The Santa Casa da Misericordia is another of the typically Portuguese structures and institutions that fill the centre of Macau. It was constructed in 1569 on the orders of the Bishop of Macau. Its original function was that of a hospital and hospice, and I doubt that it continues to operate as such today. Instead, it provides great opportunities for pictures, as its Mannerist façade adds to the Imperial glory of the Largo do Senado.
Senate, or o Leal Senado in Portuguese, was the place in which the city’s administration was housed. It was construced in 1784 in a neo-Classical style, and the façade largely retains this original characteristic. Even today, it is the seat of the territory’s municipal and civil affairs authority, which runs the day to day operations of the municipality. The building is supposed to have a richly decorated and tiled interior, with a great chapel on the first floor. There’s also a well-appointed wooden library, with manuscripts and books that rival those of the University of Coimbra.
The Museum of Macau was opened in 1998 inside the Fortaleza do Monte, which is now a public park. I didn’t go into the Museum, as it was closed the particular afternoon I was there, but I understand that it tells the story of the territory and the people of Macau.
Macau Fort or Fortaleza do Macau is not as imposing as the forts of other colonies or cities. It is not all that high above the surrounding buildings, but that’s only because the surrounding area is already quite elevated above sea level. It was erected between 1617 and 1626, in order to protect the territory from attacks led by the Dutch East India company, although it was already in use by 1622. Between 1623 and 1746, it was the Governor’s House. As Macau’s fortunes waned, so did those of the Fort, until large parts of it were destroyed in the same typhoon that cause the collapse of Saint Paul’s, which is right next to the Fort. From that time onward (1835), the Fort’s grounds were used as a public park for the citizens of Macau. Today, the Fort’s walls are still in pretty good shape for getting an idea of the size and nature of the Fort. It houses the Museum of Macau, and has a bevy...
The ruins of São Paulo are, essential, the landmark that defines Macau. Today only the façade of the church remains standing, although there is also a small museum with a crypt at the back of the plot. St. Paul’s was the principal Jesuit cathedral in the region and was built in the late 16th and early 17th century, when Macau was an important commercial centre and the European powers looked to it as a place in which to bestow an important gift to the Jesuits. Macau became less important as Hong Kong’s fortunes rose, and the church was largely destroyed in 1835 by a fire resulting from a typhoon. The carvings, which are still visible on the façade, are actually the product of exiled Japanese Christians, and deserve a close look. The crypt, which was uncovered during restoration and excavations in the early 1990s, includes the remains of both Jesuits and a number of the Japanese...
Igreja Santo Agostinho, a church named after the great Saint Augustine, is just across a small street from the Dom Pedro V theatre. The church is done in a neo-Renaissance style and is remarkable for its high ceilings and light, airy interior. The nave of the Church is highly reminiscent of many churches in the tropics, where the open atmosphere helped to combat the oppression of the humidity. The cream walls of the structure provide a great contrast to the dark cobblestones of the streets, and the interior provides a pleasant escape from the city’s humidity. Other than that, however, the church is not really a huge tourist draw.
The Dom Pedro V Theatre is an impressive structure, in that it makes you forget that you are in China, rather than in Portugal. Originally constructed in 1860, the neo-Classical façade and the columns of the portico make this particular theatre seem like something out of Principe Real in Lisbon rather than the Pearl River Delta. It was one of the first theatres in China and is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The theatre is still used to showcase plays and theatrical performances, although I did not stay to see one of them.
The back part of the house is distinguished from the front part in that, I believe, the back contains more of the living quarters of the family. The front of the house has a number of courtyards and reception areas, but it is in the back of the house that one finds a number of galleries and private rooms that must have been occupied by the members of the family. The set-up is quite interesting, as there is a reliance on internal courtyards (similar to those in Mediterranean countries) and on symmetrical patterns for the rooms. Most things here are of wood, and there is a great contrast between the dark wood of the floors and the grills and the whitewash of the walls.
The Mandarin’s House is one of the many examples of older Chinese architecture in the old centre of Macau. The house is a large structure that has many rooms, all of which are well-preserved and cared for. The Mandarin’s House was once in a state of disrepair, but the government took special pains in order to restore it to its original state, as a means of showcasing Macau’s unique blend of southern European and southern Chinese cultures. This house was long the home of one of Macau’s prominent residents, whose name now escapes me. The man was a writer, merchant and poet, and played an important role in the relations between Europeans and Chinese in the territory. It is for this reason that his house was so large, and indeed some of the rooms include special exhibits on his life and works, in addition to the history of the house and the building style.
The Moorish Barracks, or the Quartel dos Mouros, are the old barracks in which police brought to Macau from other Portuguese colonies were quartered. Don't look for any sort of Moorish or Andalucian influences in this particular building, despite the fact that there is a slightly Arabesque style in the windows of this structure. The reason it is called Mouros is because of the preference for the Portuguese colonists to refer to all of their Muslim imports as Moors rather than by their original nationalities.
Reviews and photos of Concelho de Macau attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Concelho de Macau sightseeing.
Q: I will be staying at the Pousada de Mong-ha in Macau. Is there a bus from the Macau airport to the hotel? Thanks.
A: Yes, there are buses in the airport and the ride is free. Just tell the people in the bus terminal where your destination is, so they may tell you the appropriate bus to...
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