People fished on two boats underneath a footbridge in the present-day Tai Po.
If you go on a trip in Hong Kong or even live here, there is a place you must visit: Tai Po.
Tai Po is situated in the northern part of the New Territories. The names of both already carry some history. Tai Po literally means "Big 
Cloth", a name used since the late 1800s resembling the earlier name "Big Step (stride)". The words "cloth" and "step" are homophonic in Cantonese, the language spoken in Southern China. The name "Big Step" is thought to be originated from the sea fronting the area, the "Big Step Sea", now known as the "Tolo Harbour".
In 1898, the Qing Emperor of Imperial China ceded the vast area to the north of Kowloon to the British by way of a treaty. At that time, the Royal Army already took hold the the Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. This area was therefore called the New Territories. In April 1898, the British gunboats moored at the Tolo Harbour and the navy landed on Tai Po for a ceremony to take over the New Territories. With the raising of the Union Jack, and the singing of God Save the Queen (understandably unlike now, with gusto), the British started its administration of the New Territories using Tai Po as the regional administrative centre. The choice was made on account of Tai Po having been the centre of this vast area of mainly farmlands then.
There was a frequently quoted phrase to describe the Hong Kong under the British colonial rule, "a borrowed place with borrowed time". With a combination of lacking plans, determination and capability, the British administrators had tilted the development to the cities nearer to the Victoria Harbour so much that most of the New Territories was developed in a haphazard fashion. That was a good thing because the limited intervention of the government ensured limited financial viability to lure private developers to set foot on the place. Therefore, the cultural heritage of indigenous people has largely been preserved in the New Territories. For its pivotal role in both the demographic and administrative terms, Tai Po is unique in this regard.
If you take the train to Tai Po, you drop off at the Tai Po Market Station. Why no "Tai Po" but the "Tai Po Market"? Two reasons: first, the old train station was situated right next to the market; second, the Tai Po Market is the icon of the place.
A store selling nuts and crisps in the Tai Po Market.
Since Tai Po was the city centre of the New Territories dating back to the Qing Dynasty, the Tai Po Market had been a main marketplace where the farming communities sold and bought their daily provisions. The present-day market occupied largely the same area as in the days of old.
A primitive meat store not commonly found in the city districts. The way how the flights of stairs extend to the pavement is also uncommon.
The open-air market sells both wet and dry goods items. It still serves as the main market for most locals even though there is a purpose-built air-conditioned market block not far away.
Chinese salted and dried sausages which make a local delicacy. These sausages sold in the Tai Po Market are thicker than usually available.
These dreadful canes were the normal punishment tools parents and teachers used to deter disobedient children. It was really surprising to find them still available in the Tai Po Market.
The exotic atmosphere is what you should look for while strolling in the market. Some produce and products may not be easily found elsewhere in other markets here.
The sense of oldness is strong as evidenced by the preservation of even the "No Hawking" sign (top right in the above image) of which the likes were ubiquitous in the colonial years of Hong Kong. Most places in the old Hong Kong were plagued by serious problems of illegal hawking, which in turn gave rise to blackmailing by gangsters.
Tai Po Market is the place to make a photographic trip.
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