Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
reading in the local dialect by Macanese poet José dos Santos Ferreira (1919-93). The top
floor focuses on new architecture and urban-development plans.
CHURCH
ST JOSEPH'S SEMINARY & CHURCH
16, 18, 28B)
St Joseph's, which falls outside the tourist circuit, is one of Macau's most beautiful models
of tropicalised baroque architecture. Consecrated in 1758 as part of the Jesuit seminary (not
open to the public), it features a white and yellow facade, a scalloped entrance canopy
(European) and the oldest dome, albeit a shallow one, ever built in China. The most interest-
ing feature, however, is the roof that features Chinese materials and building styles.
HISTORIC BUILDING
LOU KAU MANSION
3, 4, 6A, 8A, 19, 33)
Built around 1889, this Cantonese-style mansion with southern European elements belonged
to merchant Lou Wa Sio (aka Lou Kau), who also commissioned the
Lou Lim Ioc Garden
.
Behind the grey facade, an intriguing maze of open and semi-enclosed spaces blurs the line
between inside and outside. The flower-and-bird motif on the roof can also be found in the
Mandarin's House and A-Ma Temple. Free guided tours in Chinese on weekends (from
10am to 7pm).
HISTORIC BUILDING
MANDARIN'S HOUSE
de Antonio da Silva; 10am-5.30pm Thu-Tue; 28B, 18)
Built around 1869, the Mandarin's House, with over 60 rooms, was the ancestral home of
Zheng Guanying, an influential author-merchant whose readers had included emperors, Dr
Sun Yatsen and Chairman Mao. The compound features a moon gate, tranquil courtyards,
exquisite rooms and a main hall with French windows, all arranged in that labyrinthine style
typical of certain Chinese period buildings.
NEIGHBOURHOOD
ST LAZARUS CHURCH DISTRICT
A lovely neighbourhood with colonial-style houses and cobbled streets. Designers and inde-
pendents like to gather here, setting up shop and organising artsy events, such as the weekly
