I decided to take the plunge and use one of the remaining days in Hong Kong to make a daytrip to Macau, but instead of taking the 11 hr organised tour I thought I'd make my own way there and set my own agenda.
After a jet lag induced fuzzy start to the day I made it down to the harbour pier to catch the fast ferry to Macau. $130 secured a return ticket (or so I thought - more later) and quickly cleared Hong Kong customs before boarding the madly swaying "TurboJet" ferry. Thankfully, once up to speed the catamaran/hydrofoil glid over the choppy seas and made for a smooth 1 hr crossing to our destination.
On arrival, I realised that the Lonely Planet guide might have been a little out of date when it said that Macau was becoming a popular gambling destination as before me lay the SE Asia equivalent of the Las Vegas strip. Garish neon lit hotel/casino complexes were multiple, and in true Las Vegas style there was even a "greatest wonders of the world" theme park complete with Roman coliseum and fully functioning volcano (erupts twice a day like clockwork; why can't the real ones be so predictable?)
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| A view of the 'vegas-esque Macau skyline |
Exiting the ferry pier (via Macau customs and a new stamp in the passport) and ignoring the casino touts I set out on foo and came across the entrance to a bizarrely empty theme park, and with no entry fees walked in an wandered around the exhibits.
With mad dog and Englishman enthusiasm I then set out on foot from here under a blazing sun hoping to reach the A-Ma Temple using the tiny street map in the rear of the Lonely Planet guide. With sweaty brow I stopped in on the plush looking Cultural Museum and picked up a better tourist map and cooled off in their air-con.
I walked on to lunch in the Macau Tower - home to the highest bungy jump in the world (764ft!) which i was partially tempted by before quested off again on foot to the temple. This was probably 1.5miles of walking in total, and would have got a cab if it wasn't for the strange state of affairs Macau seems to have found itself in. There seems to be a huge amount that has been spent on infrastructure, but very few occupants so i was were able to walk along plush dual carriageways with hardly any traffic disturbing me.
Eventually I arrived at the temple, where i was harassed by a green Chinese dragon and my clothes absorbed large quantities of strong smelling incense smoke. The temple itself was a strange mix of Buddhist, Taoist and Hindu deities and carvings, but all based around a folk story of a storm lashed fishing vessel finding safe harbour in the bay below the rocks and the ships survivors raising a temple to show thanks to the spirits that has sparred their lives.
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| Monster coils of incense at the A-Ma temple. |
Throughout the afternoon and evening I wandered freely through the old town before coming across the piece de la resistance the remains of St. Paul's church, of which only the front wall is left standing.
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| The remainbs of St. Paul's in central Macau - busy! |
Walking back out of town I sampled numerous slices of sweet cured pork/beef jerky which was advertised as "the number one souvenir from Macau" before my legs couldn't take anymore and hopped on a bus back to the ferry terminal. The bus route took me back via many other casino's I'd not seen earlier in the day, confirming that Macau is now the centre of gambling for all of SE Asia before I got back to the ferry pier.
Here, it turned out the return tickets were in fact singles and was forced to fork out another $130 to get back to Hong Kong, before eventually arrived back at the hotel a short while before midnight.
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