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Collected for the first time in a single volume are these true and often comic stories of the South China Coast. Seventy visitors from around the world give vivid accounts of their experiences—of high society at Government House and low life in Canton gaols, of spies in Hong Kong and pirates on buccaneering junks, of typhoons, burglars and Eastern magic, of gambling, opium and slavery. Most revealing of all, they write about their encounters with the people, the misunderstandings between East and West, the constant battle of wits between Chinese and foreigner, united only by a pidgin lingo. This was a time when the Colonial Secretary could say with confidence: “I have in vain sought for one valuable quality in Hong Kong… I can see no justification for the British Government spending one shilling on Hong Kong”. First published in 1986, this classic volume is sure to entertain and inform a whole new generation of readers
Noel Groucher nad a secret penchant for philanthropy. From simple beginnings in England, he arrived in Hong Kong at the turn of the century to live through eight decades of change on the China Coast. Myster surrounded Noel Croucher. Seen as tight-fisted by some yet loved by others, he endowed Hong Kong with its richest academic charity in The Croucher Foundation. He became Commodore of the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club and chairman of the Stock Exchange. To many he was a throwback to the glory days of empire. Yet he battled prejudice to get ahead in the colony. That era has now passed. This timely, fresh look at the lives lived on the Coast - through Noel Croucher's life story - brings out the realities of those times.
A timely, well-researched, and “illuminating” (The New York Times Book Review) new history of Hong Kong that reveals the untold stories of the diverse peoples who have made it a multicultural world metropolis—and whose freedoms are endangered today. Hong Kong has always been many cities to many people: a seaport, a gateway to an empire, a place where fortunes can be dramatically made or lost, a place to disappear and reinvent oneself, and a melting pot of diverse populations from around the globe. A British Crown Colony for 155 years, Hong Kong is now ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Here, renowned journalist Vaudine England delves into Hong Kong’s complex history and its people—diverse, multi-cultural, cosmopolitan—who have made this one-time fishing village into the world port city it is today. Rather than a traditional history describing a town led by British Governors or a mere offshoot of a collapsing Chinese empire, Fortune’s Bazaar is “a winning portrait of Hong Kong’s vibrant mosaic” (Publishers Weekly). While British traders and Asian merchants had long been busy in the Indian and South East Asian seas, many people from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds arrived in Hong Kong, met, and married—despite all taboos—and created a distinct community. Many of Hong Kong’s most influential figures during its first century as a city were neither British nor Chinese—they were Malay or Indian, Jewish or Armenian, Parsi or Portuguese, Eurasian or Chindian—or simply, Hong Kongers. England describes those overlooked in history, including the opium traders who built synagogues and churches; ship owners carrying gold-rush migrants; the half-Dutch, half-Chinese gentleman with two wives who was knighted by Queen Victoria; and the gardeners who settled Kowloon, the mainland peninsula facing the island of Hong Kong, and became millionaires. A story of empire, race, and sex, Fortune’s Bazaar presents a “fresh…essential” (Ian Buruma), “formidable and important” (The Correspondent) history of a special place—a unique city made by diverse people of the world, whose part in its creation has never been properly told until now.
Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2024 by Foreign Policy, Literary Hub, and The Millions Ghosh unravels the impact of the opium trade on global history and in his own family―the climax of a yearslong project. When Amitav Ghosh began the research for his monumental cycle of novels the Ibis Trilogy, he was startled to learn how the lives of the nineteenth-century sailors and soldiers he wrote about were dictated not only by the currents of the Indian Ocean but also by the precious commodity carried in enormous quantities on those currents: opium. Most surprising of all, however, was the discovery that his own identity and family history were swept up in the story. Smoke and Ashes is at once a travelogue, a memoir, and an essay in history, drawing on decades of archival research. In it, Ghosh traces the transformative effect the opium trade had on Britain, India, and China, as well as the world at large. The trade was engineered by the British Empire, which exported Indian opium to sell to China to redress their great trade imbalance, and its revenues were essential to the empire’s financial survival. Following the profits further, Ghosh finds opium central to the origins of some of the world’s biggest corporations, of America’s most powerful families and prestigious institutions (from the Astors and Coolidges to the Ivy League), and of contemporary globalism itself. Moving deftly between horticultural history, the mythologies of capitalism, and the social and cultural repercussions of colonialism, in Smoke and Ashes Ghosh reveals the role that one small plant has had in making our world, now teetering on the edge of catastrophe.
American women have lived in Hong Kong, and in neighboring Macao, for nearly two centuries. Many were changed by their encounter with Chinese life and British colonialism. Their openness to new experiences set them apart, while their "pedagogical impulse" gave them a reputation for outspokenness that troubled others. Drawing on memoirs, diaries, newspapers, films, and other texts, Stacilee Ford tells the stories of several American women and explores how, through dramatically changing times, they communicated their notions of national identity and gender.Troubling American Womenis a lively and provocative study of cross-cultural encounters between the Hong Kong and the US and use of stereotypes of American womanhood in Hong Kong popular culture. Stacilee Fordhas lived in Hong Kong for 18 years. She teaches history and American studies at the University of Hong Kong.
From the Pacific surf to Nob Hill to Chinatown, the legendary City by the Bay comes to life in this diverse collection of essays celebrating America's favorite playground. Praise the Lord at Glide Memorial Church, skate through the wonders of Golden Gate Park, discover culinary delights in the Mission, and relive the days of the gold rush.
A whirlwind personal history of modern Asia, as told through his Malaysian and Chinese heritage
Providing analysis of the history and future prospects of Hong Kong, the volume begins with a review of the age-old predominance of authoritarianism over humanitarianism in the history and institutions of China and Hong Kong. Subsequent chapters address Hong Kong's military history; British rule from 1840 to the Sino-British Declaration of 1984; health and medical services; the media and communications; the universities; recent economic developments; and change since 1984. Contributors include Hong Kong-based journalists, government officials, and academics. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR