Many places in the eastern part of Hong Kong Island, like Causeway Bay, North Point, Quarry Bay and Chai Wan, have especially interesting names. Causeway Bay, for instance, gets its Cantonese name of Tung Lo Wan because its landscape looks just like a copper gong (tung lo). The name of Chai Wan, meanwhile, reminds us that its villagers used to gather small firewood (chai) in the local forests for fuel. Chai Wan was a then densely wooded part of Hong Kong. Today, Eastern District is a busy commercial and residential area, and LPG or Towngas provide a far more convenient source of cooking fuel.

There are two stories behind the name of Shau Kei Wan, which means "Pail Bay" in Cantonese. Some say in the late Southern Song Dynasty, a man named Cheung Chun met a fairy who gave him some treasures. As he sailed back to Kowloon with the navy, a pail given to him by the fairy fell into sea, just off the coast of the area now known as Eastern District.

A sadder story tells of a boatwoman, Chu Tee, who was widowed soon after getting married. She gave birth to a son, Ah Ha, after her husband's death. Ah Ha was a good boy who tragically lost his sight after catching smallpox. When he was 15, his mother fell ill. To support the family, Ah Ha became a beggar, sitting on the waterfront every day with a pail, until one year he disappeared in a violent storm. Only his pail was ever found. Chu Yee missed her son so much that she went insane, but Ah Ha's filial deed was immortalised in the name of Shau Kei Wan.

Causeway Bay has become one of Hong Kong's best loved shopping areas with its wide selection of shops, department stores and mega-malls, offering everything from exclusive brand name goods to utility wear, computer products and kitchen tools. Here you will also find the largest library in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Central Library, which opened in 2001.

While characterised by modern architecture, the Eastern District is also an area of ancient relics and historic monuments. The Museum of Coastal Defence in Shau Kei Wan is one such historic attraction. Set in the century-old Lei Yue Mun Barracks, the museum is made up of three sections: Reception Block, Redoubt and Historical Trail.

Interesting Stories of 18 Districts
Central & Western	Eastern
Islands	Kowloon City
Kwai Tsing	Kwun Tong
North	Sai Kung
Sham Shui Po	Sha Tin
Southern	Tai Po
Tsuen Wan	Tuen Mun
Wan Chai	Wong Tai Sin
Yau Ma Tei Tsim Sha Tsui Mong Kok   Others	Yuen Long

The 1,300-square-metre Redoubt is the main building of the Barracks, and was the centre of Hong Kong's defence system during World War II. Restored to its former glory, it now houses some fascinating exhibits recording Hong Kong's coastal defence history from the Ming and Qing Dynasties to the British colonial era, the Japanese occupation and post-reunion days. A stroll along the Historical Trail will give you a taste of Hong Kong's marine defence power, with gun batteries, the Brennan Torpedo Station and magazines on display along the route.

The Eastern District also has many other historic buildings, for example the Tin Hau Temple in Causeway Bay, which is over 100 years old, and the Tam Kung Temple in Shau Kei Wan, which attracts worshippers from far and wide. To see relics of the Hakka people who once lived in Chai Wan, visit the Law Uk Folk Museum.