Macau "The Las Vegas of China"

Pictures: us trying to get dry, impressive tour sprinkled with bright umbrellas, casino!, the Venetian

That is really just what it seemed to be. Now I say “seemed” because honestly we didn’t get to see a lot of the island due to the incessant rain and the whole getting lost thing. But still, the day began rainy and pretty much stayed that way which made for soaked Ugg boots, squishy socks and general numbness. We took refuge on the one hour ferry there and back. Macau is another SAR (Special Administrative Region) of China (like HK) and so we had to go through customs and the whole bit. We started at the “Fisherman’s Wharf” which really was nothing like the one in San Francisco in that it really had no fish or fishermen and was comprised of mostly depressingly vacant amusement park type ruins. The Casinos really were the highlight of the trip in that they were warm and bright. Perhaps, needless to say, we didn’t gamble. (We had a “poker night” with some international students the other night and after I lost my $20 HKD several times I decided that I would give gambling a rest for the next week). So aside from observing the subtle Portuguese influence on Macau cuisine and culture in general, briefly viewing the “gift” museum of Macau (yes, we were that desperate to get inside) and hopping on several Sardine packed buses, we landed ourselves at the Venetian hotel and casino for the night. This is one modeled after the one in Las Vegas and though it is still under construction, when it is done, it will be the second largest hotel in the world. Having actually been to Venice before, I found the entire extremely bizarre. You go inside and the canal follows you and you enter a large plaza with 3-D clouds on the ceiling that make you feel like you are in a surreal day. Then you hear loud Italian singing and turn to see a man in a Gondola carting around a group of Asian tourists who look kind of bored or unsure of what to really do as this Western looking man with the goatee and striped shirt is singing to them. We looked at the “canal shops” as the streets of Venice were transformed into one giant shopping mall (are you seeing the trend here?). We soggily ate at the food court, bought the stupid Portuguese egg tart that we had been so eager to find and then bused home for some cheesy girl soap operaish show. I don’t know if I will ever go back to Macau.