...is more than enough. Since Macau is only a one-hour ferry ride from Hong Kong, we figured we would spend a day checking out Asia's version of Las Vegas. While neither of us really gambles, we thought it would be a fun, glitzy place to walk around and explore the area's history (the island was originally colonized by the Portuguese). I would summarize our findings as: not much culture, not much to see, way too many people. We had another dreary day so we definitely weren't seeing Macau at its best, but still didn't feel like the city had any real charm or character.
After scouting out some sandwiches for lunch we spent a few hours checking out the town center and walking around the nearby historical sites.
Macau's central square - Largo de Senado - full of other tourists and cheesy Christmas displays.
St. Dominic's Church, which still holds mass every week.
Old vs. new. On top of the Monte Fort, looking out toward the Grand Lisboa Hotel.
Cannons protecting the fort.
The Ruins of St. Paul's, one of the more interesting Portuguese-era relics.
Crowded streets in Macau.
This was probably my favorite spot during our time in Macau - we waited a while for everyone to clear out for this shot.
Once we had explored the historic center of Macau, we took a taxi to the Venetian so we could check out the gambling scene and walk around the fancy shops located there. The resort is basically a massive interconnected compound and definitely feels similar to Vegas, with two notable differences: no smoking and no alcohol. We were surprised by the lack of drinking, mostly because we assumed alcohol consumption is largely correlated to increased gambling / money spending, but learned that Chinese people view gambling as more of a sport or "investment" and take it rather seriously. In addition to the lack of free beverages, the minimum bets were also much higher, so basically Macau casinos held no allure for us.
It was no surprise that the inside of the Venetian looked identical to the one in Vegas!
Before we caught the ferry back to Hong Kong, we grabbed two of the famous egg tarts from Lord Stow's but the thick custard pies weren't really our thing. We were glad we stopped in Macau - when in Rome, right? - bur definitely don't consider it a "must-see" while in Hong Kong. Tomorrow is our last day here and we are getting pretty excited for some sunshine in Australia!