CutiCuti: Macau Part 1

Assalamualaikum. 你好

I promised Ms G to finish entries for my Hong Kong series as soon as possible. She initially requested me to write about Shenzen but I declined. Cold-heartedly. Slowly I told her. Cerita kena ikut turutan, baru ndak pening. 

Ok, lets start with our second day in Hong Kong & first day in Macau. We only have four days there, so I knew we should utilized the four days to the max. Read few blogs that mentioned about going to Macau while they're in Hong Kong. Therefore, Macau perlu ada dalam list. Paling perlu because first; hunting for Boys Over Flowers shooting locations perlu diteruskan...and second; Running Man pun pernah buat shooting di sana. Killing two birds at once, perhaps? 

That morning, we woke up early. Awal² sudah kestau Bunda we need to depart as early as possible jadi boleh round banyak tempat di Macau. Yet, Allah sebaik² perancang. It rained cat & dog right after dawn. Hence we have to leave the hostel a bit late than planned. Had it rained during our journey to Macau, I will be the first to contribute the smell of vomit in the ferry. 

We walked from the hostel to the China Ferry terminal located alongside the Harbour City. Kedai pun masih tutup, bukti kami jalan quite awal. Right after the rain stopped. Belah kanan tu adalah Kowloon Mosque; mostly Indonesian & Pakistanis yang occupied the mosque during prayer times. 

VIP outlets at Harbour City. Cuci mata jak lah kan. Mau shopping sini, tunggu durian jatuh dari langit. Erk, durian? Confirm aku duluan lari lah pula.

Me & street signboard. Again! Ulang banyak kali kan Bie.

This is the building where the ticket counter, departure & arrival hall of China Ferry Terminal is. 

Balik dari Macau...keluar dari pintu belakang tu. Ndak tau rupanya boleh masuk dari sini untuk ke terminal building juga.

Back home, CKS is a supermarket...but in Hong Kong, it's a company that sells ticket to Macau (Cotai Terminal). Like, asal boleh cari connection kan? Area untuk beli ticket sangatlah luas...macam dalam airport pun ada. If aku ndak silap, this is located at the 2² floor of the building. Banyak company yang offer ticket to & fro Hong Kong - Macau. Tepuk dada tanya diri jak mana satu pilihan hati. As for me, awal² memang sudah set mau naik TurboJet. Pengaruh bloggers sangat. 

Boarding. Just like at the airport & train station. First, check ticket. Pastu diorang bagi seat. 

Masa nampak seat number tu, I thought Bunda & I were seated separately. Mesti ada orang duduk in between; 28B. Turned out dapat window seat. Memang 2 seats jak, ntah apa kaedah lompat huruf ni.

Immigration counter. Perlu cop pasport untuk masuk Macau. And no visa entry for Malaysian.

Boarding area. Ramainya warga China; lepas shopping di Hong Kong mau ke Macau lagi. Adakah aktiviti shopping bersambung? Mungkin sebab boleh tahan banyak luggages diorang hangkut masa ni.

View from the departure hall. That's the ferry that will bring us to Macau.

Kecoh sekecohnya. For once I was quite confused; adakah aku dalam ferry or di pasar borong ikan. Sob.

View of Hong Kong Island from the ocean. 

Arrived Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal (Macau) in one piece after one hour journey. Despite the noise inside the ferry, I slept soundly throughout the journey. While Bunda killed time reading her novel. Macam mana ntah boleh baca dalam ferry, kalau aku harus pening loya² terus.

At the arrival hall, we were approached by few travel agents & also representatives from Macau Tourism. Offering various types of day trip package. I stopped by at one of the booth to get a map & this one guy from the tourism office suddenly asked me about our plan. So I told him the places we wish to visit. He marked all the places on the map & offered to be our guide. 100 HKD for a day?!? He said it 's impossible to cover all those places in one day; taking traffic congestion as one of the major cause of delay.

Yet I stood firm with my decision to explore Macau on our own. He kept saying 'It's impossible'...and in the end I politely said "No, thanks. I will make it possible for us...on our own way. Thanks" before leaving. Luckily ndak da aktiviti kejar mengejar paksa memaksa. Else, mesti mood aku ke laut.

Reason why I strongly want to explore without a guide is because of the massive & reliable transportation system in Macau. There are so many buses to ride...be it the free shuttle buses provided by the many casinos/hotel or the public buses. 

From my research, I have to take the bus #10 to A-Ma Temple. Thanks so much to googlemap for the direction. The bus stand for public buses is just in front of the ferry terminal building. Whilst the bus stand for shuttle buses is across the road. To reach there, just use the underground passage provided.

Nasib lah ada English...satu kerja mau belajar baca baca Portuguese or Chinese lagi kan.

The bus frequency is high; there will be 2 or 3 buses every five minutes. 

Cloudy & bright weather in Macau welcome us.

My kinda thing! Seketul bangunan sejarah in the middle of a busy city. Preservation is the key to keep & maintain them. 

Didn't regret my decision to explore on our own as we arrived our first destination; A-Ma Temple after only ten minutes in the bus. That guy told us it could take about an hour from the terminal to this temple; traffic pretty bad during the weekend you know...so he said to lured us. Memang confirm aku ndak makan racun gitu.

That lady in flowery shirt can't stand the incense smoke hence she ditched the idea to enter the temple. Sila tunggu luar, anakonda mahu meninjau kawasan temple ok Bunda!

"A-Ma Temple is one of the oldest Taoist temples in Macau.  It was built in 1488 during the Ming Dynasty to commemorate Mazu; the sacred sea goddess named Lin Mo who blesses fisherman. "

Thus the reason the temple is built facing the sea; I reckoned. 

Wishes written on a piece of red paper & attached together with the bell. U can purchase the bell at a small shop inside the temple. I found about this temple from one of the show in Astro channel. Where Sazzy Falak & her husband were the guest. Mengikut jejak lawat sini but untuk stay at the hotel they stayed at memang ndak kemampuan. Ikut yang berpada² jaklah. 

This is where the statue of Mazu is worshipped. Hongren Hall is located just after the gateway. And it is believed this hall has the longest history in the complex. 

Disciples burnt incense to pay homage & pray for good fortune. 

Portuguese influence. This row of building situated at the right side of the temple; where we started our journey visiting the rest of cultural buildings along the route. 

It was scorching when we reached the temple...and suddenly came the heavy rain minutes after we left. Menduga betul weather di Macau ni. 

And as if I haven't get enough with walking up the hill in South Korea, I did it again here. Hilly road will lead us to our next destination; apparently we were left with no choice...menapak jugalah. Waiting for the bus will consume more time as jalan di area ni semua sehala. And the place we want to go adalah melawan arah. Ndak rela mau tawaf sepusingan. So, superwalkertapaki it was. 

Though Morrish Barracks is situated less than 5 minutes walking from A-Ma Temple, sempat basah kuyup mandi hujan before sampai. 

"Constructed in 1874, it is a neoclassical building along Rua Direita on a slope of Barra Hill."

The long veranda running along its sides. 

The building is intended to house an Indian regiment from Goa; whom was employed to strengthen the Macau police force at that time. There were also two hundred Indian soldiers stationed here according to historical record. 

It is also one of the buildings within the Historic Centre of Macau & is inscribed as a World Heritage by UNESCO. This building is now houses the Macau Maritime Administration. 

We stopped a little longer at the veranda; waited for the rain to subside. And just as we began our journey to the next site, it rained again. This time, Bunda insist on buying an umbrella. Was being asked what colour to buy, haruslah kelabu tengok warna lain terus. Aigoo, no need to ask lah what ur anakonda likes.

Lilau Square; also one of the cultural sites inscribed by UNESCO.

"Situated in the old 'Christian quarter' where the Portuguese first settled in Macau. Because this area is surrounded by many Portuguese style buildings; it represents Macau's unique style & features."

Mandarin House (more here) should be our next site after Morrish but brilliant moi missed the junction to the house...and ended up at the beautiful stone dual staircase of the building below.

St. Lawrence Church; one of the most beautiful churches in Macau. Located near the Government Headquarters, the school in front of this church is a home for many priests as well.

"Originally built of wood in the 1560-s, later changed to clay in 1618 & finally constructed in stone around 1803."

This neo-classical green pastel coloured building is Dom Pedro V Theatre; named after the Portuguese King Pedro V. This building is considered by some to be the oldest western style theatre in Asia. 

"Officially known as Macau Theatre in 1915; it was a popular social venue for Portuguese & Macanese residents whom were greatly interested in dramatic arts."

Bunda-Anakonda inside the first floor of the circular auditorium. 

The theatre is our second stop where we unwind a bit. Walking in the rain drained our energy pretty fast. It was totally tiresome. Jeans basah kuyup ok. Jalan pun macam dragging beban seribu tan di kaki. 

Motif utama minta gambar, not because of the building at her back. But mainly to show off the pink transparent umbrella that save us from getting showered by the rain. 

Situated right across the theatre is St Augustine Church. It is part of a monastery founded in 1586. An English services held here every Saturday & Sunday. 

"The church's marble-clad high altars contains a statue of Christ carrying the cross."

But the church is closed when we were there hence I didn't get to take any picture of the statue.

Some Portuguese style buildings we passed by on the way to Senado Square from St Augustine Church & the theatre. I fall in love with the historical & cultural buildings in Macau. Pretty amazed on how dedicated they are in preserving the buildings; mainly to keep the history remain intact. 

Greeted by super heavy raindrop soon after we reached Senado Square. 

Eventually we got to experience Macau's fluctuated weather. One minute it was scorching hot, next it rained like it's not gonna stop accompanied with strong wind some more...yet suddenly, the sun came out again.

We walked from one block to another...just to get closer to our next destination. One of the most awaited site...also Macau most famous landmark.

Holy House of Mercy is the oldest social institution in Macau. It is one of the most prominent building in the square area. This house of mercy is easily seen from the fountain at the center of Senado Square. It is open for visitor from 10a - 530p. And the fee is MOP $5.

"Founded in 1569 by the first bishop in Macau with the intention on doing charitable work for the local community."

Ditto the idea to enter the House of Mercy. Picture of the next historical site was playing in front of my eyes already...siap melambai² as if it can't wait to welcome me. Motif sangat kan kena lambai.

See that smile?! I was on my way to the site...tempat tercipta kenangan between Gun Pyo & Jan Di. Regardless where I stand, jiwa Kdrama tetap dibawa. 

Will update about that place in the upcoming entry. Too many pictures in this post, aku pula rasa mau muntah. Till then, have a nice day. Gitu!

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