Cheung Chau Bun Festival is one of Hong Kong’s whackiest and most authentic cultural celebrations. It dates back to the 18th century, when islanders celebrated the end of a plague in their village by parading an image of Pak Tai, the God of Water, through the streets; carrying their kids around on high poles and scrambling up bun towers. I did say whacky, right?
This year, from April 16 to May 27, we can expect a six-week carnival at Cheung Chau’s Pak Tai Temple Playground. Featuring market stalls, game booths, handicraft workshops, lion and dragon dances and bun-tower climbing, the festival culminates in the final round of the legendary Bun Scrambling Competition.
Whether or not you attend the carnival, make sure you’re in Cheung Chau on the afternoon of May 27 to witness Piu Sik, the famous Floating Colours Procession, which is led by a huge image of Pak Tai. As villagers beat gongs and drums to scare away evil spirits, local children, dressed as legendary and modern heroes, are suspended high above the crowd on towering poles and paraded through the streets – though secured within steel frames, they appear to glide through the air.
The fun continues at a quarter to midnight, when villagers burn a paper effigy of Zhong Kui, the King of the Ghosts; light enormous incense sticks and prepare for the main event.
The Bun Scrambling Competition is held at midnight in front of Pak Tai Temple. Historically, young men of the village would race up three, 60-foot bamboo bun towers and then strip the towers of their buns on their way down. This year, 12 trained athletes, selected from preliminary competitions, will compete, climbing a single, steel-framed bun tower.
The competition was banned by the government in 1978 after one of the bamboo bun towers collapsed, injuring more than 100 people. It was reinstated as a race, due to popular demand, in 2005. A lot of credit for the revival is given to Hong Kong-made animated feature My Life as McDull, which was a big hit on its release in December 2001. During the movie, McDull decides to train as an Olympic athlete but he’s a bit of a dummy, so the sport he chooses to specialise in is… bun scrambling.
