On the Road Again: Macau!
Less than a week since we flew back from Guilin we were off again…this time to Macau!
What happens in Macau, stays in Macau. The
City of Entertainment. Well, Macau isn’t exactly Vegas, but it is the closest
thing to it in Asia. What Macau lacks in late night entertainment and debauchery,
it makes up for in gambling; and I mean a lot of gambling. If you think of
Vegas as the gambling capital of the world, you are mistaken. Macau has held
that title—in terms of gaming revenue—since 2006. Today that revenue is over 6
times the total in Vegas!
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| Many Vegas casinos, such as the Wynn, are also in Macau |
Vegas still eaks out more visitors than
Macau, but far fewer people go to Vegas to gamble these days. Walk into any
casino on the strip, and the average age is well over 40. Most people my age
want to go to the City of Sin for partying and clubbing, not roulette and craps.
Even my parents, who visit Vegas at least once a year and enjoy video poker,
probably spend more money on shows and dining than betting.
Macau, on the other hand, is all about gambling
(check out this article to get a better sense of the gaming industry in Macau).
Chinese people love to gamble, and with 1.4 billion of them next door, it’s no
wonder that the casinos are busy. Macau has no regional rival—gambling is
illegal in mainland China, and other cities like Singapore have limited
options.
So, back to my experience. I’m not a huge
fan of casinos, so why travel all the way to Macau? At first, when Joanna
suggested we visit, I was skeptical. I remember saying something like, “People
only go there to gamble; what's the point?” But when I started reading up about
Macau, I realized that it has much more to offer, including history, unique
cusine, and a few entertainment options (though far less than Vegas).
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| Part of colonial Macau |
Macau was a Portuguese colony for nearly
450 years, and it was only in 1999 that the territory was handed back to China.
Like Hong Kong, it is known as a “Special Administrative Region (SAR)” of China
and is separate from the mainland. Macau is the most densly populated region on
Earth—although with less than 12 square miles of territory (30 sq kms), it
still has fewer than 700,000 residents. Geographically it is split into three
sections: the Macau peninsula, connected to mainland China by a thin strip of
reclaimed land, and two islands, called Taipa and Coloane. The islands are now
connected by land reclamation projects, which are common in a territory hungry for space.
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| Macau: we stayed on the peninsula, which was the center for the Portuguese colony. Taipa and Coloane are now connected by Cotai, a land reclamation project with new mega casinos. |
Joanna, Shawn, Christian, and I stayed in a
hotel on the peninsula, which is the oldest part of Macau and home to most
historical buildings, as well as the original casinos. The reclaimed land
between Taipa and Coloane boasts new behemouths, such as the Venitian, the
largest casino in the world. Rates at the mega hotels were out of our price
range, plus I preferred to stay in an area with more to offer than gambling.
On Tuesday, June 6th Joanna and
I woke up before dawn to catch the 6 am airport shuttle bus, which left from the
North Bus station and typically takes an hour or so. Our flight departed at
9am, and we got into Macau before noon. One plus of such a small place is that
nothing is ever far away; our taxi from the airport, on Taipa, to the hotel
took less than 20 minutes.
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| View of the peninsula from Guia Lighthouse |
Christian and Shawn had a later flight,
which was meant to depart at 3 pm but got delayed over 2 hours. In the meantime
Joanna and I hiked up to the Guia Lighthouse and Fortress, originally built in the
17th century to defend Macau, which today offers great views of the
peninsula. From the lighthouse we walked down to the Fisherman’s Warf, on the
eastern seafront. The Warf has dozens of restaurants and shops, although this
entertainment district was eerily quiet. It was a Tuesday afternoon, but still,
Joanna and I wondered where the hell everyone was!
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| The Fisherman's Warf entertainment complex, which was eerily quiet |
Although most tables were full, the bar way
empty. Two guys did order a beer after us, but before we sat down there was
literally nobody drinking. I guess it makes sense, since many Chinese people
don’t drink, especially if they are gambling large amounts of money. But it
just felt weird to see the bright lights of the casino with nobody holding a
glass of alcohol. Most large casinos do have bars, but actually you aren’t even
allowed to drink at the tables! So much for the free drinks like Vegas!
That evening we met Shawn and Christian at
the hotel and then went out for a late dinner. Neither Shawn nor Christian had
gambled at a casino before, so the trip wouldn’t be complete without trying our
luck. Shawn and Joanna tried slots at the Lisboa, but they were the kind of
slots which make no sense to me; why play a machine if you don’t know the
rules? Great, I got two dinosaurs, a treasure chest, a number six, and a gold
coin…what does that mean?! They tired of the slots quickly, so we moved on to
the Wynn, where Shawn and Christian experimented with roulette. It’s still pure
chance, but at least we know the general rules!
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| Macau Patacas |
That night they both ended in the black—Shawn
won 1,000 patacas, or 125 USD. Like I said, I’m not a big gambler, so I just
watched. It also annoyed me that the casinos use Hong Kong Dollars instead of
Patacas, their own currency, and they make you switch it over at the cashier
before giving chips. Dealing with two different currencies and the exchange
rates makes it harder for people to keep track, and the more confusing the
process, the more likely the casino can take extra off the top without people
even noticing.
After roulette we had a few expensive beers
at a bar nearby, then walked back to the hotel, which was only 20-25 minutes
(again, it’s all close!). The following morning we went on a historical tour of
the peninsula. I used the hotel tourist map and the phone they provided us to
navigate through the old streets and visit several, churches, parks, and
temples.
Some pics from the walk:
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| Can you spot Joanna? (hint: the blond hair gives it away!) |
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| An 18th and 19th century Protestant cemetary |
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| One of the many Catholic churches |
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| Joanna and Christian on the step of the Ruins of St Paul |
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| Near Senado Square, where we ate lunch |
For our late lunch Christian, Joanna, and I ate at a Macanese restaurant near Senado Square in the old town. Macanese cuisine is a Portuguese and southern Chinese fusion that I was totally unfamiliar with prior to our visit. We all settled for the lunch special, which was pork chops with soup and salad. I'm not sure where the Chinese element came into that dish, but it was good nonetheless. Other items on the menu were less common, such as Minchee, ground beef (or pork) flavored with soy sauce and served with rice, or for dessert, egg tarts, which I saw on almost every street corner. Shawn, who is vegetarian, opted for hot pot next door. It can definitely be difficult as a vegetarian in China!
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| Part of the Venitian casino and hotel complex |
I hadn't gambled the night before, but I decided to give it a go at the Venitian. In a matter of an hour I'd lost 1000 Patacas, or about $125 USD. There was no video poker, and the cheapest roulette table was minimum 25 bet a spin (over $3). If you wanted to bet on red or black you needed double that. I mostly placed chips randomly on numbers, with the hopes of winning big. Alas, as they say, the house always wins, and I walked out empty handed. Joanna also lost, so while Shawn and Christian continued, we relaxed at the Morton Steakhouse bar, which had a buy one get one late happy hour (we were the only patrons).
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| Inside the Parisian shopping mall |
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| Exterior of the Parisian |
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| The Macau Tower |
I'm not a fan of bungee jumps--well, I've never tried, but I don't plan to any time soon--plus the jump was over 400 USD. Shawn, on the other hand, is an adrenaline junkie, and he was seriously temped to jump. He's already skydived twice, and the bungee is on his bucket list. Unfortunately for him, you had to make a reservation in advance (the places had already booked up for the day). Instead he and Christian settled on the Skywalk. The Skywalk pretty much what it sounds like--a walk around the outside of the observation deck. You are connected to the tower by cables and a harness, and an instructor assists you.
Joanna and I both passed on the walk. I was content just to see the view, and although cheaper than bungee jumping, it still cost close to $100. Plus we got a kick out of watching them make their way around the tower. Shawn was cool, but Christian, who has a slight fear of heights, looked spooked. At one point they stepped over a metal bar and sat down with their feet dangling. Shawn did it easily, but as Christian stepped forward you could clearly see his leg shaking! Even after they were back inside he still had butterflies.
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| View from the observation deck |
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