macau.

After being in Hong Kong, I expected Macau to be something similar. Maybe even a little more. It is about an hour ferry ride from Hong Kong Island. Sometimes I wish the subways, airplanes, and ferries were all transparent, because it don't think we realize the ways and means of which we travel. I can take the subway to Hong Kong Island. And island. I don't know anything about how that works but I imagine myself being shot through a hollow tube at high speeds under water. Can you imagine the reality of it? Or flying? We are in a chamber, MILES above the Earth's surface where the temperatures are well below freezing at high speeds. But we go about our business, reading, watching movies and the like, only to hear the deadened hum of the violent torrents from which it came.

So to get to Macau, I have to be shot through a tube underwater to get to an island, from which I then ride a boat out on a turbulant and bottomless ocean before I get to Macau. The ferry to Macau was pleasant, a bit rough but I found the undulation of the ocean relaxing. The other passengers didn't seem to think so. To my surprise a good many had motion sickness. So periodically, you could hear the coughing, spitting, and dry heaves (now and then hearing the contents hitting the bag) of some very miserable seafarers.

The first thing I noticed is that everything is written in at least Chinese and Portuguese. I was rather relieved to be able to recognize an alphabet and read it. The second thing I realized is that not everyone speaks Portuguese. I believe the more educated people can, because I sat through Mass that was conducted in Portuguese. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to "setup shop" in China, so I was under the impression that there would be beautiful European architecture everywhere. I was dropped of in a very run down part of town. It was a residential area by the docks and it reeked of petrol and fish. The map that I was provided wasn't a detailed map, leaving out road names, and I was forced to go by intuition. But if I had to do anything before I left, I had to go see the Ruinas de Sao Paulo--the Ruins of Saint Paul. One of the oldest churches in Macau, it was burned to the ground and only the facade remains.

I walked through the narrowing streets for a while, taking my time. The streets started to become speckled with stones instead of pavement. I was coming up an inclined street when I came upon pastel painted apartments, clearly not of Chinese design. And in the void, where the apartments and street met, there was a stone structure. It looked like a building with no walls. I continued to walk toward it and what unfolded before me was what I was looking for, As Ruinas de Sao Paulo!

It was the only church that I visited that wasn't painted in pastels. St. Anthony's and St. Lawerence Church were both painted in pastels. Inside was adorned with Spanish tile of intricate designs on the floor and ceiling. All to be contrasted with dark-stained pews and altar. Every once and a while, among the tattered buildings, you with find a little piece of Europe. Government buildings and churches all of Portuguese architecture. But they are all spread out. But where the Ruins of Sao Paulo were, the streets and buildings were all European-esque. Adjacent to the Ruins are a museum and a fortress so I was able to do much more than I expected without traveling too far. I also stumbled upon the Real Senado. It was well-kept, with its cobblestone streets and pastel buildings. There were doing some renovation to some of the old governments buildings so I couldn't see the Senado in all its glory.

I wish I could go back and do more. I didn't get to see the other islands that are a part of Macau because I was pressed for time and money. But I don't have any regrets. I did want I set out to do, and that was see the Ruins of Sao Paulo. And though I usually don't have set plans, I like it like that. Because the best thing about not knowing where you are going next is that all roads lead there.

china.

I originally planned to make a runnnig blog of my travels but because of the fact that the Chinese government blocked my blog site, I was unable to write about my accounts until now.

For the past two and a half weeks, I have been exploring China. I started in Dalian, and via Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, and Xi'an, I finally arrived here, in Hong Kong. There really is an art to travel. And it isn't something that comes naturally. Its takes a couple of uncomfortable trips, stupid mistakes, and losing money to really learn how to be a skilled, smart traveler. I, just like any, have made such mistakes. And my motto in preparation for this trip as been semper preparatus: always prepared. But I think I was overly prepared. I was too prepared. I was preparing for everything but the plague, it seemed like. What I should have done, was to prepare for the most likely mishaps. But then again, one could argue that anything could really happen.

China is different, this is for sure. The one thing I have been thinking about is if courtesy is a cultural characteristic rathar than a innately human characteristic. Because the Chinese have not, by my definition of courtesy, been very courteous. It is by all means every-man-for-himself mentality. I say this from my experiences in mainland China. But I don't know. I don't know if it is simply that they aren't courteous or they don't know any better. I can only hypothesize that maybe it was due to the communist regime. Living in a society where hard work isn't merited by some sort of reward, such as increase pay or a better job suited for your wants and needs, it seems understandable that the masses do things to be one step ahead of everyone else. If the government doesnt recognize the hard work and sacrifice, you have to find other means to get ahead. It it seems to have seeped into their very etiquette towards each other.

I think I have most enjoyed Beijing, Shanghai, and now, Hong Kong. They are major cities in China and has a long history of interactions with the rest of the world. Nanjing was interesting because of the Nanjing Massacre Museum. If anyone doesn't know about it, I highly recommend you read about it. It doesn't receive enough recogition, I feel. The museum tells of the accounts of the Japanese occupation in 1937. They did absolutely atrocious acts against humanity through their brutality toward the Chinese. In the past, far removed from now, Japan has had a history of aggression on mainland Asia. Walking through the museum, it was heart wrenching for me because they were brutal and on a personal level, I feel that Korea and China share many of the same pain and sorrow caused by Japan. Thankfully the Japanese are not like that whatsoever but what it did start was a silent resentment that has been carried through the generations. Even now, I hear about blind prejudice against the Japanese from those who were never alive to witness what happened.

Hong Kong has a different feel than mainland China. I had the opportunity to take the famous Peak tram up to the top of a mountain and see a breathtaking site of Hong Kong. Hong Kong Island reminds me of Manhattan while Kowloon is Brooklyn. It is as multicultural as New York City with all races walking the streets. Hong Kong is a tropical island city like Hawaii with beautiful flora and green covered mountains. It has a romantic side to it, which I like. When I was in China, I didn't feel that any of the cities had a romantic feel to it. Shanghai could but doesn't compare with Hong Kong because Hong Kong has that organic beauty.

I hope to see what Macau is like. It shouldn't be too long now before I take the ferry there. I've always wanted to go to Macau because I told myself it will be the closest thing to Portugal I'll get for a long time.