I was already standing in the check-in line at the Budapest airport when I heard my name called. A Finnair employee called me and said that due to the typhoon approaching Hong Kong, I could only get to Helsinki with this plane, because the Helsinki-Hong Kong flight was canceled, so she suggested that I rebook my ticket for a later date, or if possible, they would help me rebook with another company. We found an option, but before they could book the ticket, the plane was canceled, so I stayed in Budapest for three more days, even though my wife was already on her way to Hong Kong. The following Tuesday, I was at the airport again, and we finally left for Helsinki and then to Hong Kong. Upon arrival, it turned out that my luggage had not been put on the plane, so I gave my address there, where to deliver the package when it arrived, and I left the arrivals area with my emergency change of clothes in my hand luggage. My wife was already waiting for me, we headed to our accommodation to drop off what I didn’t need for the next few days, and then we headed on to the port.
So I arrived into Macau, with only one change of clothes. The city’s impressive casinos are reminiscent of Vegas, and you can find many of the same hotel and casino brands as in Vegas here, but this one is clearly Asian. The decorations of the buildings, but especially the restaurants, which typically offer the best of Chinese cuisine, remind us of where we are. And of course, you have to play here if there are so many casinos, but you only do well if you let your lucky wife sit at the roulette table.
Macau’s history is one of the most unique examples of the meeting of East and West, as it was the first and last European colony in East Asia. The area was originally a haven for fishermen and farmers, protected by the goddess of the sea, A-Ma. The city’s current name also comes from this: when the Portuguese landed near the A-Ma Temple in the 1550s and asked the name of the place, the locals replied: “A-Ma-Gau” (A-Ma Bay), which became Macau in Portuguese.
In 1557, the Portuguese received permission from the Chinese Ming Dynasty to establish a permanent trading base in exchange for curbing pirates in the area. Macau quickly became a golden gateway for world trade, connecting Europe, China and Japan. During this period, Jesuit missionaries also settled here, making the city the center of Christianity in Asia. The most visible monument of this period is the ruins of St. Paul’s Cathedral, which is now the symbol of the city.
In the 19th century, Macau’s importance as a commercial center began to decline, after the deep-water port of Hong Kong, under British rule, took over as the leading port. The Portuguese government then looked for a new source of income and in 1849 legalized gambling. This decision fundamentally determined the future of Macau and set it on the path to becoming the “Monte Carlo of the East”.
In the second half of the 20th century, due to political changes in China, Portugal gradually began to withdraw. On December 20, 1999, Macau was officially returned to China and, like Hong Kong, became a Special Administrative Region under the principle of “one country, two systems”. This gives Macau its own legal system and economic autonomy for 50 years.
Modern-day Macau is one of the richest and most densely populated areas in the world. Its economy is almost entirely based on tourism and the casino industry, with revenues now far exceeding that of Las Vegas. But history is still present: the city center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where Portuguese tiles (azulejos) and Baroque churches sit right next to modern casino giants and Chinese markets, creating a cultural cocktail that can be found nowhere else.
