Alumni and Friends: Whoop It Up!

To encourage and promote education enhancement for Hong Kong students at the University of Warwick, the Warwick Graduates' Association Hong Kong has set up the WGAHK Scholarship. This year, a unique New Territories-style banquet was organized to raise fund for the scholarship.

On the lovely Sunday of 17th April 2005, more than 20 Warwickers and friends got together for a pun choi lunch in the traditional wai village (which literally means walled village) in Fanling. Fanling Lou, which stands amidst the newly developed area of the new town, witnesses the rapid and abrupt change of Fanling in the last few decades— an interesting mix of old and new.

While pun choi has become fashionable and a casual meal solution these days, people only had pun choi during major Chinese festivals in the olden days. Having a group of people sitting around the table sharing a pot of mixed meat and vegetables symbolizes "reunion and celebration". Despite the introduction of various new style pun choi, villagers still treasure their unique age-old way of preparing an assortment of food and serving in large basins.

Followed the savoury lunch was a historical walk around the village complex. Natalie, Vice-Chairman (Scholarship & Student Welfare), who spent part of her early childhood in the village, led the tour and shared with us the development of the village. It was truly an afternoon of enjoyment: a mix of good food and laughter.