Welcome to “Vegas”
Macau. An island full of hotels, 24-hour casinos and high end brands at every corner of the island. If you love to shop for high end brands & gambling, this would be your choice of venue to go to. However, if that is not your choice you should still put Macau on your “places to go list” as it has other things for you to go for. Myself? I fall into the latter and I have been fortunate enough to have gone to Macau twice and both were for work purposes.
The unique bit about Macau is that other than being Asia’s Las Vegas, it also has distinctive Portuguese influences in its architectural designs and food. You should never miss trying the egg tarts, pork chop buns and milk pudding. Try at least once to see what it is all about. I don’t mind much about the egg tarts but I do love the milk pudding. It is almost like tau foo faa but instead of being made with tofu, it is made with milk.
Things you should do in Macau among others is go visit St Paul’s Ruins. It is flocked with tourists at any time of the day but brave the crowd. Take a photo/photos/selfies or wefies on the stairs. Once you are done with that, walk downhill and just wander around. You will find small gems, like a small Indonesian Muslim restaurant. Small stalls selling all sorts of trinkets you can bring home or herbs. I also found some herbs and cooking paste for Indonesian food. There is also local Chinese food for you to try but and you will also see Kok Kei at almost every corner of the streets. Take the free tasting and buy a couple to bring back as gifts for your loved ones.
Don’t miss going to at least one of the casinos there. You would have thought that the city is all quiet onwards midnight when you walk outside the hotels and casinos. However, once you enter the casinos it is flocked with a lot of people in serious thought. You can watch or choose to play, your choice. There’s also interesting designs inside the malls and hotels. Don’t miss the Tree of Prosperity show at the Wynn Macau as it is a splendour of lights and music show where a tree with golden leaves would pop out of the floor and a mini light show with music will entertain you for at least 20 minutes.
A dear friend of mine kept asking me to watch The House of Dancing Water Show, a water-based stage production written and directed by Franco Dragone. As much as this year was my second trip to Macau, I still could not get myself to watch it. It is not because I have no interest, but if you’re on a company trip and you have a tour to follow, so your time is limited. By the time you are free, the show is either ending or you are too tired to do anything else except sleep. I will put this as my next of things to do in Macau. Yes, you got it right. I don’t quite favour Macau as the place for a holiday but it does offer quite a number of things for you to do while you are there.
Generally, if you do go to Macau on your own, I would suggest to engage tours for scenic spots like the Ruins of St Paul, Macau Tower and the temples. Other than that taxis are quite easy to get. Ensure you have the actual address of where you want to go in case of some language difficulty (if you are not a Chinese speaking person like me) to avoid giving wrong directions. Please do walk into the small streets to see what else can Macau offer you. Never say no to Portuguese cooking/dishes while you are here. All in all, I’d say Macau is great for a short trip, there is a little something for everyone. If you love to gamble, trust me, try your luck at least once in any of the casinos in Macau.
