Macau

SHENZEN

Shenzhen is a major city in the south of Southern China's Guangdong Province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong. The area became China's first€”and one of the most successful€”Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Both Chinese and foreign nationals have invested enormous amount of money in the Shenzhen SEZ.

The Venetian Macao

The Venetian Macaois a hotel and casino resort in Macau owned by the Las Vegas Sands corporation. The Venetian is a 40-story, $2.4 billion anchor for the 7 hotels on the Cotai Strip in Macau. The 10,500,000-square-foot (980,000 m2) Venetian Macao is modeled on its sister casino resort - The Venetian in Las Vegas - and is the largest single structure hotel building in Asia, The sixth-largest building in the world by area and the largest casino in the world. It is also home to the second largest Venice in the world, the first being the city of Venice, Italy and the third being The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Venetian also boasts the largest number of Filipino gondoleers in the world.

Macau Tower

Macau Toweris a tower located in the Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. The tower measures 338 m (1,109 ft) in height from ground level to the highest point. An observation deck with panoramic views, restaurants, theaters, shopping malls and the Skywalk X, a thrilling walking tour around the outer rim. It offers the best view of Macau and in recent years has been used for a variety of adventurous activities. At 233 meters, the Macau Tower's tethered skyjump and Bungee jump from the tower's outer rim, is the second highest commercial skyjump in the world. The tower is one of the members of the World Federation of Great Towers. Besides being used for observation and entertainment, the tower is also used for telecommunications and broadcasting.

Barrier Gate (Portas do Cerco)

With the new underground passenger terminal, it is now more convenient for locals to travel to Zhuhai. Passengers at the underground bus terminal can reach the Border Gate Square through the linked escalator, elevator and stair case. 17 bus lines service the bus terminal with clear signboards and indications. Washrooms as well as public phones are also available at the underground bus terminal, while the taxi station is on the ground floor. Erected in 1870, the European style Border Gate witnesses the development of Macau. The modernized Border Gate Square with fountains at the centre is surrounded by green plants. The blue tiles at the side walls together with the poem of the Portuguese Poet, Camoes depict the history of Macau.The Border Gate and the Gongbei Checkpoint in Zhuhai open daily from 7:00 a.m. to midnight East

Kun Iam Tong (Avenida do Coronel Mesquita)

This Buddhist temple dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy was founded in the 13th century and the present buildings date from 1627. It is one of the biggest and wealthiest of Macau's temples with a huge entrance gate and roofs clustered with porcelain figures. Separated by open courtyards are richly decorated halls dedicated to the Precious Buddhas, the Buddha of Longevity and Kun Iam, who is dressed in embroiled silk with a fringed crown (which is changed every year). She is attended by 18 Buddhas on either side of the altar. In adjoining rooms are funeral chapels and scrolls honouring Kun Iam in pictures and calligraphy. Behind the temple are terraced gardens. In one is the stone table on which was signed the first Sino-American treaty on July 3, 1844, by the Viceroy of Canton Ki Ying and the United States Minister Caleb Cushing. Nearby is the marble statue of a monk in an ornate pavilion,and four ancient banyan trees with branches intertwined which is known as the Lovers Tree and a symbol of marital fidelity. In other parts of the garden are fountains shaped like miniature Chinese landscapes, groves of bamboo and small shrines to departed priests. The festival of Kun Iam is celebrated on the 19th day of second,sixth, ninth and 11th moons.

Ruins of St. Paul's

All that remains of the greatest of Macau's churches is its magnificent stone facade and grand staircase. The church was built in 1602 adjoining the Jesuit College of St. Paul's, the first Western college in the Far East where missionaries such as Matteo Ricci and Adam Schall studied Chinese before serving at the Ming Court in Beijing as astronomers and mathematicians. The church, made of taipa and wood, was brilliantly decorated and furnished, according to early travelers. The facade of carved stone was built in 1620-27 by Japanese Christian exiles and local craftsmen under the direction of Italian Jesuit Carlo Spinola. After the expulsion of the Jesuits, the college was used as an army barracks and in 1835 a fire started in the kitchens and destroyed the college and the body of the church. The surviving facade rised in 4 colonnaded tiers, and is covered with carvings and statues which eloquently illustrate the early days of the Church in Asia. There are statues of the Virgin and saints, symbols of the Garden of Eden and the Crucifixion, angels and the devil, a Chinese dragon and a Japanese chrysanthemum, a Portuguese sailing ship and pious warnings inscribed in Chinese. After restoration work, lasting from 1990 to 1995, the back side of the Ruins of St. Paul's was turned into a museum. The ruins are regarded as the symbol of Macau and now offer visitors a new site where they can view the remains of the former Church of the Mother of God, visit a Crypt where the relics of the Martyrs of Japan and Vietnam rest, and a museum of Sacred Art where there are exhibits of paintings, sculptures and liturgical objects from churches and monasteries in the City.

Chapel of Our Lady of Penha

The first chapel was founded in 1622 by the crew and passengers of a ship which had narrowly escaped capture by the Dutch. The chapel served as a point of pilgrimage for sailors embarking on a hazardous voyage.The chapel was completely rebuilt, along with the Bishop' s Palace in 1837.

A-Ma Temple (Barra point)

Macau's name is derived from A-Ma-Gau or Place of A-Ma and this temple dedicated to the seafarers' goddess dates from the early 16th century.According to legend, A-Ma, a poor girl looking for passage to Canton,was refused by the wealthy junk owners but a lowly fisherman took her on board. A storm blew up and wrecked all but the boat carrying the girl. On arrival in Macau she vanished, to reappear as a goddess, on the spot where the fishermen built her temple.It consists of prayer halls, pavilions and courtyards built into the boulder-strewn hill and connected by winding paths through moon gates and tiny gardens. At the entrance is a large rock on which is engraved a traditional sailing junk. On other boulders are carved red characters invoking the gods or repeating a prayer. Three of the four pavilions are dedicated to A-Ma and contain some fine statues of the goddess together with a model of a junk with cannons, brass vessels and chapels to Buddhist and Taoist gods. The top shrine honours Kun Iam. This temple is distinguished by beautiful tiled roofs and spectacular views from the upper gardens. The festival of A-Ma takes place on the 23rd day of the 3rd moon (April or May). Firecrackers, to scare away evil spirits, are exploded in the entrance courtyard to greet tour groups and lions dances are performed here on weekends.