Macau. Lotus Sq
Lotus Square (Praça Flor de Lodão, 金蓮花廣場) is named after a monument of a golden lotus flower, set here to commemorate the transfer of the sovereignty of Macau from Portugal to People’s Republic of China in 1999. I wouldn’t be myself if I didn’t visit …
Macau. Coloane Mountain
At 172 meters, the Coloane Peak (Alto de Coloane, 疊石塘山) is the highest point of both Coloane island and whole Macau. On the top there is a religious / tourist complex known as A-Ma Cultural Village 媽祖文化村. It consists of a temple and a huge …
Macau. Coloane Village
Coloane village (Vila de Coloane, 路環村) is the main settlement on Coloane Island. Before the Portuguese arrived in the 19th century, it was mostly a fishing and salt harvesting village. I wanted to write “peaceful and quiet”, but that would may not be true as …
Macau. Coloane camping
Camping in Macau. Sounds unreal? You imagine Macau as a small city stuffed with splashy casinos casting shadow over old colonial architecture. Correct. This is pretty much how it looks like on the peninsula. But there are also the islands. Taipa must have had a …
Macau. Taipa 氹仔
I reached the old town of Taipa (氹仔) from the Galaxy casino resort complex. It is located just on the other side of a busy street. The gate which says “Vila da Taipa” is hard to miss. When you look at it, keep in mind …
Macau. Cotai
The giagantic size of those buildings could intimidate Godzilla. You can almost smell the billions of dollars that flow in and out. Couple of years ago Macau’s gaming revenues started to dwarf that of Las Vegas. And in Macau, the majority of gambling happens here. …
Macau. Barra
A-Ma Temple is one of the key sights in Macau, situated in the southwestern corner of the peninsula. You can get there by bus, but I usually walk. If you are here for the first time, the choice of which street to take is obvious: …
Macau. Around St Augustine’s
A few blocks to the south from the central Senado Square lies a picturesque area of handsome colonial buildings. St. Augustine’s Square (Largo de Santo Agostinho, 崗頂前地) is a good orientation point in those parts. The church which gives it its name, St. Augustine’s (Igreja …
Macau. Hidden central Macau
Venture off the main touristy area of the Senado Square, and you will find Macau that does not exist in guidebooks. Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro is the main artery of this part of Macau – it crosses the Senado Square and leads to the casinos …
Macau. Company Sq and Monte Fort
The Ruins of St. Paul’s 大三巴牌坊 are arguably the most famous landmark of Macau. The church, Igreja de São Paulo, was built in 1602-1640. The disaster which turned it into a ruin happened in 1835: during a violent typhoon, a fire commenced, taking down all …
