Macau (2008)

Macau:

Since Macau is just a quick hour ferry ride away, I decided that would be my last day.  So off on a ferry.  I have to laugh as when it was time to board, all the locals RAN for the boat and I just waited to be the last on.  I don`t understand why they all rush, but they do and no need to rush to wait in line is my mentality.

Once in Macau, there was a Grand Prix (right by the ferry station), so all the streets were blocked off, the buses weren`t really working normally and it was actually really hard to get around.  I finally felt like there was a language barrier as very few people read or spoke English, even when I pointed on maps, people didn`t know where we were and it was just tough to get around.

I was finally resourceful, found a free shuttle, to somewhere in town, and with a lot of asking, found the famous Golden Blooming lotus flower.  It was shiny, but that`s about it for me.  Good news was I found the main bus stop for the bus I wanted to get to the Macau Tower.  This is one of the 10 tallest buildings in the world, so I knew I had to go to the top.  It was a great view and to make it more fun the floor was see through so you could see all the cars on the streets below.  I was surprised how many people up there were very scared to look down or even walk across the see through floor, but I loved it.

Macau has a Portuguese background so I walked the streets and took in the architecture for a while and then headed to the Casinos.  This is the main draw to Macau and I do love to gamble.  I have been good on this trip and haven`t gambled yet, so I gave myself some play money and figured it was my entertainment money regardless of what happened.  After playing Blackjack, I was up a lot, then down, then back even, then up and I should have walked away (and heard Debs voice in my head – as she has been gambling with me many times and always says to walk away), but alas…I didn`t.  I ended up losing my entertainment money, but had a great time.  I decided to play at the Wynn casino as it was the fanciest and was a fun day.  Locals were coming up and tagging bets along with me and were happy when they won.

So all in all, Hong Kong and Macau were nice.  I just want to return in the future when I can really do some shopping and have room in my bag to bring things home plus money to shop with.