The buffet breakfast at the Eaton Hotel was fabulous.
This is dim sum. We ate dim sum several times during our trip.
I just kept going back and back!
We would be riding the Turbojet ferry from Hong Kong to Macau.
The interior of the ferry looked a lot like an airplane.
What was this guy doing? Handing out barfbags!
After the one hour ride passengers were anxious to get to Macau.
This is one of the Turbojet ferries.
This looks like an airport but it's really the Macau ferry terminal.
There were a number of hotel casino shuttle buses ready to transport their guests.
This was the first sign for the Macau Grand Prix that we saw.
From the Macau Ferry Terminal building we saw the track's grandstands. The preliminary races were on Saturday. We would be at the track on Sunday.
We stopped to watch the racing action.
There are three long bridges that connect Macau with neighboring islands.
Macau is an area of contrasts. This is a portion of their business and residential skyline.
As we waited for the shuttle bus, I had already made a friend.
I wasn't exactly sure what these young women were representing.
This is our room at the Hotel Royal. We were on the 16th floor of the 17-story hotel.
The room was spacious with lots of mahogany wood trim.
This would be a great place to hang out for a couple of days.
We had an interesting view of high rises, low-rise older residential buildings (center) and a cemetary (left).
Many Asian cities that we have visited seem to mix third world construction with modern high-rise buildings.
I would love to have the hotel room doors in our home.
We spend a lot of time in the Lobby Lounge. They had live piano music and free drinks every afternoon.
Yes, I said free drinks to go with my $78 hat.
On Saturday afternoon we spent some time watching the live racing action from the Guia Circuit.
With desserts like this and free drinks it was hard to get motivated to go outside.
Orchids!
This tunnel sported some of the stone used to build “old” Macau.
The Wynn Casino is Las Vegas is thought by some to be the best in that town. Macau's Wynn Hotel & Casino was equally nice.
There is not shortage of construction going on in China. These buildings are 60 stories tall.
This is residential construction.
The building seemed to go on forever.
We saw very few American of European tourists. Most customers seemed to be Chinese.
This is a ceiling shot from one of the rooms at the Venecian Hotel & Casino on the island of Taipa.
How's this for over the top!
I had never seen a curved escalator in my life.
The place was huge. My camera lense captured only a small fraction of what we saw.
This was as close to the casino, for picture taking, I could get. the casino is on the lower level and was 200-300 yards square.
Just a little Venice in China.
This lady sang live opera to the casino's visitors as they passed below her window.
Roast duck anyone? Anyone?
We were shocked to see this restaurantt in the casino's food court. We have a Fatburger within 4 blocks of our house.
This was the flooring for the taxi cab waiting line!
On race morning we were treated to a complimentary breakfast as part of our upgrade. This was the pastry section.
I loved the variety of food we were served.
This my friends is an “egg tart”. Deeeeeelicious.
It was unusual when BOTH Carol and I were required to sign our restaurant bill, especially since everything was on the house.
Most road signs were in Chinese first and then English.
The ferry terminal had flat screen TVs broadcasting the race.
The police!
Just before the race I decided to get a quick workout in.
I try to do 1,000 situps each day.
I figured 19 pull-ups should about do it.
Dogs in the water closet?
The person who can best describe what these eight signs are trying to explain gets a Chinese prize. Deadline for entries in December 1, 2008.
We tried to get our “will call” tickets here but we were in the wrong place.
This is a very creative way to convert a stairway into a handicapped ramp.
Bingo! We scored out tickets.
We would be in Grand Stand A for $68.75 U.S. per ticket.
We needed to ride the escalator from the Macau ferry terminal to the track by going under the highway.
This was just like the Eldora Speedway tunnel....sort of.
Free tattoos!
Hello there.
There are some major karting events held in Macau.
Later this month the karts will take center stage.
Carol shops hard for a racing hat with wheels!
The deal is made.
There were not many souvenir stands but the ones they had were crowded.
We and many oof our friends were headed to Grand Stand A.
Our seats would have an overhead roof to protect us from the sun.
This seating area did not offer seatbacks or reserved seating.
The emergnecy EMT staff didn't have much to do at this point.
This was the only indoor food stand at the track. They served sushi, burgers and lots of other stuff. The place did have a fishy smell.
This was one of the better viewing locations. Even at this point, spectators could only see the cars for 5-10 seconds.
Between races we relaxed in the shade of the grandstands.
This scene doesn't look too much different that what we might find in the states.
A large video screen projected the live racing action for fans in our seating location. We could see a lot more on this screen than we could of the live racing.
Nearly every seat was sold.
in both directions.
When the cars roared by for the 8 seconds we would see them, the fans always stood.
We didn't see very many American fans at the track today. Actually, we didn't see virtually any.
This was about the best view of the track that we had.
Nevertheless, this Angels fan seemed to be enjoying herself.
Fire! Fire! Fire in the pits.
This drivers day was finished.
It was a warm day. Here Carol fans herself with a sponsor provided fan.
The P.A. system was loud. The announcing was done in Chinese, Portuguese and English.
This driver won the first race of the day.
This is the “Lisboa” curve. We could only see it on the videoscreen. The most expensive seats at the track were located here.
The videoscreen offered a little bit of everything.
There were lots of pictures being taken today.
The checkered flag is out.
Red Bull for 15 bucks!
There was no shortage of mustard and ketsup for the ham and cheese sandwiches.
Just like at the Peoria Speedway.
This young fan sports the hat that Carol bought.
He didn't mind modeling it for us.
The Macau Grand Prix scoring tower was impressive.
Chinese race fans like to drink beer just like their American counterparts.
They read racing papers too.
The track was crowded for pre-race ceremonies.
Here were a couple of American race fans.
Fans stood just like they do in NASCAR.
This was a car from Russia. They were sponsored by the Russian Bears.
The winners are mobbed.
The winning driver drove a Chevrolet of all things.
Our seats provided a good view of the paddock area.
The podium and the flags from the winner's countries.
To the victor goes the spoils.
Not everyone can be a winner.
There was about 15 minutes to fix this car for the next race.
There's nothing like a little fried chicken with your racing on a Sunday afternoon.
The roof was great for keeping the sun off of us.
Some fans needed to rest.
This driver was leading the race when he crashed.
These guys were watching the race when they crashed.
This is what the seating area looked like after a long day in the sun for the fans.
A little while later the entire area had been cleaned up!
She offered us four beers for the price of three. How could we turn that down?
Before the Macau Grand Prix Formua 3 race, these “drifters” put on an exhibition.
It was Formula 3 time!
We had been waiting all day for this.
The young boy seated next to us kept himself occupied during the down time.
Carol was ready for the big race of the day.
This is the warm-up lap.
Some of the fans had left by the time this race came up on the card.
Fans seated in the last row were in the shade.
We're racing!
Everyone wants to get that special shot.
How did this driver get here!!
Photographers looked for any available vantage point.
A Dale Earnhardt Sr. fan?
After the race we found a cab driver with a column stick shift. You don't see that very much anymore.
Back at the Hotel Royal folks were oblivious to the race we had just seen. They were getting their water exercise in.
We made it back my midnight to our “premier floor” room.
The streets of Macau are often one-way and narrow.
What's that in the distance?
Everywhere we went in Macau was clean and well taken care of.
I present to you the Grand Lisboa!
Haye you ever seen anything like this before?
We had a late night dinner in one of the several restaurants in the Grand Lisboa.
As we walked around downtown, we saw remnants of the 6.2 kilometer street circuit track.
The nighlights of Macau's retailers matched the casinos for brightness.
This is the Lisboa turn grandstand. Seats went for $112 U.S. here. Note the Wynn Hotel in the background.
This would have been a fun place to watch the race.
Just hours ago, the racing action was fast and furious here.
We saw workers beginning to take down the crash wall barriers just hours after the finish of the race.
This was a tunnel to take pedestrians under a very busy street. Note how well lit and modern the place is. Also note the security cameras in place. I've never seen anything like this in the U.S.
The water reflections at the Wynn Hotel.
They are already advertising the 56th running of the Macau Grand Prix in 2009.
Lights, lights, lights and the Grand Lisboa.
This red chandelier greeted us in the lobby of the Wynn Hotel.
My camera could not really capture what was happening here.
If you go to the Wynn Hotel in Macau, you need to check this show out.
It was certainly different.
You're only getting about 5% of the effect.
Yes, this attraction at the Wynn Hotel was something to behold.
Macau's taxis has some snazzy paint jobs.
Riding in a rickshaw was the only thing we didn't do.
The men's room at the Grand Lisboa.
When these urinals are retired they could be used as coffins!
The buffet at the Grand Lisboa was the most extentive and exotic I have ever seen. Carol stands by the chocolate fondue.
This was a portion of the entrance to the Grand Lisboa.
It was a spectacular place.
What a lobby!
Even Cinderella must be home by midnight.
Motociclos were popular in Macau.
I was able to get this unique shot at a Chinese elementary school.
The exposed air-conditioners did not add to the attractiveness of these buildings.
I call this “motorbike art”.
It was fun capturing the expressions of folks on their morning commute.
Yes! You're on www.ranlayracing.com.
A few folks in China wore masks, but not many.
Maybe this is where the term “back seat driver” came from.
Nevertheless, the motorbike was popular.
The streets were narrow and the traffic was heavy in some spots but not all.
We happened by this Macau cemetary.
In many ways cemetaries are the same everywhere.
This was a beautiful little chapel near the St. Paul's Church.
Is all of this wrought iron really necessary as a form of security?
This was our first glimpse of the St. Paul Church ruins.
A few other folks were getting their first glance as well.
The church was situated high on a hill overlooking downtown.
From just about any angle it was difficult to miss the Grand Lisboa.
The “new” Macau builds up around the old St. Paul Church.
The low (old) and the tall (new) show the growth that's happening in China.
I hope a typhoon wind doesn't come along anytime soon.
After our ruins visit we hiked down this steep hill in search of more to see.
Carol has a fetish for mailboxes.
There was never any shortage of upscale retailers.
Carol has had the door opened for her by some of the finest.
At the Macau Tower, they were featuring a small car show. Of any car out there I believe a Masserati would suit my needs.
The next stop on the self-guided RANLAY Racing tour was the Macui Tower. On the 58th floor we found the observation deck.
From here would could see forever.
That's the Wynn Hotel in the center of the picture. The race circuit ran right past that hotel.
I don't know what to think about the Grand Lisboa Hotel & Casino. Was it right for this place or not?
It's 58 floors down from these New Balance sneakers.
I love visting towers like this. The perspective is so much different than from just about any other position.
Macau is on a penisula of China. Waterways are important to its survival.
This doesn't look much different than New York City.
Chinese tourists seemed as impressed by the height as much as we were.
The view from the Macau Tower covered 360 degrees.
Another fan imagines the pleasure of reading a RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report!
Another benefit at the Macau Tower was the abiity to go bungee-jumping.
I'm not sure the peace sign will do her much good up here.
If this guy had not jumped in front of me in line I would have had time to bungee-jump.
From here it was 61 stories down.
Get ready.......
Don't jump yet!!! Oh, no!
I eyeed the safety harnesses. Was there still time for me to jump?
It was 338m to the ground.
These folks elected a much safer option. They walked around the tower from 61 flowers up. I guess you could call their trip an adventure vacation.
Finally, I decided to go for it ....... and jumped.
Later on in the afternoon we ate at this authentic Chinese restaurant in the Sands Hotel & Casino. This was the last picture I could take before I was told not to take anymore.
The Sands is a bit older than some of the other hotels we visited but still very nice.
The race circuit runs right past the Sands.
Our final stop on the RANLAY Racing self-guided tour at the Macau Grand Prix Museim. Here Carol buys our tickets.
This was my favorite race car in the entire museum.
Years ago, the Macau Grand Prix used the famous LeMans starting procedure where the drivers run to their cars, strap in and race.
This is a modern Formula 3 race car.
Sports car racing produces some very good-looking machines.
The museum's patrons can even get in the racing game.
Motorcycles have long been part of the Macau racing scene.
These babies are loud and they are fast.
The red lights signify the layout off the 6.2-kilometer street circuit. Our seats were near the Macau Ferry Terminal (left center).
I wish I had been able to move the ropes. Only the first car is real.
After the museum visit, our cabbie took us on a took of the actual racing surface. That was fun.
On our way back to the ferry terminal as we headed back to Hong Kong the traffic got a little heavier.
The Turbojet ferries run 24/7 about every 15-30 minutes.
Carol looks at me as if to say, “How do you convince me to go on all of these trips?”
She may never know that I published this picture!
Oh, she's the funny one.
It's good to konw the elevator buttons are “sanitized every 2 hours”.
The Hong Kong International Airport is rated as the very best in the world. They never served caviar in my hometown airport in Peoria, Illinois.
For just $50 HK you can be shuttled around the inside of the airport.
The airport provides computers for people to use as they wait for their plane.
After 11 hours of flying we arrived back in San Francisco. The Hyatt at the airport would be hosts for the final night of the trip.
The hotel features this large indoor atrium.
The food court at the San Francisco airport is fantastic. If you get the chance don't miss Andale's.
My breakfast burrito was of gourmet quality. P.S. I was only kidding about bungee jumping. That wasn't me!
