Thanks for posting this update on Macau. I've often wondered what has become of the scene there. It used to be one of my regular spots to visit before I discovered Jakarta. With the huge boom there, I often thought the scene would have changed dramatically, and gotten much more expensive. I choked on those prices you quoted, since I remember paying 300 HK in the west side girlie hotels (probably all long gone now).

Another one bites the dust! Man how mongering has declined. I'm so glad I traveled when mongering was still cheap and available and in my budget. Better to have mongered and lost than to not have mongered at all.

Macau is still one of my favorite mongering trips of all time. I enjoyed it so much that I returned two times afterwards. My buddy and I basically followed Murasaki's itinerary, whether he realizes it or not. It was probably my first mongering trip to a destination not centered on the hobby such as AC, Pattaya, but still had more than enough pussy on offer. It was a nice break from the SEA lady drink sex pat culture and I believe it led me to leaving that scene as a basis for travel, although I do make a point to get some mongering done wherever I find myself.

This was when Air Asia was just getting going and was still flying from Don Muang airport in Bangkok. I liked the feeling of being a tourist in a foreign city and being armed with the info for mongering when the need arose, while also being in a genuinely Chinese feeling city just exploring. My buddy and I roamed around until we ended up at the top of a hill (I forget the name), seeing a museum and taking a cable car to the bottom and figuring out how to get back to the Best Western from there. Of course we saw St. Paul's and even played blackjack at the Lisboa. I ate my first and last pigeon in Macau.

The MGM and other western casinos weren't built yet hence the Disneyfication hadn't started, although I suppose Macau had long been Hong Kongized years ago. Hot Spot was the absolute highlight hearing all those high heels stampeding down the marble hallway and having the room swarm with 50 girls.

Those were the days!

Ah Macau! Another mongering destination bites the dust. CoStar you've triggered some nostalgia as I wrap up my 4th of July weekend and head back to work.

Macau represents several firsts for me. This was my first vacation to a destination that wasn't in an English speaking bubble. While not my first trip using Air Asia it was probably my second and Air Asia was still cheap. It was also the first time I traveled somewhere, without having talked to someone who has been there before me. So a debt of gratitude is owed to Murasaki here. My buddy and I basically followed his itinerary from his TRs and proved that a well written TR is invaluable for mongering. That's why I still love CH and it's TR centered format. Oh yeah, I ate my first and last pigeon in Macau. Remember that MaliMike?

What a refreshing break this trip was from the SEA lady drink centered, scene. Some of the highlights were playing blackjack at the Lisboa and having Chinese people standing behind you and betting alongside your hand. That definitely created some pressure, but was exciting too. Besides the most amazing hooker parade I've ever seen in the Lisboa's basement, I remember the huge dice in a bubble game that resembled boggle as I rode an escalator through this funky Asian casino. MGM and the Vegas influence that has probably ruined Macau had yet to come. MaliMike and I went on a random walking tour up the hill and discovered the Macau history museum and took a cable car back down that deposited us in some random Chinese neighborhood. We circled city blocks on the map we got from the hotel lobby and pointed to them to show cab drivers where we wanted to go. We found and partook at both the London and Ruby hotels. The highlight though was Hot Spot. Hearing the thunder of 50+ pairs of high heels on a marble floor heading to our room was incredible. It got even more exciting when you were IN the fish bowl that the room became with all these Chinese girls with big boobs.

Ah the memories!

(Message edited by BigPoppa on July 05, 2016)

BigPoppa, that reference to Hot Spot brought a tear to my eye. Good times!

I'm glad to hear my reports helped someone have a good time there.

Yes they did. Thanks again. I've often considered taking a revisit Asia tour and revisiting some locales from my past. I doubt it would be as much fun and would probably be filled with many "What the hell am I doing here?" moments, which is how my trips from the past few years could be characterized.

But, I can't emphasize enough how awesome it was to travel as I did from 2001-2015 with the majority of my travels being all for pleasure not business. As the bills from past travel come increasingly due, I have no regrets. I consider myself lucky to have been in a position to have traveled that much. And before I know it I'll be debt free and on the road again, and willingly taking the budget hotel, over the nice one if it means having no financial obligations ahead of me.