The accidental tourist
Last month I found myself flying to Macau without previous plans, no inkling at all that I would be visiting this place which I know only to be the gambling side of Hongkong. Words came back from some long hidden memory that one takes a hydrofoil to see this island on the “other side”. Sometimes the Lord bestows unexpected blessings and we can just go on our knees and give thanks for generosity which was sincerely offered. Recently, there is a noticeable spurt of promotion of Macau perhaps coincidentally with the announcement of our world famous Manny Pacquiao that his next fight will be in Macau. Verily the Wynn hotel, Lisboa and the Sands are established there and promise of larger hotels of the same chain is becoming a reality. Already a bigger and more luxurious Sands is in the offing. The unabashed prospect of the Gambling Casino of the East to outdo the original Las Vegas is in the works.
Our four star Beverly Plaza Hotel is right in the area of these giant casinos, easily walking distance. The amenities that it offers make the guests comfortable. The bathroom is sleek and modern. The Wynn Hotel was full that evening, mostly Chinese customers. Since the upsurge of their economy, there has been a steady stream of Chinese from the mainland visiting the island to try their luck in the casinos. In fact, during our crossover to Zhuhai truckloads of people tried to force their way into our queue.
The following day after our arrival, our tour started with a visit to a bakeshop/store that sells Macanese cookies, delicious round cookies mixed with almonds. The night before we tried Macanese cuisine, but since it was rather late, all we ordered was bacalao rice and some vegetable soup. Frankly, our bacalao here tastes better. We had a good lunch buffet at the Macau Revolving Tower with a 360 degrees view of the whole island. In that altitude the whole panorama of the area is visible. There are several imposing bridges that span the island and connect it with Hongkong and the mainland. For a while, wishful thinking kicked in — what if there was a bridge connecting Iloilo to Guimaras then to Negros? Then our thoughts went to the present and we were entertained by the sight of young people skydiving from the Tower.
The Portuguese handed over Macau to the Chinese sometime in 1974 but vestiges of the European civilization can still be seen in the architecture of old buildings and churches, like the St. Paul’s cathedral, the facade of which is its only reminder. It is in the process of being reconstructed. It is also the emblem of the island which can be seen in souvenir items. We also visited the St. Francis Xavier church, to remind us of the far flung evangelization of the missionary saint. The Portuguese language is still being used in signs alongside with Chinese characters.
The fabulous jade collection inside Hotel Lisboa of Stanley Ho is a must-see in any tourist’s itinerary in the island. We regretted we could not take photos of them. We just posed for posterity in the lobby.
We passed thru immigration when we crossed over to Zhuhai, located at the southern estuary of the Pearl River Delta in Guandong province. It is touted to be the next shopping haven, vice Shenzen. Our small hotel located conveniently in front of the shopping complex was not as disappointing as expected. Beforehand we were forewarned not to expect too much by way of amenities. Then we were treated to a sumptuous lunch, lauriat actually if we were to count the delicious dishes that arrived in our table. We noted that there was no chicken served [bird flu?] nor fish but they did wonders with vegetables and pork. That lunch prepared us for the great shopping ahead. The giant underground shopping center was familiarly called Landmark Underground Mall. Frequent shoppers of Greenhills in our group compared the prices of “knock-offs” and found the prices here in Zhuhai much lower. However we personally felt the language problem here than in Macau. Our tour guide brought us to a silk store. We ventured on our own on our way back. It was quite early in the morning when most shops were still closed.. Upon returning, we felt the streets did not look familiar anymore since all stores have opened. We tried several times to ask directions but to no avail. Finally a taxi driver indicated that he knew our hotel upon looking at the calling card. We bravely went inside the cab silently praying . After several turns on the streets, he brought us to the side street of our hotel , being one way he could not drive up in front. Whew. What a relief.
On the day of our departure, back in Macau, we stopped for a while at the Macau Grand prix museum where we posed for pictures alongside the famous racing cars. We promptly looked for the replica of the car of Dodjie Laurel who perished in an accident there. We passed also at the Wine Museum where we had a little wine tasting courtesy of some Filipinas there who were just too happy to talk with us.
Indeed, in this day and age, the world has become small in terms of technology and science. While we have more access now to communication with other parts of the world, we also realize the differences between our country and the rest. The trip was very pleasant with convivial groups, however diverse our calling may be. It was well organized and precise. Somehow we wished rather wistfully, that we could be as progressive as China, which is making great strides in their economy, at the same time appreciate the fact that we don’t have to choose between western rest rooms and a hole in the ground. Just Lutong Macau!!!