Bali -
Bhutan -
Cambodia -
China -
Hong Kong -
India -
Indonesia -
Japan -
Laos -
Macau -
Malaysia -
Myanmar -
Nepal -
Singapore -
Sri Lanka -
Thailand -
Vietnam -
| |
 |
Macau- introduction
Macau is a territory located in southeast China, and was until 1999 administered by Portugal as an overseas province. Like its formerly British neighbor Hong Kong, Macau is a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.
 |
| |
|
History
In the 16th Century China gave Portugal the right to establish a colony on Macau in exchange for clearing the area of pirates. Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. It was also the last, when pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal in 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999, ending over 400 years of Portuguese administration.
China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau for at least fifty years after the transfer of sovereignty and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs.
Like the Hong Kong SAR, Macau has its own government, passports, visas, postal system and currency. |
|
|
Cities
Macau was geographically divided into three main regions: a peninsula and two islands.
The Macau Peninsula is the northernmost region, connecting to the Chinese mainland. It is the center of most tourist activity and is densely crowded.
Taipa is an island to the south of the peninsula, accessible via three bridges. It is a major residential center and is the location of Macau's International Airport.
Coloane is an island further to the south.
Cotai can be considered as the fourth region. It is an area of reclaimed land joining Taipa and Coloane, making them essentially into a single island.
|
|
|
Weather
 |
The climate is extremely diverse, from tropical regions in the south to subarctic in the north. Hainan Island is roughly at the same latitude as Jamaica, while Harbin, one of the largest cites in the north, is at roughly the latitude of Montreal.
|
|
There is also a wide range of terrain to be found in China with many inland mountain ranges, high plateaus, and deserts in center and far west; while plains, deltas, and hills are to be found in the east. On the border between the province of Tibet and the nation of Nepal lies Mount Everest, at 8,850 m, the highest point on earth. The Turpan depression, in northwest China's Xinjiang is the lowest point in the country, at 154 m below sea level. This is also the second lowest point on land in the world after the Dead Sea. |
|
|
To do
Casinos
Gambling is Macau's biggest industry and busloads arrive daily from mainland China to try their luck. Most casinos are located along the waterfront on the southern side of Macau Peninsula. North of the Lisboa is a strip with many smaller casinos, a number of hotels and bars, and quite a few restaurants. This can be one of the more interesting areas of Macau; among other things it has quite a good Indian restaurant and several Portuguese ones.
All this is going to be overtaken by the new development on the Cotai Strip, which is being made into "The Las Vegas Strip of the East". The biggest casino in the world, Venetian Macao has started operations here in August 2007 and many others will follow. There are also several casinos on Taipa, including the Crown Macau.
Greyhound Racing
Another popular form of gambling in Macau is greyhound racing, where people bet on dogs in the same way that many people in other countries bet on horses.
Adventure Activities
At a height of 233m, the bungy jump from Macau tower, maintained and operated by A. J. Hackett is the highest in the world. Along with the bungy, one can also try the Sky jump, that is somewhat like a jump but is more protected and doesn't involve a free fall, and a sky walk, that is a protected on a platform running around the circumference of the floor. Bouldering and sport climbing activities are also conducted at the tower's base. |
|
|
|
|
Map
|
|
|
|
Photo gallery
|
 |
|
|
