What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:
 

General

• Beriberi, a vitamin deficiency disease that affected many of the POWs and internees in Hong Kong in WW2
   
• Portuguese ex-POWS visiting Macau from HK in September 1945
   
• Milk Diet in the Far East, The China Mail. 23rd April 1888
   
• Mandarin and Cantonese
   
• Memories of:
  • Working at Kai Tak in the 1960s
     
  • Working at the SCMP in the 1950s/60s
     
  • Path between Robinson Road and Conduit Road
     
  • Gloucester Building and Arcade
     
• Readers ask:
  • Is 萬利牛奶公司 the original Chinese name for Dairy Farm?
     
  • Looking for examples of Dairy Farm Co Advertisments
     
• Upcoming talks by David:
  • 27 April: A behind-the-scenes look at Gwulo’s historic Hong Kong photos collection, hosted by the Royal Asiatic Society, Hong Kong Branch. Details and tickets. The venue is the Visual Arts Centre on Kennedy Road. It has theatre-style seating and a large screen, so that everyone gets a clear view of the photos. (In case you're wondering if you've seen it before, it is a repeat of the talk I gave at Lion's Ink Bookstore last year.)
     
  • 28 May: In, on, under, and around Hong Kong's harbour, hosted by the Hong Kong Maritime Museum. Booking details to follow. This talk uses photos from my third book to look at Hong Kong's famous harbour through the eyes of the people that used it - there will be stories of swimmers, fishermen, sailors, and more.
     

In this week's guest post, long time Gwulo contributor gw shares what he's found out about the naval minefields laid in Hong Kong waters prior to the Battle of Hong Kong.

The Map

I stumbled across this map of Hong Kong’s WWII naval minefields whilst looking for something else in an old newspaper.

What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:
 

General

• Once Britain declared war on Germany in 1939, German men in Hong Kong were interned. An interesting excerpt from the Memoir of Hans Melchior describes what it was like.
   
• Food kitchens run by the Salvation Army during the fighting in 1941
   
• Illnesses in Hong Kong: Malaria, Tropical Sprue
   
• Last week's photo of earwax removal had several interesting comments with photos and more information about the travelling barbers.
   
• Photos of three wins at the Happy Valley racecourse in 1922
   
• Photos of Hong Kong from the 1860s / 70s by John Thomson
   
• A look at the development of Yau Tong Bay / Kwun Tong Tsai Wan from the 1950s until now
   
• New feature on Gwulo: save favourite photos for easy access later.
  • If you are logged in to Gwulo and visit a photo page, beneath the photo you'll see a new link: Add to favourites. Click the link to add the photo to your favourites, then at any time in future you can click My favourites to see them all. There are over 30,000 photos on Gwulo so this makes it easier to collect photos you're interested in.
    
• Memories of:
  • Working at Kai Tak in the 1960s
     
  • Working at the SCMP in the 1950s/60s
     
• Readers ask:
  • When did Dairy Farm's Shatin Roadhouse open?
     
  • Does anyone recognise the man in this 1956-7 Hong Kong photo? Possibly a policeman named Ken...
    

    

  • Looking for info about the Royal Navy supplying a warship in 1945 to transport the recently released POWs, consisting mostly of the Portuguese Volunteers, to Macau to visit their family members and loved ones who had taken refuge there.
     
  • Was this photo taken at Bluff Path, and if so then which house?
     
  • Looking for info about Hei Yuen and the unnamed house shown below, both on Lookout Link, Tai Po Kau

    • 

• Walks and talks by David in London and Hong Kong during the next few weeks:
  • Thank you to everyone who attended this week's walk and talk as part of HK Lit Fest. Both events were fully booked, and both audiences had lots of interesting questions, which is all that a speaker can wish for! (It's the first time I've presented at Soho House - we used their House Studio, which worked very well.)
     
  • London - Talk: The Stories Behind Old Hong Kong Photos - 1 April - Details & booking. Sadly we've had to cancel this, as there is a national rail strike on that day. We plan to hold the talk again on a future visit.
     
  • Hong Kong - Talk: A behind-the-scenes look at Gwulo’s historic Hong Kong photos collection - 27 April. Tickets now available. The venue is the Visual Arts Centre on Kennedy Road. It has theatre-style seating and a large screen, so that everyone gets a clear view of the photos. (In case you're wondering if you've seen it before, it is a repeat of the talk I gave at Lion's Ink Bookstore last year.)
     
• For any Apple Mac users who are reading, please could you try to visit the Gwulo website, click a few links, and let me know if you have any problems? Please also let me know which web browser you used, and if possible which version of the browser. This week two readers have reported problems accessing Gwulo via their Macs. I can access it alright from my iPad, Android phone, and PC, but I don't have a Mac to test with.
   

What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:
 

General

• Walks and talks by David in London and Hong Kong during the next few weeks:
  • Hong Kong - Walk: A Stroll Through San Po Kong's History - 9 March - Details & booking
     
  • Hong Kong - Talk: The Stories Behind Old Hong Kong Photos - 11 March - Details & booking
     
  • London - Talk: The Stories Behind Old Hong Kong Photos - 1 April - Details & booking - CANCELLED due to there being a national rail strike on that day.
     
  • Hong Kong - Talk: A behind-the-scenes look at Gwulo’s historic Hong Kong photos collection - 27 April - Details to follow
• Further information about the Sam Ka Tsuen pier we looked at in last week's newsletter: evidence of the construction date, and the workers who built it
  

  

• HMS Amethyst's famous cat, Simon
   
• Readers ask:
  • Why was H van Leeuwen who died as a member of the HKVDC listed as being a member of the company called Keller Bryant and Co, when he worked for the Java-China-Japan Lijn?
     
  • 26 February is the anniversary of the terrible fire at the Happy Valley Racecourse in 1918.
     
  • Did the Royal Navy have any property on Bonham Road in the 19th Century? Perhaps the "AH" stone marker was for "Admiralty House"?
     
  • Looking for photos of / info about:
    • Mr Lawrence Gibbs (1865-1943), civil engineer
       
    • the water boat Daisy or her sister ship Heather, built by Whampoa Dock Co. for Hammer & Co. Singapore circa 1937/8. 
       
    • Miss Lila Vincent - a singing teacher, maybe at the DGS?
       
    • the demolished Victoria City Boundary Stone on Magazine Gap Road
       
  • Why does this painting have Kowloon in the title?
    

    

• Memories of:
  • Kotewall Road Landslide - Jules McNeil
• Bookazine are offering 10% off all books that are part of this year's Hong Kong International Literary Festival, including mine! Browse the books online, and remember to enter code 10BOOKAZINEX at checkout to get your discount.
   
• Ladies Directory 1907