Experimenting in Macau.

Community Highlights Asia Experimenting in Macau.

Travelling is no longer easy for Peter and we are seriously wondering if we will have to give it up. We decided to buy a wheelchair to see if that would improve our lives. We tried it out for the first time last Sunday and were overambitious with me pushing it quite a long way - all the way to The Bounty Bar in fact. I had only pushed a wheelchair on flat smooth surfaces before, so pushing it on rough, uneven surfaces came as a bit of a shock. We encountered a lot of problems and discovered we have much to learn. I was in agony the next day from doing all the pushing and we were both feeling utterly depressed. We decided, here in Discovery Bay, we will be using the wheelchair mainly in conjunction with buses. But what about travelling? Could we get to Macau using it? On Tuesday 8th October we set out to try.

We decided Peter would get out of the wheelchair and step onto the bus and I would carry the wheelchair on. We need to get on and off four buses to get from our house to the hotel. We got on the first bus without problem. On the second bus Peter took a dizzy turn and nearly fell. I was thinking getting him out of the chair had not been a good idea, but I don't like pushing the chair up and down ramps, though I suppose I will just have to get better at it. The bus across the bridge was fine and the shuttle bus to the hotel was fine. It was much easier for Peter to go through the whole check in process when he didn't have to walk. In the hotel I told him he had to walk rather than be pushed as I don't want him to be too dependent on the chair.

At the hotel our usual room 1720 awaited us and we felt we had arrived home. We freshened up before having a lovely afternoon tea, then headed down to the pool. Although it is still hot outside, the water is already getting cool. Nonetheless, we had a very pleasant swim, then headed back upstairs.

Afternoon tea.

A beautiful day in Macau.

Dinner was very enjoyable with roast chicken and a green Thai chicken curry. We had several beers and Peter decided to try a rum. If you order a spirit here, they always bring you a very big measure. I don't think they entirely understand alcohol.

I hadn't really planned anything for this trip to Macau, but I have been watching lots of videos recently by a North American man who lives in Macau. He seems to be determined to walk the whole of Macau one street at a time, videoing his walks wherever he goes. Some of his videos concentrate mainly on residential areas without many sights, but others are really quite fascinating. He's not someone who goes out of his way to visit tourist attractions, but sometimes he mentions them in passing. I had been impressed by his visit to the Saint Lazarus District by night, so I decided that was what I would do.

I visited the Saint Lazarus District by day not that long ago and found it fascinating and according to this man's videos it's beautifully lit up at night.

Googling the walking route to the Saint Lazarus District, I thought it would be quicker to go via Saint Anthony's Church, so that's what I did. It was really pretty here at night.

Outside the hotel.

Saint Anthony's Church at night.

The Sofitel in the distance as I passed through the Saint Anthony area.

I liked this little lane.

Cafe with Che Guevara in the Saint Anthony's District.

Images of Macau.

Elephant street art in the Saint Anthony's District.

However, I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere along the way, as I ended up going via the ruins of Saint Paul's, and after that I was pretty much following the route I took last time. Still I got there in the end.

Restaurant near Saint Paul's.

Images of Macau.

On the way I passed by the Portuguese Consulate.

The Saint Lazarus District used to be located in no man's land, between the Portuguese area and the Mainland Chinese border. It had some Chinese villages, but it was also an area where lepers, misfits, outcasts and criminals were sent. When the Portuguese Bishop, Melchior Carneiro, came here from Goa, he was shocked by this area and tried to help the people who lived in dire need here. A leprosy hospital was built and so was the Church of Saint Lazarus, the patron saint of outcasts. There are some beautiful old Portuguese buildings in this area and it was certainly true that the streets here were lit up magically at night.

Nighttime street in the Saint Lazarus District.

Among other places, I passed the beautiful Church of Saints Lazarus. Of course this was closed at night. I haven't managed to get inside here yet.

The Church of Saints Lazarus.

Illuminated building next to Saint Lazarus Church.

Opposite the church is The Choi Lok Chi Mansion, which was constructed in 1918 for Choi Lok Chi, the director of Kiang Wu Hospital. Apparently it now stages exhibitions.

The Choi Lok Chi Mansion.

Nearby there's another lovely building which is or perhaps was a school of music.

Conservatório de Macau - Escola de Música.

This time I found the Albergue Santa Casa da Misericordia. I managed to miss it last time. This was once home to elderly female refugees from Mainland China, thus it was also known as 'The Old Ladies' House'. Many of these old ladies were Chinese Catholics who had fled from the Boxer Rebellion. Nowadays this is an arts centre and a restaurant. There's a large courtyard here with an old well and two gorgeous camphor trees. The courtyard was beautifully decorated with lots of lanterns.

Entrance to the Albergue Santa Casa da Misericordia.

Camphor trees and lanterns.

The yellow Alberge buildings.

Portuguese rooster outside the restaurant.

Lanterns.

Flower lantern.

Lanterns and the exit.

Cosy seats.

There were lots of other wonderfully illuminated buildings and streets all around. This area has to be one of the most underrated in Macau.

Streets in Saint Lazarus District.

Glowing yellow lights.

Streets in Saint Lazarus District.

Colourful buildings.

Nighttime in the Saint Lazarus District.

I remembered that I was very close to Tap Seac Square, so headed there next. This is the largest public square in Macau and it is surrounded by yet more colourful old colonial style buildings. Again this place was magical by night. I walked past the Cultural Institute and noticed The Pavilion for the Youth which I think I missed first time around. High on a hill in the distance I could see the Guia lighthouse which was also lit up.

The Cultural Institute.

Pavilion for The Youth Building of the Former Caixa Escolar.

Decorations in Tap Seac Square.

The Guia lighthouse on the hill.

Building on Tap Seac Square.

The modern side of Tap Seac Square.

Lane off Tap Seac Square.

Thinking back to my day time visit to this area, I knew I was very near The Lou Lim Lok Gardens. It was late, so I expected them to be closed, but to my surprise, they weren't, so I took a wander around inside. There aren't many places where I'd wander around a park alone at night, but Macau is one of them. My biggest fear was the possibility of getting locked in, as I wasn't sure when the gardens closed. There were people around though, so I reckoned they would be open for a while. (I later found out they close at 9pm.) It was both beautiful and peaceful at night. I didn't encounter any ghosts though apparently work drew to a halt on restoring these gardens at one point, because the workers believed they were haunted.

Entrance to The Lou Lim Lok Gardens.