Part 36 - Hong Kong

I wasn't really sorry to leave Japan, it was a sad place to be at that time, you couldn't enjoy yourself when you knew people had suffered so much. We sailed out of Kobe after a couple of days and headed south for Hong Kong. I was looking forward to visiting Hong Kong and when we arrived the sheer bustle of the place excited you. The Chinese had adapted quickly after the war and even as the Belfast pulled into the harbour, our burn-boats tagged on alongside flying their homemade flags with HMS Belfast painted on them, about half a dozen of these boats had assigned themselves to the Belfast and all the time we were in Hong Kong they stayed tied up alongside us selling the crew everything under the sun, painting the ship and even setting up a laundry on the deck.

I went ashore the following day at noon on a 24 hour pass. We had rick-shaw rides round the town and visited the monument on the top of a hill which the Japs had forced the British POWs to build in honour of the Jap conquest of Hong Kong. There was an excellent canteen, the Pacific Fleet Canteen where we had a good meal then we toured the narrow streets on foot which was the only way to see it all really. The sights and smells were unforgettable, I bought a camphor wood trinket box in one shop after watching it being hand carved and I can still smell inside that box 40 years later and remember Hong Kong. One thing that tickled me was when a local dragged into his shop and insisted on showing me his latest piece of craftsmanship which he begged me to buy at bargain price - it was a beautifully carved and polished full sized coffin!. I must have looked the right size.

I liked Hong Kong and admired the Chinese greatly for their industry, you could order a made to measure suit one day and the next day they would bring it to the ship for you. I bought many trinkets there to bring home and I had to occupy another locker on the ship to keep my present in. However the time came to leave Hong Kong and the Belfast pulled out as our burn boats started to paint their flags with a different name for the next ship in. We sailed next down the coast of Malaya, to what was to be our final stop on our "Showing the Flag" tour, the wonderful city of Singapore.