Sunday, 9 February 2014

Bright lights and Glamour in Hong Kong and Macau

Hey guys! This will be my last post on my Asia trip! Thanks for sticking with me so far!

Our last leg of the trip was in Hong Kong and Macau. I had previously been to Hong Kong before, to catch my one way flight to Canada so I don't remember much from my trip oh so many years ago. Overall, it's truly a city that never sleeps and probably the best shopping experience I've ever had. The bright lights and the crowds are one of a kind and there's something for everyone in this city.

Our trip started with a view of Tai Peng Peak, one of the best places to see Victoria Harbour from above. 


Very foggy though
At night we visited the Mong Kok district where the locals like to shop. I had never seen this many people and shops all concentrated in one spot. Very cool, very busy. 




Hong Kong is famous for its local delicacies and I was so excited to try all the foods! One of my favourites was the wonton soup that I had. Everything just tasted that much better in Hong Kong. I think what I liked about it more then anything was just how all the components in the soup worked together to make something better.

The wontons were so good! 

There's also lots of street food available and these little egg cakes smelled really good!


Tsim Sha Chui is one of the best spots to view the brights lights of the harbour at night. With the live music, the bright lights and a light sea breeze, it's a nice way to spend the night.


Macau

The next day we took a tour to Macau to check out the island. This is the biggest gambling spot in Asia, taking in more profit then even Las Vegas for the last few years. We got really lucky with the weather since the island usually experiences very foggy weather year-round. 


I believe there are over 30 casinos on the island, enough to suit any gambler's appetite for gambling. Macau is also famous for its Portuguese tarts.



I've had one of these in Toronto before but of course the Macau ones were so much better! They were fresh, there wasn't too much crust and it was just sweet enough. 



Our guide was kind enough to take us on a walking tour of old Macau. It started at the ruins of St. Paul's church, a local landmark.





From here, we took a walk down Largo do Senado and found this beautiful, Mexican styled church.




There were lots of faithful inside the church
Outside, the streets were filled with people and the pre-Chinese New Year decorations were already up.



We got a glimpse of the gambling culture in Macau with the huge stream of Chinese gamblers coming to gamble and views of Stanley Ho's casinos throughout the city.


The shape of the building had to do with Feng Shui
We only got to visit one casino on this trip, which was the Emperor Casino, owned in part by Jackie Chan. There were 88 gold bars in the lobby, another Feng Shui idea.  I really understood how superstitious some of these people were when I was trying to take a photo of the gold bars. There was a manager at the lobby to prevent people from bending down to take a photo since it was "bad luck". There was another piece at the side just for photography purposes. 


Iphone sized gold bar
Overall, I really enjoyed my time in Hong Kong and Macau and I would love to come back. This was a trip of a lifetime, and thank you for coming along with me. Have a great week!

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