By Catherine Cheang, Stephanie Cheong, Cynthia Wong, Winky Tsang, Ivy Lio
The glamor, the luxury, the glory of Macao are known to the world. Touristcome to experience the city that runs 24/7. Casinos, entertainment, gourmet – all available round-the-clock. Flip it over, what will you see behind the halo? We are to reveal to you the stories in Macao during the night.
The day and night
People often have the impression that Macao is a city that never sleeps. There are restaurants opening all night. There are young people singing aloud in karaoke bars all night. There are players crowding in front of the Craps tables all night. The city is bombarded with tourists 24/7. However, there are some spots, that are so crowded during day time, but at night it all becomes quiet.
Take the Old Taipa Village as an example, a beautiful place with Portuguese architecture and Chinese temples here and there. There is a street in the area known to the tourists as “the souvenir street”. During day time, countless tourists go there for durian ice cream, almond cakes, Serradura. Local people would know it is not exactly the best place to hang out. At night, when the souvenir shops are closed, the tourists retreat to their hotels or casinos, the place has another different ambiance. That is when you can actually see Macao people hanging out in the area. Laughter from the Portuguese restaurants replaces the yelling of the excited tourists. Couples walking hand in hand in the dim streets full of signs of shops.
Rotating your life 24/7
Lao works in a hotel as a front desk agent, which requires him to be on shift rotation. Every other week, he receives a new schedule for work. Morning shift, day shift, night shift, swing shift, it keeps going differently. “Adjusting the body clock is almost unbearable. Each time to change shift, it gets harder,” Lao sighed.
Right after graduating from a hospitality school, Lao was employed by the hotel. “I enjoy being at the frontline and meeting different customers. I just didn’t prepare myself for this career that runs 24/7.” There are thousands of people in Macao like Lao working in hotels and casinos that operates all day and night. These jobs require employees to cover duty 24 hours. “Sometimes, you wake up and don’t even realize if it’s the day or the night, which day of the week it is, or which day of the month it is. Life runs by your work roster. ‘What day is it today?’ ‘Two days away from my next day off’ is a common conversation between my co-workers. This is the way it is.”
The desire of street hawkers
“Oriental Monte Carlo”, “Asian Las Vegas”, the fame has shrouded Macao for her phenomenal performance in the gaming industry. Like Lao, people are rushing for life, fame and money. They work round the clock trying to climb their way up to the top. Behind those neon lights, however, there is a piece of land where you can experience an unsophisticated lifestyle and friendliness through people’s daily conversations. Uncle Ming, an over 60-year-old hawker, tells his story after the sun goes down. Ming has peddled egg puffs in downtown Macao since the mid-70s. His best harbor after a day of work, “Home! There’s no place like home!” Ming said.
Ming considers his family the best achievement in life, and being a husband and father is the best thing he has ever asked for. He told a customer who came late, “Never come after sunset next time!” He regards himself as self-employed and enjoys flexible working hours. “I’m not boasting, but the stall’s operating hours depend on my mood,” he explained. “I treat customers as my own friends. I don’t want to show them my poker face. Forcing myself to work when I am supposed to enjoy life? That is not the way life should be lived.” Another reason which prompts an early closing time is family.
Ming sells egg puffs for living but not for saving. “Honestly, I am half way there and I don’t want to spend the rest of my life fighting for piles of bank notes,” he added. “I prefer spending more quality time with my family and I love seeing their smiley faces.” The way to pursue true happiness is to enjoy pleasure in good time. “Never let stress take over your life!” said Ming. He gets home every evening and sees the smiles on the faces of his family members. “Priceless. I wouldn’t trade these precise moments for all the money in the world.”
Some are not as lucky as Uncle Ming; they still struggle to make a living. Mrs. Wong is a middle-aged woman, a mother of two children, also a hawker who works overnight. Every night, she pushes her trolley into her van and takes them to downtown Macao for sale.
“I tried to find a better life and decided to come to Macao. I only finished elementary school before I stowed away from China.” Wong became a Macao citizen after the immigration act in 1990. Ever since then, Wong worked in different jobs and tried her best to put her life together. She met her husband and started a family. “Two kids were born. Life became harder. Because of our low education background, it was very difficult for us to support the family if working in these minimum-waged jobs, and at the same time, take care of the kids. We decided to take the chance to find a way out.”
Wong resigned from a factory job and started her life as an illegal hawker. “My husband couldn’t stand up for it. I had to, for the kids and for the family, become the woman who carried the whole world on her shoulder. I was very scared at first. I prayed everyday that we wouldn’t get caught by the police.” She was stationed in central Macao near the hotels and sold basically everything people needed during the night – snacks, fruits, cigarettes, condoms… “Before all those convenience stores came to Macao, there was nowhere to buy things but from these hawker trolleys.” Wong said. “There are a lot to see during the night. You meet different people and hear all sorts of stories. Standing in the middle of these neon lights, I see the world in front of me. It’s like watching TV but more… real.”
The rapid development of Macao in the recent years led Wong into a different direction. Over the years, she struggled and then got back on her feet, again and again. The moment finally came. Her children have graduated from college and now are working. Wong has decided to retire and keep her trolley at the back of her kitchen. “It’s like a dream, you know. Sometimes I look back and feel amazed how I made it all the way through. I don’t even feel like that was my life. I’m very glad everything turned out alright.” Wong laughed. There was a sparkle of joy and satisfaction in her eyes.