Here’s a recap of our Hong Kong and Macau trip during National Day period back then. But you’ll soon realise that images are mainly taken in Macau, that’s because the majority of our time was either spent in Hong Kong shopping malls or Shenzhen Luohu Commercial City. My camera didn’t leave the bag…a heavy white elephant, until our day trip and my first visit to Macau.
Known for its glamorous casinos, the sin city of the East has more than 30 casinos within its relatively small land area, no surprise for people to associate Macau to gambling. But looking beyond that, Macau has a rich and varied past, being a Portuguese colony for centuries. The East-West cultural blend is seen in the mix of Chinese styled historic buildings, baroque-style churches and old fortifications in the surrounding. And the street names are in both Portuguese and Chinese. All these are uniquely Macau.
I like the pastel coloured classical buildings around Senado Square famous for its wave-patterned mosaic pavement.
Koi Kei Bakery in Macau
From Senado Square, we made our way to St. Paul via Rua de São Paulo. Along the crowded alley of Rua de São Paulo, there’s the well-known Koi Kei Bakery (鉅記手信) famed for egg roll, peanut candy, almond cookie and egg tart. There’s an outlet along Temple Street in Singapore too. The popular food souvenir shop spared no effort in dishing out free samples. This is one nice gesture to taste the products before buying, most likely you will end up buying lots like everyone else because everything at Koi Kei Bakery tastes so good!
Ruins of St. Paul and Fort Mont
We arrived at Ruins of St. Paul (大三巴牌åŠ) which is probably the most recognizable and touristic attraction in Macau. There isn’t much to see in the ruins apart from the façade. Still, the façade never fails to attract a huge group of tourists like us.
After which, we took our time for the uphill walk from Ruins of St. Paul to reach Fort Mont, tiring walk but the panoramic view of the city is worth the effort. Museum of Macau is at the centrepiece of the fort which we did not visit. We do as the Romans do by just enjoying the city view and tranquillity around the fort.
Lastly, we made our way to the famous Margaret’s Cafe e Nata, only to find out it’s closed (on Wednesdays). What a waste! Tasting the Portuguese egg tarts would have been a nice way to conclude our trip. Better luck next time! Sadly, that also concludes my short maiden trip in Macau, I will definitely come back here to uncover more interesting places in future. Hopefully, it won’t be as hot like the weather during this trip.
STAY: L’Hotel Nina et Convention Center review
This is one of the better Hong Kong hotels which we have stayed so far. Our room was on the 71st floor (77th being the highest) and needless to say, the view from the room was superb!! Both the day and night city view of Tsuen Wan is really nice. The room and bed were great although we find the pillows to be too soft for us. There are plenty of Cha Chan Teng (Hong Kong styled Café) nearby and the hotel is linked to two shopping malls so amenities are plentiful.
The hotel is just a few stations away from Hong Kong International Airport, which means it’s far away from city area, a typical trip from Kowloon back to the hotel would take around 30 minutes or so. And the nearest MTR station to the hotel is not Tsuen Wan Station but Tsuen Wan West Station. If you look at the MTR Station map, you will notice that one has to change lines more than once in order to reach Tsuen Wan West Station coming from either Kowloon or Causeway Bay.
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What are your thoughts about Hong Kong and Macau? Leave a comment and share it with me.
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