"MACAU,ISLAND PARADISE"
With magic shows, shopping, golf & casinos, the city has much more to offer than just gambling.
I had heard that Macau, the small island along Hong Kong, was just a gambling paradise. Hence, for a girl from the mountains, the temptation of travelling to a destination surrounded by the sea was irresistible. I had not been to Hong Kong for many years. With the Chinese having taken over, I wanted to see the changes. I jumped at the opportunity when it presented itself. So, Macau became one of the places to visit. With bag full of medicines and some eatables for 80-plus ladies (my mother and mother-in-law were travelling with me), we set off.
Arrival at the new Hong Kong airport was smooth. A quick change from one terminal to the ferry terminal took us to Macau. It was smooth sailing into Macau, with a short taxi ride we rode into, perhaps one of the best hotels in the world — The Venetian. The forty storey-plus hotel also has the distinction of being the sixth largest casino. It is the only hotel that I have seen which has a canal with gandolas. The guests can take a ride and shop from the stores lined along the canal. The hotel has 11,000 employees — all extremely courteous and helpful. If this doesn’t impress you, how about the fact that it has 3,000 suites with an artificial sky as its ceiling! What is more amazing is that the clouds appear to be moving. The spa health centre run by Mayo Clinic ensures that you are all set to enjoy the visit to this island paradise.
Being an old Portuguese colony, Macau still has beautiful Churches which have been declared as national heritage sites. It’s a beautiful mix of cultures that has been left by the Portuguese, the British and now, the new Chinese regime. In comparison, Hong Kong comes across as a downtown in New York city. Busy streets, business hub and tall buildings on one end and some of the finest beaches at the other end.
We were also a witness to a typhoon — Nesat. Due to bad weather we had to postpone our sailing from Macau to Hong Kong by one day. Such was the furry of the typhoon that schools and businesses had to be closed all the way down to Philippines. But in a day things were back to normal. Fortunately, we were in the country when it was celebrating its National Day. We saw one of the best fireworks which lasted for 23 minutes and lit up the entire harbour! I was told it cost $ eight million to put up the show.
Hong Kong, in the last two decades, has transformed itself. It has changed with globalisation and kept pace with modernisation. What is surprising is how the tourists view the country and the growth it has undergone. At night, Hong Kong and Macau become a tourists’ paradise. It is no wonder that some people refer to Macau as the Las Vegas of Asia — after all it has entertainment for all age groups. From magic shows to a game of golf to heritage walks to casinos to shows for the adults — all of which is a heady mix of delight.
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