Macau: Lure of the luck–III

Raana Haider

The far-reach of European colonial connections is apparent in Macau. A villa built in 1770 was originally the residence of a wealthy Portuguese merchant, Manuel Pereira. Later on, it was rented out to the English East India Company. The Protestant Cemetery is the final resting place of the Orientalist artist George Chinnery (1774-1852) as well as several officials of the East India Company. Known as the Moorish Barracks, the building was constructed in 1874 to accommodate an Indian regiment from Goa appointed to reinforce Macau’s police force. A neo-classical building, yet it incorporates elements of Mughal decorative features – an architectural style that came to be popularly known as ‘Indo-Saracen’ – all mute witnesses to a rich past.
   It was with an iota of appreciation that I came across the following entry in an article ‘The Reinvention of the Moorish Style in 19th Century Portuguese Art’ by Regina Anacleto in Arab-Islamic Memories in Portugal published by the National Commission for the Commemoration of the Portuguese Discoveries. Anacleto notes: “There are imported decorative elements from Muslim art that are clearly visible in our architecture, in the structure and the decoration...This is how it was in the Portugal of the fifteen-hundreds but, later, European Romanticism was also not exempt from using the most varied forms, propagating its taste for the exotic; from paintings to travel books. This led to the revaluation of legends and stories as well as architecture or, if we prefer, architectures, all of which served, through Orientalism which included a Moorish category, to its expression. Orientalism meant, without entering into great detail and specifications, ‘the bulbous’ cupola, dragons decorated pinnacles, Chinese openings, Indian pilasters, minarets, railed balconies, Moorish arches and, above all, irregularity in the composition of all these elements…Orientalism ended up being transformed into a ‘sort of free port’ of eclectic architecture.” I would term the fusion as an expression of the ‘Crescent and the ‘Cross’ at cultural cross-roads.
   A book All Asia Travel Guide published not too long ago (1995) describes Macau as “a living museum, traditionally a leisurely place steeped in memories of great days when East met West and fought for territory amid its fortresses and chapels.” Happily, Macau remains a “leisurely place.” Yet fast-forwarded to 2008, newest architectural features are gleaming and soaring clusters of buildings herald the future that is Macau’s today.
   Deposited at the entrance lobby of ‘The Venetian – Macao Resort Hotel,’ on the Cotai strip of reclaimed land, we knew we were entering a hotel and casino complex but nothing prepared us for the innards of this multi-functional and multi-dimensional outfit. Walking hours within this cavernous city-within-city, we knew we had touched upon a ‘pleasure-dome.’ Halls and halls of impeccable taste and breathtaking opulence form the crux of this consumer dream. With exclusivity guaranteed, international brand names compete for attention: Apple, Burberry, Chanel, Dior…The city of Venice is the setting of the high-end retail outlets. The (false/overhead) azure blue sky dotted with wispy and floating clouds instantly transports us to Venice. ‘The Grand Canal Shoppes’ are laid out along a canal complete with Chinese gondoliers capped in red bandanas serenading us with ‘O Sole Mio.’ The spectacle is one of two: either, totally absurd or immensely imaginative. Whatever, one cannot argue with its promotion slogan: ‘Asia’s most unique and opulent shopping experience.’ Granted it was a weekday and the crowd was thin, my gut feeling is that most of us strolling in ‘The Grand Canal Shoppes’ were and even on weekends – remain visitors rather than shoppers. A total visual delight, window-shopping seems the level of activity rather than the acquisition of shopping-bags.
   Mirror-polished marbles and crystal chandeliers glisten in competition. Ornate decorative features garnish walls and ceilings. Fanciful floral displays garnish centres and corners. Jaw-dropping magnificence is the name of the game. That is until you cross into the casino gaming floor. Here are few football fields put together to offer mankind every mechanism to ‘try one’s luck’- backgammon, crap, roulette, poker, slot-machines… There are ‘Smoking Areas’, there are ‘Non-smoking areas’, there are tables where bets start at $50, there are elevated and more plush seating areas where bets are more but for big-time spenders – only a massive door is the give-away. Active gambling tables exhibit feverish activity by croupiers, managers, young and old, male and female players. Hosts of onlookers add to the heat of the moment. Half of Macau’s 27 million visitors in 2007 crossed over from the Chinese Mainland. Obviously, people come primarily to Macau to try their luck and for some - if lucky – maybe to shop. However, given the Chinese purchasing power and their love for logo-brand shopping – the shopping scenario may change. And the lure of the luck will remain…
   It is said that ‘One who drinks from Lilau never forgets Macau.’ The ground water at Lilau used to the main source of natural spring water in Macau. The popular Portuguese phrase expressed the locals’ nostalgic attachment to one of the first Portuguese residential quarters in Macau. While successfully combining the cultures of old Cathay and old Lusitania, Macau is the embodiment of a fishing village that developed into an international city. Part Chinese, part Portuguese, part Confucian, part Christian, part Asian, part European - all of it Macau and it remains a heady destination.
   (Concluded)

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Holiday Report

A three-day German trade show began in the city on Thursday with a view to promoting German-Bangladesh trade and business relations.
   Adviser to the ministers of Education and Commerce, Dr. Hossain Zillur Rahman inaugurated the show at Bangladesh China Friendship Conference centre.
   Around 65 exhibitors are participating in the show which will inform about German business, products and services available for Bangladesh and about Bangladeshi products and services available for the German market. A series of seminars will also be organised on renewable energy, shipbuilding, IT, leather, financial services, chemicals and power distribution would be held.
   Bangladesh enjoys duty-free and quota-free access to the European market with Germany being the largest market for Bangladeshi goods in Europe and the second largest export destination world wide.
   Germany holds the top position in exporting environmental technology. The largest single product group of German goods sold in Bangladesh in 2007 is machineries for textile, leather and other high technological industries amounting to about 40 per cent of German exports in Bangladesh telecom equipments follows with 12 per cent while electronic equipment and chemical products amount to 12 and 7 per cent respectively.
   Trade has growth potential in chemicals of various kind and pharmaceutical active substances. A handsome percentage of total export to Bangladesh is also in power generation transmission and distribution equipments and machineries.
   Export earnings from Germany in 2007 mostly from RMG and that is 95 per cent of all export. Frozen food products accounted for 1.5 per cent and Jute products for less than one per cent of the total exports.
   According to the organisers, all labour intensive industries in Bangladesh will have a chance in German market. Ship building has taken off well with new orders bagged at the recent fair in Hamburg. With leather and shipbuilding being traditional fields of expertise, Bangladesh is capable of bringing a breakthrough and add considerable income in exports. Diversified jute products also may find a revival with consumers conscious about eco-friendly products. Agro-based food products like seafood and other packed food products also could be major products to be exported. Trade must be restructured in the longer future.

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