Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Some 10km (6 miles) west of Hong Kong lies the small, crowded island of
Cheung Chau
W
[map]
(around 2.5 sq km/1 sq mile in size). More than 25,000 people live here, many of
them fishermen, but there is also an expat community, attracted by the laid-back Mediter-
ranean ambience. The island has a checkered past of smuggling and piracy.
Cheung Chau becomes the centre of Hong Kong life once a year, usually in May, during
the
Bun Festival
, a folklore extravaganza. For the rest of the year, life goes on at its accus-
tomed pace: rickety machines chugging in two-man factories, children in school uniforms
being ferried home to houseboats and elderly fishermen stirring shrimp paste.
