Firsts, Miscellaneous, Travel

The Chronicles of SAR: The Special Administrative Regions of Macau and Hong Kong

Posted by runningpinoy on

After two years of staying home, a lot of first and seconds in my life became a reality, including my first time in China’s Special Administrative Regions (SAR) Macau and Hong Kong, and my second international marathon with the Galaxy Entertainment Maratona Internacional de Macau (Macau Galaxy Entertainment International Marathon).  Here’s the story of our departure from Manila and chilly arrival in Macau.

It’s the weekend of international races: left is Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore-bound, right is Macau Galaxy Entertainment International Marathon-bound

This is part of a series
① ② ③ ④ ⑤ ⑥ ⑦

Departure

My least favorite part of travelling from the Philippines: I don’t mind the tax but I do mind the hassle of queuing! Can’t they just include it in the airfare just as our VAT do?
Boarding…
Bonifacio Global City from the sky
Metro Manila is one of the brightest (literally) metropolis in the world: we can even make the clouds glow!
Arrival Card of Macau: practical and concise

Arrival and Quick Tour

Upon touchdown at Aeroporto Internacional de Macau (Macau International Airport), I was shocked with what I felt—winter!  Of course I knew that the temperature would be about 14°c, but I never anticipated that Macau’s 14°c comes with a lot of wind chills!  Oh boy, I was severely underdressed!  Anyways, there’s one thing on top of my head that I thought would help me keep warm: keep moving!

Some Macau Pataca (MOP$) bills
A typical sight at bus stops in Macau: listing of bus stops (in English and Chinese) including the bus fare
There’s even a copy of that list inside buses
First stop: Macau Fisherman’s Wharf
Site of one of the many casinos of Macau: Babylon Casino
It is also here where you can view the longest bridge of Macau (4.7 kilometers long, 30 meters above sea level), Ponte de Amizade (Bridge of Friendship), connecting Macau Peninsula near the Reservatório and Taipa Island at Pac On

Before we became snowmen and after feeling hunger we finally decided to return to our hotel and call it a day.  It’s quite ironic that it’s a bit challenging to find open restaurants in Macau outside the major hotels so we just settled with breads from a nearby padaria (bakery) in the area named Mario, and unexpectedly, McDonald’s!

We took refuge from the very cool winter winds in this area to hail a cab back to our hotel
Look at what we found: Low sugar, Hi fiber Yakult!

Sorry everyone, I won’t post any pictures from McDonald’s here, it’s basically the same except for the menu. 😀

This is just what I call our Day Zero in Macau, just hours upon arrival.  The following day is the day when we should be resting, the day before our big day.  Do you think it would deter us from roaming around Macau?  Of course not!

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The Chronicles of SAR:

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