A stroll through the atmospheric streets of Macau will take you through 450 years of history The first foreign enclave in China, Macau has long been a crossroads for culture and trade. The Portuguese began settling here in the 1500s, representing Chinese merchants in trade with their other colonies around the world. The multicultural environment led to the development of Macanese cuisine, which blends flavours from China, Portugal, India, Malaysia and Africa to create a distinct local taste. Macau?s economic prosperity continued for more than 200 years but, by the mid-1800s, it proved no match for up-and-coming Hong Kong. Economic decline led a Portuguese governor to legalise gaming, a decision that would forever change the city?s image and fortunes. Macau was home to the father of modern China, Sun Yat-sen, who practised medicine here for two years before moving on to plan the 1911 Chinese revolution. After nearly 450 years of colonial rule, Macau returned to China on December 20, 1999. For the next 50 years, the Macau Special Administrative Region will have a ?high degree of autonomy? in all matters except foreign affairs and defence. In 2002, Macau reached another milestone when it liberalised the casino monopoly held for more than 40 years by Hong Kong tycoon Stanley Ho. Two new concessions were awarded to three companies ? the Sands, Galaxy Waldo and Wynn Resorts. The latest development in Macau is its bid to have 12 historical sites added to Unesco?s World Heritage list. The sites are vestiges of the remarkable Chinese and colonial architecture and culture that sets Macau apart. Old City Wall The first Portuguese settlers in Macau began building a defensive wall as early as 1569, using clay, rice, straw, sand and oyster shells. The wall was dismantled during the Ming dynasty, but, in the 1600s, officials gave their approval for the building of a permanent wall. Old maps show that the city was shielded from the north, east and south. Only a small section of the wall remains today. Location: To the left of St Paul?s ruins, near Rua de S Paulo A-Ma Temple This 15th-century temple is one of the oldest in Macau. The original temple, dedicated to A-Ma (also known as Tin Hau, the goddess of seafarers), was in place before the arrival of the Portuguese. When Portuguese sailors asked where they had landed, locals said ?A-Ma-Gau? (which means Bay of A-Ma), and that is how Macau has been known ever since. The temple has been renovated and rebuilt over the years. Many famous artists and poets have made pilgrimages here, leaving verses and paintings on the rock faces of the site. The temple combines Confucian, Taoist and Buddhist concepts. Location: On Barra Hill, off Rua S Tiago da Barra. Bus nos. 6, 9, 28B Dom Pedro V Theatre Built in 1860 and renovated several times, this neoclassical theatre in St Augustine?s Square has a lobby, a ballroom, a circular auditorium and a stage with a crescent-shaped balcony. Named after King Dom Pedro V, the theatre was built with funds from the local Portuguese community and became a focal point for celebrations, ceremonies, concerts and films. Card games and snooker were also popular here. Location: In St Augustine?s Square, behind the Leal Senado Guia Fortress Built on the highest hill in Macau, the fortress has served as a defence since the early 1600s. It includes the Guia chapel and the Guia lighthouse. When the chapel was being restored in 1996, workers discovered frescoes on the interior walls. Now fully restored, the frescoes are believed to be the work of local artists who combined biblical with Chinese themes. The lighthouse was built in 1865 and is the oldest off the coast of China. Typhoon damaged put it out of commission for more than 30 years, but it was reopened in 1910 and has been in operation since. Macau takes its city co-ordinates from the location of the lighthouse. The fortress was opened to the public in 1976. The only religious ceremony celebrated at the chapel is on August 5, the feast day of Our Lady of the Snow. Location: Take the Guia Cable Car outside Flora Garden on Rua do Tunel, near Avenida Sidonio Pais Holy House of Mercy The centre of altruism in Macau, the Holy House of Mercy was founded in 1569 by the first bishop of Macau, Dom Belchior Carneiro. The house worked with locals and provided charitable assistance. In the 1700s, it was a home for orphans and prostitutes and was headed by the Macanese trader Martha Merop, who was the subject of Austin Coates? book City of Broken Promises. The white brick and granite building also houses a museum. Location: In the centre of Leal Senado Square on Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro Mandarin?s House The home of Chinese ideologist and economist Zheng Guanying and his father was built in 1881. Zheng wrote Word of Crisis in a Prosperous Era here in 1894, a book that is believed to have influenced Sun Yat-sen and Mao Zedong. The Macau SAR bought the property in 2001 and is restoring the site to its former grandeur. The traditional Chinese compound includes courtyards, gardens and living quarters, and the architecture blends Chinese and western elements. Location: On the corner of Barra Street and Antonio da Silva Lane, near Penha Church Monte Fort Monte Fort was built by the Jesuits in 1626 for the College of the Mother of God. It was the principal military facility in Macau and it was said that its wells, arsenal and supplies could provide for soldiers for two years. The northwest and southwest walls, facing China, do not have battlements, suggesting that the fortress was designed only to fend off attacks from the sea. Cannons were used only once, to successfully repel an attempt by the Dutch to invade. The fort served as an observatory between 1965 and 1996 and is now home to the Macau Museum. Location: Take the escalator just east of the ruins of the Church of St Paul Moorish Barracks Built to house a 200-member regiment from Goa, the then Portuguese colony in India, the barracks were completed in the 1870s. They were designed by an Italian architect in a neoclassical style with Moorish touches, including pointed arches and mosaic-like ornamentation. They now house the Macau Maritime Administration. Location: On Barra Hill, facing the Inner Harbour, not far from A-Ma Temple. Bus nos. 6, 9, 28B St Joseph?s Seminary This Jesuit seminary has trained priests for missions in China and the rest of Asia. Built in 1728 in a neoclassical style, it has been restored several times. Its baroque-style church was built in 1758. Location: On Seminario Street, near Dom Pedro Theatre in St Augustine?s Square Leal Senado While this colonial building in the centre of town houses the Institute for Civic and Municipal Affairs, everyone refers to it as Leal Senado, a token of the governing body?s loyalty to Portugal during the 60 years of Spanish rule in the 1600s. Built in 1784, it features classical Portuguese architecture and an art gallery, black wood-panelled library and open courtyard lined with blue and white ceramic tiles. Location: Faces the square of the same name on Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro Na Tcha Temple Built in 1888, this five-metre-long, single-chamber shrine honours the monkey warrior of Chinese legend Na Tcha. Location: Next to the ruins of St Paul?s Church, near the old city wall Ruins of St Paul?s Perhaps Macau?s most recognised symbol, the ruins of St Paul?s rest on the site of the former Portuguese enclave?s first Jesuit centre. Built in 1565, the Church of the Mater Dei was consumed by fire in 1593 and 1602. A new church was built in 1602 and, with its extensive library, was considered the first university in the east. Fire destroyed the complex again in 1835, leaving only the elaborately carved granite facade that stands today. Bones of martyrs from Japan and Vietnam are interred in its crypt. Location: Rua de S Paulo, not far from Leal Senado Square
