St George's Ladies Group

Sara Ayton came to talk about Hong Kong, a city she lived in for several years in the 1990's. In an area not much larger than the Isle of Wight 6.8 million people live and work in the high rise buildings. When they ran out of space they removed the top of a nearby mountain and put it in the harbour in order that they could erect more buildings, which they put up at a very fast rate.

Very few people own cars but their transport system which comprises buses, underground and overland railways, and ferries, is very efficient and extremely cheap, a distance of eight miles would only cost about 8p. A woman could travel late at night on public transport with complete confidence as Hong Kong is one of the safest cities to live in.

There are over 200 restaurants in the city that cater for the tastes of a multi-cultural society. There are some very expensive shops and many street markets and a man can be measured for a suit, at a very reasonable price, and be able to pick it up 24 hours later ready to wear.

There are some lovely parks and bird sanctuaries where people can go to relax and many of the older generation go to them to do their t'ai chi exercises before going to work, but it seems the younger people prefer to go to a gym.

The harbour is one of the busiest in the world and many of the poorer people live there in boats which have mod cons like television and fridges. Our speaker said one of the things that surprised her was to see immaculately dressed children setting off for school emerging from such shabby little boats.

There are many beautiful islands around Hong Kong with frequent ferries and at the weekend many people leave the city to relax and enjoy the beaches.

Margaret Deal

For our second meeting in September, Terry Walker an ex-serviceman from St Dunstan's at Ovingdean, spoke to us about the many and varied ways in which the charity helps sight impaired ex-servicemen and women to live as independently as possible. He told of the warm welcome to all new residents, and of the excellent training facilities on offer which now includes computer technology. Terry also told of some inventive ways in which he makes his own life easier, for example, cutting strips from lemonade bottles on which he sticks a label in Braille, this is then taped around tins and jars. As he said, "Very useful while his wife was in hospital!"

An interesting and enlightening insight into the work of St Dunstans.

June Bradley