Saturday in Macau

I've experimented with preparing a Kodak-era post. My chosen subject? Macau. It's taken more than five hours to research the following post, draft its copy, and then scan and edit all of the hard-copy photos. Converting my pre-digital photo albums into niffy blog posts is clearly going to be a massive project. I've always said that this task would become a retirement hobby. After today's effort, I think that boast has proven rather prescient. 

I visited Macau on a day trip from Hong Kong on Saturday, 18 March 2000. It was an interesting time to be visiting this former Portuguese colony. Just four months earlier, on 20 December 1999, Portugal had transferred the sovereignty of Macau to the People’s Republic of China. I was curious to see how much had changed since the handover.

I'd arrived in Hong Kong two days earlier. From the moment I landed the weather had been poor – or rather – the air pollution had been extreme, to say the least. Increasingly, as China's economy develops, the Pearl Delta was, and still is, frequently smothered by a dense blanket of smog in Winter. 

During my visit, the view of Kowloon from my company’s office simply vanished into the haze. This was all the more alarming given its location in Two International Finance Centre, a waterfront building overlooking Victoria Harbour's narrowest stretch.

I caught an early morning, high-speed hydrofoil ferry from the Sheung Wan terminal to Macau. The trip across the delta took just under an hour. Sadly, haze smothered the coast for much of the journey. Before arriving in Macau, I’d mapped out a comprehensive walking tour. The final route took me past most of the Special Administrative Region’s popular colonial highlights, plus a few sights commemorating the 1999 handover.

My first destination was Guia Fortress. This historic complex sits on Guia Hill, the highest point on the Macau peninsula. Its two most famous sights include the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Guia and the Guia Lighthouse. The lighthouse was constructed between 1864 and 1865, making it the first Western-style lighthouse ever erected along the Chinese coast. Both buildings are painted brilliant white and finished with stunning mustard highlights. Sadly neither building was open to the public that day.

While on my way to Guia Hill, I took a brief detour to view the Arco Oriente. This 28-metre-high monument was erected in 1996 and sits above a major underpass on Ave. do Dr. Rodringo Rodriques. Its looping arch of steel portrays Macau as the intersection of Chinese and Portuguese cultures. It was built to commemorate the friendship between Portugal and China in the lead-up to the colony’s handover. Almost thirty years later it’s interesting to read the commentary online. Apparently, the monument is rusting, temporarily cordoned off, and generally despised by the locals.

The next stop on my walking tour was the picture-perfect, pastel-lime chapel of St Michael. Set in the beautiful, landscaped Catholic Cemetery, this small chapel, built in 1875, is one of Macau’s most iconic locations. I was surprised to learn that, despite appearances, this isn't Macau's oldest cemetery. In fact, it's one of its more recent colonial additions, having only been opened in 1854.

From here it was onwards to Fortaleza do Monte. This colonial fortress, on Mount Hill, overlooks Macau’s most famous sight, the Ruins of St Paul’s Cathedral. It also offered superb views of Macau’s densely populated districts and a spectacular view back towards St Miguel Arcanjo Cemetery.

However, without a doubt, the highlight of the day was my visit to St Paul’s Cathedral. Almost any mention of Macau includes an image of this iconic structure. It's an elaborate building, built between 1602 and 1640 by the Jesuits. At the time, it was one of the largest Catholic churches in Asia. It was destroyed by a fire during a typhoon on 26 January 1835. Today, all that remains standing, is its intricately carved southern stone façade.

 

The façade sits on a small hill and is reached by climbing 68 stone steps. It's decorated by carvings of Jesuit images with Oriental themes, such as The Blessed Virgin Mary stepping on a seven-headed hydra, described in Chinese characters as 'Holy Mother tramples the heads of the dragon'.

The façade is impressive, to say the least. Behind it, a series of carefully preserved stone stub walls outline the original building's footprint. A series of handy tourist plaques (in English) bring the structure of the building and its history to life. I spent almost an hour exploring the ruins before moving on to my next destination.

The Lonely Planet recommended a walk down Rue de São Paulo. This narrow, winding, cobblestone street is lined by beautifully restored colonial buildings. Each building is painted in pastel hues making for plenty of classic Instagram-worthy moments. Sadly, it’s one of the last remaining places where you can still experience the original look and feel of Macau’s colonial past.

My walking tour then took me towards the southwestern shores of the Macau peninsula. This included a stroll along Nam Van Lake. On the edge of this artificial waterway is the Macau Government Headquarters, another stunning colonial building, finished in elegant terracotta hues. It was once the Governor’s Residence. Today, it’s the official office of the Special Administrative Region’s Chief Executive.

My final tourist destination was Portas do Entendimento, also known as the Gate of Understanding. This rather austere monument, consisting of two concrete pillars, sits at the end of a short causeway on the shores of Macau’s Inner Harbour. It’s another Portuguese-commissioned edifice. This one symbolizes a desire for harmonious relations between Portugal and China, that is, between West and East.

Much like the Arco Oriente, two decades on the monument is rather neglected. It's in an increasingly dangerous state of disrepair and has been cordoned off from the public. There’s clearly a theme emerging here. That is, in an increasingly nationalistic era, structures invoking the dying days of colonial rule are clearly much maligned. I guess I was lucky to see them in their prime.

After walking for more than 7kms I decided I’d done enough sightseeing for one day and caught a taxi back to the ferry terminal. However, my return ferry wasn’t scheduled to leave for another 90 minutes. On a whim, I decided to treat myself and booked a helicopter flight back to Hong Kong. Earlier in the day I’d noticed a heliport next door to the terminal, and a second heliport next to the ferry terminal in Hong Kong. The flight took less than 15 minutes. Sadly the view was limited thanks to lingering smog haze. An occasional ship would suddenly appear out of the haze below and then vanish just as quickly.

I've finished this post with an image above showing a high-speed ferry sailing past the Amizade Bridge. This four-lane bridge links the Macau Peninsula with Taipa Island, one of two main islands that, along with the peninsula, make up the Macau Special Administrative Region. It opened in 1995 and was the second crossing to link Taipa Island with the mainland. The ferry passes under it en route to and from Hong Kong.