Macau Trip - To see & to eat (part 1)

If you want to explore Macau and take nice photos without 30 strangers' faces (or body parts) appear on your photo, remember don't go on a Sunday especially to Senado Square.

The good thing about Macau is all the places of interest are within walking distance. In the main island, the must visit is the 'Historic Centre of Macau' which is listed as UNESCO World Heritage site.It's consist of an area within walking distance and you can see all 24 buildings and structures from temples to churches, square & ruins. However, please do not be too ambitious to cover all the places. Make time to explore, take photos & in between do sit back, relax & have a couple of Portuguese tarts.

First, get yourself to Avenida da Praia Grande (that a road name) or get yourself to Grand Lisboa then it will be easier to find the way to Senado Square. Make this as your starting point and from here, maps & signboards are clearly shown. In case you need more information, the Tourism Centre is located at Senado Square.

From top: St Dominic Church, Post Office, Holy House of Mercy (next to it is McD) Senado Square (yellow building is the tourism centre)

The best dessert in Macau! Milk curd(Siong Pei Den Nai). Try the original flavor & eat it hot. But the 'Po Lo' bun is just so-so, don't waste your stomach space.The shop 'Yi Soon' is located near the fountain at Senado Square. Next shop to the left of Yi Soon is a small little stall selling portuguese tart. Can't remember the name but it is the best one we tasted. Pork bun is everywhere. We had it from a stall called Eskimo, quite good. Just bear in mind that the local never queue up, so do not stand in queue & wait to be asked, just walk right in & say your order like the locals.

When we walked along the street towards St Paul, we saw almost everyone carrying the same shopping bag. Is there a sale? What is in the bag? We followed along the trail of people with the same bag and we found it, the most popular souvenir to buy in Macau. Local biscuits from Koi Kei. This company actually has more than 3 outlets within the same row of shops and they even claim to own 97% of the market share of local biscuit sale as compare to the other local brands, like Choi Heong Yuen (another multi-outlet) and the rest. The Almond biscuit is the top seller along with Phoenix Egg Rolls (Fung Wong Qun), get the one with seaweed & pork floss.

There are plenty of shops selling knick knacks to 'antique' to fake Lesportsac along the shops heading to St Pauls. I bought some T-shirts & magnets to be given as souvenirs.

Ruins of St Paul

If you don't take a photo of St. Paul, is like going to Beijing & not take a photo of the Great Wall. So snap, snap, snap away. After exploring St. Paul, do drop by at the Macau Museum, it is very near but bear in mind that the museum is closed on Mondays. That was the reason we missed the visit.

Casino Lisboa & Hotel Grand Lisboa

We were told that in Grand Lisboa on the 2nd floor has free performance featuring sexy dancers and it gets sexier later in the night. (Aiya, we missed it ... to busy eating & shopping away)


This place is recommended by alot of bloggers, 'Wong Goon Siu Gun' located at Rua de Campo (it is walking distance from Grand Lisboa). It looks like any typical shop, quite small but when we walked in, we noticed on the wall were alot of articles & newspaper cutout about this place and even celebrities visits. The popular dishes are the handmade special noodles, where the chef sits on a bamboo to knead the noodle dough, suppose to be a lost art of noodle making. The noodle is quite springy and it comes with huge wantan & top with some dried samble flake. The combination is quite interesting & tasty. Another must try is the Crab porridge, smallest portion is for 2 persons costs HKD120 (RM60!) Quite costly but it comes with 2 small crabs & plenty of roe.

Top L-R: Pung Veng Kei, Serradura, Margaret Cafe, Portugese tart, Pork bun, Kam Chin Bang

Ctr: Old man making biscuit

Snacking is definitely a must do in Macau. Make sure you master the art of eat & walk along the way to St. Paul. Most of the stall will hand out samples and by the time you reach St Paul, you be stuffed with biscuits and dried meat. 'Kam Chin Bang' is highly recommended by a few bloggers. It's available on at a shop, "Pun Veng Kei' along Rua de Monte, again nearby St. Paul. An old man & his son bake the biscuit (abit like kuih kapit but thicker) in a tradiosional metal plate. If you plan to buy in boxes, prepare to wait however you can buy a small packet to try. Packet costs HKD10 and a box costs HKD48.
We had one of the best Portuguese tart at Margaret Cafe, nearby Senado Square. Come for breakfast, this place is pack with students & those rushing to work. We also had the pork bun (try to add butter & egg) and cheese cake (which is just mediocre).
Never go home without trying the popular Portuguese dessert, Serradura made of cream, condensed milk, vanilla oil & crumbs. Its taste abit like ice-cream with cookies crumbs as topping.

Macau Trip - Flight & Hotels

The price for AirAsia (AA) flight to Macau range from RM500 plus to RM1000 plus (for return, 2 person) depending on when you book & also depending on AA numerous promo. I think there are 4 flights per day, everyday.
So we took the 8am flight which is just nice to land in Macau by noon. Their last flight back from Macau to LCCT is around midnight, so we opt for the one which land in the evening. For those who have not been to LCCT for quite sometime, things have really change...for the better. Now there is a International terminal & a whole lots of new makan places and duty free shops. We had our brekkie at the Cafe Espresso, which i find is quite nice & it remind me of the cafe at KLIA, the one near the bookstore (aiya forgot the name) and even the selection of buns & sandwiches also looks familiar. Anyway..... Hubby said the coffee is good, ada ummph. I had my usual sausage bun whenever i take a flight, don't know why, is like a ritual...


If you notice, AA plane turn blue.....Since is was a 4 hours flight, and Hubby was ignoring me with his book, I thought I might as well go for my 2nd brekkie, the popular Pak Nasser Nasi Lemak. I was disappointed, nothing fantastic, very mediocre. Saw alot of passengers opt for the Hotdog instead.
Makes sure you have at least a mp3 player or a book to pass the time. Eh warning....Macau flight tend to have alot of elderly people that talk very very loud & Mainland China tourists, so be prepared if you know what i mean.

Macau is consists of 3 main parts, Macau, Taipa & Coloane. Most of the historical heritage sites are mostly at Macau main island. Taipa consists of a old town and the up & coming Cotai strip (consists of all the luxury hotels; Venetian, Four Seasons) Oh btw, the airport is at Taipa. And Coloane is Macau countryside, with green hills, villages & beaches.

So for the first night we've decided to stay in Macau main island, nearer to all the tourist attractions, we chose Holiday Inn Macau, at the centre of the city. We paid HKD690.00 per nite, a little pricey but we are satisfied with their service. FYI, when you are looking at the map of hotels or places of interest, if it's near Lisboa, it is near the centre of tourist attraction.


This hotel with their own casino, same as any other hotels, but we didn't go. No worry if you can't speak Cantonese, the hotel staff are very well versed in English. I was talking to them with my Malaysian Cantonese, and they answered with English....I don't think I'm that bad!

For the room, I would give them a upper 3/5 (eh means higher than average lah) Very comfortable bed. But the bathroom, was just so so, the bathtub is not inviting at all. However their toiletries were above average, with lemony & ginger scents, nice.


Then our 2nd and 3rd night, we check into the very impressive Venetian Macau at the Taipa island, so catching the flight back would be easier, the journey to airport from Venetian is just 15mins away plus I got a very very good deal The Hotel is amazing, for those who have been to Vegas, the Venetian here is almost exactly the same in term of layout & design.


The hotel has no room, all suites. The suite was so so impressive, for the amount we paid, this is so so worth it. This is definitely a 5/5. The bathroom with his & hers sink, separate toilet, bathtub (very soakable), separate raindrop shower. Toiletries look like little souvenirs.


The room is separate to 2 levels, sleeping level with luxury bed plus a huge TV and the living level is with a desk (with fax machine that double up as printer, how crazy can that be? who will come here to work...er probably conference people..mmh I answer my own question) another huge TV, a sofa set and a 4 seater dining table. It's almost like a house for some people!


For me 40% of a holiday is depend on the satisfactory level of the flight and hotel stays. It doesn't have to be luxury, but mainly is the level of comfort that helps to relax and have a goodnite sleep. That is what holiday all about. I slept like a big heavy log....

Macau Trip - Planning

Every holiday starts with planning, unless you are those people who prefer to pay travel agent to do the work. But not Me, I enjoy the donkey work...looking at websites, reading blogs, checking out bargain ...er make me feel useful that at least I'm contributing (since Hubby is paying) .

Tourism Board of Macau came out with a fantastic campaign. You can see their billboard ads everywhere, their website is so resourceful and during MATTA fair, travel guides were given out freely. A big thanks to AirAsia as well for making travel to Macau affordable. Before they open up the route to Macau, I hardly hear anyone visiting Macau unless a short stopover after Hong Kong.

This is the Macau tourism website


in here you can get almost anything, even a itinery for suggested tours. Who needs to pay for a tour guide when all this info is available down to the detailed map & the amount of time spent for different route.

The Macau tourism board had creatively workout 5 different packages to experience Macau; See, Taste, Feel, Hear & Touch....interesting.

Get hold of this very detailed free copy of Guide Book & you'll never need to buy another one.


Try to click & zoom in to look at the suggested 4D 3N packages with a estimated price for 3, 4 & 5 stars hotels...isn't it resourceful?

If you have missed the chance of getting these at the MATTA fair, you can always get it at the Macau Tourism Centre at Senado Square (you won't miss, this place is the main tourist attraction)

For accommodation, I had the best deal in town. Staying at Venetian Macau for 3D 2N with breakfasts & a Cirque du soleil show ZAIA ticket throw in & not to mention 1 way ferry ride to Hong Kong & a 2 way Macau airport transfer, all this for less than RM800!!!
I always like my hotel room to be bright, clean, preferably no outdated floral bed spread, prefer the crispy white bedsheet & comforter, flat screen TV and bathroom with a 'soakable', 'inviting' bath tub and not the one where it's there just for the sake of having a tub, if u know what i mean. So the Holiday Inn Macau is also a nice hotel, located in the centre of town, walking distance to senado square & to most of the tourist attractions.

So Macau is not only for gamblers, it is an absolutely nice place for a short getaway and to enjoy the food, cool weather and for those who has a few pataca to spend. By the way Hong Kong Dollar is widely used, so no point changing to Macau Pataca. Main language is Cantonese but with the influx of Chinese Mainland tourists, Mandarin is widely spoken as well.

Enjoy the planning....next will blog about my trip to Macau :)

Other useful blogs/ sites:

Precious Pea

Mother's Day Dinner at Sushi Tei

"Don't stress over the small stuff", some might say but what about where to eat for Mother's Day? is that considered small stuff? :) Not when your Mom is difficult to please when it comes to food. (Eh...Mum, if you are reading this, you know I'm right because you know how to enjoy! :D

I've been to this restaurant once before, and some how Hubby & I ordered the right dishes that we enjoyed...and some how when I brought my family over, the dishes we ordered just doesn't go, the table that was given just too hot, the service was just too slow ....... (Stress level 1 -Ok lah boleh tahan, I some how agree with them also)

So we went to Sushi Tei Restaurant ( If i'm not mistaken, a Singaporean own franchise chain which is available all over Asia) in Tropicana City Mall.

My Mum the poser :D

After the waitress came to inform me that my Chawanmushi will be 15mins late, the most cooked item that we ordered came first! (We naturally thought that the non-cooked item like Sashimi is easier to serve , guess again.)

Tempura Moriawase - RM12.80. Like the texture of the fried lady's finger and sotong but too bad no straw mushroom.

Next, Salmon Sashimi - RM9.80 fresh,nice and thick, definately value for money. Then Hotate (scallop) Teriyaki - RM9.80 the only taste that we can taste is the teriyaki sauce, mmh probably value for money, less that RM10 we got 6 scallops.

After that, Chuka lidako - RM6.00 quite nice followed by Sanshoku Salmon - RM9.80 my Mum & Sis favorite.

After 30 mins later, still no sign of my Mushi....waiting...waiting....waiting & finally Ikura Chawanmushi - RM12.80 Like it! Love to pop the roe. My Mum who never like chawanmushi also said it's good

Then, Golden Roll - RM19.80 with Mango, prawn & roe. My Sis the Sushigroove fan said their mango roll definately better & mango meat is so much sweeter as compare to this a bit bland, no umph

The very interesting maki, Ebiten Floss - RM6.00 prawn maki roll on fish floss! Eh.. only one comment, good try

Ended with Macha ice cream and Goma ice cream - RM6.00 each. The green tea is mediocre but the black sesame is out-of-this-world, you can even taste a bit of 'sand' the roughly grind up sesame. The best Goma ice cream I ever had :)

Overall rating I would give a 3/5
Must try: Ikura chawanmushi, sanshoku salmon & goma ice cream
Value for money: Salmon sashimi & Hotate Teriyaki
Give it a miss: Golden roll & Macha ice cream
Stress meter for the event: 1/5 ......ha ha

First posting while watching HEROES...

"Should always slow down and take time out to enjoy a nice meal or a holiday break".......... That is what some people would say. But for me, planning a holiday is stressful, always looking for the best bargain and less amount of money spent require hours & hours of research not to mention stuck in a jam while trying to get to MATTA fair. And the funny thing is I always need a holiday to recover from a holiday.......mmmhhh.

If holiday is stressful, Makan is no stress relief either......What to eat? Where to eat? What to cook? What do i have in the fridge? What to tapau? What's the best value for money promo on Mother's Day? The list is endless..

So, this blog is to record all this stressful events for my future references, and I don't have to stress on the same thing twice :)