Everything tagged: golden boy

Another small village situated next door to Tung Chung. No doubt to be absorbed into Tung Chung as the latter continues to expand.

The starting point of the 'Hike to Buddha' taken by Booth and his family. At the time a small fishing village.

Currently being redeveloped along with the Former Marine Police HQ.

This place was around until 1970, when it was then developed into Kowloon Park. Some of the original barrack buildings, built in 1910, remain and have varied uses: The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre (housed in two former barrack blocks) and Health Education Exhibition and Resources Centre.

Views of Central from the harbour in the 1950s were dominated by the buildings of the HSBC Bank (on the right) and the Bank of China:

Martin Booth: "On a stubby headland was a small village and some low houses ..."

Here's how it looked in the 1950s:

Martin Booth's residence up on the Peak (his family was in Block A).

Today's google map shows the area is now known as 'The Mount Austin', and consists of several house, blocks of flats, and a clubhouse. If you want to relive Booth's time on the Peak, I see a 1200 sq. ft. flat in the development is available to rent for $55K a month.

It must be a new development, as my 1999 street map still shows the four blocks A-D of Mount Austin Mansions.

Martin Booth mentions this range a couple of times, as part of his walk along Harlech Road:

[...] passing a waterfall, and arriving at the place where the soldiers lay down to shoot across a valley at the butts.

You can still see the butts area today.

At the junction of Harlech & Lugard roads is a small cleared area with a pavilion and a few exercise stations. In the southern corner of that cleared area is a path that leads off through the bushes. If you follow the path you'll reach the old butts area.