My primary and secondary school was in Happy Valley, with school buildings situated against the side of a hill. The school site had an elevated view of the Racecourse and the tram tracks.

My favourite pass time at recess was to lean against the waist-height stone wall with my school friends chatting while watching trams pass by and chanting every now and then with the sounds of “Ding Ding”.

There was a tram stop close to school, but we students seldom board at that stop as the Happy Valley tram terminus was just another 10 minutes’ walk away. If we took a tram from the nearby stop, the tram would likely to be stopping over at the Terminus for a long time, sometimes even changed destinations. To save the waiting time and/ or to board another car, we normally got on the next departing tram from the terminus.

Little did I realise at the time that located at the Happy Valley terminus was one of the two canteens for the tram motormen. Back in those days, there were no meal breaks, motormen took the little time while the trams stopped there to buy their meal boxes, consumed the meal while the trams stopped at red lights. That was where the jargon “Red Lights Rice” came from. Now that I think of it, all the little waits and extra walks were nothing when compared to the dedication of those motormen who diligently perform their duties to ensure non-interrupted services.

*Photo: My classmate Ms Helena Koo Prieto (granddaughter of Madam Chiu) and me

*Click to read Madam Chiu's story ‎