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Showing posts with label Macau. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Macau. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

The Love Kids Boutique in Macau

A scene from yesterday evening in Macau:

Love Kids Boutique in Macau

That is all for today, but tomorrow I will share many more scenes from a part of Macau which receives far less attention than Macau's casino resorts and colonial era historic sites.

Sunday, September 27, 2015

Mid-Autumn Festival Lanterns in Taipa Village

From last week in Taipa Village, Macau, here are some holiday lanterns for today's Mid-Autumn Festival lit up at night along with two children and a dragon:

lantern display in Taipa Village, Macau, for the Mid-Autumn Festival

young girl standing under Mid-Autumn Festival lanterns in Taipa Village, Macau

boy walking near a stone dragon in Taipa Village, Macau

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Diaper Spillage Averted in Macau

A good save the other day in Macau by men on opposite ends of a flatbed wagon:

two men stopping stacked boxes of Pamers diapers from falling of a flatbed wagon

None of the boxes of diapers hit the ground. These diapers, which are designed to avoid another type of spillage, were apparently being delivered to locations in Macau. Given this area's close proximity to Macau's border with Zhuhai, many of the diapers are likely destined for locations in mainland China, whether as personal purchases or part of a grey market which I first looked at several years ago. During my recent time in Macau and Zhuhai, I have revisited the topic. Later, more about what I found, including how goods not only flow out of Macau through the grey market but into it as well.

Monday, September 21, 2015

Lighting Up for the Mid-Autumn Festival at Portas do Cerco

large lantern display for the Mid-Autumn Festival at Portas do Cerco in Macau

The above scene at Portas do Cerco shows a bit of how Macau is sprucing things up for the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. I share the photo also because I will not need to cross the border between Macau and Zhuhai as much as I have been for the past several days, reflecting improved conditions regarding my recent injury. I think I will have a story about that to share soon. Whatever the case, I look forward to returning to some pieces I had hoped to post last week.

Saturday, September 19, 2015

Standing Firm at the Macau-Zhuhai Border

girl wearing a backpack with the words "Stand Firm" approaching Porta do Cerco in Macau
Approaching Portas do Cerco, the Macau side of the immigration checkpoint on the border between Macau and Zhuhai

Thanks to an incident earlier this week, I have been crossing the border between Macau and Zhuhai far more than I had ever expected. Many other events were unexpected as well. More soon . . .

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

A Dinner Break in Zhuhai With a View

Two men squatting as they eat dinner with a view from Zhuhai of Macau across the Qianshan Waterway
View in Zhuhai of Macau across the Qianshan Waterway (water not visible; much more visible here)

Today I saw some of the construction occurring in Wanzai, Zhuhai. More about that later.

Monday, September 7, 2015

A Casino Resort, Taipa Village, and a Garden: The Photographed Portion of a Sunday in Macau

I have been to Macau many times, and planned to simply enjoy myself there for much of the day yesterday. Below are some photos. They don't cover all of my day. In fact, they don't cover what I would most want to share here from a more "local" part of the city less visited by tourists. But something unexpected occurred shortly after taking the last photo below.

My camera's battery ran out. Actually, that wasn't unexpected.

After putting in a second battery, I discovered it had no power left either. Now that was most unexpected. This has happened perhaps once before during years of photographing China.

So here is a light story for the first part of my day, which offers a somewhat unconventional look at Macau:


Yesterday morning I walked to the Gongbei Port immigration checkpoint in Zhuhai so I could cross the border to Macau. Since a work day had been shifted to Sunday to allow three consecutive days off for the recent holiday, I hoped there wouldn't be much of a crowd. Indeed, although it often takes around an hour, I made it through Chinese and Macanese immigration in less than 15 minutes.

Once in Macau, I bordered a free bus operated by the Galaxy Macau — a hotel, shopping, and casino resort. The already large complex had recently finished a major expansion I wished to see, partly due to interest in whether there will be sufficient demand for the still-growing number of shopping and entertainment options in Macau.

Before boarding the bus I was handed a pamphlet about the Broadway Macau, also owned by the Galaxy Entertainment Group, promising "hot girls with fire heating up the atmosphere", pedicab singers, a uni-juggler, and stilt walkers.

pamphlet for the Broadway Macau promoting PediCabs Singers, Girls on Fire, Uni-Juggler, and Stilt Walkers


The bus took a highway down the east side of the Macau Peninsula and over a bridge to Taipa. Soon I was at the the Galaxy Macau in neighboring Cotai.

Galaxy Macau


Once inside, I found an ATM and withdrew enough Macau patacas to hopefully get me through the day. I then walked into the new east portion of The Promenade, basically a large luxury mall. I noticed a message on one of the walls, but I could not decipher it.

symbols on a wall at The Promenade in Macau


The mall itself was just like a mall, most reminiscent of a luxury mall or two in Shanghai. I noted one of the signs included a possible reference to The Hobbit. Gollum himself would have recognized the significance of placing the word "Precious" near a man's hand in his pocket.

sign with the word "precious" near a man's hand inside his pocket at The Promenade in Macau


I quickly made my way through the mall and found the bridge over a wide road to the Broadway Macau.

enclosed pedestrian bridge with moving walkways connecting Galaxy Macau with Broadway Macau


The indoor entertainment areas were rather quiet — not unexpected since no shows were on at the time. However, I could see some of the promotions, including one for a magic show in December.

sign for "Cyril Magic Up Close & Personal" World Tour


Another sign promised "Broadway Babes".

Broadway Babes sign


Whatever type of entertainment you like, a hallway promised unlimited fun, which sounds like a lot of fun. The only catch was it appeared to be behind a locked door.

colorful hallway with the words "Unlimited Fun"


I then made it to the outdoor pedestrian street called The Broadway. It didn't look anything like New York's Broadway, but it did remind me of what some streets in Orlando might look like if they had a bunch of Macanese and other Asian restaurants.

The Broadway in Macau


The area was rather hot and notably quiet —no pink scooters, pedicab singers, or girls on fire. Apparently those are part of the nighttime festivities.

So I made my way back across the pedestrian bridge, through The Promenade, and left the Galaxy Macau. While crossing the street to head to my next destination, Taipa Village, I briefly looked at the progress on the Pai Kok station for the under-construction Macau light rail.

under-construction Pai Kok light rail station in Macau


I had timed my arrival in Taipa Village to match with the opening of my lunch destination. I will refrain from posting any photos of the edacious and potatory event since I had a nearly identical experience during an earlier visit to the Portuguese restaurant "O Santos".  The food was as good as ever, and I said hello to the owner who as usual enjoyed a meal at the front of the first floor dining area. Some changes since my first visits years ago included photos of more recent Portuguese football teams and Mick Jagger's visit there last year.

After eating more than enough, the results of poor sleep the night before encouraged me seek a bit more caffeine. So I walked to the nearby Taiwanese Fong Da Coffee and ordered a "South Italian" espresso — a more special experience than visiting the Starbucks also not far away.

Fong Da Coffee in Taipa Village, Macau


As the caffeine molecules began to do their work, I briefly checked out of the small Taipa Flea Market and observed a purchase.

jewelry stall at Taipa Flea Market in Macau


Now rather thirsty due to the hot weather, I headed toward a ParknShop supermarket where I knew I would find some items of interest. On the way I saw a taxi with an advertisement for place I had visited several years ago — Danang, Vietnam.

Macau taxi with advertisement for Danang, Vietnam


Upon entering the building with the supermarket I noticed a piano sale.

piano sale in Taipa, Macau


A collection of piano music had been left open, and I quickly recognized a great piece. Bonus points if you can identify it (the answer should be rather easy for piano majors).

great piano music


The piece is beyond my meager piano skills, so I headed inside the supermarket for a treat rather hard to find in most of mainland China — low fat chocolate milk.

three varieties of low fat chocolate milk


Since I was in Macau, a land with much Portuguese influence, I bought something else also not common in mainland China — Luso spring water.

Luso bottled water for sale in Macau


As I rehydrated outside, I considered the challenges and pressures many face in Macau, and the rest of China — owning a home.

two women with a little girl walking by an advertisement for housing loans


I was also reminded of how many cats love nothing more than a big cardboard box.

large cardboard box labeled "Hello Kitty"


Soon it was time to head to my destination for the afternoon. Just as I approached the bus stop the right bus arrived. I did not take it. A few seconds later another bus for the same route arrived. I took it. My final bus stop back on the Macau Peninsula was next to a peaceful site, so I decided to visit the Lou Lim Ieoc Garden.

I spent some time at an art exhibition there — more about that in a later post. I also watched children feed some turtles and fish.

children feeding fish and turtles at Lim Ieoc Garden in Macau


I also enjoyed the garden's winding paths.

path at Lim Ieoc Garden in Macau


And I saw a number of people enjoying the surroundings.

pavilion at  Lim Ieoc Garden in Macau

That's the unexpected end to this post. I do have a story sans photos to tell about what happened next, but I will save that for another day.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

A Non-International View of Zhuhai from Macau

To balance things out with the previous post, here is a view of Zhuhai from Coloane Village in Macau:

view of Zhuhai from Coloane Village in Macau

Once again, I would recommend against swimming from one side to the other.

Air pollution obscures some of the details, but if you look closely at the mountains, you can see wind turbines, which struck me as both hopeful and ironic.

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

A Non-International View of Macau from Zhuhai

View of Macau from Zhuhai at night
View of Macau, China, from Zhuhai, China (February 2015)

You could try swimming from the location in Zhuhai where I took the above photo to Macau. I stress "try". Even if you reached Macau, the relevant authorities would likely prevent you from getting much farther, and what follows would likely not be a pleasant experience. Reaching Macau would be far easier if you simply walk to the nearby immigration and control point and cross the border on land, assuming you have the relevant documents. Many Chinese people I have met in the same area did not though. But if you do make it to Macau from Zhuhai, regardless of the method you use I wouldn't call it "overseas travel".

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Ephemeral Laughs from Yue Minjun and Roger Angell

the laughing head of one of Yue Minjun's steel sculptures named "The Laugh that can be Laughed is not the Eternal Laugh"

Earlier today I saw the steel sculptures of laughing people created in 2009 by Chinese artist Yue Minjun now outside the Macao Museum of Art. After briefly considering them, I read an informational card and learned they share the title "The Laugh that can be Laughed is not the Eternal Laugh".

After a few moments pondering the possible meaning of the title, I found humor in it and laughed. Then, listening to my laughter, I broke into a louder laugh finding humor in the idea that my laugh could not be an "Eternal Laugh".

I suddenly went silent. Recursion. Absurdity. Eternity. For a seemingly timeless period, my mind floated.

And then I walked away to find something to eat.

Due to an unrelated recommendation, in the evening I read "This Old Man" by American essayist Roger Angell in The New Yorker. The topic of laughter appeared again, this time in Angell's personal reflections on life, death, and growing old:
I get along. Now and then it comes to me that I appear to have more energy and hope than some of my coevals, but I take no credit for this. I don’t belong to a book club or a bridge club; I’m not taking up Mandarin or practicing the viola. In a sporadic effort to keep my brain from moldering, I’ve begun to memorize shorter poems—by Auden, Donne, Ogden Nash, and more—which I recite to myself some nights while walking my dog, Harry’s successor fox terrier, Andy. I’ve also become a blogger, and enjoy the ease and freedom of the form: it’s a bit like making a paper airplane and then watching it take wing below your window. But shouldn’t I have something more scholarly or complex than this put away by now—late paragraphs of accomplishments, good works, some weightier op cits? I’m afraid not. The thoughts of age are short, short thoughts. I don’t read Scripture and cling to no life precepts, except perhaps to Walter Cronkite’s rules for old men, which he did not deliver over the air: Never trust a fart. Never pass up a drink. Never ignore an erection.

I count on jokes, even jokes about death.
Angell follows with a joke he's been told 4th graders will appreciate, and then he shares another joke:
A man and his wife tried and tried to have a baby, but without success. Years went by and they went on trying, but no luck. They liked each other, so the work was always a pleasure, but they grew a bit sad along the way. Finally, she got pregnant, was very careful, and gave birth to a beautiful eight-pound-two-ounce baby boy. The couple were beside themselves with happiness. At the hospital that night, she told her husband to stop by the local newspaper and arrange for a birth announcement, to tell all their friends the good news. First thing next morning, she asked if he’d done the errand.

“Yes, I did,” he said, “but I had no idea those little notices in the paper were so expensive.”

“Expensive?” she said. “How much was it?”

“It was eight hundred and thirty-seven dollars. I have the receipt.”

“Eight hundred and thirty-seven dollars!” she cried. “But that’s impossible. You must have made some mistake. Tell me exactly what happened.”

“There was a young lady behind a counter at the paper, who gave me the form to fill out,” he said. “I put in your name and my name and little Teddy’s name and weight, and when we’d be home again and, you know, ready to see friends. I handed it back to her and she counted up the words and said, ‘How many insertions?’ I said twice a week for fourteen years, and she gave me the bill. O.K.?”
As Angel reacted when he first heard the joke more than fifty years ago, I laughed and was surprised to hear the joke in the particular context it was shared.

What does Angell, at the age of 93, believing jokes to be so important mean? What does the "The Laugh that can be Laughed is not the Eternal Laugh" mean? I'm still not sure, but where these questions lead and how they relate fascinates me.

And that I noticed a connection between Yue Minjun's sculptures in Macau and Roger Angell's essay from New York City ...

... makes part of me laugh.

the laughing head of one of Yue Minjun's steel sculptures named "The Laugh that can be Laughed is not the Eternal Laugh"

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Photos That Nearly Made Here it in 2013

When I upload a photo to Picasa it usually means I plan to use it soon in a blog post. But sometimes things don't go as planned. So to start off 2014 here, I will share a mishmash of photos from 2013 that were uploaded but for one reason or another never made their way into a published post. In addition to any descriptions, I'll share links to earlier related posts--all except two from 2013. Together they provide reminders of a tiny bit of what was covered here during the previous year and a hint of some of what else I had hoped to share and write about.

So in chronological order...

2013 for me began celebrating in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After Kuala Lumpur, I went to Penang, where I listened to a woman describe her challenges visiting her son in the US, and later Melaka, where not far from the Melaka River I saw this shop in a mall:

stall selling a variety of items in a mall in Melaka, Malasia


Some of the flip-flops (sandals) for sale caught my attention:

flip-flops with the logos for Facebook, Yahoo, Google, and YouTube

What do all of the brands on these flip-flops have in common? They are all global online services created and based in the US. I didn't see any Baidu, WeChat, or Tencent flip-flops...

Later in Melaka, I think not to far from where I met a young woman seeking forgiveness, I looked up and saw this:

blue sky with clouds in Melaka, Malaysia

For more about why my time in China has given me a deeper appreciation of blue skies with "normal" clouds, see the 2012 post "Skies and Clouds in China" with scenes from Macau.

After Malaysia, I headed to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where I documented many examples of people riding pedal-powered vehicles, motorbikes, and motorized-vehicles which were pulling or pushing something. However, there was one example, like one of a coffin being delivered on a motorbike, that I had hoped to share in its own post. I never got around to the post, so here is the photo:

young woman with many flowers riding a pedal-powered rickshaw in Phnom Penh, Cambodia


Street vehicles weren't the only thing on my mind in Phnom Penh. For example, at one shop I noticed this screen for a cash register at a small convenience store:

computer screen showing calculations for price and change in US dollars and Cambodian Riel

In Cambodia, both US and Cambodian currency are regularly used, and transactions can include both. The above screen is presumably an attempt to make life easier and reduce the number of errors.

While in Cambodia I also went to the riverside town of Kampot. In the countryside I walked to Fish Isle, ate a mysterious sea creature, surprised a little girl by answering her phone call, and explored the area to the north by bike. I didn't share many scenes from central Kampot, but here's one at a large market:

man posing next to a van with its back door open to pack in more vegetables


After Cambodia, I went to Vietnam, Taiwan, and the US. No unused uploaded photos from those places, but there's one from my next stop: Seoul, South Korea:

MLB store in Seoul, South Korea

This was one of several MLB (Major League Baseball) stores I saw in Seoul. In the window the logo for the Los Angeles Dodgers can be seen--the same team some men were watching at Seoul's Namdaemun Market.

After returning to China, I had the opportunity to revisit Cheung Chau--one of Hong Kong's outlying islands. While there, I saw this monkey:

hanging orange toy monkey in Cheung Chau

I had considered posting the photo without any comment except a title something like "Orange Ennui in Cheung Chau".

Fortunately, ennui wasn't an issue for me on Cheung Chau. Nor was it during my visits to nearby Macau where I saw beer speeding through the streets on the peninsula and these three young women in Cotai:

three young women wearing racing clothes, helmets, and goggles in Macau

Almost 2 years ago I shared my experience taking a random bus ride in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. Several months ago I took another random bus ride in Zhuhai. Maybe someday I will share more of what I saw, but for now I will just say I was particularly surprised to hear, and then see, goats:

three black goats on and around a brick path in Zhuhai


Also while in Zhuhai, I shared some scenes from a late-night outdoor dining establishment. For a contrast, here's an outdoor dining scene at a pricier establishment:

outdoor dining scene at a cafe in Zhuhai

Usually I enjoy the local Chinese-style seafood in Zhuhai, but this is my favorite place for a smoked salmon sandwich.

Finally, more recently I shared a scene from a restaurant in Changsha--a city where I've seen a lot of change. This is the spicy chicken dish I ate for lunch at the restaurant:

spicy chicken dish, rich, and a pot of tea at a restaurant in Changsha, China


And that brings this unplanned set of photos to a close. Undoubtedly, more photos, experiences, and thoughts from previous years will appear here in the future--as will new ones.

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Views of Zhuhai Without Fences and Walls

For a change of pace from the previous post, here's a view of Zhuhai from Macau sans fences and walls:

Looking westward towards Zhuhai's Hengqin Island across the water from Cotai in southern Macau

And here is a view of Zhuhai without borders:

Looking northward from the square in front of the Gongbei Port immigration checkpoint in Zhuhai

One can continue in this direction for thousands of kilometers before needing to worry about another immigration checkpoint. Though you may first encounter a famous wall.

Friday, November 15, 2013

Fences and Walls Between Two Cities in China

Despite Macau being a part of China, mainland Chinese need a special permit to enter it. I've pondered the border between Macau and Zhuhai, the neighboring city in mainland China, both while looking at Macau from Zhuhai and while looking at Zhuhai from Macau.

I recently visited the western half of Macau's northern border. I found it provides a stronger impression of the border than many other vantage points due to the long stretches of human-made barriers in both Macau and Zhuhai. This area of Macau is connected by land to mainland China or only separated by a narrow strip of water. At most other locations wider bodies of water separate Macau and the rest of China, and no long stretches of border fences or walls exist.

Below are eight photos I took from this area in Macau in the order they were taken as I headed west along the border. In all of them Zhuhai can be seen in the background. If a fence on the Macau side is not visible, it means I stuck my camera through the gratings. See the three links above to earlier posts for more scenes and for more information and thoughts about the border between Macau and mainland China.

Man looking at the new Zhuhai Railway Station from Sun Yat Sen Park in Macau
Man looking at the new Zhuhai Railway Station from Sun Yat Sen Park in Macau

A partial basketball court in Macau in sight of apartments in Zhuhai
A partial basketball court in Macau in sight of apartments in Zhuhai

a sign in Macau providing notice of video surveillance at the border with mainland China
There is video surveillance along the border.

Farther away view of the Zhuhai Railway station with Zhuhai buildings on the left and in the center
Farther away view of the Zhuhai Railway station with Zhuhai buildings on the left and in the center

Looking westward from the same location as the previous photo

triangular shaped building at the border between Zhuhai and Macau
This appeared to be a building for border police.

Public exercise equipment and a child running by
Public exercise equipment and a child running by

a strip of water with mountain and apartment complexes in the background
Mountains and new apartment complexes are easy to find in Zhuhai