On the way from Wan Chai to Aberdeen, I noticed these property marker stones set into the retaining wall of a terrace.
Unusual as they're usually set at ground level. IL stands for Inland Lot (as opposed to ML Marine Lot which would have been on the then-waterfront)
Set into the ground is an access panel for the Public Works Department, which from 1871 to 1986 was responsible for electricity, lighting, reclamation, waterworks etc in Hong Kong.
Since it was pouring rain the Wanchai Valley Dam, which Bowen Road crosses, had a very nice waterfall.
The gardens at the dam were originally constructed as Water Service Tank No. 4, to deliver water from the Tai Tam Waterworks scheme.
Here's a view looking north from circa 1880. The cascading water in the previous tweet is visible near the bottom middle of this public library photo.
Coming down by the Grantham Hospital, we had to navigate the ruins of the demolished squatter village. I find it ingenious that the residents were able to make their own rudimentary sewage system complete with drainage pipes.
I also made an unfortunate encounter with this nasty plant. Even the smallest tendril is covered in razor-sharp spikes that rip through clothing and skin. Apparently it's Calumus tetradactylus or the Four-Fingered Rattan Palm due to its long slender leaves growing in clusters of four. It's also referred to as "spikevine", "living barbed wire" and "that little bastard plant" due to the extremely sharp spines. I cannot stress how much I hate this plant.
As has been pointed out by others, these villages are a treasure trove of detritus from the seventies and eighties. Here's a cassette radio (and shoe) and I think an old TV cathode ray tube. And that's just from a short hike over the mountains. Until next time!
