Macau is a nice 'side trip' to experience since it is just one hour away by ferry from HK. You don't need a visa if you are a Philippine passport holder and you are allowed to stay 30 days each visit. It is a good 'deal' as you are only allowed 14 days stay in HK ergo we make a side trip then return to HK for another 14 days. Hey everyone does it, so why feel guilty, no?
The first few times we did it we only went for a day trip and returned by evening until the immigration officer suggested we could apply for a longer visit at the Chinese consulate in Manila. In other words, he knew what we were up to and sort of 'berated' us for it.
So from then on, we decided to spend one or 2 nights in Macau. Besides personally, I prefer the laid back style in Macau. There are more tourists in sight and people are not always in a rush to get to their destinations. The weather is also as cold as in HK and I believe there are still a few attractions I haven't been able to explore as we are always pressed for time and lately as we are with my aging parents, they prefer to just play in the casinos than go walking to the attractions.
This time it was just me and my parents as the sister had to work. But she instructed me over and over again on what to do, how to get to where we wanted to go and to call her if we had any problems. Admittedly, I was a nervous wreck even while we are still in Manila and planning the Macau leg of our trip. I am not good with directions and cannot read a map even if my life depended on it. Even if we have been to Macau several times already, it was always with the guidance of sister dearest. I was also worried that my parents would get tired easily as we would have to do a lot of walking as well as ride the different shuttle buses to get around Macau.
So I went to Macau with a bahala na attitude and just trusted my instincts and my common sense to guide me. We were billeted in our usual 'digs', the Venetian Macau. It has a big food court so it took care of our meals. We also ate at the food court of the adjacent Galaxy Hotel & Casino. We were able to visit the St. Paul's Ruins and had lunch at a Portuguese restaurant near Senado Square. A massive complex called Studio City which was recently opened was also explored. It had hotels, a casino, a mall with boutiques and food arcade to amuse its visitors.
Here are some pictures from our Macau trip which I am glad to say went well. My parents had a grand time and although were tired, they did enjoy themselves. I managed to keep my pre-menopausal self (yes, I have to keep mentioning this condition LOL) from erupting into anger tantrums or aka as being masungit.
Hurray!
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| Our suite at the Venetian |
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| The view from our 23rd floor Venetian suite |
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| Mom at the City of Dreams entrance |
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| The dragon that changes its colors inside the City of Dreams |
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| The Venetian Macao as viewed from the City of Dreams |
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| The lobby of the Grand Hyatt Macau Hotel |
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| Path way to the Studio City Hotel entrance |
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| Opulent design at the Casino at Studio City |
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Casino at Studio City
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| Atlas, is that you? |
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| Studio City |
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| Entrance to Studio City |
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| The Galaxy all lighted up for the evening |
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Massive UFO type decor that was showcasing a fountain with lights show
at the Galaxy |
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| It is the year of the Monkey |
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| Evening sets over the City of Dreams |
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Shuttle Bus routes
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2 comments:
Next time we go home to Bangladesh I'll make HK and Macau our sidetrip destinations. I haven't been to HK so I'm curious and excited to visit.
Yay that sounds like a good plan, hope it pushes through!
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