Blogs from Macau, Asia - page 24
January 20th 2006
We decided to take a day trip from Hong Kong to Macau, it's recommended in the guidebooks as one of Chinas highlights and it meant that we'd get another stamp in our passports ;) Unfortunately the day we went it suddenly turned very cold and we weren't really very prepared for it so it was a chilly walk around the island! There were some pleasant sights and it's a fairly nice place to visit and amble around but having been built up as a highlight I think we were expecting more from Macau and so at the end of our day we were left a little wanting.. Still, it made a change from the busy bustling Hong Kong scenery and I found a tree I liked! ... read more
December 12th 2005
Macau, China: Nov. 27-29 We travelled overnight on a bus full of beds (In all my travels, I had never encountered such a bus before). It was much more bearable than the 10 hour torment I had envisioned. We arrived at 5 am in Shenzhen and took the next couple hours to figure out how to get to the Port as we had no guide book and it is near impossible to get around China otherwise as next to no one speaks english and everything is written in Chinese but we persevered, got on a bus and hoped that at some point it would end up at the Pier. It did about 2 hours later after what could be called the extremely scenic route of Shenzhen. We arrived in Macau and were charmed by its ... read more
December 2nd 2005
Well can't complain much cos cheap tickets ... but one thing that I would like to point out is the air stewardess was so diligent in cleaning the toilet ... so it was clean n spanking all the time. :) At last, I get to breath fresh air!! I had to practically run as it was so cold - BRRR. Imigration was a breeze... but everything was closed. Cos it's like 0300 :) Anyway, I had to wait till 0730 for the bus to transfer to the jetty for the First Ferry to TST. Met a few guys who is also going to HK. But they decided to take a taxi to the Casino instead of waiting in the airport. Well if they are going to HK Island, they can actually take the TurboJet which operates ... read more
October 16th 2005
All the photos are in the dead of night, I'm glad it ended up that way but Macau was a quick trip. Nick, a young Kiwi toymaker, and I headed for Hong Kong central and had a great time, sleeping half the day away when I should have been on a boat to Macau. When I had finally made it it was already dark and with a flight at noon the next day I chose the obvious. Ditch the bag at the ferry station and walk with the camera, all night, no hotel. I headed for Taipa, one of two small islands connected by bridge, Florida Keys style, I was in search of a good Macanese meal in the old Portuguese district. Sausage with wicked spice and potato soup hit the spot, not so different as ... read more
July 19th 2005
Managed to get 4 passport stamps in total -- exit entry exit entry. Caught the ferry over to mainland China to Macau but this does not mean we went to China, oh no no no. Not entirely sure but think Macau might be like Hong Kong in that it used to be a colony - Portugese to be precise - and is now part of China but still has separate passport/visa controls. Hence arriving in Macau felt like arriving in Europe! To start with they seem to be trying to turn into Monaco and are building a series of casinos - a volcano, a pyramid etc on the beach. Caught a bus over one of the excess number of rollercoaster style bridges (including the famous friendship bridge) to Taipa - a gorgeous little Portugese style village ... read more
April 24th 2005
Macau Mania? After 400 years as a sleepy Portuguese colony in the south of China, Macua is becoming the Vegas of Asia and even overtaking the Vegas strip's previous records. It's a weekday afternoon and I am standing, slack-jawed and agog, in the sparkling lobby of the huge Sands Casino. Directly over my head, suspended from a well-reinforced (I hope) ceiling, hangs what is purportedly the world's largest chandelier -- a monstrosity of glittering glass and chrome that sends showers of twinkling fantasy light to the floor below. Bustling all around me are many hundreds of high-octane gamblers making their way toward the casino's nearly 400 card tables. Dozens of red-eyed waiters attempt to swim in among them, and pokerfaced overseers keep eagle eyes on their silent, expressionless croupiers. This is my third day in the ... read more
April 8th 2005
Yesterday mom and I did a day trip by boat to Macau. We felt honor-bound to undertake this adventure as my dad grew up there and well, he did pay for this trip. The place now belongs to China but is a special economic zone with relative autonomy over itself other than national security and foreign relation policies. This place is relatively unexciting if you don't feel the need to go to one of the many casinos. I found that the lights were just as glittery in Macau as Las Vegas but not as exciting. Las Vegas casino hotels had certain attractions to captivate the tourists. Here, you just came to gamble... no delicious dinner buffets or circus shows. This place used to be a portuguese colony and had a bunch of churches. The most famous ... read more
December 19th 1986
An exciting aspect of overseas travel, dear reader , comes from grasping new opportunities that are presented on the road. I was learning to keep an open mind as a traveller and trying to make every post a winner when it comes to new travel adventures. I mean to say, how could I resist a visit to Macau when it is only sixty kilometres south west of Hong Kong, and can be reached in just over an hour on a high speed ferry out of Victoria Harbour? This proved to be an irresistable lure for me, and I climbed aboard the ferry for a weekend trip to Macau full of anticipation. It was exciting to have the chance to visit this unique country in the heart of Asia, which at the same time is a country ... read more
