Kowloon Walled City, Hong Kong

Originally built as an Imperial Chinese military fort in 1668, the Kowloon walled city was a densely populated enclave within the Kowloon peninsula of Hong Kong. The walled city contained 50,000 residents within its 2.6 hectare (6.4 acre) borders. 

In 1898, the British and Chinese government signed a 99 year lease of Hong Kong but this treaty didn't include Kowloon city under British rule. But eventually in 1899, the British overran Kowloon and occupied it, too. 

 

Between 1927 to 1949 as civil war raged in the Chinese mainland, refugees flocked to Hong Kong and found their way into the walled city. Its population ballooned from a few hundred residents to tens of thousands.

The walled city turned into an area of crime, riddled with trash, cramped living conditions, a hotspot for gambling dens, strip clubs, and renowned for anarchy. Poverty, filth and theft prevailed. 

The city of darkness was demolished in 1994 after almost a decade spent relocating all the residents

It is now a park and archeological site in the heart of Kowloon. It is easily accessibly by bus and MRT.

Mounain View Pavilion

Guangyin Square - rock displays, plants representing China's 4 seasons
and lingnan-style bonsai.

Sights and sounds of Macau 2025

Macau holds a special place in my heart because we always go there during our Yuletide vacations in Hong Kong for several years. We would stay overnight or even 2 nights just to soak in all the festivities of the season. 

It is accessible from Hong Kong by ferry or by bus. It only takes a hour by ferry and about 1 hour and 35 minutes by bus. From both the ferry and bus terminals in Macau, there are free shuttle buses that will take you to different hotels and casinos.

We went to Macau from Jan. 27 - 29, 2025, just a day before the Lunar New Year holidays (Jan. 30, 2025).  Our hotel of choice is always The Venetian Macau, located in the Cotai area.  It was a bit colder than in Hong Kong so we had a lovely time exploring the new hotels, eating at our favorite Macanese (blend of Portuguese and Chinese cuisine) restaurants and we also managed to visit the Harry Potter Exhibition and the TeamLab SuperNature Macao (to be featured in separate posts). 

Although I was very distraught from my heartbreak, I tried my best to enjoy Macau as it took me back to nostalgic and really happy days when my parents were still alive. They always loved visiting Macau.

The Londoner

The Venetian Macau

The Venetian 

Senado Square

Portuguese food at Boa Mesa restaurant which is located
near the Macau Cathedral

Main altar at the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady

Fantastic view from our hotel room on the 20th floor of the Venetian Macao

Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady

Studio City Macau 

Double decker London bus with the Eiffel Tower of The Parisian Hotel

St Dominic's Church

The Grand Lisboa Macau Hotel

Restaurante Litoral Taipa, another favorite Portuguese restaurant

Inside the Londoner Macao Hotel

Everything is illuminated during night time

Backlog

 April 26 - May 4, 2025 I was in Bangkok for holiday with sister dearest.

Much welcome break from the enduring setback these past months.

Wat Triamit - Temple of the Golden Buddha

So far, the year 2025 has been quite a struggle. 

Constant crying, so much pain and grief from the betrayal.

A very painful and highly emotional process to deal with, to digest and experience.

A really different kind of intense, deep, raw pain that I cannot fully describe nor comprehend but it exists.

But very slowly I'm on my way to healing and mending my heart.

We are currently self analysing and trying our best to repair and fix the inflicted damage.

It will be a long and arduous journey yet somehow I need to trust God that He won't abandon me and trust Him to guide me in the right path.

I'm also grateful for the strong support system from sister dearest and some very close friends.

Each day is a new dawn to look forward to.

Thankful that God made me strong enough so I don't totally fall apart.

There are days I think it would be best to just pack my bags and leave.

Then the next day, I change my mind yet again.

There is a huge backlog of posts from my trips to HK, Taipei, Macau and now Bangkok.

I will blog about them soon as I'm still taking it easy as my big toe is still healing.

Not to mention, the 9 grueling days of walking all over Bangkok in extremely hot weather.

It can take quite a toll on a 56 year old menopausal heart broken person.

Visita Iglesia 2025 (part 2)

After a quick lunch at a Chinese restaurant in the Banawe area, our 5th church was the National Shrine of our Lady of Lourdes in NS Amoranto corner Kanlaon Street. It houses the miraculous and celebrated image of the Our Lady of Lourdes under the care of the Franciscan Capuchins.

The next stop was the Basilica Minore of San Pedro Bautista in the San Francisco del Monte district. It is the oldest Catholic church (founded in 1590) in Quezon City and was declared an important cultural property by the National Musuem in September 2017. The church is dedicated to Saint Pedro Bautista who was a Spanish missionary from Avila, Spain. Part of the 4th batch of the Franciscan order missionaries who arrived in the Philippines, he worked here for 9 years in local communities, building schools, teaching pupils and propagating Christianity. Unfortunately, he was one of the 26 Christians who were martyred in Japan in 1597. 

We were fortunate enough that Manang Mayet, a lady who serves at the church toured us around the museum, showed us the cave where San Pedro Bautista prayed and the deep wells that are part of this historically important edifice of worship.  It was a fascinating discovery and I'm glad I included it in our itinerary for Visita Iglesia 2025.

Our 7th stop - the Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Cubao was erected in 1950 in a place that used to be rice paddies. It is the episcopal seat of the Bishop of Cubao. It is a beautiful structure in the crossroad of small streets with no alloted parking spaces. Our final stop where we also heard the 5:30 PM Mass. I prayed for my peace of mind amidst my anguish, despair and broken heartedness. May Lord have mercy!