The Indochina portion of our trip is done. Now we're in China. Sort of. Flew into Hong Kong yesterday, which is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China. Thankfully, it's much easier to get a visa (i.e. on the spot) in HK than in China. Then we hopped on the ultra modern and ultra clean metro train to the ferry terminal. We departed Hong Kong, and took the turbo jet ferry to Macau, which is another SAR of China. Both areas have their own special currency and stamp your passport upon entry.
Macau has been controlled by the Portuguese for over 300 years. It started as a major trading port, and has spent time as an artisan area, firecracker manufacturer, and now tourist area. Shortly after the Brits turned Hong Kong over to China, the Portuguese turned Macau over to China. Macau has recently opened its doors to mainland China and has recently allowed foreign investors to build casinos. It's an explosive mix, and this place is booming. Mol and I scored tix to the latest Cirque du Soleil production, ZaIa last night at The Venetian. What a show!!! Crazy aerial acrobatics made possible by by a crazy theater design. Loads of fun.
The Fung Shei protection of the casino areas protected our wallets for the night, and we broke even. The casino area was huge, just like vegas if you substitute smoking white folks with smoking Asians.
We spent today walking the streets of Macau. The Chinese / Portuguese combination is a nice transition from SE Asia to the upcoming S American portion of our trip. We can almost understand the signs around here. We're really looking forward to being able to say more than hello and thank you!
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