Macau - Walking tour of the historic district (I)

Photo by Bo. W

Macau, it is too small, it is by the Macau peninsula and two islands composed. I can describe it: If you take a taxi, horizontal straight estimated cost of about MOP$100 (about US $ 15), you can into the sea. Vertical straight spend about MOP$300 (about US $ 55), then you become a fish food.

Macau is too small, even pocket the attractions are. If you have Macau map, you can freely walk with carrying a camera in Macao, it should be the best choice. Macau's not a lot of monuments, most of them are the legacy of the Portuguese colonial buildings. The most famous Ruins of St. Paul, which has gone through many to the number of fires and that several buildings, and it is located in the Senado Square.

Photo by Bo. W

I think the best route to walk in Macau, it should be along the most famous the Avenida De Almeida Ribeiro Street to move forward, within two hours, with all the beauty will be seen.

Photo by Bo. W

In the morning, we ate breakfast at the Venetian hotel, take the shuttle bus to go to Rua do Dr. Pedro Jose Lobo Street from the Venetian hotel. Shuttle bus from the Venetian hotel to the Rua do Dr. Pedro Jose Lobo Street, it's the first shuttle bus is 10:30am. 

Photo by Bo. W

In five minutes later, we arrived at the Rua do Dr. Pedro Jose Lobo Street. From this road to Avenida De Almeida Ribeiro Street, just a few minutes, we began to walk in the tour.











Macao Post Building

Photo by Bo. W

We follow the crowd, and only a few minutes away, I saw Macao post building. It is built in 1929. It is only in Macau, it uses classical architectural structure of the large building.  

Photo by Bo. W

Macao post building located in downtown area. Its interior has a museum, which exhibited items include stamps, postal equipment, artifacts, Macau first radio station recording room, and in 1930 an automatic telephone switching centers, as well as some of the photos. There are 1937 Pan American World Airways Airlines carried the first airmail letters in Macau. The museum is open on weekdays from 3 pm to 5 pm, or to the Macao Post and Telecommunications company book it time to visit.





Tak Seng On
 

Photo by Bo. W

Walking on this road, it is easy to notice a little old-style pawnshops. It is located in a corner position on the road Macau, compared with the age of the buildings around, it is particularly striking. The words on the wall - "Tak Seng On", it tells us that it is precisely the past century witnessed the historical changes of Macau's heritage buildings.

Tak Seng was built in 1917, was originally the property of Macau businessman Gao Ke Ning, who is Macau's largest pawnshop. Pawn is an old industry in the world. In China, the history of pawn broking has more than fifteen hundred years.

Address: Macau road No. 390 and 396

Opening hours: Monday to Friday 10:30 am-8:00pm
Saturday and Sunday 10:30 am-9:00pm

Senado Square

Photo by Bo. W

Senado Square is a very famous place in Macao, and to Ruins of St. Paul, that go through from here. There are many famous buildings: 'Leal Senado' Building，Holy House of Mercy and other nearby buildings, floor tiles on the road is quite distinctive.

Senado Square has been the civic hub of Macao for centuries. Pastel-coloured neoclassical buildings spell Mediterranean, while the active participation of the local Chinese community reflects the multi-cultural dimension of the Macau society.

 

'Leal Senado' Building

 

Photo by Bo. W

Originally built in 1784, this was Macau's first municipal chamber, a function it maintains to the present. The name "Leal Senado" ("Loyal Senate") derives from the title "City of Our Name of God Macau, There is None More Loyal" which was bestowed by Portuguese King Dom John IV in 1654. 




The "Leal Senado" Building is neo-classical in design and has retained all its original master walls and primary layout, including the courtyard garden in the back. Inside the building on the first floor there is a ceremonial meeting room that opens onto an elaborate carved library styled after the library of Mafra Convent in Portugal, and a small chapel.

Address: No. 163 Av. Almeida Ribeiro (San Ma Lo)
Opening hours: Gallery: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. (closed on Mondays), Garden: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Bus routes nearby:    3, 4, 6A, 8A, 18A, 19, 26A, 33, N1A

Holy House of Mercy

Photo by Bo. W

Established by the first Bishop of Macau in 1569, this institution was modelled after one of the most prominent and oldest charitable organizations in Portugal, and was responsible for founding in Macau the first western-style medical clinic and several other social welfare structures that still function to this day. The building is neo-classical in the overall architectural treatment, but also depicts traces of mannerist influence.

Address: Senado Square

Opening hours (Museum): 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.; 2:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. (closed on Mondays and public holidays)

Admission Fee (Museum): MOP$5; students and elderly people (over 65 years old): free.

Bus routes nearby:      3, 4, 6A, 8A, 18A, 19, 26A, 33, N1A

St. Dominic's Church

Photo by Bo. W

Founded in 1587 by three Spanish Dominican priests who originally came from Acapulco in Mexico, this church is also connected to the Brotherhood of Our Lady of the Rosary. It was here that the first Portuguese newspaper was published on Chinese soil, A Abelha da China ("The China Bee"), on 12th September 1822. The bell tower, at the back of the building, has been modified into a small Museum of Sacred Art, now exhibiting a collection of around 300 artifacts.

Address: St. Dominic's Square

Opening hours: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Bus routes nearby:      3, 4, 6A, 8A, 18A, 19, 26A, 33, N1A

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