Top 10 unforgettable experiences in Macau

1. The second foreign country I have been to, how can I ever forget?

2. A lot of Filipinos in Macau are employees of shops and stores and most of the time, they are the boss, and managers of the establishments. There is one store in the Venetian where the manager is a Pinoy, who gave us really helpful tips in trekking the Venetian, hehe. The Venetian is really huge which can confuse any traveler.

3. The Venetian. It's like a one stop shop. There are activity areas and fun pseudo gondola rides and tricks. A lot of nice structures. And the casino.

4. I won't stop harping that I won 100 dollars on my second try at the slot machine at the casino in The Venetian! Woot woot.

5. Again, Filipino skin and features are very exotic in Macau, or err, in the eyes of the Chinese in general. I was sitting alone, tired from walking around as my buddy went on to survey more shops when a man from Guang Zou started chatting me up and told me right in front of my face " You are very beautiful". I don't know what to do, I was shocked. But graciously had a short chat with him and his friend afterwards

6. Always bring your camera charger or err spare batteries. At the time, I lost my Sony camera in a taxi in Kowloon so the only camera I can depend on is my buddy's camera. But...he forgot to charge his camera! So we walked around the entire Venetian Hotel just to find batteries! It was more than two hour walk! Tiring

7. The foodcourt in The Venetian is huge featuring stalls from many many different countries, one will go crazy. But my buddy and I had a good old American meal of roasted chicken and potatoes. Tired of Chinese food perhaps?

8. It was a short day trip and because of that I want to comeback to Macau and explore it from all sides!

9. We went home at around 10 pm and boarded the last ferry ride from Macau Ferry Terminal to China Ferry Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsu. By that time the waves are starting to get really rough, and there are only a very very few Hong Kong locals on the ferry. Scary but one heck of an adventure.

10. Having jack cokes and peanuts at the bar inside The Venetian with serious gamblers in suits. How very Casino Royale =)

Macau: The Culture and the Casinos

I've always wanted to set my foot on Macau. As a nation I find it rich and bound by unique and conflicting cultures. The Portuguese colonized Macau in the 16th century, hence influencing a lot of Macau's food, culture, even the language. As a Filipino whose country was colonized by the Spaniards, Macau made me curious. I wanted to find out how Macau fared after all these years, how the the eastern and western culture mixed, is it somehow similar here in the Philippines, that sort of thing. Heck, I've always wanted to visit Mexico and Brazil since their history of being colonized by Spaniards/Portuguese is similar like ours.
In this trip, having been to Hong Kong, a day trip to Macau seemed nice, if not refreshing. I was actually raring to see a lot of sights. But nobody prepared me for the adventure that awaited me.

See, apart from the Portuguese inlfuence in Macau the country is also known as the Las Vegas of Asia. And why is that? Since the turn of the millenium casinos had sprouted in Macau, making gambling the main attarction for tourists! High rise hotels and casinos abound and dot the city's night sky! With the opening of Sands Macau which is considered to be the biggest casino in the world, it even beat Las Vegas in gambling revenues in 2006!

Coming from Hong Kong, my friend and I took the free shuttle to The Venetian Hotel. It's a hotel with a huge mall inside where people can actually sight see and window shop. Deeper on is the main entrance to the casino. It was my first time to enter a casino, and my first time to actually play.

 
Okay so the tokens are relatively cheap (only 5 Macau dollars) so I was able to play on and on with the slot machines. But during my second try...I won 100 dollars!!! Thank God for making me set my foot on Macau, and thank God for casinos, hehe.