"Tung Yick Store was a small inn where traders used to spend the night. The small barred windows are for security." Although the inn cannot be dated exactly, it most likely existed at around the same time as the pawn shop, easily making it the oldest hotel in the city.

After passing many more locked-up relics from the past, including a building that formerly stored rice and numerous abandoned and dilapidated residences, we conclude our tour at Yuen Kwan Yi Tai Temple, another Grade 1 historical building dating back to 1714 and the neighborhood's ancestral hall.

"Notice the vertical plaque above the entry," says Chan. "It means that this temple was blessed by the emperor about 200 years ago."

Against the Chung Sing School in the background, the temple appears tiny and vulnerable. It is reassuring to know that the Tang clan, still a vital force in Yuen Long through the indigenous villagers association Heung Yee Kuk, will ensure that temples like Yi Shing stick around for future generations to worship within them.

IF YOU GO

Yuen Long Old Market, Yuen Long.

For more information or to arrange private tours, visit www.walkin.hk.