Macau Trip-Day 3

Today, for our last day in Macau, we decided to roam Macau’s famous hotels and casinos. Hotels such as The Venetian Macau, MGM Macau, Galaxy Hotel, City of Dreams and Wynn Hotel. But before we did, we decided to have lunch at a nearby restaurant near the first hotel we checked in. I ordered rice porridge and it tasted like nothing. Literally like nothing, It’s basically like I’m eating a soft watery something. But at least I was full after eating half of it, right??

We walked to the nearest bus stop and as we were walking, we noticed that in the middle of the shops and busy streets, there were stairs that led to a circular garden that looked like a perfect place to rest for a while. I do not know what the place was called but it was really beautiful.

Each hotel smelled of expensive perfume and each hotel we visited was built to impress. I at one point realized that shopping centers are actually built right inside the hotels and that is really awesome. Brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Fendi and Tory Burch line the hotel shops and there are even cinemas inside.

The ceilings in The Venetian Macau are made to imitate blue skies.

The gondolas go around the artificial rivers surrounding The Venetian Macau shopping center that includes a singing gondolier.

Lord Stows Bakery & Cafe is famous for their egg tart and they opened a branch here inside The Venetian Macau.

The Venetian Macau of course have a couple of bridges to make it look more like being in Italy.

In front of The Venetian Macau, there was actually a circus event. There was a show with jugglers and clowns and it was very fun to watch.

Next we went to the Galaxy Hotel which was just a short distance away from the Venetian Macau. At the lobby of Galaxy Hotel, we were able to witness the fortune diamond show. A seemingly ordinary fountain will slowly reveal a gigantic diamond and all the while lights keep changing and the fountain shifts and makes tourists go Ooh and Ahh.

And then we rode a local bus to the City of Dreams. Where there was this screen with a mermaid made to look like it’s really there, but I forgot to take a picture of the mermaid, bummer.

MGM Macau was my favorite in all the hotels we roamed. The decorations are very lovely and colorful. And I was overwhelmed with awe when I saw the MGM Water Aurora which is a cylindrical aquarium that is filled with various species of fish. I could’ve just stayed there and watch the fishies all day if I could.

Wynn Hotel was our last stop and although we already saw the fountains, we haven’t exactly been inside. And once inside, we waited for the The Tree of Prosperity show which was beautiful and gave me a stiff neck from all the looking up I did.

 

Before going to the airport for the flight back, we took a quick pasalubong run at Senado Square and bought almond cookies, jerky and key chains. I even grabbed some of the free almond cookies they are giving away so I can munch on them on the plane ride back.

Being able to go to Macau has been such a wonderful experience. Everyday was filled with excitement and even when I was almost always cold all through my stay there, I still felt like I could conquer the cold and carry on. Even when my feet was about to give up on me with all the walking I still felt hyper and ready. The panda was my one regret though. If need be, I will go back alone to Macau just to see the panda, because I love pandas and seeing one would be pure joy for me. So if someone asked you to go to Macau with them or there ever was a chance for you to go even if you are alone, jump on it. You will not regret it.

Macau Trip-Day 2

Breakfast consisted of hot choco, coffee in styro cups plus noodles and crackers, which we brought along as a way to save up. And after our breakfast, we took a local bus to A-Ma Temple, which was located at the southwest tip of Macau’s main island.

A-Ma Temple was built in 1488 and is one of the oldest and is the most famous Taoist temple in Macau. You can smell burning incense even before you enter the temple. Burning incense here is a way of paying homage and praying for good fortune.

The Macau Maritime Museum was just a short distance away from A-Ma temple. The last time I was able to go to a museum was eight years ago. So I was really excited to see inside of the museum. There is actually an admission fee:

The exhibits here explore major themes in the history of the maritime industry in Macau, China & Portugal. They allow tourists to take pictures inside which I think is really nice.

We failed miserably at trying to get to Macau Tower. We followed a wrong turn in the road, walking from Museo Maritimo to Pousade De Sao Tiago. It was too late when we notice that Macau Tower is not getting any nearer and is at the other side of Sai Van Lake. Our feet are pretty numb from all the walking by this time, and so we decided to rest and just take pictures of Macau Tower from a distance.

Macau Fisherman’s Wharf is located at the southeastern tip of the main island which we were able to get to via the local bus. Fisherman’s Wharf is a good place to stroll since there are so many things to see here. Roman architecture was a prominent theme and there are even shopping center’s inside seemingly crumbling Roman temples and pillars.

We ate dinner at a local restaurant that was very near our hotel. I actually was a bit sleepy when we decided to have dinner and I went out on my pajamas and just brought a cardigan with me. I did not have any pictures of the place we ate at since it was just to be a quick dinner and I did not have my phone with me. The food was pretty decent, there was a value meal on their menu which included rice, one meat dish and then 2 side dishes. It was actually delicious and very affordable. Too bad I forgot to take my phone and was not able to take pictures.

My second day in Macau is like a walkathon for the most part. But I think it’s nice that we were able to go to places in Macau with our own two feet which I think would not at all be possible in some places. We of course also took shuttles and bus but it was our feet that really did the job. Good job feet!

Macau Trip - Day 3

Macau Trip-Day 1

If somebody invited you to travel abroad for the first time, would you go? Well I did, and I am so glad I did even though it wasn’t exactly planned for me and I am a bit worried about spending too much on this trip.

So after I decided to go to Macau, I booked a round trip ticket to Macau for April 2 & 6, 2014. Luckily, Cebu Pacific had this fare promo and I was able to get that round trip fare for only 4,488.14 which does not include anything else but a sit and a carry-on bag and travel tax & terminal fee’s not included. I accidentally selected a seat, so I guess I could have had that round trip fare for more or less 4k if I didn’t.

So in preparation for the trip, I made a budget plan to save up. I had about 3 months to prepare so that’s 6 payrolls for me and I have an online job on the side so I think I can make it.

So on April 2, we rode a Victory Liner bus to Clark Airport. I made sure that everything I need to carry fits in my backpack and only brought clothes that aren’t too bulky like leggings and skirts. I also made sure that I have with me clothes that are easy to mix and match. This also goes for the one pair of shoes and sandals that I brought along. And before I boarded the plane in Clark, I made sure I already had my PHP exchanged to MOP, which is the legal tender in Macau. But HKD is also widely accepted there.

I did not know what to expect as the plane started to ascend. My sister, who was with her family and was the one who invited me to go with them to Macau, has an issue with heights. So we exchanged reassurances before the take off. The flight only took about an hour and a half and I felt really excited as I looked out the window of the plane (I picked a window seat) and saw the evening lights of Macau looming closer as our plane prepared to descend. As we exited the plane, I immediately felt a blast of oh so cold air (I am a person who is perpetually cold). We arrived at 9pm and my sister did some research beforehand and so we knew that there are free shuttles provided by the hotels in Macau that would be waiting at the airport. So we rode a shuttle to Wynn Hotel, one of the many grand hotels in Macau. In Macau, there’s almost always wi-fi, even the free shuttles had free wi-fi, which is really wonderful.

We were pretty tired by the time we arrived at Macau’s main island. For our first night, we did not make hotel reservations beforehand so we had to look for one. We were able to settle on a hotel called Kou Va Hotel aka Ko Wah Hotel which is located at Macau’s former red light district. There are 5 of us, so the 5 of us split the accommodation for one night. The beds are very comfy and there are beds for each of us, plus there’s a TV for each room (the room was divided into two). The blankets are so thick and comfortable that I slept like a baby.

Kou Va hotel is within walking distance from Senado Square which is the first place we want to go to on our first day. We were also able to grab a couple of maps from the hotel, which was very convenient since we plan to tour Macau on our own.

Senado Square is a busy busy square and is a famous tourist destination. Tourists flock here to take pictures, shop and eat at traditional Chinese restaurants. The square is paved with a wave-patterned mosaic of colored stones that I really enjoyed looking at and walking on.

St. Dominic’s church is a baroque style church and can also be seen in Senado Square. The church dates back to the early 17^th century.

Our next destination was St. Paul Ruins. The streets leading to St. Paul Ruins are lined with shops and the most wonderful thing about the shops here is that they let you taste some of the food they sell for FREE! I love the almond cookies and the egg tart.

I was also able to taste the jerky’s they sell and they were pretty good.

The kiamoy here are the most delicious I have ever tasted. But it was actually quite expensive. So my sister only bought half a kilo of it and we devoured the whole thing as we toured Macau.

 

St. Paul Ruins is an old church that has been destroyed by fire in 1835. Only the façade of the church remains standing and it was one of the largest Catholic Churches during the 16^th century.

Since we needed to check out and go to our next hotel (we booked another hotel for April 3-4 beforehand), we grabbed our bags from Kou Va and had lunch at a nearby restaurant.

Ole’ London Hotel is just a little further than Kou Va Hotel from Senado Square. We checked in and once I saw the beds, I already missed Kou Va. It was narrow and not as comfy as my previous bed. The bathroom was actually so much cleaner here than at Kou Va’s, but I still missed our old hotel room.

On the way to Wynn Hotel (we were going to take a free shuttle), we saw the Grand Lisboa Hotel and this is one of the most impressive buildings that we have seen in Macau.

We rode the bus from Wynn hotel to the Airport and then from the Airport we rode The Venetian Macau shuttle. As the Venetian Macau shuttle was nearing the hotel, I saw how epic it was. At the entrance of the hotel, there was circus themed décor since they will be having a circus event. Towers loomed over the hotel and the theme is very Italian.

The inside of the hotel smelled of expensive perfume. We were even discussing whether they actually do use expensive perfume as air freshener because the place smelled so good. And of course, the interior was oh so grand.

We did not stay long because I insisted that we go to the Giant Panda Pavilion, even though it’s on Coloane, which was bit far from our hotel. And we need to get there before 5 pm because if not it would be by then closed. We rode a local bus to get there and we had our Pataca coins ready but we still got yelled at a lot since we were a bit confuse with the whole bus system and bungled a few times.

We actually kind of got lost and arrived about 15 minutes after 5. My heart broke a bit when they told us they were close for the day and that the panda was already resting. I almost almost cried but held it in. So we just decided to make the most of it since they let us walk around the pavilion, which also housed some other cute animals like the lemur and the pavilion is also a mini zoo. And for all my heartbreak, at least I got the panda bear stuff toy to hug.

Going back to the main island got a bit complicated when workers were coming out and filling up every bus as soon as they stop at the bus stop. So we waited, and it was drizzling a bit and we were feeling cold and somewhat tired.

We did not actually plan to go to Taipa Village, but since the bus we took had a stop near Taipa Village, we decided to go. Old colonial houses had been preserved here and made into a museum of sorts.

Before finally calling it a day, we went to Wynn Hotel to watch the famous Dancing Fountains Show. Music played while the fountain swayed and dance to the music as if choreographed. The show starts daily from 11 am to 12 am and runs alternately at 15 min. intervals.

Alas, we are weary from all the walking and decided to dine on a familiar restaurant, McDonalds. But the menu of the McDonalds in Macau actually has been tweaked a bit for a more oriental taste.

My bed felt weird in Ole’ London Hotel, but with all the walking we did all day, I was out cold within seconds. And my feet were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief for that day.

Macau Trip - Day 2