It was more than a week after my birthday trip (and my birthday week!) abroad. It was the best week of my life, so far. It's what Yok Han and I needed. VACATION! We wanted to get away from everything work-related, breathe fresh (or maybe not) air, see people we've never encountered before, to tour a foreign land, sleep and wake up every time we want!
I only wish I was with my family so it could be more memorable.
Well, our first stop was Macau.
Macau greeted me with a very cold breeze, as if telling and welcoming me that I'm not in the steamy country of the Philippines anymore. It was around 10 pm when we arrived and as tourists do first, we could not see sights at night. And of course, we have to rest because we are planning to cross Hong Kong first thing in the morning.
Macau has small and narrow streets. That's why they only have small cars and even small buses unlike our big ones. You can only spot few SUV vans because most of their cars are Mazda, Kia, Hyundai, Honda and others that have small models. And boy, they have so many luxury and sport cars parading everyday. No wonder the most coveted and internationally known Macau Grand Prix is held in the city. I've also noticed numerous scooters parked on the streets. Macau locals are huge users of scooters and big bikes! Every street has a parking space and meter for scooters which they pay per hour. Oh well, if it were in our country, you won't see your scooter tomorrow morning because it was stolen! That's how safe to live in there. I was informed that the crime rate in Macau is very low that one can walk on the streets at midnight without even getting threatened or harmed. Cool!
The next day, we woke up really really late, well, for Yok it's because of a severe headache, yes from a hungover, I tell you, Vodka in Macau is the bomb! Heee. It's around 11 in the morning and when I peeked outside I fret for a moment, closed my eyes, blinked twice, turned my head around and yet there's no sign of the sun. Yes, it's close to noon and there is no sun peeking in the city. The fog is very thick it covers high rise buildings. Twas very cloudy and cold and comfy I wanted to go back to sleep. Heee.
And so, we went out to buy groceries, including our brunch. We went to a place called red market, maybe because it's exterior is surrounded with red bricks. Their market is very clean, well, the usual stinky smell of market but not the stench of market combined with garbage! You can even see their meats are pinkish and firm, vegetables are fresh and leafy, even the fish they sell, some cut open, still breathes! I did not bring my camera with me so no pictures for the tidy and fresh market. What I am most amazed of is the very low prices of their products. Imagine really really big prawns they sell for only 18 mop per kilo? We can only buy a candy for 1 peso but in Macau one can buy a piece of egg for 1 mop! Think of sticky rice for lunch and you can avail it for 3.50 mop. Commuting? Their buses only cost 3.25 mop for a ride almost the same distance when traveling from Caloocan to Quirino! Oh, and for tourists, don't fret much of your transportation expenses because they have free shuttle buses that go in different destinations. The cost of living in this city is so low an OFW can send a month's salary and can still survive in the city until the next payday! I kid you not!
I also noticed that the people in Macau start their day and go to work not as early as we do. People leave their homes around 8 in the morning. Street crowd gets busier when it's close to noon. And oh, how I love the street fashion of the locals. They don on every outfit they want to wear and won't get an eye for it. I wish people here won't meddle with our everyday outfit and even far from one's life. People here don't mind others, in a positive way.
What freaked me in Macau, is their language tone. Their like shouting even though they are not. The major language is Cantonese but still some are using Portuguese and Mandarin. Good thing Yok Han can understand a bit, because he only knows Fukien, and Lily too can speak and understand Cantonese averagely! Despite of their aggressive pitches, Macau boost of its clean community. People spit in garbage cans or drainage canals and put their trash on assigned places (lapsa). Not all locals speak English unless you're in hotels or casinos and other tourist spot areas, they understand English language however. To my surprise, some of them can understand and speak Filipino but only limited to prices and greetings.
Going back, we ate our brunch and headed to the ferry terminal and went to Hong Kong. We stayed there for three days and returned in Macau. I can't upload here the pictures yet because I want to compete my album first. I will continue and post the pictures once I'm done!
The story doesn't end here :) Keep in touch folks!
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