“I’m a native of Kat O, the charming island at the cusp of Hong Kong. Growing up, there were over 6000 residents - there are now just about 50! The population was made up of Hakka people and Tanka fishermen. Kat O pier used to be lined with dim sum places, fruit and vegetable stalls, tea houses…but in the sixties, a swarm of residents moved to Europe in search of a better life. Large families uprooted and relocated to Scotland, Holland, England, France and have now stayed there for several generations. I also moved to Amsterdam when I was 23 years old, in 1973. I remember getting lost all the time - the streets and canals all looked the same to me! I found a job at a restaurant in Chinatown and, because I couldn’t speak a word of Dutch, used body language to get by. One day, a young Frenchman named Dominique came to the restaurant. For some reason he kept coming back and would sit there and draw portraits during his meal. Who knew that he would one day become my artist husband and that we would move back to Kat O together!” 

「吉澳係一個好靚嘅島仔，佢喺香港嘅最出邊，我係呢度嘅原居民。細個嗰陣，呢度有超過6,000個居民，而家得返50個左右咋！呢度有客家人同蜑家漁民，吉澳碼頭以前有成排酒樓、生果檔、菜檔、茶檔……不過去到60年代，有一浸居民移咗民去歐洲想搵更好嘅生活。佢哋成個家族咁移民去蘇格蘭、荷蘭、英國、法國，下一代就留咗喺嗰度。我都喺23歲嘅時候去咗阿姆斯特丹，嗰年係1973年。我仲記得嗰時成日都蕩失路，嗰啲街道同運河睇落條條都一樣咁﹗我喺唐人街嘅一間餐館搵到份工，因為我一句荷蘭話都唔識講，要用身體語言去溝通。有一日，有個叫Dominique嘅後生法國人嚟咗餐館。唔知點解佢之後成日嚟幫襯，會坐喺度食嘢畫畫。邊個估到佢會有一日做咗我個藝術家老公，仲一齊搬返嚟吉澳！」 

“ I work hard to take care of the household and support Dominique’s work in any way I can. When we lived in France I used to drive us and his paintings across Europe in our little Volkswagen to help him set up art exhibitions. I like to be creative too, and back in the day I enjoyed making ceramics. At home, we speak a mix of languages - Hakka, Cantonese, Mandarin, Dutch, French - it’s a mish mash but it works. It’s nice to settle back in a place where I grew up. Kat O was known for divers in the past and many of them moved to Australia to work as pearl and abalone divers. My father was the village chief back then. He would look after matters big and small in the village and, during the Japanese invasion, he even had to deal with guerrilla groups on the island. He was a sociable man and would also enjoy greeting British visitors who passed by on their sailing boats - he liked to practise his English!”

“The island was a restricted area until 2018, when more tourist ferries have been allowed to travel in from the New Territories. I’ve seen the island change so much in the past few decades - from a thriving village to a near-deserted town littered with abandoned houses. I still love living here though and I am proud of my Hakka heritage. I also love to cook Hakka food! Living with an artist means that I have quite a unique lifestyle. For starters we live in the most colourful house on the island covered with Dominique’s murals and have a garden with all kinds of beautiful plants. Do I like having my photos taken? Yes. I was once an extra in a movie with stars Fung Bo Bo and Chan Po-Chu when I was a student. It was fun and we got paid HK$50, which was a lot back then!”

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「我好用心去照顧屋企同埋支持Dominique嘅工作。當我哋住喺法國嘅時候，我會做司機，揸住我哋㗎細細嘅Volkswagen，載住佢嘅畫作喺歐洲四圍擺展覽。我都鍾意創作㗎，以前我鍾意整陶瓷。喺屋企呢，我哋會講好多種語言，客家話啦、廣東話、普通話、荷蘭話、法文，乜都有啲，但係都溝通到。好開心可以返嚟自己長大嘅地方定居。吉澳以前出名有好多潛水員，佢哋好多人移咗民去澳洲，去做捕撈珍珠同埋鮑魚嘅潛水員。我阿爸以前係村長。佢會睇住條村嘅大小事，喺日本仔侵華嘅時候，佢甚至要應付島上面嘅游擊隊。佢係一個好鍾意交際嘅人，啲英國人揸住隻艇路過嘅時候，佢好鍾意同佢哋打招呼，佢鍾意練下啲英文呀！」

「呢度喺2018年之前係限制區域，之後多咗載遊客嘅艇仔可以喺新界嗰邊駛入嚟。我睇住個島喺過去呢幾十年轉變咗好多，由一條好旺嘅村變到而家差唔多冇人住，周圍都係荒廢咗嘅屋。不過我仍然好鍾意住喺度，為自己客家嘅傳統自豪。我都鍾意煮客家嘢㗎！同一個藝術家一齊生活，生活方式係幾獨特嘅。譬如我哋住緊嗰間屋係島上面最色彩豐富㗎啦，油滿哂Dominique嘅壁畫，又有一個種滿花花草草嘅花園。我鍾唔鍾意俾人影相？我鍾意㗎。讀書嗰陣，我試過喺一套有馮寶寶同陳寶珠嘅電影入面做臨時演員，好好玩㗎，我哋仲收咗50蚊人工，嗰時嚟講係好多㗎喇！」