18 February 2023 - History Field Trip

History Club Field Trip - Wong Nai Chung Gap Trial

Hong Kong is a city entrenched in history, both distant and near. Though we live in a thoroughly modernised city, shards of history remain blatant and hidden within the nooks and crannies. Passing through the historical relics, we caught up with different fragments of the past, the past of Hong Kong.

The History Club held its first field trip after plenty of obstacles it faced on 18th February 2023. Organised by the school’s resident history teachers, Mr Thomas Ma and Mr Wilson Choi, the club consisting of senior history students hiked up steep hills and practically vertical stairs to reach different historical locations at Wong Nai Chung Gap Trail, aiming to expand our horizons on the role of Hong Kong in WWII.

The club followed along the path of soldiers who fought valiantly in their attempt to protect our city from Japanese invasion. Luck, however, was not in their favour as any defences they had set up prior were practically useless due to a tactical miscalculation. The city fell two weeks after Japan’s initial assault from what we now know as North Point.

We arrived at Osborn Memorial, remembering John Osborn’s sacrifice in the Battle of Hong Kong in 1941. Hearing Osborn’s courageous act, we acknowledged that compared with exterminating enemies, using one's life to protect his comrades is a truly heroic deed.

Now, all remains are monuments commemorating the brave and dead, erected by those who lived, gradually demolished weapon and gunpowder armoury, crumbling defence bunkers and hardened sandbags that witnessed the passing of time. Along the journey, we stepped back in time, saw the contribution of different past governors of Hong Kong to the modernisation of the city, and gradually developed a strong sentiment towards the intangible linkage between us and the history of our homeland.

The history club enjoyed a pleasant mountain hike while students enhanced their knowledge of Hong Kong’s modern history. Seeing the leftover ruins made me even more grateful for the hard-won peace we hold today, and l slightly drew closer to the past and present of the city.

S5LC (25) Hailey Wong & S6WC (7) Annabella Day