Yau Ma Tei – Tin Hau Temple ca. 1955
360-degree panoramic artwork created by Pen So
Historical Hotspots:
Tin Hau Temple Compound
Situated at the intersection of Temple Street and Public Square Street, the Tin Hau Temple Compound is the largest existing Tin Hau Temple complexes in Kowloon. It was formed by a total of five buildings. Tin Hau Temple itself was first completed in 1878, and the other four adjoining buildings were subsequently constructed in phases from 1894 to 1920. Tin Hau Temple is a two-hall-three-bay architecture built in the Qing dynasty: two front doors are set to be passed by to reach the main hall; two bays are constructed respectively on the left and the right while the middle bay consists of the main hall. A stone lion and a copper bell from that era are also found in the temple. In 2020, the Tin Hau Temple Compound was declared a monument in Hong Kong.
More than a religious venue, Tin Hau Temple was also a locale for people to worship, arbitrate disputes, and provide schooling in the community. The four neighbouring buildings included Kung Sor (Public office), Fook Tak Tsz (another temple), and two Shu Yuen (colleges). Kung Sor played a role in resolving disputes among the residents and the colleges were establishments that allowed children to learn without the charge of tuition fee. In the late 1950s, there were more than 10 cabins with windows and doors set up in front of Tin Hau Temple for business for fortune-telling and divine guidance.
Photo courtesy of Government Photo Store, Information Services Department
Yung Shue Tau
In the yard across from Tin Hau Temple, we can find several lush and interweaving banyan trees which are called “Yung Shue Tau” (Banyan Tree Head) by the local people. In the old days, this was a place packed with wooden houses and tin houses and crowded with hawkers and “Dai Pai Dong” (food stalls) selling a wide variety of food. People liked to gather at “Yung Shue Tau” to socialise and play chess. As darkness fell, the curtain was drawn for different kinds of street performances such as juggling, magic shows and storytelling, mesmerising people to stop by and watch.
In the 1860s, residents of Tsim Sha Tsui were relocated by the government to Yau Ma Tei, a district to be developed. Hence, Tin Hau Temple has also moved along. The temple was not only a social venue for the Chinese but also a building representing the heart of the community that connected everyone at the time. Subsequently, hawkers began their businesses under the banyan trees across from Tin Hau Temple by selling goods to the boat dwellers from the typhoon shelter at Yau Ma Tei. Crowds of people created a hustling and bustling atmosphere around the temple.
Photo courtesy of Government Photo Store, Information Services Department
Mido Cafe
Mido Cafe opened for business at the junction of Temple Street and Public Square Street in 1950. The restaurant offered Western and Chinese cuisine at an affordable price for the public. Most of its customers were boat dwellers from the typhoon shelter in Yau Ma Tei. As 70 years have flown by since its opening, Mido Cafe remains as it was in the 1950s with its time-worn interior design. Sitting in the restaurant booth on the second floor and watching the scene at Temple Street through windows feels like travelling back in time to the old Hong Kong.
Within the walls of Mido Cafe we could see the vintage billboard, antique ceiling fans, mosaic tiles, booth seats, handwritten menu boards, and the old kitchen setting. All the decorations bring about nostalgia for the bygone years. Mido Cafe often appeared in many local movies and dramas, such as “Moonlight Express”, “Street Fighters” and “Revolving Doors of Vengeance”, making itself a tourist attraction and one of the landmarks in Yau Ma Tei.
Recent photo.
Photo courtesy of City University of Hong Kong.
Photograph by Wu Jiaru.
Animation:
Other than “Dai Pai Dong” (food stalls), itinerant hawkers were also a part of the roadside vendors set up at “Yung Shue Tau” (Banyan Tree Head). Although most of them owned the hawking licences for their street business, they still had to run off when the police were spotted nearby. These itinerant hawkers used to display their goods with wooden shelves and boxes. Some of them only carried their products with shoulder poles and buckets, making it easier for them to change their locations.