"Every block of stone has a statue inside it, and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” — Michelangelo
I slept really well, much better than I do in our own home with its hard mattress on a too small bed. I ate my normal Sofitel breakfast, that I never eat anywhere else: bacon, pak choi and fish balls in curry sauce.
Then it was down to the pool. The cherub statues had done a great job of gushing out cooler water overnight and the pool was at a respectable temperature, warm but still refreshing. We swam for a long, long time, then lay on our loungers till we felt so hot, we could stand no more of it.
These little cherubs battled all night to cool down the pool.
My own little cherub swimming. Haha!
It was time for me to go exploring. On our last stay I had come across a statue of a child playing with a dog, and while googling it later, I had discovered an entire park of statues. Their location really took me by surprise as they were located right next to The Holiday Inn, the hotel we always stayed in when we came here long ago. It was our home from home during the SARS outbreak in 2003 and the park was certainly not filled with statues at that time.
I could have gone to the park by bus, but I decided just to walk even though it was ridiculously hot. The most pleasant part was wandering along the Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro. This is a great street to walk on, because it is protected from sun and rain as the buildings above it project out from first floor level forming a roof over the street below. There are lots of jewellery shops near the end of this street and each one seems to blast ice cold air from its air conditioners onto the street. I'd have just stood still and enjoyed it, but I'd probably have been suspected of casing the joint.
These overhanging roofs are brilliant.
I had told myself that because of the heat I was to go straight to the park without deviating off elsewhere. I almost managed it, but when I saw The Jardim do Sao Francisco, I realized I have not been there for ages and decided to cross the road and visit it. I should have taken a picture of The Military Club next to it before crossing the road, as it looks very impressive from the front, but it's impossible to photograph when you are too near it. Both The Military Club and the walls of The Jardim do Sao Francisco are bright pink and white.
The Jardim do Sao Francisco is located on the site of a sixteenth century convent, which was built by a Spanish Franciscan Order from Castille. The convent itself was demolished long ago.
The garden is in three sections. The lowest section contains an octagonal library and The Military Club. The second section consists of ornate stairways and terraces, joining the upper and lower part of the gardens. The upper level of the gardens has a small pink and white round tower. This tower was originally built by the Portuguese as a war memorial, but nowadays it is used by the Association of the Handicapped.
The pink and white walls of Jardim do Sao Francisco.
The pink and white walls of Jardim do Sao Francisco.
Roots and shelters.
Stairway.
Terrace between different levels of the park.
Round tower.
Military Club and The Grand Lisboa.
I was going to retrace my steps back down through the park, but I found another way out. I was heading to Jardim Comendador Ho Yin which has a Sculpture Park of Chinese Ethnics, but before getting there I passed The Arco Oriente. This giant rust coloured steel arch is thirty-five metres tall. It was erected in 1996 as a symbol of the friendship between Portugal and China prior to the handover of Macau in 1999.
The Arco Oriente.
The Arco Oriente.
The Comendador Ho Yin Garden was created in 1993 and provided some much needed green space in built-up Macau. It has a fountain and lots of greenery and shady places to sit. Then in 2019, to mark the twentieth anniversary of the Macau Handover, The Sculpture Park of Chinese Ethnics was created here. This is a collection of fifty-six life sized statues of each of the ethnic groups of Mainland China. The groups are set out in a way that relates to their geographical position in China. I think I took photos of all fifty-six statues, but don't worry, I'll just put a few on here. I'll put the name of the ethnic group in the caption. There's an indoor part to this exhibition, too, but I didn't go in to it.
Map of The Comendador Ho Yin Garden.
Layout of The Sculpture Park of Chinese Ethnics.
Fountain.
Maonan.
She.
Blang.
Jino.
Dong.
Russos.
Zhuang.
Uzbek.
Coreanos.
Lhoba.
Cazaques.
Yugar.
Statue. Unfortunately I don't know the ethnicity.
Below The Comendador Ho Yin Garden is Dr. Carlos d'Assumpcao Park. At one time there used to be a little cafe here. In the past we would come to Macau by ferry and walk to this park. We would then have a drink and a snack before checking in to The Holiday Inn just across the street. I don't think the cafe is there any longer, at least I didn't see it. There were long lines of trees giving shade. Some trees had colourful flowers. I noticed many people had found a shady spot and just zonked out in it. Actually I feel they were a lot smarter than me. I was beginning to wilt.
Map of Dr. Carlos d'Assumpcao Park.
Tree lined pathway.
Plenty of shade and places to sit.
Roasting hot day, Macau.
Roasting hot day, Macau. I know just how they feel.
Flowering trees.
Flowers.
I continued on towards The Kun Iam Ecumenical Centre. On the way I passed several ponds. The Kun Iam Ecumenical Centre is currently closed. I guess there's some renovation going on there. I've been here before several times. The ecumenical centre is topped by a twenty metre high statue of Kun Iam, goddess of mercy.
Ponds.
Water lilies.
Ponds.
Kun Iam.
I had considered walking from here to Fisherman's Wharf, but it was just way too hot. Instead I decided I would head in the direction of home, but stop off in the MGM Hotel on route. I had intended to visit this hotel when I visited The Lisboa, Grand Lisboa and Wynn Hotels, but I didn't because it started pouring. I especially wanted to go to MGM Hotel because I had read that it had two sculptures by Salvador Dali. Of course, being MGM there is a large lion outside the hotel.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Lion.
The first sculpture by Dali is actually outside the hotel, too. It's called 'Alice in Wonderland' and depicts a young girl skipping.
Alice in Wonderland.
Alice in Wonderland.
Inside the hotel lobby the second sculpture by Dali is 'Dalian Dancer.' On display above Dalian Dancer there are hand blown glass flowers created by American artist, Dale Chihuly.
Dalian Dancer.
Dalian Dancer.
All around there are beautifully decorated lions. These have been on display here since The 2014 Biennial of the Lions which celebrated diplomatic relations between France and China. There are a total of fifty lions, but they are not all on display at the same time. They reminded me of The Cow Parade in Zurich, except with lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The 2014 Biennial of the Lions.
The lobby is decorated with European style architecture, Portuguese tiles, butterflies and giant flowers. From time to time the display in here is changed.
In the lobby of The MGM Hotel.
In the lobby of The MGM Hotel.
In the lobby of The MGM Hotel.
In the lobby of The MGM Hotel.
In the lobby of The MGM Hotel.
Churches depicted on Portuguese tiles.
Hunt scene depicted on Portuguese tiles.
Ships depicted on Portuguese tiles.
MGM symbol.
I walked home along the edge of Nam Van Lake. There were good views towards Macau Tower and Our Lady of Penha Church. I took a look at some art work outside The Wynn Hotel.
Looking towards The Macau Tower.
Looking towards The Macau Tower.
Looking towards The Macau Tower.
Looking towards Our Lady of Penha Church.
Looking towards The Grand Lisboa.
Art work outside Wynn Hotel.
I was soon pleased to be back on shady Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro. When I got back, Peter said it was too hot to swim and I had to agree, so we just relaxed in the room for a while.
Walking home.
Walking home.
We had dinner then went down to the pool in the dark. That's one way to avoid the sun. Unfortunately half the hotel had the same idea so it was really quite busy.
Late night swim.
The hotel sparkles at night.
Next day we had a free late check out till two, so we got up a little later, ate breakfast and headed to the pool for a long relaxing swim. The river views were stunning as always.
Sunshine over the river.
Sunshine over the river.
Sunshine over the river.
I decided to get Peter a wheelchair at immigration and customs again as he had a bit of an upset stomach. I pushed him all the way to the golden bus that would take us across the bridge. Back in Hong Kong, we caught the B6 feeder bus to Tung Chung, then waited briefly for a bus home. It was a fairly smooth return journey.
This featured blog entry was written by irenevt from the blog Macau.
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