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(Part 3 was posted on Sunday morning, following Part 2 which went up 5 months ago)
Macau
Day 3 - 28th February - St Francis Xavier, A Ma Gau (Part 4)
"Courteous Macau
Be Courteous to Visitors
Value public morals and obey the law,
Respect the others!
Individual -> Family -> Community -> City"
Next I visited St Joseph's Seminary and Church (1741).
Entrance
St Joseph's Church
Nave
Altar
"Francisco Xavier was the first Jesuit missioner who came to the East. He died in 1552 at St. John Island in China, a small island near Macau. The saint was known as the Apostle of the East, and this relic is renowned in the Catholic Church in the Far East"
The highlight of the visit - [Saint] Francis Xavier's Funny Bone
Lilau Square
Mandarin House (it seemed to be undergoing renovation)
Moorish Barracks
Very long hair
My last stop in Macau was A Ma Gau (the A Ma Temple), the goddess whose temple's name had named Macau.
Temple entrance
Gateway to temple
Wind chimes
I asked the guy (in Mandarin) rubbing the bowl what it was about, and he said that he was trying to get something (the leaves?) to come out of the bowl.
People praying
"Your donation is highly appreciated. May wish you an unlimited blessing"
Painted junk stone relief
The firecrackers corner was very profitable, as people competed for the longest and longest firecracker display. It was also quite dangerous, as it was blocking the way to the toilet (there's actually smoke wafting up from the remains).
Ash-covered money
Large joss sticks
Outside the temple there was an ice cream seller who was quite famous.
Unfortunately, he was the biggest ripoff in Macau. This cost me MOP 10 (~S$2), and WYSIWYG. There was just one tiny scoop (with air underneath), and the cone was not even nice (it was thin).
"Eat Ice Cream in winter to feel the warmth in your heart"
Collaborators in the scam
A very secure entrance to a school
"Very good red wood furniture"
This was quite a nice local snack - a crepe with sweet floss inside
A break in the clouds
I saw a sign: "愛祖國 愛澳門" (Love the Mother Country, Love Macau). Gah.
Due to timing issues, I went to the airport without dinner. The food court looked singularly unappetising (I've seen better-looking cookhouse food) and the only local food was Beef Brisket, so I skipped it.
"MIA Employees. Reserved Area"
Discrimination in the foodcourt, and an unfortunate acronym (Macau International Airport)
Vita's "Irreplaceable Taste" Lemon Tea
Happily, after checkin there was an airport restaurant run by Stanley Ho, and I got in just before it closed.
Baked chicken in Coconut spicy sauce: with a dusting of coconut. This sausage tasted like lap cheong (versus the one the previous day, which had not). The curry was mild but it didn't really taste of much. A hard boiled egg, olives and tomato completed the ensemble.
Luckily I had held out. Of course the prices were up, and this was the only estado I had seen to have a 10% service charge (Damage: 55 MOP). Oh well.
Welicome Toothpick
"豬油糕" ("Lard Cake")
There were serious translation issues. The English here says "Ginger Flavoured Chewy Bites". And I looked at the ingredients and there was no lard inside.
I've never seen such large bottles at Duty Free before. But then Macau has an unlimited alcohol policy.
It was quite disappointing - I only saw one Falungong demonstration (at Senate Square)
When I was on my way to the bus stop to go to the airport, a random guy on the street pressed the following into my hands. Unfortunately it is too tedious to read. Perhaps somebody can do a proper translation (I will post a full scan later):
"My scary story, to remind you about the dangers of *something*"
"My experiences of being harmed by English Secret Societies
Location: England and Macau
I was born in Macau, with a Macanese passport and residence permit. I used to look favorably on England, and worked and lived there for many years, and didn't get Equal Opportunity in the teaching sector. I also ran into Secret Society trouble.
But when I returned to Macau, the English Secret Society 'New Labour' bullied me. They shot me with lasers (?), and even electric bolts. They put a needle in my ear..."
The story got wilder and wilder, so I gave up. For convenience though, let me list the words written in English:
Equal Opportunity
New Labour
Psycology Torture
Super-Computers
County Council Election
Hi-Tech 'Pin'
Injection
New Labor
Labor Party
Conservative Party
David Cameroon
Party Leader
Gordon Brown
Assistants
Supercomputers
Global Precision System
ROM
RAM
Motivate
Sensors
Scenarioes
Poverty Trap
Sex Trap
Fitch Phone Lines
Fax
Microscanner
Robotic Control
Fitching Technique
GPS System
For Evil to triumph, the only necessary is all Good men to do nothing
