Macau 2009

Inside the elegant Grand Lisboa

From my hostel in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, I walked for about 10 minutes to the China ferry terminal.  I sat at the Starbucks Coffee for a few minutes.  I e-mailed my cousin using the 20 minute free internet connection there.  The terminal is very organized.  I fell asleep on board and the moment I woke up, it’s already Macau.  It only takes 45 minutes to an hour to travel by ferry.  I bought an economy class ticket worth HKD128.00.  The fee is higher if you travel by night.  In Macau, HKD or Hong Kong Dollars can be used and the one being used in casinos instead of MOP or Macau Pataca.  In Hong Kong, MOP cannot be used.  I had to go to the money changer first. 

Buses of different hotels and casinos in Macau are waiting and ready to bring passengers who are going to their properties whether they are going to stay or just have a look.

Macau Tower

The next day, my cousin showed me different hotels and casinos.  Because it was summer, it was so hot outside.  We went inside one of the casinos for free drinks! But nah, you have to be a player to avail such free stuffs so couz told me to insert HKD20 in one of the slot machines.  I never entered a casino before but I shouldn't be just pretending that I was playing just to get the free drinks for my money is in there.  I quickly learned how to play in the slot machine with my cousin's clear instructions.  And also, the slot machine looked more like a kiddy game slot in an amusement centre.  The moment we left the place, my money became HKD220.

Cool dog at Hac-Sa

The water is dirty but Hac-Sa Beach is a really good place for barbeque.  The dogs there are free and most of them, I saw, are friendly.  One stayed with us and ate with us.  He's a cool dog!

The new buildings especially hotels are looking so majestic and innovative like The Venetian, of course, and The City of Dreams.  But, I didn't like the old flats.  I wanted to print something but I couldn't connect my PC to my cousin's Ethernet and I left my USB in my room back in Dubai.

Wynn staff from Malaysia offered us the membership card for free.

My Aunt and I went inside the Grand Emperor Hotel for a bowl of noodles.  The main lobby is so grand that visitors can just step on gold bars.  So impressive! The staff’s uniforms are also cool but they cannot speak English.  When we went up where we could buy the noodles, the staffs not only cannot speak English but also very unfriendly.  I could not see any of them smiling.  All of them were grumpy-faced as though they lost all their money in gambling.  So I found the small noodle canteen outside called "Panda" not only serves better noodles but with staffs way much better than the staffs of The Grand Emperor Hotel. 

My Aunt and I walked from the Grand Emperor to the sea side near Macau Tower.  The place is so peaceful.  It is good to stay there for a night with tent, fishing rods if you like fishing, foods and PC if you like to watch a movie or just simply bring your friends along and have a chat all night long.