Sleepless in Macau

We boarded the seven thirty ferry from kowloon and checked in at SanVa at a little after nine.

SanVa in real-life didn't look quite as amazing as it did in Isabella. The room we got was pretty bland (and perhaps somewhat ghetto to some) but at least there was a window and we were a good distance from the communal toilets.

After checking in, we embarked on a little late night food crawl, hitting our regular faves such as the shrimp egg noodles joint right across the road, as well as the original Yee Shun dairy company, before ending up at the Ruins of St Paul's.

It was a real treat walking around without the usual mob of tourists, the absence of whom allowed for us to really soak in the rich atmosphere of the city's grand streets and architecture.

Then we spent the night fighting off the invisible host of mosquitoes that tried to take aim at every single inch of our bodies. It became so bad of a losing battle that in the end I actually gave up on all hopes of a good night's sleep and decided to go out for a walk instead.

It was at 3 a.m. that I saw a very different view of the neighbourhood. Whereas the area is normally filled with tourists buying edible souvenirs, at this hour of the night it was the domain of middle-aged prostitutes and seedy looking men. You can bet it sure was a little awkward trying to do a little 'sight seeing'. Everyone must've assumed I was out and about with the same agenda.

Things got a little uncomfortable when they started calling out to get my attention. 'Leng jai, leng jai!' Seriously, most were old enough to be my mother. I quickly made my way back to the relative security of SanVa, right when one of 'aunties' came out of the shared toilets and another was taking a customer to her room.

So much for this being just a regular Lonely Planet recommended guest house! I suppose this kind of thing happens at far grander hotels too, but it's the communal shower aspect of it and the thought of seedy old men cleaning themselves off after visiting the ladies that puts me off.

Anyway, off to KL, where I know for sure we'll be getting plenty of quality rest tonight.