"We don't know why, it seems to be a sort of ritual, while in Hong Kong, people go to Queen's Square on Sundays, in Macau, we've found the Senado Square," says an Indonesia housemaid.

Susy Tohari, 25 years old, has been working in Macau for two years. She comes to the Senado Square every weekend to have a gathering with her friends. "I have a day off every Sunday, in the morning, I go shopping; then in the afternoon, I buy takeout from an Indonesia food store and bring it here to dine with my friends."

Earning only 2500 patacas each month, Tohari finds it difficult to go out and have a good time with her friends. The situation is not just so simple, "I send back 500 patacas to my family in Indonesia every month too," Tohari says proudly.

Tohari, in fact, is not the only foreign houseworker who goes to the Senado Square to enjoy her Sundays. Every Sunday, there are more than 250 foreign people occupying the 1000-square-meter Senado Square, one of the famous tourist spots in Macau. They are mainly houseworkers, security guards, and waiters from the Philippines, Indonesia and Pakistan. They are playing games, listening to music, singing, chatting, dining, exchanging gifts, demonstrating new clothing, and so on. The whole square is being transformed into another scene of Queen's Square in Hong Kong. They are mostly housemaids, working and living in their employers' homes. They find their "private" place in a public space.

They mostly find their seats near the Post Office, around the fountain, under the Holy House of Mercy and in front of St. Dominic's church. They go there on Sunday afternoon and leave in the evening. Even though Tohari and her friends have to sit on the ground, they are chatting happily about their lives and exchanging photographs.

Denny Lui, a tourist from Hong Kong, says that he does not mind seeing such a scene. "Like those in Queen's Square, they are just finding a place for themselves."

However, not far away from Tohari, trash piles such as plastic bags, newspapers and bottles are taking up space, making it difficult for tourists or citizens to walk through. It is reported that these areas, mostly in front of St. Dominic's church require extra workers to take special care and to clean up the trash constantly.