MONDAY, MAY 29, 2017
For my third day in Hong Kong, I did a day trip to Macau. Again, I had a late start. I think I left my hostel at 10 am. It doesn’t seem that bad, but considering that I didn’t get to Macau til 1pm, I highly recommend going earlier.
MACAU FERRY TERMINAL
It took 40 minutes for me to get to the terminal by Metro. After getting there, the next available TurboJet ferry to Macau was at 11:44am. This is where I recommend buying tickets in advance. I didn’t want to be tied to a timetable so I didn’t buy my tickets in advance. I bought my ticket one way, because again I didn’t want to be tied to a timetable. The ferry ticket cost $164 HKD, but the timing turned out to be good. I grabbed some food so I could take my motion sickness pills, went to a Macau Tourism booth to get some information, and then 20 minutes before the ferry, I made my way to ferry entrance.
Macau and Hong Kong are not the same country and because technically I was traveling international, I had to fill out a Departure Card and stand in line for Customs and Immigration. The line was fairly long and I think I stood in line for about 10 minutes. In the end, when I was finally settled in, the ferry left the dock only a few minutes later.
So, I was really worried about the motion sickness on this ferry. If you know me or ever traveled with me, you know I get motion sickness really easily. I can get motion sickness on the bus, train, car, anything really. So, I bought these motion sickness pills in Taiwan and they worked like magic. Even, if you don’t have pills or medicine to combat motion sickness, the ferry ride wasn’t too bad at all. The only time it was really bad is when the ferry was docked in Hong Kong. But once the ferry left the dock, the ride was very smooth. The heard that motion sickness pills make you sleepy, well I knocked out. Maybe it’s not a good thing to be completely sleeping when traveling alone, but I slept the whole 1 hour ride to Macau. The next thing I know, I was waking up the ferry docking in Macau.
The ferry arrived in Macau at 12:44 and by the time I got a SIM card and got out of the terminal, it was 1pm. HKD is generally accepted everywhere in Macau, so no need to exchange tons of money in Macau. It took 3 hours from the time I left my hostel. I thought it would take maybe 2 hours at the most. Despite getting there late, I still managed to go to the places on my list.
MACAU FISHERMAN’S WHARF
Macau Fisherman’s Wharf is an entertainment complex within walking distance of the Ferry Terminal. I took a very short bus ride instead, because I knew I couldn’t do as much walking on my foot.
A quick note about the buses in Macau. There are tons of free buses from the ferry to the casinos. Almost each casino has it’s own bus. If you take the public bus, be prepared with coins. There’s no metro card for the buses unless you’re a Macau citizen.
So, the Fisherman’s Wharf has hotels, shopping, and dining. What’s interesting about the Fisherman’s Wharf is how much it looks like Rome. They basically built a replica of the Colosseum. Why? I’m not sure. My best answer is Macau is like the Las Vegas of Asia. Why does Las Vegas have a replica of the Eiffel Tower?
I always like looking for color when I travel, so I really liked Macau. The buildings that held shopping were painted with pretty pastel colors. After walking around a bit and taking tons of pictures, I headed back to the bus stop to take a bus to Senado Square. The bus actually took a long time to arrive and when it did, it was just packed with people. I didn’t want to wait to see how long it would be til the next bus came, so I squeezed myself onto the bus.
PORTUGUESE EGG TART
If you are ever in Macau, I highly recommend you get a Portuguese Egg Tart. They’re usually sold for 10 MOP for one. They’re delicious!!
SENADO SQUARE
Senado Square is a paved town hall that is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Who knew? There were tons of people there. It’s possible that an event was going on. The buildings around the square look European style and I’m guessing the colors painted on the buildings are Portuguese influence.
After taking tons of pictures, I left the Square and started to make my way to the Ruins of St. Paul. This is probably the most touristy place in Macau. The route to the Ruins of St. Paul mostly consisted of cobblestone alleys. Along these alleys are tons of stores for shopping. There were stores that were selling clothes, facial care products, food, and more! Most of the stores were selling Macau souvenirs, gifts that you can bring home to people. These gifts mostly consisted of food though. There were so many cookies and beef jerky that are apparently very special in Macau and business was booming. I saw lots of people carrying big bags of snacks and treats.
While walking, I was also looking for somewhere to eat. I thought I’d just walk around and if I saw something I liked, I’d go for it. If you know me, this was very hard for me to do. For the first time, I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t know where I was going to end up eating. At first I didn’t see many restaurants. It was all shopping, so I started getting worried that I would have to end up eating cookies as a meal. I passed some places to eat, but their menu didn’t attract me, so I kept walking. I then saw a brazilian flag in the window of a small restaurant. I thought maybe I’d try some Brazilian food.
LUNCH
Well, the restaurant turned out to be a very small place. There were no other costumers and the menu was very small. They only sold lunch sets and you had your choice of meat. Hungry and not wanting to spend anymore time looking for food, I ordered the beef lunch set. It was very filling and also very salty. I was very full by the end of it though.
RUINS OF ST. PAUL
The Ruins of St. Paul is the most treasured icon of Macau. It’s a very touristy place, but I really liked it. All that is left of the Church of St. Paul is the front of the church and the stone steps leading up to it. This early 17th century Jesuit church used to be one of the greatest monuments to Christianity in Asia. The original structure was made from wood and was burned down in 1835 during a typhoon.
FORTALEZA DO MONTE
After walking around, I made my way to Museum of Macau. However, I would soon discover that the Museum of Macau sits at the top of Fortaleza do Monte. I ended up walking around the fort. This was my favorite place in Macau. You could see so much of the city and the views were beautiful. I found a place to sit and rest my foot. The weather was perfect and I probably sat there for an hour just people watching and taking in the views. I never actually made it inside the museum.
THE VENETIAN
At this point of the day, I’m ready to head back. My foot was really sore, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to walk anymore. The task of walking seemed daunting. When I was finally ready to move, I walked 10 minutes to a bus stop that would take me to the Venetian. I chose this casino because it’s suppose to be the biggest casino in Asia. I also wanted to see the Eifffel Tower, but my feet didn’t have any strength left. So, I walked around the Venetian as much as I could. I walked by the Gondola rides, ate some ice cream, and gambled away 50 HKD at the slot machines. Interestingly enough, they don’t take MOP at the casinos.
Having been to Las Vegas several times and the Venetian particularly, The Venetian in Macau was okay, but Las Vegas is 10 times better. I suppose for those who have never been to Las Vegas, Macau could be considered as fun and exciting. I mean, it’s at least better than Atlantic City.
I truly enjoyed the historic parts of Macau and not so much the casinos. Maybe if I had a friend to go out with or if I knew how to gamble, it would be more fun. At around 9pm, I decided it was time to get back. I took the free shuttle back to the Macau Ferry Terminal. Again, the next ferry wasn’t til 10:15pm, but it worked out because that gave me a bit of time to get something to eat at the terminal, take my motion sickness medicine (just in case), and go through Immigration. The line for immigration was nearly non existent going back to Hong Kong. I guess most people head back earlier. Leaving Macau at 9pm didn’t seem too late, but that meant the ferry wouldn’t dock in Hong Kong until 11:15pm, which meant I got back to my hostel at 12am. It seems like it’d be a miracle if I could make it back to my hostel before 10pm, haha.
