Lost In The City: Senado Square, the Ruins of St. Paul and More Casinos (Day 3)

Today, I headed to Senado Square for a little sightseeing alone. I walked to the street behind Hotel Sintra facing the Grand Emperor Hotel, then turned left at the corner from where its was a good 10 to 15 minutes walk before reaching the entrance to Senado Square on the right guided by signs. I passed by a lot of clothing shops and some interesting European architecture along the way. The Square is composed of fine, old Portuguese buildings teeming with retail shops and restaurants, mixed with Ongpin styled alleys and backstreets. Vendors sell Chinese tapas (free tasting), egg tarts (Koi Kei Bakery is the most popular), local snacks, herbals and souvenirs.

Kanto ng Senado Square

Fine Architecture

Turning right through St Dominic's Church and following the crowds uphill led me to Macau's most iconic landmark, the Ruins of St Paul, a burned down church with only the facade left but still a sight to behold. The church holds a certain mystique about it, I guess with only the front surviving and a Catholic Church holding a symbolic importance to the Chinese. To its right is the Crypt and Museum of Sacred Art, the Museum of Macau and Macau Monte Fort. The whole area from the Square to the Ruins is a must visit for everyone coming to Macau.

St. Dominic's Church

The narrow alleys to the Ruins

Masarap dito Taro Milk Tea at Egg Tart promise!

The Ruins of St. Paul

After returning to the hotel, with everyone up and ready, we skipped breakfast as it was close to lunch time anyways and decided to have brunch buffet at the Royal Kitchen located at the Grand Emperor Hotel (HK$ 108). They offer mostly Chinese seafood and dimsum, with some Western Food and drinks. I'm not a big fan of seafood so I concentrated mostly on the dimsum and the Macanese food. Food was sumptuous although I expected more variety (only half the spread of Dad's Ultimate Buffet).

I haven't eaten in a lot of restaurants in Macau, but here's the ones I recommend:

- A Lorcha (near A-Ma Temple)
- Robuchon A Galera (expensive) (Lisboa)

The Grand Emperor

Jackie Chan owns this, and the three guards

Real gold bars inside the hotel

After a satisfying lunch, we decided to walk to the adjacent casinos nearby. We strolled past the Grand Emperor hotel going opposite the direction of the New Yaohan Mall, onward to Dr Mario Soares Avenue for about 5 to 10 minutes until we got to an oval. We then crossed the street to our first casino for the day, Wynn Macau. We watched the fountain show first, outside near the entrance. Next, we headed inside for the free Tree of Prosperity show which happens every 30 minutes. The Wynn has a classy design (best seen at sunset where it look's like it's burning), and an even classier casino & hotel with steep prices to boot. Most of the shops at Wynn are above my pay scale so I just settled for window shopping and picture taking.

Wynn Macau

Tree of Prosperity Show

Feeling a little tired, the others decided to play slots, while me and JC continued on to MGM Macau. The building looks like a three layered cake with its trademark lion statue at the back. Inside are fancy restaurants, an elegant casino and the trendy Six Senses Spa.

Wow!

Sana dito na lang next fight ni Manny!

Inside MGM

After a couple of hours on the casinos, my grandparents were still feeling tired and decided to return to the hotel while me, JC and my folks headed to the new Galaxy Hotel in Cotai. We took a Wynn shuttle bus to the ferry terminal then switched into a Galaxy shuttle bus. Galaxy is a decent hotel, design is solid, the insides look great but it was missing the wow factor that you'd get from admiring the massive size of Venetian, or the sleek and sophisticated design of Wynn or even the modern Chinese feel of Grand Lisboa. At that time, the Galaxy was the newest casino in Macau. A free floating diamond show awaits you shortly after entering the hotel. Also in the hotel is a wave pool and an artificial beach which we didn't get to see. After a little stroll we decided to head back to the hotel.

First look at the Galaxy

Diamond Fountain Show

Kryptonite?

For dinner, I guided them back to Senado Square where we ate at a Chinese restaurant. I won't comment about the food, because it wasn't any good (I've even forgotten the resto's name). We also spent an hour or two wandering around the Square. The shopping at Senado Square can't compare to Hong Kong, and although it looks pretty with the lights on, I think this place is better seen in the morning.

Looks tempting, but didn't eat here

Instead, settled for this :(

After returning to the hotel, my old folks decided to call it a night while me and JC went to more casinos. First up was Grand Lisboa where he got to witness (ehem...chicks pole dancing I mean... ehem) nothing. No matter what time of day you view it, the Grand Lisboa will get your attention. Tall, brash, and over-the-top looking like an over sized flower vase, a fitting look for the new building of Macau's traditional casino. Inside you'll see diamond displays and jewelry collections of owner Stanley Ho, the Michelin starred Robuchon a Galera and some of Macau's biggest gamblers.

Grand Lisboa

Connected via skybridge to Grand Lisboa is the older Casino Lisboa. The original casino in Macau, it now looks worn out, smells of cigarette and is in need of a makeover. It is still worth a visit to see its eye catching architecture and to experience the oldest and most famous casino in Macau.

The first, the orginal

Skybridge connecting the Lisboas

Lastly, we checked out Sands Hotel opposite the Fisherman's Wharf. The hotel is old, average and forgettable. We stayed for a while and just watched people gamble their kid's college fund before calling it a night ourselves.