Hong Kong Museum of History

             The area surrounding the junk exhibit includes several informational signs, which explain the type of fish the boat dwellers caught, the various methods used, and rituals performed by the fishermen in hopes of a good catch. Large pictures accompany the signs and are hung all around, depicting the traditional ways of the boat dwellers. Sounds of the sea the creaking of the junk as it rocks, the splashing of the waves, and the calling of seagulls can be heard overhead while large fishing baskets, oars, and other similar articles decorate the area to aid the exhibit's reality. The display, overall, illustrates the average life of boat dwellers as well as the traditional fishing industry in Hong Kong. Also included in the boat dweller section of the gallery are exhibits explaining how to prepare shrimp sauce and paste and how to make salted fish. Little can be observed in these exhibits, however, aside from the typical containers in which such processes were carried out. Informational signs provide a short, but insipid commentary about how such processes are completed. .
             To explore the customs of the Punti ("local people") ethnic group in Hong Kong, a replica of a ancestral hall was constructed as such a hall is considered the focal point of the traditional Punti walled villages. Exhibits within the hall allow visitors to observe a selection of aspects traditional Chinese society. The first exhibit is a large and colorful alter used in worshiping the deities. A large quantity of food fruit and meat is on display in bowls and baskets on a table near the front of the alter, as an offering to the gods. In worshiping and providing offerings to the gods and ancestors, the people believed the deities would protect them against anything harmful. The second exhibit explains the lighting lantern festival. On the twelfth day of the first month in the Chinese lunar calendar, paper lanterns are hung around the walls of the village to announce the initiation of male children born into the village as new clan members.