Yalie mini-reunion #1

Carrie Nguyen ES'09 stopped by Macau on her way from Vietnam back to the States, so Emily and I took her out to yum cha and walked around quite a lot of Macau: Grand Lisboa, Senado, etc. Even though I've been to those places before, we always find something new to gawk/laugh at.

The first time I was in the Grand Lisboa, it was at night, and I was looking for another place altogether, so I didn’t really take a good look around. When we come home at night and see it from the bus window, the sparkling lights look absolutely garish, but I still have to admire the coordination of all the bulbs, even with changing colors. I got a similar feeling inside the lobby – it was so over-the-top, but you can’t help marveling at the ostentatious displays of wealth.

A massive, glittery chandelier

A multi-ton jade sculpture

A similarly elaborate gold sculpture

Even the bathrooms were draped with crystal strings

Senado felt much more like authentic Macau, especially with the weekend Lion Dance performance at the steps of St. Paul’s Ruins. It was pretty warm out that afternoon, so it must have been boiling for the performers inside the costumes. However, they still managed to seem as if they were having fun too, going around the audience to let all the kids (and many of the adults) pet the lion heads and take photos.

Lion dancing

So soft and fuzzy!

Hi kid.

Of course, no trip to Senado is complete without stopping by Lemoncello for gelato…I tried some new flavors (grapefruit peach and kiwi), both of which were quite yummy. Outside, though, we (literally) ran into some clowns…turns out they were advertising a new snack shop or something.

No, the police were not coming to arrest them.

After that, Emily took Carrie to see Zaia at the Venetian while I ran a few errands, then we met back up for dinner at a Portuguese restaurant near MPI. Amy and Holly came along too, so we had a lot of fun critiquing the Miss Macau pageant (the restaurant was broadcasting it) over some very yummy fried rice, mussels, and other dishes. I went home while the rest of the girls went for post-dinner foot massages, but then we reunited for some walking around the casino area, namely MGM and the Wynn.

Possibly the craziest part of the night: midnight fountain show at the Wynn! I’ve watched the show at other times before, but they’re all different, with varying songs and therefore varying water patterns. This one was especially elaborate, perhaps because it’s the last one for the night:



After that, we went to one of the bars in ZAPE intending just to get a drink and hang out. Emily and Tom left earlier because they had to get up for debate in the morning, but Sam, Carrie and I stayed there talking until almost 3 AM! We briefly stopped by Cubic, but the club was charging $100 MOP cover, so we didn't feel it was worthwhile. All in all, though, it was a fun night =)