FanLing, and more specifically FanLing Wai 粉嶺, (FanLing's ancient walled village)
What used to be a quaint little village in the New Territories of Hong Kong, founded by the Pang clan, has blossomed into a bustling, thriving city near the border of China. Profiting from cross-border traffic and commerce. But the ancient part of FanLing Wai is still very much a collection of old and new brick houses, seemingly randomnly built next to eachother surrounding a big pond.......and surprisingly the village has preserved a sense of tranquility when compared with the newer, expanded FanLing town.
Ages ago, the extended Pang family, decided to hold a once every 10 years, a festival to commemorate their ancestors......and thus anno end of 2010, the sleepy little town of FanLing once again has been transformed into a bustling mega fair.
Apart from the many temporary praying halls, what dominated the grounds was the Chinese Opera building totally constructed out of bamboo sticks...........
The plays in the opera depicted tales and stories relating to the Pang Clan, but also popular plays found in HK in general......it's common folklore that the performances are not only for the living amongst us, but also for the Pang ancestors............
And to make the celebration package complete, performances by a troupe of lion dancers who dazzled the crowd with their acrobatic stunts, entertained the festive crowd....
For us, bystanders, it's a marvellous experience, savouring old customs still in vogue, going back to its roots,............
Just wondering whether our own little dragon lady and her possible offspring will entertain Jessica and me in that way when we are in heaven..........
I won't say "keep on dreaming", but rather "keep on hoping" :p
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