We made it through our first "T8." That's the signal from the Hong Kong Observatory when gale or storm force wind is expected or blowing generally in Hong Kong near sea level, with a sustained wind speed of 63-117 km/h from the quarter indicated and gusts which may exceed 180 km/h, and the wind condition is expected to persist. There was also a "Red Rain" signal. That's not quite as bad as a "Black Rain" signal, which is very heavy rain has fallen or is expected to fall generally over Hong Kong, exceeding 70 millimetres in an hour, and is likely to continue. We apparently had black rain a couple of weekends ago when I wrote about the wine walk. It supposedly broke records for the most rain in HK in 147 years and there was a crazy amount of lightning strikes in the hundreds or thousands - if I remember where I read it, I'll provide details.
They posted the signal last night and it ended late morning, around 11. People are supposed to stay home from work when there's a T8, but they lowered it to a T3 (it jumps from 3 to 8) by 11, so Paul went to work then. It didn't seem too bad to me, but it mostly occurred overnight and I was inside. I guess it came from the same tropical storm that caused the sinking of the ship in the Philippines a few days ago. It looks like rain for the next several days. At least we get a reprieve when we head off to Bali tomorrow.
It's true; our first local beach experience was quite disappointing. I hoped for something better because it's so easy to reach, but if I even just went there to soak in the sun (between the hours of 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. when I regrettably lack pool access) I would end up staring at the water like the Little Rascals standing outside the sweets shop without any money. What good is it if you can't jump in to cool off? Praises for the NJ Shore and its comparative cleanliness.
And it's also true that there are some bizarre methods of pool-time organization here. Of course, there are the hours. Then there's the unavoidable water stream that everybody sprints through to protect their towels and other items, even though it's supposed to encourage you to shower first, and there's the second sprint on your way out. There's the hotfoot dance once you get onto the flaming tiled surrounds until you reach a cool puddle to stand in since you must leave your shoes at the entrance. There's the exact number of eight loungers for residents from a potential 381 apartments, and if you're lucky enough to get one, the other minor annoyance is that they only fully recline - you can't sit up. Well, one of my English friends said her pool has the same forced shower. She dodges it also.
And if management ever sees this blog, they might shut me down since there's apparently a no photography rule. I very openly took my photos and the two lifeguards (yes two lifeguards for a four foot deep pool) didn't say a word. A manager just happened to walk in later as a group of Chinese residents were posing for a group photo. They might have been Mandarin-speaking because they didn't seem to understand Cantonese and they only understood when the chief said, "No photography." Let's just say the two lifeguards don't seem much like enforcers of J Residence Pool Law.
Well, the positive thing about the pool is that it's a pool. I'll take whatever happy aspects I can get. It is quite scenic also. If you click on the second photo from Paul's last post, you can see a cruise ship in the harbor in the background.
Yesterday I went with a couple of other tai tais to a mall that's 28 stories filled with furniture and home furnishings. I procured a flower vase I really love, but that's all. The important thing is that Paul was spared the mega-mall trip. We almost went over the weekend, but I ended up nearly killing him on Bowen Rd. on Saturday and then dragging him to the beach on Sunday instead. Maybe he'll beg to just go shopping next weekend.
My YWCA group is going to Macau for our session this upcoming Monday, but I will miss it because we'll still be in Bali. They're also doing a Sex and the City outing tomorrow, which I will also miss, but I suppose there will be other times for eating, drinking, and seeing movies. At least I saw the movie already.
So you won't hear from us until next week when we're all relaxed and tanned and massaged and back from Bali. Sooooo looking forward to it.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Up On The Roof
Hi, I'm jumping in to help Lisa close out this week's blogs and add a little more color to our night in Macau. As Lisa already said the Venetian is enormous and at over 564,000 square feet it is actually the largest casino in the world. When the bus pulls up it is almost a little like you are pulling into Disney World as opposed to a casino.
They bring you to the West entrance and upon walking into the lobby you mainly notice one thing - it's huge. However you could be walking up to the check in counter at any hotel in the world. Very unlike Vegas which hits you with sensory overload as soon as you walk through the doors - giant fish tanks, tigers, music, gaming, showgirls and everything under the sun, the Venetian in Macau is very sterile and it is about a 15 minute walk past a few stores and restaurants, but mostly just hallways, before you get your first glimpse of the casino tucked away behind paneled walls and out of clear view.
As Lisa mentioned after one lap around the floor we only saw two very crowded craps tables and a handful of blackjack tables. Most of the space is for local games which is ironic because the western games were packed. But seeing that blackjack is typically my game of choice this was not an issue as I found a spot fairly quickly.
There is not much difference once you start playing except that the dealer only takes one card face up and then deals out the rest of the table (so there is no little sensor for them to see if they have blackjack because they never take a card face down). The other differences I noticed is that on occasion the dealer will ask if you want to back out of your hand for half the bet (not only when he has a potential bj hand). I think when your first two cards were lower than their single card, but not always, so I'm really not sure. Also all the tables were set at 200 HKD (about $25 USD) and they did not appear to fluctuate regardless of the crowd (It was the same Sunday afternoon when I was the only player at any of the tables). And a major difference from Vegas is they close all the blackjack tables at 3:40 a.m. sharp regardless of who is playing and do not re-open until after noon on Sunday - definitely not Vegas but it can save you from that foolish late night urge to get your money back.
Dealers varied just like in Vegas and AC and the last one I had would count out your cards as he dealt them until you broke and then in a very sing song way just go Toooooo Mannnny! Something like 8, 12 (hit me) 15 (hit me) Toooooo Mannny! He did it for himself as well so it didn't bother me especially because he had Tooooo Mannnny more times than me.
Lisa left out the one excursion we did take while there which was to go to a very popular Portuguese restaurant called Fernando's. After winning a little bit we stopped in a pub and I grabbed a beer, where Lisa left me to go get ready. I watched the first half of Australia vs. Ireland rugby match which is definitely a much more watchable sport than I originally gave it credit (still can't take soccer - sorry Joe). Then I headed back up to the room to see that Lisa was still in pre-shower mode. We ended up getting in a cab a little after nine and the cab driver tried telling us that the place may be closed. He dropped us out front and a group scooped up our cab and was gone.
When we got to the front of the place they informed us they were no longer serving and now we were stranded. We walked back to where the cab dropped us off and there was another couple that appeared to be waiting awhile. The guy went back to the restaurant to see if they could call a cab and they said they were sorry but he would probably have to take the bus. This was not a good sign as there was not a lot of English being spoken - we had no idea what bus we would have to take - and we hadn't seen a bus yet.
Staring up the street we saw the little light on top of a cab coming and the other guy was in the middle of road trying to flag it down. Clearly it was their cab and as I stood there with a brick in my hand, Lisa asked if they were going to the Venetian and if we could share the cab. They were and we got back without incident and can now visit Macau again without sporting wigs and fake moustaches.
This is a good thing too because if you couldn't tell by the picture just out our window with about 15 cranes working in our sight lines alone they are building the place up at a break neck speed and I have no doubt that in 6 months time it will already be a new city. Though they make a fortune in gaming they do not cater to the club scene which now probably brings in half of Vegas' money. You see a lot of 20 somethings there and it is simply a matter of time. The plan is to double the 30 or so casinos by next year and Cirque du Soleil was at the Venetian which is the first major Vegas type show in Macau. For those of you that might like to say "I was there when...", you should start planning your trip very soon. One last thing, you can also take a helicopter there in about 15 minutes for around 100 bucks per person. A complete waste of money seeing the ferry is only a little under an hour and much cheaper but I guarantee there will be aerial photos before we get home.
Also on the back of Lisa's blog we decided to go and stay at the Venetian because of all the rain we were having. As it turns out this was actually a record setting amount of rain which is fortunate as we thought that this was just what we needed to get used to. Also fortunate was that things finally cleared up this weekend and we got what will probably be our nicest weekend in HK. With that we decided to take advantage of our pool.
On Saturday Lisa took me on the Bowen Road trail that she has started running along. As she posted the most direct route is an unbelievably steep hill for what I would guess is about a half mile straight up and situates you somewhere directly between the highest and lowest points of the Island. It is a workout in itself getting there but we then took the 1.25 mile scenic run. Since moving I have concentrated on eating and drinking and have not been to the gym since February. So hiking a mountain side on a hot and sunny afternoon and then going for a run may not have been the wisest decision to ease back into training. After getting a sneak peek at Jesus we made our way back down the hillside with the goal of spending the rest of the sunlight poolside.
Our rooftop pool is beautiful with amazing views of the city all around. In addition there is an elevated roof top garden one level up with a bbq, bar and couches. The issue with the architecture is that it was clearly built for aesthetics and not practical use.
They want everyone to shower before entering the pool and no shoes worn on the patio, so when walking through the doorway to the pool there is a constant running shower out of the ceiling - it looks pretty cool and the thought process is understandable. However any towels, books, ipod, etc. you want to bring to the pool must also go through the shower and you need to go back through when you want to leave the pool.
The first time we visited the pool one night a few weeks ago we noticed right away there was little patio space and only eight lounge chairs. That's correct over 300 apartments and eight chairs. The odds are not in your favor for getting one of these on a nice weekend. In addition the patio is slate, so after bursting through the shower you need to immediately go to the overflowing edge of the pool in order to not scorch your feet.
The final issue we have is that there are daily sessions which the pool is open. To Lisa's dismay the pool closes at 11:00 a.m. on weekdays and does not reopen until 6:00 p.m. Obviously they are catering to the working people and this does not impact me. On the weekends however they close the pool between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. We got back a little before 4:00 from our run on Saturday and had to hustle down to get in a swim before they started kicking everyone out.
On Sunday we went to Repulse Bay, a small beach area about 20 minutes from our apartment. I'm not the biggest beach fan in the world and this beach did nothing to help diminish my prejudice for pools. The sand was more gravel than smooth and scorching hot, the water was quite filthy (so much so Lisa would not go in) and there were more out of shape Asian men in speedos then you would have ever thought existed.
We lasted about two hours and then headed back. This time we wisely got to the pool check in a few minutes before it opened at 6:00 and managed to land the first two chairs. At about 6:05 they were all gone and we witnessed some people storm off angrily realizing they could not get a seat. We are aware that people will wisely all start lining up earlier and earlier but for now we'll take advantage of careful planning and utilize our seemingly singular knowledge of the pool's scheduled hours.
These are of course just some small annoyances we've noticed in the planning of the pool and not actual complaints. We are still amazed that we are swimming 40+ stories in the air overlooking this crazy city, wondering how we ended up here and trying to take advantage of it all before it's all over.
Once we return from Bali we will try to explore how we can participate in the rooftop dining that was also going on this weekend and looked and smelled quite tasty. We'll also try to include some photos, however we learned that you are not supposed to take pictures while on the roof. The best reason we can come up with is that they don't want people stealing their layout, even with all its flaws they are very protective of the roof's privacy.
Lisa managed a few shots before they asked someone else to not take pictures and I'm sure we'll be able to get a few more in next time we're up there. For now we just have Bali on the mind and will send our thoughts (and some pictures) when we get back.
A Happy Belated Birthday to my Mom and I'll blog ya' later.
They bring you to the West entrance and upon walking into the lobby you mainly notice one thing - it's huge. However you could be walking up to the check in counter at any hotel in the world. Very unlike Vegas which hits you with sensory overload as soon as you walk through the doors - giant fish tanks, tigers, music, gaming, showgirls and everything under the sun, the Venetian in Macau is very sterile and it is about a 15 minute walk past a few stores and restaurants, but mostly just hallways, before you get your first glimpse of the casino tucked away behind paneled walls and out of clear view.
As Lisa mentioned after one lap around the floor we only saw two very crowded craps tables and a handful of blackjack tables. Most of the space is for local games which is ironic because the western games were packed. But seeing that blackjack is typically my game of choice this was not an issue as I found a spot fairly quickly.
There is not much difference once you start playing except that the dealer only takes one card face up and then deals out the rest of the table (so there is no little sensor for them to see if they have blackjack because they never take a card face down). The other differences I noticed is that on occasion the dealer will ask if you want to back out of your hand for half the bet (not only when he has a potential bj hand). I think when your first two cards were lower than their single card, but not always, so I'm really not sure. Also all the tables were set at 200 HKD (about $25 USD) and they did not appear to fluctuate regardless of the crowd (It was the same Sunday afternoon when I was the only player at any of the tables). And a major difference from Vegas is they close all the blackjack tables at 3:40 a.m. sharp regardless of who is playing and do not re-open until after noon on Sunday - definitely not Vegas but it can save you from that foolish late night urge to get your money back.
Dealers varied just like in Vegas and AC and the last one I had would count out your cards as he dealt them until you broke and then in a very sing song way just go Toooooo Mannnny! Something like 8, 12 (hit me) 15 (hit me) Toooooo Mannny! He did it for himself as well so it didn't bother me especially because he had Tooooo Mannnny more times than me.
Lisa left out the one excursion we did take while there which was to go to a very popular Portuguese restaurant called Fernando's. After winning a little bit we stopped in a pub and I grabbed a beer, where Lisa left me to go get ready. I watched the first half of Australia vs. Ireland rugby match which is definitely a much more watchable sport than I originally gave it credit (still can't take soccer - sorry Joe). Then I headed back up to the room to see that Lisa was still in pre-shower mode. We ended up getting in a cab a little after nine and the cab driver tried telling us that the place may be closed. He dropped us out front and a group scooped up our cab and was gone.
When we got to the front of the place they informed us they were no longer serving and now we were stranded. We walked back to where the cab dropped us off and there was another couple that appeared to be waiting awhile. The guy went back to the restaurant to see if they could call a cab and they said they were sorry but he would probably have to take the bus. This was not a good sign as there was not a lot of English being spoken - we had no idea what bus we would have to take - and we hadn't seen a bus yet.
Staring up the street we saw the little light on top of a cab coming and the other guy was in the middle of road trying to flag it down. Clearly it was their cab and as I stood there with a brick in my hand, Lisa asked if they were going to the Venetian and if we could share the cab. They were and we got back without incident and can now visit Macau again without sporting wigs and fake moustaches.
This is a good thing too because if you couldn't tell by the picture just out our window with about 15 cranes working in our sight lines alone they are building the place up at a break neck speed and I have no doubt that in 6 months time it will already be a new city. Though they make a fortune in gaming they do not cater to the club scene which now probably brings in half of Vegas' money. You see a lot of 20 somethings there and it is simply a matter of time. The plan is to double the 30 or so casinos by next year and Cirque du Soleil was at the Venetian which is the first major Vegas type show in Macau. For those of you that might like to say "I was there when...", you should start planning your trip very soon. One last thing, you can also take a helicopter there in about 15 minutes for around 100 bucks per person. A complete waste of money seeing the ferry is only a little under an hour and much cheaper but I guarantee there will be aerial photos before we get home.
Also on the back of Lisa's blog we decided to go and stay at the Venetian because of all the rain we were having. As it turns out this was actually a record setting amount of rain which is fortunate as we thought that this was just what we needed to get used to. Also fortunate was that things finally cleared up this weekend and we got what will probably be our nicest weekend in HK. With that we decided to take advantage of our pool.
On Saturday Lisa took me on the Bowen Road trail that she has started running along. As she posted the most direct route is an unbelievably steep hill for what I would guess is about a half mile straight up and situates you somewhere directly between the highest and lowest points of the Island. It is a workout in itself getting there but we then took the 1.25 mile scenic run. Since moving I have concentrated on eating and drinking and have not been to the gym since February. So hiking a mountain side on a hot and sunny afternoon and then going for a run may not have been the wisest decision to ease back into training. After getting a sneak peek at Jesus we made our way back down the hillside with the goal of spending the rest of the sunlight poolside.
Our rooftop pool is beautiful with amazing views of the city all around. In addition there is an elevated roof top garden one level up with a bbq, bar and couches. The issue with the architecture is that it was clearly built for aesthetics and not practical use.
They want everyone to shower before entering the pool and no shoes worn on the patio, so when walking through the doorway to the pool there is a constant running shower out of the ceiling - it looks pretty cool and the thought process is understandable. However any towels, books, ipod, etc. you want to bring to the pool must also go through the shower and you need to go back through when you want to leave the pool.
The first time we visited the pool one night a few weeks ago we noticed right away there was little patio space and only eight lounge chairs. That's correct over 300 apartments and eight chairs. The odds are not in your favor for getting one of these on a nice weekend. In addition the patio is slate, so after bursting through the shower you need to immediately go to the overflowing edge of the pool in order to not scorch your feet.
The final issue we have is that there are daily sessions which the pool is open. To Lisa's dismay the pool closes at 11:00 a.m. on weekdays and does not reopen until 6:00 p.m. Obviously they are catering to the working people and this does not impact me. On the weekends however they close the pool between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. We got back a little before 4:00 from our run on Saturday and had to hustle down to get in a swim before they started kicking everyone out.
On Sunday we went to Repulse Bay, a small beach area about 20 minutes from our apartment. I'm not the biggest beach fan in the world and this beach did nothing to help diminish my prejudice for pools. The sand was more gravel than smooth and scorching hot, the water was quite filthy (so much so Lisa would not go in) and there were more out of shape Asian men in speedos then you would have ever thought existed.
We lasted about two hours and then headed back. This time we wisely got to the pool check in a few minutes before it opened at 6:00 and managed to land the first two chairs. At about 6:05 they were all gone and we witnessed some people storm off angrily realizing they could not get a seat. We are aware that people will wisely all start lining up earlier and earlier but for now we'll take advantage of careful planning and utilize our seemingly singular knowledge of the pool's scheduled hours.
These are of course just some small annoyances we've noticed in the planning of the pool and not actual complaints. We are still amazed that we are swimming 40+ stories in the air overlooking this crazy city, wondering how we ended up here and trying to take advantage of it all before it's all over.
Once we return from Bali we will try to explore how we can participate in the rooftop dining that was also going on this weekend and looked and smelled quite tasty. We'll also try to include some photos, however we learned that you are not supposed to take pictures while on the roof. The best reason we can come up with is that they don't want people stealing their layout, even with all its flaws they are very protective of the roof's privacy.
Lisa managed a few shots before they asked someone else to not take pictures and I'm sure we'll be able to get a few more in next time we're up there. For now we just have Bali on the mind and will send our thoughts (and some pictures) when we get back.
A Happy Belated Birthday to my Mom and I'll blog ya' later.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
YMCA
It finally stopped raining after about one week. In another week from today, we hit the skies and head to Bali, Indonesia. We're quite looking forward to it and it looks beautiful, as shown by others' photos from the Tripadvisor web site:
I know, it's cheating. I expect to get some equally impressive photos of my own, which I will certainly post.
I started my YWCA class Monday. It was a small group and surprisingly, half of us were American, including a Bostoner and a New Yorker originally from Philly, and one who didn't specify other than that she lived in suburbia. One other is a Dutch girl from New Zealand, another is an Aussie, and one who I didn't catch might be English. The instructor is Croatian but also from Australia. I'm used to being surrounded by Brits - now it's Aussies and Kiwis! She casually discussed some settling in issues, but it was much less an orientation than an opportunity to chat for a couple of hours. The Y treated us to lunch in their cafe. Nice group. I'm going to miss the third out of four sessions because we'll be in Bali. I know, how many things do I have to do here that I couldn't even schedule the trip without conflicting with the one other thing I have scheduled? Slipped my mind. Oh well, I'll get three out of four.
Not much else is going on at the moment. I'm just happy it isn't raining. I've been told that it doesn't usually rain quite so much. Let's hope.
I can tell you something else I miss: bright whites and predictable laundry results. Things that have been washed a thousand times run - some white things are pink - some pink things are gray - and I don't use bleach like I normally would because I don't know if my toy washer is meant to handle it. Is it the detergent, the water temperature, the washer itself? It's all a laundering mystery that is in no way entertaining to solve.
There's not a lot of food you can't get here, but I do miss a real American sandwich. Whatever you want to call it depending on what state you're from, we, as Americans, just know how to build a hero/hoagie/sub. Sure, there are all kinds of available sandwiches - I like a good panini, but I want one of those heroes from a little deli cramped with racks of chips where you wonder why they pile SO MUCH meat on (preferably turkey which is not too common here), with shredded lettuce and tomato and onions and salt and pepper and vinegar and provolone or cheddar - all wrapped in white paper and marked in black with the price. A pickle to go with it would be nice to. God bless America.
The audio web site isn't working. I'll try to do that later.
I know, it's cheating. I expect to get some equally impressive photos of my own, which I will certainly post.I started my YWCA class Monday. It was a small group and surprisingly, half of us were American, including a Bostoner and a New Yorker originally from Philly, and one who didn't specify other than that she lived in suburbia. One other is a Dutch girl from New Zealand, another is an Aussie, and one who I didn't catch might be English. The instructor is Croatian but also from Australia. I'm used to being surrounded by Brits - now it's Aussies and Kiwis! She casually discussed some settling in issues, but it was much less an orientation than an opportunity to chat for a couple of hours. The Y treated us to lunch in their cafe. Nice group. I'm going to miss the third out of four sessions because we'll be in Bali. I know, how many things do I have to do here that I couldn't even schedule the trip without conflicting with the one other thing I have scheduled? Slipped my mind. Oh well, I'll get three out of four.
Not much else is going on at the moment. I'm just happy it isn't raining. I've been told that it doesn't usually rain quite so much. Let's hope.
I can tell you something else I miss: bright whites and predictable laundry results. Things that have been washed a thousand times run - some white things are pink - some pink things are gray - and I don't use bleach like I normally would because I don't know if my toy washer is meant to handle it. Is it the detergent, the water temperature, the washer itself? It's all a laundering mystery that is in no way entertaining to solve.
There's not a lot of food you can't get here, but I do miss a real American sandwich. Whatever you want to call it depending on what state you're from, we, as Americans, just know how to build a hero/hoagie/sub. Sure, there are all kinds of available sandwiches - I like a good panini, but I want one of those heroes from a little deli cramped with racks of chips where you wonder why they pile SO MUCH meat on (preferably turkey which is not too common here), with shredded lettuce and tomato and onions and salt and pepper and vinegar and provolone or cheddar - all wrapped in white paper and marked in black with the price. A pickle to go with it would be nice to. God bless America.
The audio web site isn't working. I'll try to do that later.
Monday, June 16, 2008
You Better You Bet
We took our first excursion to Macau this weekend. It's an hour away by ferry, so we packed a bag, left early Saturday afternoon and arrived at the hotel by check-in time. It rained most of the weekend again so we chose the Venetian resort because we knew it was immense and self-contained as far as food and entertainment.
If you don't know anything about Macau, it was a Portuguese colony until 1999 when they handed it back over to China, so, like Hong Kong, it is also a 'Special Administrative Region.' We only spent one night and even though it's a small place, it's not so small that you can see the different parts all at once. There is old Macau, where the Portuguese influence is most obvious and maintained among a mix of Chinese and Portuguese elements. Then there were two islands called Taipa and Coloane which is essentially one land mass now, joined by the new Cotai Strip, after a massive land reclamation project. Land reclamation here means that they fill in the land where there was water and poof! now there's more land.
You can take a ferry to either the Macau peninsula or a new route to Taipa. We arrived in Taipa where the Venetian has shuttles waiting to comfortably whisk you away to their 3000 room resort containing a reported 30 restaurants and 350 shops, of course surrounded by Venetian themed architecture.
Really, people visit Macau for one reason: gambling. There are a few casinos in the older section, but the Cotai Strip is where a bunch of big casino names have conspired to turn it into "Asia's Las Vegas." The Venetian, MGM Grand, Wynn, and Sands (some downtown and some in the new strip) are the leaders of the pack, but many more are on the way.
P.S. The average gaming table in Macau grosses nine times the average one in Las Vegas. Average bets are in the hundreds per hand. From our observations in the Venetian, the majority of tables are baccarat, with a handful of blackjack and roulette, very few craps tables, though those few were packed, and some other Chinese games. The slots were less sprawling than they are in Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
From my Frommer's book, "A sleepy backwater just two decades ago - when the local populace got from place to place unhurriedly by pedicab and the road from the ferry to downtown was a lonely stretch of potholes - Macau is changing so rapidly that old-timers are right when they complain that the place isn't what it used to be - it's more than it used to be, with land reclamation and new construction dramatically altering the city skyline in just 20 short years, and there seems to be no end in sight... It's as though two Macaus exist: the sterile new developments and glitzy casinos on reclaimed land; and the old downtown of candy-colored colonial buildings, banyan trees, narrow hilly streets, and low-key neighborhood restaurants... There's something for everyone here - beaches, churches, museums, attractions, and, yes, casinos - all in a setting found nowhere else in the world."
Hmm, sounds a little like how other familiar gambling meccas got started.
We're not exactly high-rollers (or even low-rollers) but it was interesting to see. It is certainly more conservative than Las Vegas - at least this far in the Macau evolution. There is not a club scene like in Vegas or even in Atlantic City, maybe because it's more catered to hard-core gamblers from China and Taiwan.
We plan to go back some time and see the other areas. I'm sure by the time we do, everything will look different.
If you don't know anything about Macau, it was a Portuguese colony until 1999 when they handed it back over to China, so, like Hong Kong, it is also a 'Special Administrative Region.' We only spent one night and even though it's a small place, it's not so small that you can see the different parts all at once. There is old Macau, where the Portuguese influence is most obvious and maintained among a mix of Chinese and Portuguese elements. Then there were two islands called Taipa and Coloane which is essentially one land mass now, joined by the new Cotai Strip, after a massive land reclamation project. Land reclamation here means that they fill in the land where there was water and poof! now there's more land.
You can take a ferry to either the Macau peninsula or a new route to Taipa. We arrived in Taipa where the Venetian has shuttles waiting to comfortably whisk you away to their 3000 room resort containing a reported 30 restaurants and 350 shops, of course surrounded by Venetian themed architecture.
Really, people visit Macau for one reason: gambling. There are a few casinos in the older section, but the Cotai Strip is where a bunch of big casino names have conspired to turn it into "Asia's Las Vegas." The Venetian, MGM Grand, Wynn, and Sands (some downtown and some in the new strip) are the leaders of the pack, but many more are on the way.
P.S. The average gaming table in Macau grosses nine times the average one in Las Vegas. Average bets are in the hundreds per hand. From our observations in the Venetian, the majority of tables are baccarat, with a handful of blackjack and roulette, very few craps tables, though those few were packed, and some other Chinese games. The slots were less sprawling than they are in Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
From my Frommer's book, "A sleepy backwater just two decades ago - when the local populace got from place to place unhurriedly by pedicab and the road from the ferry to downtown was a lonely stretch of potholes - Macau is changing so rapidly that old-timers are right when they complain that the place isn't what it used to be - it's more than it used to be, with land reclamation and new construction dramatically altering the city skyline in just 20 short years, and there seems to be no end in sight... It's as though two Macaus exist: the sterile new developments and glitzy casinos on reclaimed land; and the old downtown of candy-colored colonial buildings, banyan trees, narrow hilly streets, and low-key neighborhood restaurants... There's something for everyone here - beaches, churches, museums, attractions, and, yes, casinos - all in a setting found nowhere else in the world."
Hmm, sounds a little like how other familiar gambling meccas got started.
We're not exactly high-rollers (or even low-rollers) but it was interesting to see. It is certainly more conservative than Las Vegas - at least this far in the Macau evolution. There is not a club scene like in Vegas or even in Atlantic City, maybe because it's more catered to hard-core gamblers from China and Taiwan.
We plan to go back some time and see the other areas. I'm sure by the time we do, everything will look different.
View from our window, Asia's Las Vegas on the rise
Take a chance... this was once water
Is it Venice? Nooooo, it is the Venetian! (Pay no attention to the Chinese characters written on the window in the background)
Our suite was way bigger than our apartment
Regal yet comfy
The room was equipped with a Paul
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Sex and the City
Good news first, Paul did well on his exam. Yaaaay.
What's going on with the heat over there? I can't say I miss the 100-year-old house without air conditioning right now. It may be tropical here, but we have a new and well-functioning a.c. As Paul mentioned, the weather was crazy here last weekend. I heard that some areas were flooded with water up to waist level. Around here, there was mud. I assumed it flowed down from somewhere, but I couldn't guess from where. Paul thinks it might have risen up from below. I don't know, but there was more mud than I could have believed without seeing it. They were washing the streets down for a couple of days.
It dwindled to drizzling by the time of our wine walk, and then I got a sunburn on my neck the next day at the Dragon Boat Races, but I did have an umbrella with me. I have to find some more reliable outlook than 'weather.com.' It literally says the same thing every day: High in the mid-80's with a 50-60 % chance of a thunderstorm. It said that when it rained more than I've ever seen it rain, and it said that when I got sunburned and sweat-soaked in 30 seconds.
Funny thing about Time Out Hong Kong starting up here... There is a restaurant that opened recently which is connected to our building (called The Pawn because it used to be a pawn shop - pretty good food too). One day a few weeks ago I heard what sounded like a band practicing for a couple of hours in the afternoon. I tried to describe it to Paul when he came home and later that night he heard for himself as they were playing full blast. It was quite loud and we wondered how they were allowed to be so loud in a residential area, but it only lasted for 20 or 30 minutes. It turns out that it was the launch party for Time Out, as I later read in Time Out. There has been no raucousness ever since.
I braved the rain Friday to attend a lunch/baby shower for one of the English girls who is due to give birth next week. Tuesday, a group of us went to lunch and then to see Sex and the City. It's quite popular amongst the Brits. As a matter of fact, they watch much more American TV than I do. They talk about Lost and Dancing with the Stars. Never watched them. But Flight of the Conchords is on its way to Hong Kong HBO, so maybe there will be some new fans here.
I enjoyed the movie. It actually made me miss my former life just a tiny bit (you know, the one where I was always decked out in Prada and Luis Vuitton). Part of it was filmed at The New York Public Library - the iconic one on 42nd St. - I remember when we got emails about its closure for filming. Seeing those marble staircases and the rotunda reminded me of all the times I walked through the silent back hallways to attend meetings and presentations. I did love walking through that building. Of course, I was quick to mentally note that Carrie was supposedly returning library books there even though it is only a research library and not a lending library, but I let it go.
Today I just met a couple of the girls for smoothies. Apparently there's a word for people like me: tai tai. I think it more or less translates into something like "a lady who lunches." I guess it is the counterpart to the tai pan, which would be Paul, except that we're probably a few income brackets below the real ones. I just go for smoothies, not tea at the Mandarin Oriental. But I am getting to know enough people that I actually bumped into somebody I knew on my way back from the movie, Kathy, my first friend here. She's going home next week for most of the summer, so I won't be playing with her for awhile. And about two weeks ago, we ended up eating in the same small restaurant in Soho as one of Paul's coworkers, except that we didn't even know it until they both mentioned it the following Monday. It's a small city.
Well, the pool party extravaganza was officially called off because they expect more stormy weather, so we are thinking about what to do this weekend. Anyone want to meet us somewhere?
Congratulations to Karen and Andrew and Happy Birthday (June 2, 2008) to Veronica Joy.
What's going on with the heat over there? I can't say I miss the 100-year-old house without air conditioning right now. It may be tropical here, but we have a new and well-functioning a.c. As Paul mentioned, the weather was crazy here last weekend. I heard that some areas were flooded with water up to waist level. Around here, there was mud. I assumed it flowed down from somewhere, but I couldn't guess from where. Paul thinks it might have risen up from below. I don't know, but there was more mud than I could have believed without seeing it. They were washing the streets down for a couple of days.
It dwindled to drizzling by the time of our wine walk, and then I got a sunburn on my neck the next day at the Dragon Boat Races, but I did have an umbrella with me. I have to find some more reliable outlook than 'weather.com.' It literally says the same thing every day: High in the mid-80's with a 50-60 % chance of a thunderstorm. It said that when it rained more than I've ever seen it rain, and it said that when I got sunburned and sweat-soaked in 30 seconds.
Funny thing about Time Out Hong Kong starting up here... There is a restaurant that opened recently which is connected to our building (called The Pawn because it used to be a pawn shop - pretty good food too). One day a few weeks ago I heard what sounded like a band practicing for a couple of hours in the afternoon. I tried to describe it to Paul when he came home and later that night he heard for himself as they were playing full blast. It was quite loud and we wondered how they were allowed to be so loud in a residential area, but it only lasted for 20 or 30 minutes. It turns out that it was the launch party for Time Out, as I later read in Time Out. There has been no raucousness ever since.
I braved the rain Friday to attend a lunch/baby shower for one of the English girls who is due to give birth next week. Tuesday, a group of us went to lunch and then to see Sex and the City. It's quite popular amongst the Brits. As a matter of fact, they watch much more American TV than I do. They talk about Lost and Dancing with the Stars. Never watched them. But Flight of the Conchords is on its way to Hong Kong HBO, so maybe there will be some new fans here.
I enjoyed the movie. It actually made me miss my former life just a tiny bit (you know, the one where I was always decked out in Prada and Luis Vuitton). Part of it was filmed at The New York Public Library - the iconic one on 42nd St. - I remember when we got emails about its closure for filming. Seeing those marble staircases and the rotunda reminded me of all the times I walked through the silent back hallways to attend meetings and presentations. I did love walking through that building. Of course, I was quick to mentally note that Carrie was supposedly returning library books there even though it is only a research library and not a lending library, but I let it go.
Today I just met a couple of the girls for smoothies. Apparently there's a word for people like me: tai tai. I think it more or less translates into something like "a lady who lunches." I guess it is the counterpart to the tai pan, which would be Paul, except that we're probably a few income brackets below the real ones. I just go for smoothies, not tea at the Mandarin Oriental. But I am getting to know enough people that I actually bumped into somebody I knew on my way back from the movie, Kathy, my first friend here. She's going home next week for most of the summer, so I won't be playing with her for awhile. And about two weeks ago, we ended up eating in the same small restaurant in Soho as one of Paul's coworkers, except that we didn't even know it until they both mentioned it the following Monday. It's a small city.
Well, the pool party extravaganza was officially called off because they expect more stormy weather, so we are thinking about what to do this weekend. Anyone want to meet us somewhere?
Congratulations to Karen and Andrew and Happy Birthday (June 2, 2008) to Veronica Joy.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Row Row Row Your Boat
Let me start by wishing everyone a Happy Day After the Tuen Ng Festival! That's correct - t's another Hong Kong holiday and while I am stuck coming into a mostly empty office I do once again get a chance to send a blog update (in addition I am able to have the Celtics / Lakers Game 2 on just over my desk).
My first sentence is accurately how the holiday is listed in our calendar. There is a large festival held every year on the first Sunday after the 5th of June. So logic prevails here and if you're going to have a big celebration you should get the next day off. This would be akin to getting March 18th or more accurately the day after the Superbowl off (both days Scott has been petitioning for years).
We realize the blogs have been coming less often but I think it is just the natural progression of settling in. Most of the week I work fairly late, eat dinner, watch some TV and go to bed. Not much to blog about. This past weekend however we did have some plans slightly out of the norm.
On Saturday we participated in a Wine Walk sponsored by Time Out Magazine. We used to get Time Out NY delivered, back when we lived on SI, which was a weekly magazine that lists just about every event taking place in NYC for the week as well as tons of reviews. As luck would have it they printed the first edition of Time Out HK about a month ago so we can now find some more interesting and less publicized events taking place over here. Of course the wine walk was on like page 2 and I didn't find a reason to read much further.
About 15 bars / restaurants participated along the winding Wyndham Road. They each offered some small munchies and two glasses of wine (one red / one white). There are some very good restaurants along this road including two of our favorites (Wagyu and Zest) so it had the potential for a good day.
Of course the HK weather has been living up to its reputation and we woke up at about 5:00 am to torrential down pours and some of the loudest thunder and brightest lightning you may ever hear / see. The weather forecast here is a consistent 50-60% chance of rain, temperatures in the 80's and either humid or very humid. I know back east there is a heat wave going on that you are all probably praying to end, however though it's not quite as hot here there is no end in sight - you just learn to live with it. The strangest thing for me is how when the rain comes it does not have any impact on the heat or humidity what so ever - it just makes things wet.
So Saturday's storm did not want to give up even as the afternoon arrived and Lisa called to confirm the walk was still on - and to my relief they were going through with it. You were basically given a wine glass and a small cartoon-like map of the restaurants and sent on your way, free to go in any one at any time. There were probably about 100 or so people participating but it is hard to say because it was so spread out. The crowd seemed to be a nice mix of locals, ex-patriots and tourists and the people working as well as participating were mostly friendly and just out for a good day. The wines were good or even above average for the most part and unlike most "tastings" we have attended they actually poured you a glass of wine instead of a generous sip. We wanted to get to the places we like and make sure we hit the ones we had interest in so we didn't spend too much time in any one location. But it seemed like if you were comfortable in one spot they would have kept your glass full for most of the afternoon.
We got a little wet along the way but no one seemed to mind. The day wrapped up at 6:00 p.m. and we jumped in a cab (wine glasses still full) and headed back to our building for the opening party for the pool. We dropped our glasses off in the apartment and headed up to the roof only to find out the party was postponed to this upcoming weekend because of the weather. This was probably for the best except for the fact that we grabbed a very mediocre dinner in one of our building's adjacent restaurants when we were just on a street filled with great choices.
Double fisting by the "Chicken Lady" lamp
We got to bed early to be well prepared for our first Tuen Ng Festival better know as the Dragon Boat Races (here's a link if you're interested in its origins http://www.regit.com/hongkong/festival/tuenng.htm). By a weird string of coincidences we made plans on attending the races in Stanley (they are held in several locations) and it turned out my company was racing at this location. When we woke up the weather was still quite gray. Lisa switched her sunglasses for an umbrella and we headed out. Of course when we got off the bus the sky was a blinding white and the heat well into the 90's (the humidity as always unbearable). Four steps off of the bus and we were covered in sweat and blind as bats. We walked around for about an hour figuring things out and finally finding our way to a small and thankfully well air conditioned restaurant where we had lunch reservations.
It was difficult to leave knowing what was out the door but we trekked on and went back to the races. Most of the companies rent "junks" which are just party boats and they anchor side by side in the water forming a large rectangle off the shore and around the race. They have deejays, food and drink and you take small motor boats out from the shore to get to your boat. People hop from boat to boat as the races go on all day. It seemed like most people were fairly reserved in an atmosphere that had all the makings of easily getting out of control. Possibly the oppressive heat had some impact. By 4:00 p.m. it did the two of us in and we took the motor boat back to shore to get on a bus with nothing but our pool in mind. (We have some pictures I will try to add when I get home but the party boats are quite a distance from the actual races so they are not the best. There was a close up of a dragon boat at the start one of my blogs some time ago.)
The Goldman team before the start of the semi-finals
Of course when we got home the pool closed from 5 to 6 and we had to wait. When it reopened we had it to ourselves and you get to swim around with beautiful views of the city. At the party next week we'll try to take some pictures of the pool and rooftop deck.
The shores were packed all for the Big Race
For now there's not much more to add. I still have no results from my exam but the average amount of people that passed the exam in May of 2007 was 16.7% so I'm not too hopeful. On tap we are planning on going to the light show (held nightly) and of course Bali at the end of the month so there should be more to report on soon.
One row of Junks watching the races
My first sentence is accurately how the holiday is listed in our calendar. There is a large festival held every year on the first Sunday after the 5th of June. So logic prevails here and if you're going to have a big celebration you should get the next day off. This would be akin to getting March 18th or more accurately the day after the Superbowl off (both days Scott has been petitioning for years).
We realize the blogs have been coming less often but I think it is just the natural progression of settling in. Most of the week I work fairly late, eat dinner, watch some TV and go to bed. Not much to blog about. This past weekend however we did have some plans slightly out of the norm.
On Saturday we participated in a Wine Walk sponsored by Time Out Magazine. We used to get Time Out NY delivered, back when we lived on SI, which was a weekly magazine that lists just about every event taking place in NYC for the week as well as tons of reviews. As luck would have it they printed the first edition of Time Out HK about a month ago so we can now find some more interesting and less publicized events taking place over here. Of course the wine walk was on like page 2 and I didn't find a reason to read much further.
About 15 bars / restaurants participated along the winding Wyndham Road. They each offered some small munchies and two glasses of wine (one red / one white). There are some very good restaurants along this road including two of our favorites (Wagyu and Zest) so it had the potential for a good day.
Of course the HK weather has been living up to its reputation and we woke up at about 5:00 am to torrential down pours and some of the loudest thunder and brightest lightning you may ever hear / see. The weather forecast here is a consistent 50-60% chance of rain, temperatures in the 80's and either humid or very humid. I know back east there is a heat wave going on that you are all probably praying to end, however though it's not quite as hot here there is no end in sight - you just learn to live with it. The strangest thing for me is how when the rain comes it does not have any impact on the heat or humidity what so ever - it just makes things wet.
So Saturday's storm did not want to give up even as the afternoon arrived and Lisa called to confirm the walk was still on - and to my relief they were going through with it. You were basically given a wine glass and a small cartoon-like map of the restaurants and sent on your way, free to go in any one at any time. There were probably about 100 or so people participating but it is hard to say because it was so spread out. The crowd seemed to be a nice mix of locals, ex-patriots and tourists and the people working as well as participating were mostly friendly and just out for a good day. The wines were good or even above average for the most part and unlike most "tastings" we have attended they actually poured you a glass of wine instead of a generous sip. We wanted to get to the places we like and make sure we hit the ones we had interest in so we didn't spend too much time in any one location. But it seemed like if you were comfortable in one spot they would have kept your glass full for most of the afternoon.
We got a little wet along the way but no one seemed to mind. The day wrapped up at 6:00 p.m. and we jumped in a cab (wine glasses still full) and headed back to our building for the opening party for the pool. We dropped our glasses off in the apartment and headed up to the roof only to find out the party was postponed to this upcoming weekend because of the weather. This was probably for the best except for the fact that we grabbed a very mediocre dinner in one of our building's adjacent restaurants when we were just on a street filled with great choices.
Double fisting by the "Chicken Lady" lampWe got to bed early to be well prepared for our first Tuen Ng Festival better know as the Dragon Boat Races (here's a link if you're interested in its origins http://www.regit.com/hongkong/festival/tuenng.htm). By a weird string of coincidences we made plans on attending the races in Stanley (they are held in several locations) and it turned out my company was racing at this location. When we woke up the weather was still quite gray. Lisa switched her sunglasses for an umbrella and we headed out. Of course when we got off the bus the sky was a blinding white and the heat well into the 90's (the humidity as always unbearable). Four steps off of the bus and we were covered in sweat and blind as bats. We walked around for about an hour figuring things out and finally finding our way to a small and thankfully well air conditioned restaurant where we had lunch reservations.
It was difficult to leave knowing what was out the door but we trekked on and went back to the races. Most of the companies rent "junks" which are just party boats and they anchor side by side in the water forming a large rectangle off the shore and around the race. They have deejays, food and drink and you take small motor boats out from the shore to get to your boat. People hop from boat to boat as the races go on all day. It seemed like most people were fairly reserved in an atmosphere that had all the makings of easily getting out of control. Possibly the oppressive heat had some impact. By 4:00 p.m. it did the two of us in and we took the motor boat back to shore to get on a bus with nothing but our pool in mind. (We have some pictures I will try to add when I get home but the party boats are quite a distance from the actual races so they are not the best. There was a close up of a dragon boat at the start one of my blogs some time ago.)
The Goldman team before the start of the semi-finalsOf course when we got home the pool closed from 5 to 6 and we had to wait. When it reopened we had it to ourselves and you get to swim around with beautiful views of the city. At the party next week we'll try to take some pictures of the pool and rooftop deck.
The shores were packed all for the Big RaceFor now there's not much more to add. I still have no results from my exam but the average amount of people that passed the exam in May of 2007 was 16.7% so I'm not too hopeful. On tap we are planning on going to the light show (held nightly) and of course Bali at the end of the month so there should be more to report on soon.
One row of Junks watching the racesMonday, June 2, 2008
I Love the Night Life
Hey. I guess it's a fact of life for any blogger that when you're busy doing interesting things that people might like to hear about, you're too busy to write, and when you have time to write, it's usually because you're not busy doing anything interesting. I haven't been doing much lately, but I'll try not to mention milk and tea again.
I have been reverting to a nocturnal lifestyle. It's a tendency I've always had, but full time employment artificially curbed it for years. I have to force myself to bed by 2 or 3 a.m. and then I sleep late and then I feel like a loser. It's an easy cycle for me to fall into. Back in my college days, I often made it to 5 or 6 a.m., at which time you could catch reruns of Mr. Belvedere and Small Wonder. They were no ALF, but...
One recent late night was quite productive. If you remember, my iTunes library disappeared from my computer just before departing and I ended up loading music back into iTunes for exactly 24 hours the day leading up to the movers' arrival. I had borrowed quite a few CD's from the Library over the years and at first I always made backup CD copies of the ones I wanted, then I got lazy and I just imported them into iTunes without making copies, so I lost a lot of music when I lost the previous iTunes library. Many were on my iPod though and in my new role as techie, I downloaded a program that recovers songs from your iPod and gets them back into iTunes on your computer. If you ever need to do this, the program Senuti worked very well. It almost took me less time to import the music than it did for me to realize that it's itunes spelled backwards. Ultimately, I gained back about 25 CD's that were only on my iPod and a handful of others that I have copies of back home but didn't have time to reload before moving. So I have around 160 CD's in iTunes now. I know there are online alternatives for listening to music in this age, but I'm comforted by my collection.
In other news, Paul took his test Saturday. It wasn't easy, so we'll see if there's more studying in the future.
Speaking of people who work, the pool in our building officially opened on June 1. The sad surprise is that it's open from 7 to 11 a.m. and then from 6 to 11 p.m. I guess the hours are aimed at people who are employed and don't sleep late and not those who might want to visit the pool at 2 p.m. and bask in the sun. If there is actually ever sun again. It's been raining, thundering and lightning a lot.
I hope the weather is better this weekend because it's the Tuen Ng Festival, or the Dragon Boat Festival and races. We hope to get over to Stanley (beach town) and catch some of it. If we do, there should be something to write about.
Here's something kind of funny. I got a phone call Friday from the internet/cable company that originally gave me an estimated installation date of late April. I guess they finally found enough cable. The next day I also received a letter from them saying, "We have received your application, but have been unable to contact you to arrange installation despite several attempts." Those cable guys - what a sense of humor.
I think our first vacation is going to be Bali, Indonesia at the end of June. It's not rainy season there as it is in other places we considered. We have to wait another week to confirm it which is totally frustrating. I did a lot of research and then we went through a travel agent that Paul's coworker recommended because it was a significantly better deal as a package, but he hasn't even confirmed the details after almost two weeks. (I see a theme here... ) I'll keep you posted.
I have been reverting to a nocturnal lifestyle. It's a tendency I've always had, but full time employment artificially curbed it for years. I have to force myself to bed by 2 or 3 a.m. and then I sleep late and then I feel like a loser. It's an easy cycle for me to fall into. Back in my college days, I often made it to 5 or 6 a.m., at which time you could catch reruns of Mr. Belvedere and Small Wonder. They were no ALF, but...
One recent late night was quite productive. If you remember, my iTunes library disappeared from my computer just before departing and I ended up loading music back into iTunes for exactly 24 hours the day leading up to the movers' arrival. I had borrowed quite a few CD's from the Library over the years and at first I always made backup CD copies of the ones I wanted, then I got lazy and I just imported them into iTunes without making copies, so I lost a lot of music when I lost the previous iTunes library. Many were on my iPod though and in my new role as techie, I downloaded a program that recovers songs from your iPod and gets them back into iTunes on your computer. If you ever need to do this, the program Senuti worked very well. It almost took me less time to import the music than it did for me to realize that it's itunes spelled backwards. Ultimately, I gained back about 25 CD's that were only on my iPod and a handful of others that I have copies of back home but didn't have time to reload before moving. So I have around 160 CD's in iTunes now. I know there are online alternatives for listening to music in this age, but I'm comforted by my collection.
In other news, Paul took his test Saturday. It wasn't easy, so we'll see if there's more studying in the future.
Speaking of people who work, the pool in our building officially opened on June 1. The sad surprise is that it's open from 7 to 11 a.m. and then from 6 to 11 p.m. I guess the hours are aimed at people who are employed and don't sleep late and not those who might want to visit the pool at 2 p.m. and bask in the sun. If there is actually ever sun again. It's been raining, thundering and lightning a lot.
I hope the weather is better this weekend because it's the Tuen Ng Festival, or the Dragon Boat Festival and races. We hope to get over to Stanley (beach town) and catch some of it. If we do, there should be something to write about.
Here's something kind of funny. I got a phone call Friday from the internet/cable company that originally gave me an estimated installation date of late April. I guess they finally found enough cable. The next day I also received a letter from them saying, "We have received your application, but have been unable to contact you to arrange installation despite several attempts." Those cable guys - what a sense of humor.
I think our first vacation is going to be Bali, Indonesia at the end of June. It's not rainy season there as it is in other places we considered. We have to wait another week to confirm it which is totally frustrating. I did a lot of research and then we went through a travel agent that Paul's coworker recommended because it was a significantly better deal as a package, but he hasn't even confirmed the details after almost two weeks. (I see a theme here... ) I'll keep you posted.
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