A look at the hydrofoil ferry that I took to Macau - a very smooth, comfy ride.
I was staying overnight in Macau this time, so I caught the shuttle bus to the Grand Lisboa again since my hotel was just across the street from the casino. I was staying at the Hotel Beverly Plaza, a privately Chinese owned hotel with no attached casino (if it did, it'd probably be a sleezy one since it wasn't an upscale place). Besides the very convenient location, it was the best price to amenities ratio I could find among the hotels in Macau. The room was nice and clean (though the bathroom in my room was a little bit grimy - mainly the shower mat - but I expected that by now considering it was China), and at the relatively cheap price of $840 HKD per night (about $110 CAD)...it's pretty obvious why I couldn't stay more than one night hahaha.
My room (I asked for a room with 1 bed but none were available).
So after dropping off my stuff (I packed a change of clothes and some toiletries in my day pack, but honestly I could have gone with nothing on me), I headed back out into the city to see the things I skipped the previous day.
Walking around in the city core (don't ask me what those 3 statues in the last photo were supposed to be hahaha)...plenty of casinos around.
At Lotus Square. the statue in the 1st photo is of a lotus flower in full bloom, marking the return of Macau to China.
At Macau Fisherman's Wharf, the first theme park in Macau. It was noticeably very empty - no surprise as it was the winter season (tourist off-season), and the weather sucked (more grey skies...). The Roman amphitheater caught me by surprise; I really was not expecting to see one in Macau.
Inside the lobby of the Sands Macao (some prefer to spell Macau as Macao), which was across the street from the theme park (you can see the casino in the background of some of the photos above). The casino inside was obviously very nice. When I first got there, I accidentally tried getting in through the VIP entrance hahaha (it looked like the main entrance, which I later found out was tucked away farther away from the street).
The Macau Museum of Art, located in the Cultural Center of Macau, right next to the Sands Macao.
Walking along Avenida Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, the street that runs along the edge of the Outer Harbour area.
The Kun Iam Statue, a 20 m tall bronze statue of the Buddhist goddess of Kun Iam.
The MGM Grand Macau (the one major casino I didn't bother going inside).
Along the way to the Macau Tower. I got to see the bridge I saw yesterday up close, the Macau-Taipa Bridge (3rd photo).
A view of the Church of Our Lady of Penha, set on top of Penha Hill, the church I had intended to see yesterday when I walked down to the southern tip of the peninsula (where I found the Portuguese Consulate), until I saw how steep the walk would be to the top of the hill hahaha (not to mention having to blindly navigate the winding streets).
After 30 - 45 minutes of walking from the Sands Macao, I finally arrived at the Macau Tower.
Some views from the tower...it wasn't exactly the best day to go up the tower (but I didn't have any more days left to delay going to Macau).
The real purpose of my visit to the Macau Tower wasn't for the views, but for getting to try the world's highest commercial bungy jump! 233 m high with a 10 second freefall, before they use a guide cable to limit your recoil so you don't end up flying into the side of the tower. Like I said, the view wasn't that great thanks to the grey skies, but it was still awesome to be standing on the outside of the tower looking over Macau. My view was hampered by the fact that they wouldn't let me wear my prescription goggles even though I tried to explain it wouldn't come off (I don't think the Chinese guy who registered me fully understood what I was say - English is not very common in Macau outside of the casinos like it is in HK, since Portuguese and Chinese are the 2 official languages of Macau). The thrill was amazing though - I was so glad I waited in NZ to try this jump! And the awesome thing this time, I actually felt a bit nervous before the jump (vs. how I was before skydiving). One thing I'll never forget was how incredibly cold and windy it was sitting out at the top waiting to jump (if you watch my video, you'll notice I'm actually shivering, and that everyone who works there are wearing nice winter coats haha). It obviously wasn't a cheap jump even after the discount for being a repeat jumper at a AJ Hackett bungy jump, but it was well worth it, and if I could have afforded it, I would've done a second one (which they let you do backwards!). At the Macau tower bungy, they even have the option of doing night jumps, which I was really interested in, but one of the front desk guys told me it really wouldn't have been worth it today because of the bad weather (after all, the main reason for doing a night jump would be to see the city lit up at night for up above, while falling). I can't wait until I get a chance to do the world's 2nd and 3rd highest bungy jumps (the Verzasca Dam in Switzerland and the Bloukrans Bridge in South Africa respectively)!
My thoughts exactly!
The 2 photos they took that's included in the photo and DVD package I added. I'm pretty disappointed they only printed 2 photos for the price they charge, and that they don't bother including the rest of the photos they took on the DVD (which costs them nothing!).
The next set of photos are screen captures I took from the video for those that don't have time to view the video (at least this video was good quality, not like the ones from The Ledge in Queenstown).
And now the video (I had to reduce the quality so it wouldn't be too big a file)!
The extra bonuses I got for getting the photo and DVD package (photo taken back home), which were a nice surprise from the usual shirt you just get at the other jumps (which I also got that this jump): a tote bag, a bungy jumping stuffed bear toy, and a rubber wristband that says "The World's Highest Bungy 233m."
After I got back up to the top deck of the tower (they release you at the bottom and make you take the elevator back up - it'd be too dangerous and take too long to reel you up like they usually do for other bungy jumps - it's very windy around the tower), I took some shots of the view over Macau. Since it was pretty close to sunset, I sat around for another 30 - 45 minutes to get some nighttime skyline shots of the city too.
Some photos I took as I waited for nighttime to come (how is it whenever I go up a tower, I get bad weather, like when I was in Shanghai!?!).
The sky is finally darkening (sadly, with the sun nowhere in sight).
A look up at the jump platform on the top deck.
Finally, nighttime! The Wynn Macau puts on a nightly lights show at their fountain (first 4 photos), which was a pleasant surprise and actually quite nice to watch.
Having dinner at one of the restaurants at the base of the tower. I initially came in just to grab a beer - for doing the bungy jump, I got a coupon for a free Tiger Beer, no strings attached - but I felt it'd be awkward just sitting there enjoying my beer and not having anything else hahaha. So I tried to find something (relatively) cheap and uniquely Macanese, and I found omurice! I've found out that omurice is actually a Japanese dish, but it's apparently quite popular in Macau. Omurice is basically an omelet made with fried rice - this one had a distinctly Macanese flavour with shrimp, scallops, squid, green peppers, and fried in a tomato base. It was actually quite good and just enough to fill me up. An added bonus was they had no Tiger Beer in stock, so I got to have a Heineken instead (I'm not the biggest fan of Asian beers, except for Japanese beers).
The view from my table (inside the restaurant haha). I got lucky, because shortly after, the bridge was no longer lit up (and I didn't see it lit up for the rest of the night).
The restaurant - can you spot me in the mirror?
Outside the tower. The 1st photo is of some monument-type thing on display. Pretty sharp (2nd photo) for shooting at 1/5 seconds eh?
I decided not to wait for the bus (which is very cheap) to get back into the city centre (plus the routes are a little complicated), so I walked back along Avenida Dr. Stanley Ho back to town (another long walk).
The Church of Our Lady of Penha lit up at night - again, not bad for 1/5 seconds (I love shooting with a DSLR haha).
View of the casinos from across the little bay.
Plenty of souped up cars around.
Heading back towards the hotel.
The round base of the Grand Lisboa lit up in special Christmas-themed patterns!
Nearing the hotel.
Chilling out for a little bit after the thrill of the afternoon and the long walk back.
On my way to the Sands Macao. Why? Because they offered free shuttle service to The Venetian Macao, set on the Cotai Strip (named after the Las Vegas Strip) in Taipa, the smaller of the 2 islands part of Macau that are south of the peninsula (obviously not easily reachable by walking). It was quite an interesting (but quiet) walk - I got to see the Grand Prix Macau finish point in person (last photo), and I found out "subway" means underground walking path in Macau (2nd photo; I was pretty confused when I first saw this since I knew Macau didn't have a subway).
On the shuttle bus to The Venetian Macao (even the bus ride was done in style haha).
A look at Macau from the bridge.
Finally at The Venetian Macao - the world's 4th largest building by floor area (1st and 3rd being airport terminals, and the 2nd being a flower auction building)!
One of the neighbouring casinos (I think still under construction).
Inside The Venetian Macao, starting from the hotel entrance next to the shuttle bus terminal (it's so big it's pretty much a bus terminal). I think it's safe to say I was floored by the elegance and detail of the interior design as soon as I stepped foot inside (again, I've never been to Vegas so I can't compare it to anything), and saying it's massive is an understatement. The casino gaming floor was was enormous - I was very impressed (I've never seen so many tables before, to the point where they just continued on into the distant horizon!). The trademark interior canal was very impressive (I can't think of any other fitting word hahaha). Outside of the gaming area, they had interactive maps set up every so often because the place is so big. Despite my best efforts, I didn't see the entire complex; it's a true resort - completely self-sustaining - and one could easily live here (assuming money is no object). I even grabbed a quick dinner at the McD's here - yet another double patty sandwich, this time the Fliet-o-Fish (13th photo)! I was really tempted to play some blackjack here (how often do you get to say you've played in the world's biggest casino?), but the cheapest table was completely full so I never got a chance.
Outside the casino where the cars pull up - even this place was impressive (check out the ceilings). The last photo turned out really good, shot by hand at 1/2 seconds!
Views of The Venetian Macao and the surrounding area from outside. I spent a surprisingly large amount of time taking these shots, so please enjoy! I'm so glad I had a DSLR with a lens with IS (image stabilization) because I went through many photo deletions (they're all taken hand-held at 1/2 or 1/3 seconds and a couple at 1/5 seconds, with no place to rest on, and having to deal with the surprisingly strong winds and the fact that I was shivering from these cold winds). The place is gorgeous, and I'm really happy with how the photos turned out (though it would've been nice to have a lens with an even wider angle).
A look back at Macau during the shuttle bus ride back to the Sands Macao.
Despite spending around 2 hours at The Venetian Macao (exploring and taking photos), I didn't gamble once (not even at a slot machine), so I really wanted to play in at least one casino while in Macau. So after walking back to my hotel from the Sands Macao and dropping of my stuff, without really thinking about it, I ended up back inside the Wynn Macau - it was already past midnight by now. After the thrill of the afternoon, I didn't think the day could get any better, but it did!
I started off the night with only 4 $100 HKD chips (about $50 CAD), playing at the cheapest blackjack table (minimum $100 HKD bet; the casinos prefer HKD vs. the Macanese pataca, which trade pretty much at par, with the HKD being slightly stronger). After some very disciplined play (plus of course a little luck), I eventually quadrupled my initial stack, then put my name on the waiting list for a seat at the cheapest poker table (now that I had a decent pot size to start with), which was my plan all along. Unfortunately, it was a pretty long wait, and I didn't get to sit down until around 3 am! Anyway, by the time I left the casino, I had sextupled my initial amount in HKD (septupled in CAD; about $350 CAD)! Hey, I know I'm no high-roller, but I think that's pretty impressive considering how little I started off with! After subtracting my starting amount, I made enough to almost entirely pay for my new phone! Money money money money, MONEY!
Actually, by 5 am, I was up over $3500 HKD (over $450 CAD), which is when I should have actually left, but for some reason, I continued sitting around and playing a few hands I really had no business playing - all those free drinks really help to keep you sitting hahaha. After I had built up my stack to that amount, I was actually completely satisfied and ready to leave, but I just kept playing despite not feeling any pleasure continuing to play (actually I really wanted to just sleep), but again, for reasons I couldn't explain, I just continued to play until 7 am where I ended up with my final $350 CAD stack! I was so surprised (even though I really shouldn't have been) to find the sun already starting to come up when I stepped outside the casino hahaha. Actually, what I found more surprising (again, I really shouldn't have) was the number of people that came in and joined the tables between 4 - 7 am.
I only grabbed 4 hours of sleep since I had already booked the noon ferry back to HK - I could've skipped staying at a hotel and just sat at casino, continually folding my hands, if I had known ahead of time I would end up play until the morning hahaha. The checkout actually took a bit longer than I expected, so I ended up having to eat a bun I picked up at the 7-Eleven for breakfast (reminded me of Japan haha) while rushing to catch the shuttle at the Wynn Macau to the ferry port.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment