Chapter 138 Monkeys and camels in Hong Kong

It is not difficult to meet monkeys in Hong Kong.In the past, there was a monkey forest and monkey mountain in Sha Tin, New Territories. There were groups of monkeys there, and they could go out in groups to cover the road and beg for food.This grand event once disappeared, but it can be seen again in recent years.In addition, in the past, we could occasionally see monkey shows walking around the rivers and lakes in relatively secluded streets, and some of them also included sheep and little black dogs.This is the most primitive and primitive Chinese acrobatic troupe, which can be seen everywhere in China.They are all from Shandong, and they form a team of two or three.You could often see them in Hong Kong before, but then they were suddenly called "animal abuse", they were arrested several times in a row, and they had to be deported.A few years ago, I had the opportunity to meet another troupe. They came from somewhere. They were called Monkey Troupe. The masks and costumes worn by the monkeys were very particular. The foreman played gongs while leading the monkeys, singing "Come on, Bao Longtu has come to Kaifeng Mansion, and the night will break the yin and the sun will break the yang." The monkey put on a black mask and a gauze hat and turned somersaults, which made the children very happy.

They are all from the Shandong Gang.For some reason, the locals kept saying that they were from Jiangxi, hence the saying "Jiangxi guy beat the monkey to death".This means that people can't deal with the aftermath. I really don't know where it came from. It is not difficult to see a monkey in Hong Kong, but it is really difficult to see a camel.I have lived here for many years, but I have never seen one, and I doubt whether the hot climate in Hong Kong is suitable for that kind-hearted animal, but in the history of Hong Kong, it is said that there was a camel.This is an anecdote from Hong Kong in the early years. I can't guarantee its authenticity, so I have to listen to it and say it in vain.

The anecdote of this camel is related to today's mountaineering cable car.It is said that before the cable car was laid, the traffic between the top and the bottom of the mountain was extremely inconvenient, and the top of the mountain was inaccessible, so the scenery was very quiet.A wealthy foreign businessman fell in love with this atmosphere, so he built a villa on the top of the mountain, and lived a quiet and comfortable life away from the hustle and bustle.As for the work of getting up and down and passing daily objects every day, he raised a camel for transportation. No one knows where this big animal, which is rare in southern China, comes from.This wealthy businessman lived a lonely life like this for a long time, until 1888, the construction of the Peak Tramway was completed and officially opened to traffic. Anyone can spend very little time to the top of the mountain and enjoy the beautiful scenery on the mountain.The rich businessman felt that after the cable car was connected, his quiet life was destroyed, which was nothing more than his doomsday, so he left the mountaintop angrily and left Hong Kong.

This anecdote can be seen in a booklet such as a Hong Kong guide published by a Western Bookstore in Hong Kong before the war, and the editor was Solbik.I have not seen the same record in any other work on Hong Kong, so I can't find out his basis, and he never wrote the name of this eccentric rich businessman, and the origin and subsequent whereabouts of the camel.But it is an interesting anecdote to think that there were camels in Hong Kong.