Falling in Love with Hongkong-Macau Eps 2 (end)

Day 3, Monday Sept 5^th 2016 - Time for Macau…

Macau, just across Pearl River Delta from HongKong, there are so many giant casinos so it’s called Las Vegas of Asia. Macau is another Special Administrative Region of the People’s Repblic of China, like HongKong, they have their own currency and you need to pass the immigration to enter Macau. For Indonesian Passport Holder like me, you don’t need any visa to enter HongKong and Macau, you can stay up to 30days per visit. 

To reach Macau, you need to take a jet boat from HongKong Macau Ferry Terminal, located in HongKong Island near Central Pier. As me from Chung King Mansion that located in Kowloon Island, first I walk toward Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier (takes me about 10 minutes walk with four wheel luggage … lol). Then I took a local boat from Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui Pier to Central Pier, cost me 2HK$/pax for lower deck seats, its only takes about 10-15 minutes ride. Then walk toward HongKong Macau Ferry Terminal (15 minutes walking distance).

Waiting Area of Star Ferry Pier

The pier condition is nothing special at all, HongKong people take this boat to go and get back from work every day. The boat have upper deck and lower deck, where lower deck is cheaper, well the fare difference is not really much, just around 50 cents.

Inside Star Ferry, Lower Deck

The boat sent you to Central Pier number 2, so you have to walk again about 15minutes to reach Hongkong Macau Ferry Terminal. Actually you can take MTR from Tsim Sha Tsui to Central Pier, but it will cost you around 10HK$ /pax, and also you have to walk same long path until you reach HongKong Macau Ferry Terminal, so take a boat is the cheapest option and also you can enjoy the scenery of Victoria Harbour from boat.

Cotai Water Jet

I took Cotai Water Jet to go to Macau with only 110HK$ one way /pax (normal rate will cost you 165HK$ one way /pax), just get promotion from Cotai Water Jet mobile app (pardon my smartness… hahahah). The ticket I bought suppose be depart on 11AM, but we took an early sail on 10:15AM since we arrive early.

The waiting room is so much different from local boat, ya laaaa the ticket also much more expensive then a local boat.  

And inside is clean and spacious. The boat sail every 30minutes – 1 hour, and the journey from HongKong Macau Ferry Terminal to Macau Taipa Ferry Terminal is about 30 minutes long. I wonder when Indonesia will have this kind of boat from Merak to Bakauheni-Lampung.  

FYI, maybe you should know that in Hongkong there are two separate piers that have cruise service to Macau : HongKong Macay Ferry Terminal (located at HongKong Island-Central) and the other one is Kowloon China Ferry Terminal (located at Kowloon Island-Tsim Sha Tsui Area).

30minutes later, welcome to Macau!!! But where am I, I was lost except I knew that I was at Macau Taipa Ferry Terminal? Most people that visited Macau told me that you don’t have to take taxi or public bus to travel around Macau, because every yes every casino and hotel have free shuttle bus and you can take that shuttle bus to explore Macau. So just hop on and off any bus, it will let you enjoy free Macau City Sightseeing Tour. 

Casinos on the left, casinos on the right… I took Wynn bus first (shuttle bus that provided by Wynn Hotel and Casino), then back to Macau Taipa Ferry Terminal. Then took another shuttle bus, Lisboa bus (another shuttle bus that provided by Lisboa Hotel and Casino), then back again to Macau Taipa Ferry Terminal. 

Damn, wandering around and around without any information how to reach my hotel, Riviera Hotel Macau. They said in website that they have free shuttle bus also, but didn’t explain how to get there, and where to wait the shuttle bus! Yea, I picked a hotel that a little far from city, wrong decision. After ask here and there, finally they told me I have to wait the shuttle bus from Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal.

Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal

So I took another Wynn bus, they delivered me to Wynn Hotel, and change another Wynn bus that will deliver me to Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal. Do you get the idea? So the bus have two lines, and Macau have two separate ferry pier, there is no direct shuttle bus from Taipa Ferry Terminal to Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal. 

Riviera Hotel Macau, 4 Stars, 880.000 IDR/night (incl. Breakfast)

Took me like almost 2-3hours to wait this stupid Riviera Shuttle Bus, I don’t know, maybe I missed the bus? They have timetable and not standby like those big casino’s shuttle bus. I am so desperate on that time, but finally after a very long wait the mini-van coming. Thanks God! Check in, very nice and spacious room and his amenities cheer me a little bit. They have free small gadget like smartphone with internet for you to carry while you are going out. Will help you avoid getting lost, and this is very good idea for hotel to providing this service. 

For anyone who will be staying in Riviera Hotel Macau, this is shuttle bus schedule Riviera Hotel Macau, from and to Macau Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal. 

Now with smartphone and internet on, I am ready to get lost! Hahaha… But today was not a great weather, rainy and it sucks. Back to downtown to find some food, I am HUNGRY, so much!! Macau mee with abalone will be my late lunch today. Thin noodles with ebi fried on top, and some abalone’s slices. Taste okay, but not so great. I prefer fat and chewy Bakmi Bintang Gading or Bakmi Lungke. (lol, hope you understand what I mean). 

Instead of big casino, Macau also have another western historical side. Macau was administered by the Portuguese Empire from mid 16^th century until 1999. Some of road’s name still in Portuguese language, and Macau is so famous of their Portuguese egg tart! With Chinese touch, some of them are selling these egg tart with bird nest jelly on top.  So Yummmyy~~~  

Then I found a small old bakery shop selling Chinese moon cake. So old, so small, but their product is so crazy delicious! I don’t know the address, like I said let’s get lost, but because this is not on tourist shopping list, and I think local people is their priority customer, the moon cake is very cheap.

Walk to nowhere, and we found shopping area in Macau. Because of the rain, the area was a little bit deserted, I think it supposed be crowded and peak since most of tourist will come here.

I thought I have enough food already, but then this shop full of tourist just stand there and block my way! This pile of meat jerky automatically just whispering says “come, pick me, buy me, eat me!!”. Fresh, chewy, fat, and oily meat jerky make you drooling, but hey you can get a sample taste from it, just ask the seller, and don’t forget to buy some! :D 

Not forget to take some pictures of Macau-Portuguese Church and Building, just a random building but yet still enchanting. 

As the night come, and the sun down, Macau is more spectacular and dazzling with their Big Casinos Building full of light. Today is not my day to play some game inside the casino, my foot was too tired and I don’t wanna missed my bus again. Culinary, Fun, Historical, everything is here, MACAU!



Day 4, Tuesday Sept 6^th 2016, Macau-HongKong 

Today is free day without any complicated plan, actually I plan to go back to HongKong early and visit Big Buddha, but then I lose track of time once I entered some casinos and played. I am not a gambler, play for fun just like kids in Timezone / Fun World trying to get the tickets as much as they can… So do I. Too bad we can’t take any picture inside the casino.

Free drinks all available in every casino, some offer you water or tea or milk tea or coffee. Yes free drinks! Don’t worry if you not really understand how to play, there is a teaching table on the corner and a banker teacher that willing to teach you how to play some game. So I spent almost like half day in casino, just small money but that’s interesting and fun. I win around 200HK$ only la… like I said I played small.

Now now now, before that, I visited a beautiful chapel in the morning before I checked-out my room. Chapel of Our Lady Penha, the location is behind Riviera Hotel Macau, walking distance just like 5-10minutes.

The Beauty of Macau Tower

Around 11am, but no other visitor except me and two young man that I don’t know. It was so quite, so beautiful, and so mystic. As the location is on the top of the hill, you can see Macau Tower clearly from here. 

Macau Tower, have 63 floors in total with measure 338 meters high, you can challenge yourself by doing a Bungy Jump. I really want to try that, but it’s damn expensive, almost 3500HK$ for one jump. They said macau tower bungy jump is world’s highest bungy jump https://www.ajhackett.com/macau/, cool huh…?

The Venetian Macau

I didn’t have time to visit the famous Ruins of St. Paul’s, is because I stuck at the casino…hahahah… But I didn’t miss the famous Venetian Macau, a shopping mall and a hotel and a casino, all in one. It’s located near Taipa Ferry Terminal, since I was planning to go back to HongKong this afternoon. The Venetian Macau is under construction of making a new tourist spot, Parisian Macau, replica of Paris’s Eiffel Tower. It should be done by now.

HK welcomed us with warm night view

Took same Cotai Water Jet service to go back to HongKong, but it was night already, and they have different ticket price for night sailing, Cotai Water Jet cost me 161HK$ /pax for night sailing from Macau to HongKong.


You can use Hongkong Dollar or Macau Dollar in Macau, but Macau Dollar is not acceptable in HongKong. So everytime you buy something, ask them to give you HK$ as the change. And casino do not accept macau dollar.


Day 5, Wednesday Sept 7th 2016, HongKong-Home Sweet Home

Today is my last day in HongKong before I leave and back to my own country. Since my flight is near afternoon time, I spend half the day to shopping at Nathan Road, near dormitory I stayed. Yes, i stayed in Apple Inn (www.appleinn.com.hk) for a night, clean female dorm with bathroom inside. Located on Sun Hing Building 11F-14F, they also have mix dorm. Free Wi-Fi, free laundry, drinks and snacks if available, free baggage storage, also free use of computer including print and copy, and more important no bug bites!! Recommended for solo traveler, or traveling with friends, I would like to come back and stay here again.

Just for completed your day in HongKong, dont forget to eat HongKong Wonton Soup. Fat wonton with fresh meat and clear soup... damn yummy! Thats the end of my journey, now I fully understand why people love HK and Macau so much, and keeps coming back again and again, free visa (for Indonesian Passport Holder), good food, good view, good shopping, and everything is tourist friendly.