs as 'kamikaze grottos'. These are caves reputed to have been dug out by the Japanese during the war, according to legend, to hide their kamikaze boats, but more likely to store munitions.

Southern part

Sham Wan

Sham Wan is one of the five most important archaeological sites in Hong Kong. According to the archaeological findings, human settlement on the northern and eastern part of Lamma Island could be traced back to around 1600 BC, the Neolithic and Bronze Ages.

It is also a place for Green Sea Turtles, the only species of turtle that breeds in Hong Kong, to lay eggs. The endangered green turtles are a special group of marine organisms with distinctive navigation behaviour between their nesting, breeding, development and reproduction sites. As Sham Wan is the only existing nesting site for them in Hong Kong, every year there is a period of restricted access to it from June 1 to October 31 to allow the turtles to breed. The breeding site is about 5,100 m².

Traditional festival

Strings of traditional Chinese fireworks will be set off in unison.

Tin Hau temples are typical places of worship in Hong Kong's coastal communities because Tin Hau is believed to be the goddess of the sea and of fishermen, protecting them and ensuring full nets. There are two Tin Hau temples on Lamma, located in Yung Shue Wan and Sok Kwu Wan. Both were built in 1826.

The Tin Hau Festival (twenty-third of the third month of the Lunar Calendar) is widely celebrated by the fishermen's communities in Lamma. Cantonese opera and floral paper offerings known as "Fa Pau" at both Sok Kwu Wan and Yung Shue Wan are the highlights of the celebration.

Lamma Island is also one of the few remaining places in Hong Kong where traditional Chinese New Year celebrations still take place: at the stroke of midnight, fireworks will be set off by the main families of the villages to frighten away the evil spirits, sending off a deafening thunder that can last up to 30 minutes.

Villages on Lamma Island

See also

External links

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Coordinates: 22°12′N 114°07′E / 22.2°N 114.117°E / 22.2; 114.117

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