One Week: Hong Kong and Macau

I'm sometimes a little apprehensive booking three-star hotels, because you can never be sure how good they actually are.

Fortunately, Guia Hotel is one of the good ones. We paid a reasonable US$65 per night for a twin room via Octopus Travel, and were pleased that the hotel has all the facilities and amenities that a three-star hotel should have, and more. The bathrooms, for example, are very well-appointed: shower and bath with true hot water; a hair dryer; complimentary soap dishes apart from the complimentary soap and shampoo, complimentary combs apart from the complimentary shower caps; complimentary toothbrush cases apart from the complimentary travel toothbrush; and one thing that I think all hotels should have: a pull-out clothes line above the bathtub.

The bedrooms are of a good size and clean, the television has cable channels (no English channels, though, just Cantonese, Mandarin, and Portuguese), there are bedside switches and dimmers for the lights, and the rooms have balconies and views.

Although there is a restaurant with mahjong tables on the ground floor, our fifth floor bedroom (sixth floor in American English) was quiet; the only disturbance was some hammering in the next door room at around 10:30am one morning.

There is a moderately priced restaurant on the ground floor (around MOP$45 for a main dish; two main dishes are just right for three people to share) that is open from 7am to 10pm.

Guia Fortress is just a short walk up the hill from the hotel (note that the path to the fortress is steep, so wear walking shoes if you intend to visit it). However, the hotel is not extremely close to the city center, where most of the big casinos and colonial buildings are. One can either take a long stroll down Guia Hill to the center, or one can take the bus. There is a bus stop about 20 meters from the hotel entrance, along which bus numbers 6 and 28c pass. Note, however, that both these buses traverse a circular route so if you intend to ride a bus 6 or 28c back to the hotel, make sure that the bus is headed in the right direction. Finally, there is always the option of taking a taxi back and forth, which isn't too expensive if three or four of you are traveling as a group. From Casino Lisboa, the taxi ride to the hotel was around MOP$12; from the ferry station it was MOP$20. Going back to the ferry station, you can can take the free ferry shuttle from the hotel. At night, the hotel also offers free trips to Casino Lisboa and back, although we couldn't find the pick-up point for the return trip (it wasn't the same as the drop-off point).

I would definitely consider booking this hotel again if I came back to Macau, although I would also look into getting something for the same price in a slightly more central location.

We found Restaurante Chio Chao Kee Lon Kwok as we were wandering around Macau looking for a place to eat dinner. All the signs in this restaurant's window announcing the menu were in Chinese, but we walked in anyway and in Mandarin, I asked the waitress who greeted us whether there was a menu in English. She went upstairs to get one, and came back downstairs holding one in her hand. We were seated at the table and we proceeded to study the menu. The waitress was very helpful, making suggestions as we went along.

After we ordered we noticed a clear empty bowl in the middle of the table, along with the rest of our dinnerware. I wasn't sure, but I guessed that this was to wash our dinnerware with before eating. I observed the guests at the other table and realized I was correct. A lady at a neighboring table who had just sat down was pouring tea over her chopsticks, teacup, and spoon over the clear bowl, washing them.

The dinner was very good. We ordered a dish of beef cooked with yellow ginger and leeks, the braised Chinese mushrooms with vegetables that she had suggested, and two bowls of plain rice. Both dishes were quite delicious.

Our entire meal cost us about MOP$50 per head.

I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who goes to Macau, although visitors who don't know Mandarin or Cantonese might have some difficulty here, as it appeared that none of the waiters knew English.

The restaurant is near the corner of Travessa do Mastro and Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro.

I've eaten both Chinese and Japanese hotpot before, but it was my first time to eat Sichuan-style (Szechuan-style) hotpot at Tanyoto Hotpot restaurant in Wanchai.

My brother did the ordering for us, and what we had on our table was a pot with two kinds of soup: a tomato-based soup on one side, and a spicy soup on the other side.

When one eats hotpot, it's not merely a meal; it's an experience. The work of cooking one's own food at the table, watching what you put in to make sure it doesn't get overcooked, choosing what you want -- it's an immersive, memorable experience, especially for people who don't eat hotpot very often. More than that, however, hotpot-eating is a truly communal experience. Of all meals, a hotpot meal is truly one to be shared with family or good friends.

The food was messy (messier than the usual hotpot because of the tomato soup), but divine.

Tan Yu Tou also has branches in Wanchai and Mongkok. You can visit their Hong Kong website at www.tanyutou.com.hk.

(For the first part, see my review on the "Tian Tan Buddha")

First, a review on how to get to the Po Lin monastery site. The more expensive and more touristy way to get here is to take the Skyrail from the Tung Chung MRT station. However, travelers can get to the Po Lin monastery for less from the Tung Chung MRT station by taking the number 23 bus. The bus arrives every 15 minutes during the day and the one-way fare is HK$16 on weekdays and HK$25 on weekends. Again, if you are paying by cash rather than Octopus Card, please recall that Hong Kong buses require exact change. The bus ride to the Po Lin Monastery takes around half an hour. The same bus will take you back from the monastery back to the Tung Chung MRT station.

After taking pictures at the foot of the Tian Tan Buddha statue, we descended the steps and headed to the Po Lin monastery less than a hundred meters away. The part of the monastery open to visitors was comprised of several small ornate temples with statues of various Buddhist saints. The smell of sandalwood incense wafted through the air as Buddhist pilgrims lit incense on the grounds and waved them reverentially in front of the statues. Buddhist monks walked around conversing with guests with whom they appeared to be familiar, and the presence of the monks reminded us that this was no historical relic, but a working monastery.

In one temple, for a small HK$2 fee, we tried to find out our fortune by shaking a cup of fortune sticks over a table, until a numbered stick fell. The number on the stick corresponded to a slip of paper that revealed our fate. The fortune paper was in Chinese, but a book of English translations was beside the shelf of fortune paper, for the curious foreign tourist.

A vegetarian restaurant was right beside the monastery, and while I didn't eat there, I recalled my brother's comment before that he had eaten the best vegetarian meal he had ever tasted at that restaurant.

All in all, the visit to the Tian Tan Buddha and the Po Lin Monastery was an interesting way to spend the afternoon. To whom would I definitely recommend this site? People who aren't very familiar with Chinese culture, to tourists who would find Buddhist temples novel, and to Buddhist pilgrims.

For everyone else (i.e., those who have seen many Buddhist temples before), I don't necessarily consider this site a must-see, but if you've been to Hong Kong several times and you're looking for something new to do, a visit to Ngong Ping is not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

Our first sightseeing trip of the week was to the giant Tian Tan Buddha statue and the Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island.

According to what I have read, the monastery has been around since the 1920s. The Hong Kong and Chinese authorities have recently decided to make the monastery a site for Buddhist faithful from around the world. The Tian Tan Buddha statue, the world's largest outdoor sitting Buddha statue, was completed in 1990, and donations are now being solicited to improve the nearby monastery and the rest of the grounds.

Most of the Hong Kong Tourism Authority brochures instruct travelers to take the Skyrail (the Lantau Island cable car) to the Tian Tan Buddha, but there is a much easier and cheaper way to get there, if you don't feel a great need to see Lantau Island by cable car. Simply take the MRT to the Tung Chung MRT station. Exit the MRT station and go to the bus terminals. Look for the Number 23 bus stop. Board the Number 23 bus, and this will take you all the way to the site of the Giant Buddha and Po Lin Monastery. The bus arrives every 15 minutes during the day and the one-way fare is HK$16 on weekdays and HK$25 on weekends. If you are paying by cash rather than Octopus card, please recall that Hong Kong buses require exact change. The bus ride to the Giant Buddha is a scenic 30-minute ride through winding hills. The same bus will take you back from the Tian Tan Buddha to the Tung Chung MRT station.

We arrived at the Tian Tan Buddha site at around 2pm, and immediately wished that we had either come earlier or later in the day, as the midday sun was beating down ferociously. This would not have been too bad, if we hadn't more than two hundred steps in front of us to climb before we could get to the Giant Buddha. Before we commenced the climb, there was a window offering us vegetarian meal tickets for the Po Lin Monastery and entry tickets into the Exhibition Hall (HK$26) at the base of the Buddha statue. We declined both, and decided to just see the Buddha and the temple, both of which are free to just see. We then began our long climb, along with the dozens of other tourists and Buddhist pilgrims who were also making the trek.

At the top of stairs, we took pictures of the statue and of the smaller statues surrounding the Buddha that were depicted to be paying homage to him. Around us, Buddhist faithful assumed their prayer position and began bowing in respect in front of the statue.

After this, we descended the steps and headed to the Po Lin monastery just a hundred meters away.

(Continued in the review entitled "Po Lin Monastery.")

The city center of Macau already has enough colonial buildings to keep any history junkie interested, but if you have an additional afternoon to spare, you can take a bus ride from the center of Macau to Coloane Village to step back into time.

Coloane Village is along the coast of Coloane Island. To get there, take bus 15, 25, or 26. We were in Macau during "Golden Week," China's week-long holiday in the first week of May celebrating the Labor Movement. (In Hong Kong and Macau, only May 1 is considered public holiday, like in much of the world.) It may have been because we were there on a holiday, or it might have been because it was a Sunday, that the buses going to and from Coloane were packed, and it was an uncomfortable 30-minute ride to Coloane. Amid all the chaos, we missed our stop and rode all the way to Hac Sa beach before the bus returned via the same route and we got off at Coloane Village.

You'll know you're going the right way because of the frequency of road signs pointing the way to Coloane. Soon after you stop seeing such signs, you'll arrive at a roundabout with a small statue of Cupid at its center. A lot of people will be waiting at the bus stop there, and a number of people will also probably alight from your bus. That's your stop. Get down there, and begin your tour of Coloane Village.

One of the Macau Tourism Authority brochures describes a 30-minute self-guided walking tour of Coloane Village that you may wish to follow, or simply wander around yourself exploring this little place (reviews of particular sights in Coloane Village are elsewhere in his journal). While walking around Coloane Village pay attention to the colonial architecture that most of the buildings here still follow, whether they actually are old buildings or whether they are new ones. Promenade along the Avenida 5 de Outubro and imagine the old Chinese locals mingling with Portuguese businessmen along this stretch.

After our trip to London, we flew back to Hong Kong. My husband headed back to Manila on the same day, but I stayed behind in Hong Kong to meet up with my aunt. The two of us were going to spend a week in Hong Kong and Macau.

The flight from London to Hong Kong was quite pleasant. Oasis, again, did not disappoint (see earlier review).

The only slightly-off thing that happened in relation to our Oasis flight was that the first announcement regarding our flight that appeared on the announcement monitors at Gatwick was "Gates Closing." There had been no prior "Boarding" announcement, just a sudden "Gates Closing" announcement a full hour before the flight was scheduled to depart. My husband, our colleague, and I were still in the main shopping/dining part of the terminal when we saw the announcement, and the three of us, along with three other hapless passengers, had to make a mad dash to our gate, only to find that the gate was far from closing; the first group of passengers had barely started boarding!

Unlike the filled HKG-LGW flight, the flight back to Hong Kong was only half-full. This was a treat, because I got to stretch out across three seats at bedtime, and I had a very good night's sleep.

The flight attendants seemed a little wet behind the ears and got a little rattled when passengers asked them for things, but I suppose this is to be expected with any new airline. The food was more filling this time. Our dinner was beef on noodles, with salad on the side, a roll, and dessert. It came only with water, but the flight attendants came around afterwards serving coffee and tea. Breakfast, several hours later, was an omelette and orange juice. The tray included butter and jam, but no roll (curious!). Again, passengers had the option to purchase additional snacks and drinks.

My husband watched the in-flight movies on the personal video screens; I just slept through most of the flight. Again, we were very happy with the flight and again, we told ourselves that Oasis would definitely be at the top of our lists the next time we had to fly to London.

It looked like my husband was not the only one who was merely using Hong Kong as a transit point to another country in Asia. Two other groups on the same flight, we learned, were also flying into Hong Kong, and then transferring to a different airline to fly to the Philippines. The low price that Oasis offers is really worth the inconvenience of passing through immigration, claiming one's baggage, then having to check in all over again. Besides, the Hong Kong International Airport is not a bad place to spend a long layover. I suppose the only disadvantage of flying two separate airlines to get to one's destination would be the danger of missing the second flight should the first one arrive late.

One last note, my husband dropped his USB Flash Disk in the airplane, and we only realized that it was missing when we disembarked from the plane. We went to the HK Airport Lost and Found section, which directed us to the airport's Jardine office, which handles Oasis's Lost and Found section, and without much difficulty, the Flash Disk was promptly returned to us. Again, this made us very happy with Oasis.

Here are some tips for people who don't speak Chinese or Portuguese: a lot of people in Macau do not speak nor understand English, and this includes taxi drivers and some hotel staff members. When planning your itinerary, take this into account and plan accordingly. If you book your hotel online, for example, print out the Chinese name of the hotel so that you can show the printout to the taxi driver if he doesn't recognize the English name. When choosing travel guides, you might want to consider buying the "Let's Go" travel guide, which prints out the Chinese characters of all the sights, hotels, and important landmarks. (I don't own a copy of the "Let's Go" travel guide for Hong Kong and Macau myself, but I was browsing a copy in the shop, and when I came to Macau I regretted not having bought it.)

Hong Kong is the nearest foreign city to Manila: the flight to Hong Kong only takes 2 hours. That, plus the fact that Filipinos can enter Hong Kong visa-free, make it a favorite tourist destination among Filipinos.

There are many things to remind a visitor of the ties between the Philippines and Hong Kong. If you go to Hong Kong Disneyland, for example, you'll notice that a huge percentage of the performers are Filipino.

Another very strong reminder of Philippine-Hong Kong ties is the fact that many of Hong Kong's domestic helper population are Filipino. On Sundays--the date when most of these domestic helpers have their days off--hundreds and hundreds of Filipino nannies, housekeepers, and cooks gather in Central to socialize, a sight we saw with our own eyes while travelling around Hong Kong. Our hosts told us that the Filipino domestic helper population is a very well-organized and politically- empowered one; they have successfully lobbied for laws that protect their rights. Unlike a lot of blue-collar jobs in Hong Kong, the housekeeping profession has a minimum wage, and all employers are required by law to have a written contract when they employ housekeepers. Because of the huge Filipino domestic helper population, various Filipino institutions set up shop in Hong Kong to cater to the Filipinos' needs: some schools and colleges, for example, have Hong Kong chapters that provide continuing education to the Filipino domestic helper population, allowing them to update their skills while they are in HK and also aiding them to make a smooth transition back into the workforce when they return home to the Philippines. Finally, because the predominant religion in the Philippines is Catholicism, most Catholic churches have a strong Filipino presence as well. If you attend an English Mass, it's likely that the choir will be comprised of Filipinos, singing English translations of favorite Filipino hymns.

However, the strong ties between the Philippines and Hong Kong go beyond the fact that many Hong Kong residents' children are cared for and raised by Filipino nannies. There is also an interesting historical tie between the two places. It was in Hong Kong that the first Philippine flag was sewn, the same flag that would later be raised to symbolize the Filipinos' declaration of independence from their Spanish colonizers.

It was also in Hong Kong where some years before that, Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines, lived for several months on self-imposed political exile. Trained as a physician, he set up an opthalmology practice in Hong Kong, while continuing to keep tabs on the political turmoil that preceded the eventual revolution against the Spanish colonizers.

Recognized across Asia as one of the first and most important figures in the Asian nationalist movement that would sweep across colonized Asia from the late 1800s to the mid-1900s, Jose Rizal is remembered in Hong Kong with a plaque that marks the site of the building where he once practiced medicine, along D'Aguilar Street. Nearby, another marker, on Rednaxela Terrace, marks the area where Rizal and his family members once lived. I hadn't known about these markers, until, while walking down D'Aguilar Street, my brother suddenly stopped and asked me, "Have you seen the Rizal marker yet?" "No," I replied. He brought me to the building where the marker was, and I snapped the attached picture.

More than a hundred years after Rizal, Filipinos from all walks of life--domestic helpers, professionals, teachers, artists--continue to live and breathe a sense of nationalism in their own ways, while living in Hong Kong, whether it's through striving to do their best in their professions, working hard to perfect their craft, or tolerating homesickness in order to make money to send home to their families.