Macau

During my visit to Hong Kong, I made a day trip to Macau on board a "Turbocat" boat. It was pretty quick, taking about an hour and a half each way.

Macau is a Portuguese colony. It's the oldest existing European settlement in Asia. Macau is about forty miles from Hong Kong, and tiny: even with land reclaimation its total area is less than six square miles. It's scheduled to go back to China in 1999, although the Portuguese have been willing to do so earlier. In 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, Red Guards crossed the border and rioted. Some were killed by soldiers defending the colony. The governor proposed packing up and turning Macau over to China, but the Chinese were afraid of the negative impact this would have on trade. After the Hong Kong agreement, both China and Portugal decided to bring Macau back under mainland control.

Like Hong Kong, most signs are bilingual, although the second language is Portuguese.

The food in Macau has a reputation for being very good. I had what might be the most famous local specialty, which is called African Chicken. When I told the waiter at Henri's Galley that I really liked it, they gave me the recipe!

There are lots of casinos in Macau. I went into one at about eleven in the morning. It smelled like cigarettes and stale beer. A couple of people looked pretty unhappy.

There are temples everywhere. Here a girl is praying at a small one tucked in an alley.