One of post-handover Hong Kong's sadder sights is Sek Kong village, a sprawling military residential complex that has been largely abandoned to changing circumstances after 1997.
Sek Kong straddles Route Twisk, which winds across the slopes of Tai Mo Shan. Originally built as a military road in the 1940s, the name is TWSK on older maps. The acronym stands for Tsuen Wan Sek Kong, and the vowel was later added to aid pronunciation. The roads that lead off Route Twisk into the village bear the names of British regiments - such as the Buffs, the Middlesex and the Borderers - formerly stationed in Hong Kong.
Enormous trees, mostly planted in the 50s, are a noted feature around Sek Kong. Stands of mature kapok along the lower stretches of Route Twisk are particularly stunning when the bright red flowers appear in the early spring. For a few weeks, Sek Kong becomes a rendezvous for painters and amateur photographers keen to capture the magnificence.
Tucked away among the foliage, the older bungalows mostly date from the 50s and were built in a plain, tropical Public Works Department style. Examples can be seen from Singapore to Fiji. Rooms open into each other like a railway carriage. Nestled into the densely forested slopes of Tai Mo Shan, wildlife incursions were commonplace around the bungalows when they were occupied; barking deer could sometimes be heard at night and wild pigs were occasionally sighted. And, of course, this particular Eden had plenty of snakes.
Less peacefully, dozens of motorcyclists speed-trial and race each other up and down Route Twisk almost every cool-weather Sunday. The obvious danger and thundering noise are routinely ignored - for reasons best known to themselves - by the police. Back in the 'bad old days', of course, the Royal Military Police, who had control over Route Twisk's lower section, would have put a stop to these races in hours. Times have clearly changed.
Some buildings are currently used by the People's Liberation Army, and the sounds of band practice can often be heard coming from Hampshire House, just across from the now-disused Sek Kong Cinema. While the old married quarters are allegedly maintained by the PLA, most buildings have remained unoccupied since the last families moved away in 1994 and are in a deplorable state of disrepair. Perhaps Hong Kong's growing legion of heritage activists might care to comment?