From hardship in a Hong Kong village to owning New York spa to the stars
Abandoned by her father, Chan Yuk Ling had it tough as a child in the New Territories. But she followed him to the Big Apple, opened her first spa in 1984 and today has stars from Madonna to Mariah Carey as clients
I was born in a village in the New Territories, in the area that’s now called Po Lam. My father was a seaman. When I was 10 years old, and my mother was pregnant with my little sister, he went to America and didn’t come back. My mother stayed in the village even though this wasn’t allowed – usually only the men could be the head of the household.
My mother was helped by her own mother, but it was very hard for her. She had full responsibility for the family, and had to take care of me, my younger brother and baby sister. My mother is 94 now and she’s a very healthy, strong lady. But we went through some difficult times, and she was often unhappy.
It was tough for me, too. My grandmother and mother never went to school. So I needed to take care of them, psychologically. I was always very supportive, talking to my mother and guiding her. I helped take care of my younger siblings, too. I was always a happy child, though. I’m 67 now and I’m still the same – emotionally, I am very strong. No matter what the problem, I have a talent to change a negative issue into a positive way of thinking.
My mother is 94 now and she’s a very healthy, strong lady. But we went through some difficult times, and she was often unhappy
In our village primary school, one teacher taught all the kids from three different years in the same classroom. This was typical for the 1950s. Hong Kong was very poor then, so we were lucky to get this education. For high school I moved to Diamond Hill. Soon after I graduated I met my husband, Jimmy Chan Kam-hung. He’s from Hong Kong but he had travelled around the world, serving in the British Navy. We got married when I was 22.
Ever since he left, I had missed my father, and I wanted to see him. Jimmy was working in London but I told him he had no choice – if he wanted to be with me, he would have to go to New York, where my father was living. We arrived in 1971. I had studied English at high school but I couldn’t speak it at all. At first we lived with my dad in Brooklyn, and then we found our own place nearby in Bay Ridge. Forty years later, we still live in the same area.
New York didn’t feel especially welcoming, but I never struggled. It was less competitive than Hong Kong. It’s an immigrant country and it’s a very fair country – it’s not a place where people are prejudiced. There are all types of people in New York. You can have a dream and can do whatever you want.
