HK newly-weds learn lessons from survival

'It was such a contrast to the daily life of city people. We had almost no water or food,' Chan Wai-kei, the newly-wed Hong Kong bride who cheated death with her husband when the quake struck during their honeymoon, said yesterday.

Due to fly back to Hong Kong today, the couple, who both work for the Hong Kong Police, met media in Chengdu last night with clean clothes and smiles as they recalled days of hardship.

Ms Chan and husband Tsang Heung-kam were driving along the winding roads of Wenchuan county in Sichuan province enjoying the mountain scenery when the quake struck last Monday.

Mr Tsang said huge rocks fell from a mountain just 50 metres in front of them and they spent nights sheltering in the car with guides and a photographer they had hired to take wedding pictures.

'We heard the rocks keep slapping the car's roof at night when we made our slow return,' Mr Tsang said, adding that he felt unconditional gratitude to villagers who shared food with them on their way.

'We only had a few bottles of water. We had no food at all when we started our journey,' he said.