W H A T

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M I S S

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W H A T

I S

M I S S I N G ?

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contentsT H E

I n v I s I b l e A m b I g u I t y

I n v I s I b l e e t h n I c s

I n v I s I b l e t r A d I t I o n

I n v I s I b l e h A p p I n e s s

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feature macao: cITY of cars 7InvIsIble braInWashIng 11WIll 50% smoke area In casInos make smoke-free macao? 13exmoo, free neWsPaPer In macao 15remedY offered To sTressfUl ones 17

feature macao: a mUlTIcUlTUral famIlY 21commUnIcaTIon or dIscrImInaTIon? 25UP-close To The “mIx” 27Problems of hIrIng Illegal Workers 29 songkran fesTIval In macao 31

feature WeddIng rITUals 35The TasTe of TradITIon 43In sense of Incense 45PassIon of macao sTreeT Parade 47love and aTTachmenT In garmenT IndUsTrY 49

feature InvIsIble haPPIness 53The PUrPle love! 59InvIsIble dream of a casIno dealer 61PersIsTence Under The TIn hoUse 63InvIsIble beaUTY 65

edITor’s noTe 5

I N V I S I B L E S

i s s u e # 3 7

f a l l 2 0 1 2

I n v I s I b l e . . .

U m a c B r i d g e s F a l l 2 0 1 2D e p a r t m e n t o f C o m m u n i c a t i o n

F a c u l t y o f S o c i a l S c i e n c e s a n d H u m a n i t i e sU n i v e r s i t y o f M a c a u

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The InvIsIble ProTagonIsT 71TermInal of bITTerness 73bIke TaxI, The mosT exPensIve TaxI rIde In macao 75The lIghT In The darkness 77“Urban dIsease” Invades oUr lIves 79InvIsIble germs on YoUr smarTPhone 81a TasTe of The PasT 83

PhoTo conTesT WInners 85

As Sigmund Freud said in the past, “Everyone has some unconscious ideas inside their mind which is by contrast outside his conscious aware-ness.” Freud’s saying was complicated but true. Sometimes we do not know what is inside our mind. Similar to our everyday life, we may not be able to notice everything surrounding us completely. The Invisibles, produced by our team, What Spring Production, will give you a fasci-nating journey which guides you to discover and decode the invisible

elements in our everyday life. Our core idea is to make these invisible elements visible. Do you know what is omitted by us in our life? We will explore.

Umac Bridges is a campus publication as well as the academic project by 4th year English Communication students in the Department of Communication, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Macau. Through this publication, students can apply the skills of journalism, desktop publishing, web design and event planning and implementa-tion which they have learned throughout the academic years to an actual project. The aim of this publication is to cultivate the sense of news of UM students and call their attention to issues happening around them. The magazine also has an online version which experiments with some multimedia news stories.

We would like to give special thanks to our course instructor, Prof. Wu Mei, and our teach-ing assistant, Ms. Helen Wang, for their knowledgeable guidance and support during the production process.

On behalf of our production team, I hope you will enjoy this issue of Umac Bridges, and go for an adventure with The Invisible.

Chief EditorTony, Cheong Wai Kun

Editor’s NotE

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A M B I G U I T Y

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With the limited land resourc-es in Macao, the city with a population density of 18,600 people per square kilometer, the number of licensed ve-hicles and of casino shuttle buses are growing rapidly

every month. At the same time, the transportation services in Macao cannot satisfy the needs of citi-zens, making citizens prefer to drive their own cars on routine trips. All these conditions are threatening both the traffic on the roads and the parking spaces in Macao. And Macao really looks like a city that is populated by vehicles.

On average, every month, there are around 1,000 new licensed vehicles. Based on this estimation, if the rate stays steady, the licensed vehicles in Macao are going to reach 301,000 in 10 years. However, there are yet no effective new transportation systems to encourage citizens to use more public transportation or to provide enough parking spaces for the drivers in order to ease the parking space problem.

According to the Statistics and Census Service, by the end of August 2012, there were more than 110,000 motorbikes and more than 9,000 light automobiles. The number of new vehicles in the first eight months has already exceeded the number of yearly record of 2011. This terrifying number is growing at a rate of approximately 5% every year. However, the space used for new traffic is just growing at around 3% eve-ry year. Although by the end of 2011, the number of

parking spaces for motorbikes grew to around 50,000; it is still not enough for 110,000 motorbikes, which is double the legal parking spaces. Thus, more than half of motorbikes are “forced” to park at some illegal areas, bearing the risk of being fined. And spaces for developing parking areas are becoming less as we can see. At the same time, the space for parking light automobiles in turn decreases as the space for motorbikes increases. In the long term, there is a very pressing pressure for the creation of parking spaces in Macao.

In the Central District of Macao, right next to San-ta Rosa de Lima English Section, there is a particular area for placing smashed cars and motorbikes. This arrangement seems inappropriate because the area is near the city center, one of the busiest districts in Ma-cao. During the traffic peak hours every day, traffic jams always occur. If the area can be restructured as a parking area and open for the public, it may solve the problem mentioned above to some degree.

Louis Io is a regular car driver working near the Central District. “I have noticed this area for a while. It sounds odd why it was arranged to place ‘dead cars’ instead of ‘live cars’. Why didn’t they consider using the mass areas in Coloane to place the smashed cars?” Io said.

Secondly, numerous parking areas are occupied by second-hand car sellers, gradually, becoming a “second-hand car selling market”. This problem has long existed in several districts in Macao, especially in the Areia Preta Zone, where many garages and

MACAO: CITY OF CARSBy Cathy Lam, FLora Chio, iris Lei, tony Cheong

7 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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With the limited land resourc-es in Macao, the city with a population density of 18,600 people per square kilometer, the number of licensed ve-hicles and of casino shuttle buses are growing rapidly

every month. At the same time, the transportation services in Macao cannot satisfy the needs of citi-zens, making citizens prefer to drive their own cars on routine trips. All these conditions arboth the traffic on the roads and the parking spaces in Macao. And Macao really looks like a city that is populated by vehicles.

On average, every month, there are around 1,000

rate stays steady, the licensed vehicles in Macao are going to reach 301,000 in 10 years. However, there are yet no effective new transportation systems to encourage citizens to use more public transportation or to provide enough parking spaces for the drivers in order to ease the parking space problem.

According to the Statistics and Census Service, by the end of August 2012, there were more than 110,000 motorbikes and more than 9,000 light automobiles. The number of new vehicles in the first eight months has already exceeded the number of yearly record of 2011. This terrifying number is growing at a rate of approximately 5% every year. However, the space used for new traffic is just growing at around 3% eve-ry year. Although by the end of 2011, the number of

parking spaces for motorbikes grew to around 50,000; it is still not enough for 110,000 motorbikes, which is double the legal parking spaces. Thus, more than half of motorbikes are “forced” to park at some illegal

And spaces for developing parking areas are becoming less as

we see. At the same time, the space for parking motorkes increases. In the long term, ther

e is a very pressing pressure for the creation of parking spaces in Macao.

-

area for placing smashed cars and motorbikes. This arrangement seems inappropriate because the area is near the city center, one of the busiest districts in Ma-

jams always occur. If the area can be restructured as a parking area and open for the public, it may solve the problem mentioned above to some degr

Louis Io is a regular car driver working near the Central District. “I have noticed this area for a while. It sounds odd why it was arranged to place ‘dead cars’ instead of ‘live cars’. Why didn’t they consider using the mass areas in Coloane to place the smashed cars?” Io said.

Secondly, numerous parking areas are occupied by second-hand car sellers, gradually, becoming a “second-hand car selling market”. This problem has long existed in several districts in Macao, especially in the Areia Preta Zone, wher

auto-care centers are concentrated. A car driver, Miss Lei complained, “As the parking space in this district is insufficient already, now they even occupy a part of it, I feel so helpless and really hope that the govern-ment could solve this problem as soon as possible.” In addition, some workers wash cars over there, it’s just like the parking in front of their shop is their workplace too. Another citizen, Mr. Fong, said that it is very inconvenient and dangerous for the elderly as it is slippery.

On the contrary, the car sellers argued that they inserted coins for the parking meter hours accord-ingly. One of them said, “As it is a public parking space, everyone should have the right to park their cars there, I am not doing something illegal.” A shop owner in the Areia Preta Zone said that they could sell approximately four to five cars each month by parking in the area. If not, they could hardly run the business as there is limited space in the shop and the rent has kept increasing. It is totally not workable to rent another shop to place cars. As there are such large contradictions between both parties, the initia-tive action of the government is crucial and signifi-cant.

There is no doubt that casino shuttle buses have occupied a significant part of our traffic capacity as private-junket vans or gigantic “lucky vehicles” ferry passengers back and forth. It is an absolute necessity for casinos to provide good service especially the “pick-up” service to their customers. They cannot keep their customers, gamblers and staff waiting. VIP

MACAO: CITY OF CARSBy Cathy Lam, FLora Chio, iris Lei, tony Cheong

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customers even enjoy cross-broader pick-up service. For provide their “warmest” service, casinos also provide many shuttle bus routes to tourist sites for customers to choose. The frequency of the shuttle buses is very much like our public transport system. Try to imagine that there are 31 casinos operating approximately three different routes, then it will be around 100 different routes from each arrival port to their casinos or from their casinos to diverse Macao sight-seeing spots, to serve more than 28 million visitors a year. It may not sound like an exorbitant number, but in just a 30-square-kilometer city inhab-ited by more than half a million people, over 200,000 active vehicles do sound a bit overwhelming.

One of the reasons why people in Macao prefer driving private cars and motorbikes to taking public transportation, like buses, is that the public transpor-tation system in Macao is still imperfect. During the traffic peak hours every day, people always complain about the low frequency of buses. It causes the con-stantly increasing number of licensed vehicles in Ma-

cao because people still prefer driving even though the cost is higher than taking public transportation. Although there has been a new bus company operat-ing in Macao since August 2011, the quality of the public transportation system did not improve much. According to the survey report Macao Resident Satisfaction Survey of New Bus Service conducted by the Association of Macao New Version in 2011, 34% of the respondents reported that the quality of the bus system did not have any change, and 30% of the respondents even reported that the system is worse than before.

Although the government has started developing the Macau Light Transit System, the stations are not primarily for local citizens for daily use. Somehow the system seems mainly for the convenience of tour-ists. If the government still does not propose a policy for the overall traffic system in Macao, it is hard to imagine how our next generation can live in such a dense city.

f e a t u r e

“As it is A public pArking spAce, eVerYoNe shoULd hAVe The right to pArk their cArs there, i AM NoT doiNg soMeThiNg iL-legAl.”

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own control or being controlled by sophisticated “brainwashing” institutions?

Brainwashing is one of the most popular terms these days thanks to the campaign against the national education in Hong Kong. The “brainwashing education”, as it is termed by pro-testors, is believed to be harmful to the younger generation. But what is brainwashing? How do people categorize events into brainwashing? How does brainwashing function?

According to Merriam-Webster, “brainwashing” literally means a forcible indoctrination to induce someone to give up basic political, social, or religious beliefs and attitudes and to accept contrasting regimented ideas. Steve Sam, a form-one student, has slightly disputed idea with the standard one. When he was asked what brainwashing is he responded it is with education, to be more specific, pro-China education in which he believed some truthful historical events would be veiled whilst “untruthful” or “ex-aggerated” events would be delivered in lectures. How do you know these would happen when Sam was asked, he said from those protestors.

In broader terms, brainwashing is also defined as persuasion by propa-ganda or salesmanship which applies any method of controlled systematic indoctrination, either based on repetition or confusion. Therefore, it can be found imbedded in many things, such as education, religion, advertising, mass media, government policies, uses of technology, etc. Without the “brain-washing” effects of education, students might not be able to turn from naive to literate. Without advertisements’ “brainwashing” persuasion on audience

invisible brainwashing By iris Lei

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

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and consumers, businesses might gain no profit and very likely workers might be unemployed. It seems that “brainwashing”, as it is broadly defined, takes an important role in our daily life, but surprisingly, most people are just unaware of the fact that we are being “brainwashed” every single day of our lifetime. The younger the age, the easier the indoctrination could take place. This might be the reason why laws are enacted preventing and protecting youngster from legitimate voting rights.

Such “invisible” brainwashing would penetrate us and set roots deep down in our minds, gradually becoming our intuitive framework knowledge or habits and evolving into our social norms and attitudes. In fact, we are pretty much granted to be penetrated in this way. At Christmas, most people are busy doing shopping because we are “told” to do so. We have been “educated” to expect gifts from someone and to give gifts to someone in need. The uniform in primary school also takes part in “training”, how to define the world in dual-istic ways, dresses or trousers, either male or female, either good or bad. The younger we are, the more deeply is the indoctrinated ideology rooted.

The devil’s best trick is to persuade you that he doesn’t exist. If people do not filter the information they receive everywhere, the seed of “blindness” is resting on the heart. Think about your life, do you want to have it under your own control or being controlled by sophisticated “brainwashing” institutions?

Brainwashing is one of the most popular terms these days thanks to the campaign against the national education in Hong Kong. The “brainwashing education”, as it is termed by pro-testors, is believed to be harmful to the younger generation. But what is brainwashing? How do people categorize events into brainwashing? How does brainwashing function?

According to Merriam-Webster, “brainwashing” literally means a forcible indoctrination to induce someone to give up basic political, social, or religious beliefs and attitudes and to accept contrasting regimented ideas. Steve Sam, a form-one student, has slightly disputed idea with the standard one. When he was asked what brainwashing is he responded it is with education, to be more specific, pro-China education in which he believed some truthful historical events would be veiled whilst “untruthful” or “ex-aggerated” events would be delivered in lectures. How do you know these would happen when Sam was asked, he said from those protestors.

In broader terms, brainwashing is also defined as persuasion by propa-ganda or salesmanship which applies any method of controlled systematic indoctrination, either based on repetition or confusion. Therefore, it can be found imbedded in many things, such as education, religion, advertising, mass media, government policies, uses of technology, etc. Without the “brain-washing” effects of education, students might not be able to turn from naive to literate. Without advertisements’ “brainwashing” persuasion on audience

invisible brainwashing By iris Lei

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦 洗腦

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Posters with the slogan “A new era of smoke-free Macao” can be seen everywhere in our city to publicize the new regulation to the public. The Macao government passed Section 3 and Schedule 2 of the amended Smoking (Public Health)

Ordinance (Cap. 371) at the Legislative Assembly to ban smoking in public areas effective on January 1, 2012. Yet, the newly established law had granted exceptions for 50% of the casinos’ areas. The half-area non-smoking rule in casinos will be effective on January 1, 2013.

According to the new act, casinos are allowed to set up designated smoking areas with areas less than 50% of the total gaming area before the begin-ning of 2013. Those smoking areas need to conform to the regulation set up by the Health Bureau. Smoking areas must be set above the non-smoking areas. If the casinos just have one floor, they must

set up a buffer area with air supply, return air sys-tems, damper systems and set at least a two-meter high airtight wall. Any casinos failing to follow the regulations, the Chief Executive may decide to reduce or cancel the smoking area in the casino.

Casinos are sites that attract most tourists in Macao. As of August 2012,more than 18 million tourists came to Macao in the first eight months. With this huge number of tourists visiting Macao and supporting the tourism industry, is it reason-able to make casinos more “special” in terms of smoke-free regulation?

“People enjoy smoking while they are gambling. If non-smoking is carried out in all the casinos, it somehow means to discourage them to visit Macao for gambling, which in return will affect the gam-ing revenues,” Chio Yuen Ming, a dealer working in one of the Macao’s casinos, emphasized.

The new policy is aimed to reduce the harm-ful effects of tobacco and provide a better living

By Cathy Lam

will 50% smoke area in Casinos make smoke-free maCao?By Cathy Lam

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i N V i s i B L e A M B i g U i T Y

Posters with the slogan “A new era of smoke-free Macao” can be seen everywhere in our city to publicize the new regulation to the public. The Macao government passed Section 3 and Schedule 2 of the amended Smoking (Public Health)

Ordinance (Cap. 371) at the Legislative Assembly to ban smoking in public areas effective on January 1, 2012. Yet, the newly established law had granted exceptions for 50% of the casinos’ areas. The half-area non-smoking rule in casinos will be effective on January 1, 2013.

According to the new act, casinos are allowed to set up designated smoking areas with areas less than 50% of the total gaming area before the begin-ning of 2013. Those smoking areas need to conform to the regulation set up by the Health Bureau. Smoking areas must be set above the non-smoking areas. If the casinos just have one floor, they must

set up a buffer area with air supply, return air sys-tems, damper systems and set at least a two-meter high airtight wall. Any casinos failing to follow the regulations, the Chief Executive may decide to reduce or cancel the smoking area in the casino.

Casinos are sites that attract most tourists in Macao. As of August 2012,more than 18 million tourists came to Macao in the first eight months. With this huge number of tourists visiting Macao and supporting the tourism industry, is it reason-able to make casinos more “special” in terms of smoke-free regulation?

“People enjoy smoking while they are gambling. If non-smoking is carried out in all the casinos, it somehow means to discourage them to visit Macao for gambling, which in return will affect the gam-ing revenues,” Chio Yuen Ming, a dealer working in one of the Macao’s casinos, emphasized.

The new policy is aimed to reduce the harm-ful effects of tobacco and provide a better living

By Cathy Lam

will 50% smoke area in Casinos make smoke-free maCao?By Cathy Lam

environment for local citizens. Ng Kwok Cheong, a legislator, pointed out that the government imposed the new act as they wanted to reach the World Health Organization(WHO)’s standard in order to promote Macao into an “international and travel leisure center” rather than a concern about really turning Macao unto a “smoke-free” city.

In addition to the concern of the international image, the casino workers’ health is also worth to consider. There are 31 casinos in Macao, as of the second season of 2012, there were 53,000 local residents working in casinos, an increase of 11.6% compared with that of last year.

“Gamblers prefer to sit in the smoking area than the non-smoking area. During this transition pe-riod, it’s all at the cost of casino workers’ health,” Chan Hong Fat, a VIP server working in a high limit bet area, complained.

As a number of new casinos are still in their completion, more areas of casinos will be added.

Moreover, it seems impossible to prevent the spread of cigarette smoke in an open gaming area. With the above concerns relating to the gaming revenue received by the government, it appears to be difficult for the government to push for a tighter smoking regulation in casinos. Thus the promise of “a new era of smoke-free Macao” may just be an oxymoron and citizens’ hope to enjoy fully fresh air in Macao is merely a pipe dream.

Will the government implement a stricter regu-lation in the future towards smoking in casinos? “It depends on the development of emerging gam-bling countries such as Singapore,” Ng added.

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In the 21st century, there is an inseparable connection between “Generation Y” and “Technology”. People get used to reading news “online” or via “apps”, as it is more convenient, cheaper and paper-free. The newspaper industry is believed to decline. Howev-er, on the contrary, the first free tabloid Exmoo News, was launched

first as a weekly in Macao last year. It seems that Exmoo goes in a reverse direction, and the reason behind it is puzzling.

In Hong Kong, the free newspaper market has dominated for 10 years, featuring a total of six free newspapers. Metropolis Daily was first launched in April 2002, followed by Headline Daily, am730, Sky Post and Sharp Daily. Besides, The Standard became a free newspaper from 2007. It is now Hong Kong’s first and only free English newspaper. Overall, hundreds of thousands of copies are circulated each day. Those tabloids are very popular as the content is said to be creative, entertaining and somewhat objective. The penetration rate is rather high, it’s like a “must-read” item everyday for Hong Kong people as it is so easy to grab one.

Frank Ng, marketing director of Central International Communica-tion Company Limited (CICC), emphasized, “We aim to issue a news-paper that is really for Macao citizens,” other than stories just covering local associations and general local news. He added, “Exmoo reports on topics that are close to people’s livelihood, and truly voices out for citizens.” Usually the newspaper carries feature stories which explore the details of events.

“Exmoo is ‘free’ so that everyone can get access to it,” said Ng. Especially for elder people, most of them don’t have electronic devices. They are used to buying newspapers, watching television, or listening to the radio news and information, rather than searching on the computer or through the smartphone. Exmoo targets at all Macao citizens, and launching only online would be limited to a specific range of readers. In

exmoo, free newspaper in maCaoBy FLora Chio

FrAnk ng , MArketing Director , centrAl internAtionAl coMMuni-cAtion co. ltD.

addition, not all of them are willing to pay for it, but as it’s free, everyone is willing to get it, and read it. This “free” tabloid would cover larger and more diverse age groups, holding up the spirit of serving society, said Ng.

The tabloid has distinctive content. Although there are just 32 pages, it is dedicated to different big and small issues in Macao, in various aspects. All-round sections cover not only local news and international news, but also about health and fashion. Features introduce new shops, entertainment or travel information in Macao. With the support and encouragement from Macao citizens, Exmoo successfully developed into a daily post, distributed in all weekdays. “We are proud of this accom-plishment and our mission has been achieved,” Ng said. “In the future, we hoped to report the news but at the same time reflect opinions and wishes from people.”

Exmoo is operated by CICC which was established in 2011, aiming to perform an “omnibearing multimedia platform”, through publications and online platform across Macao, Hong Kong, and mainland China. It is the first tourism, hospitality and media enterprise in Macao. Besides Exmoo, there are other subsidiary publications including magazines “e-travellers” and information sites “youaomen” and “uocar” for travel-lers. The company handquaters is in Macao, and has branches in Beijing, Zhuhai and Foshan.

Futhermore, within a year, Exmoo has obviously expanded its dis-tribution network. Initially it started by having 100 people randomly distribute all around Macao. Now it expanded to over 100 placing spots, including convenience stores, supermarkets, shopping malls, univer-sity libraries, car park tollbooths, etc., according to Ng. In the future, the spots in residential buildings would be expanded to make sure that every household could have one.

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i N V i s i B L e A M B i g U i T Y

In the 21st century, there is an inseparable connection between “Generation Y” and “Technology”. People get used to reading news “online” or via “apps”, as it is more convenient, cheaper and paper-free. The newspaper industry is believed to decline. Howev-er, on the contrary, the first free tabloid Exmoo News, was launched

first as a weekly in Macao last year. It seems that Exmoo goes in a reverse direction, and the reason behind it is puzzling.

In Hong Kong, the free newspaper market has dominated for 10 years, featuring a total of six free newspapers. Metropolis Daily was first launched in April 2002, followed by Headline Daily, am730, Sky Post and Sharp Daily. Besides, The Standard became a free newspaper from 2007. It is now Hong Kong’s first and only free English newspaper. Overall, hundreds of thousands of copies are circulated each day. Those tabloids are very popular as the content is said to be creative, entertaining and somewhat objective. The penetration rate is rather high, it’s like a “must-read” item everyday for Hong Kong people as it is so easy to grab one.

Frank Ng, marketing director of Central International Communica-tion Company Limited (CICC), emphasized, “We aim to issue a news-paper that is really for Macao citizens,” other than stories just covering local associations and general local news. He added, “Exmoo reports on topics that are close to people’s livelihood, and truly voices out for citizens.” Usually the newspaper carries feature stories which explore the details of events.

“Exmoo is ‘free’ so that everyone can get access to it,” said Ng. Especially for elder people, most of them don’t have electronic devices. They are used to buying newspapers, watching television, or listening to the radio news and information, rather than searching on the computer or through the smartphone. Exmoo targets at all Macao citizens, and launching only online would be limited to a specific range of readers. In

exmoo, free newspaper in maCaoBy FLora Chio

FrAnk ng , MArketing Director , centrAl internAtionAl coMMuni-cAtion co. ltD.

addition, not all of them are willing to pay for it, but as it’s free, everyone is willing to get it, and read it. This “free” tabloid would cover larger and more diverse age groups, holding up the spirit of serving society, said Ng.

The tabloid has distinctive content. Although there are just 32 pages, it is dedicated to different big and small issues in Macao, in various aspects. All-round sections cover not only local news and international news, but also about health and fashion. Features introduce new shops, entertainment or travel information in Macao. With the support and encouragement from Macao citizens, Exmoo successfully developed into a daily post, distributed in all weekdays. “We are proud of this accom-plishment and our mission has been achieved,” Ng said. “In the future, we hoped to report the news but at the same time reflect opinions and wishes from people.”

Exmoo is operated by CICC which was established in 2011, aiming to perform an “omnibearing multimedia platform”, through publications and online platform across Macao, Hong Kong, and mainland China. It is the first tourism, hospitality and media enterprise in Macao. Besides Exmoo, there are other subsidiary publications including magazines “e-travellers” and information sites “youaomen” and “uocar” for travel-lers. The company handquaters is in Macao, and has branches in Beijing, Zhuhai and Foshan.

Futhermore, within a year, Exmoo has obviously expanded its dis-tribution network. Initially it started by having 100 people randomly distribute all around Macao. Now it expanded to over 100 placing spots, including convenience stores, supermarkets, shopping malls, univer-sity libraries, car park tollbooths, etc., according to Ng. In the future, the spots in residential buildings would be expanded to make sure that every household could have one.

Bridges | FALL 2012 16 15 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e A M B i g U i T Y

In what way can people turn their stress into positive energy, motivating them to do

better jobs? A telephone survey conduct-

ed by the Association of Macao New Vision in 2011 reported that 22.46% of the respondents con-sidered themselves living under extremely heavy stress.

People’s attitudes are the im-portant factor which determines whether stress may help them or distress them in life.

Kit Lo, a secondary school teacher working for the Cari-tas Macau, shared her formula of perceiving and coping with stress in an interview. Lo claimed that she had been under heavy stress these few years because of her huge workload, but her healthy perspective has helped her a great deal to get rid of the negativity and gain positive energy from stress.

“I used to be very easily upset with my life pressure. However, now, I tell myself I cannot always

fall into the negativity because I get several great challenges in front of me. I need to deal with these missions in a more pro-ductive and motivational way,” said Lo.

Lo was a graduate of English Communication in 2007 in the University of Macau. Without a training in education, she has been under heavy stress as she is working in the secondary school and simultaneously has to study a postgraduate degree in education. This year, she even has to teach a class of students with mild Attention Deficit Hy-peractivity Disorder (ADHD), and an autistic student after other regular classes. However, she is becoming wiser in dealing with he r personal stress now.

“I’m less distressed com-pared to the past because now I pay more attention to the tasks in front of me than to the negative emotion. In this way, I feel my ‘shoulders’ are more relaxed,” Lo shared in the inter-

kit lo, A seconDAry school teAcher, shAreD her ForMulA oF coping with stress in An interview

view.One Social Psychology

professional, who prefers to be anonymous, gave further ad-vice. If people perceive stress as a process through which they can make progress or possibly gain rewards, it can turn into positive stress (eustress); on the other hand, if they consider stress as some constraints in life, it will become relatively unhealthy stress (distress), distressing them and impairing their work efficiency.

When stress is nowadays part of our lives, why don’t we try to take reference from Lo’s formula, and deal with our stress in a more healthy way?

remedy offered to stressful ones By tony Cheong

in MAcAo, very coM-Monly, people tenD to

clAiM thAt they live UNder sTress.

Bridges | FALL 2012 18 17 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e A M B i g U i T Y

In what way can people turn their stress into positive energy, motivating them to do

better jobs? A telephone survey conduct-

ed by the Association of Macao New Vision in 2011 reported that 22.46% of the respondents con-sidered themselves living under extremely heavy stress.

People’s attitudes are the im-portant factor which determines whether stress may help them or distress them in life.

Kit Lo, a secondary school teacher working for the Cari-tas Macau, shared her formula of perceiving and coping with stress in an interview. Lo claimed that she had been under heavy stress these few years because of her huge workload, but her healthy perspective has helped her a great deal to get rid of the negativity and gain positive energy from stress.

“I used to be very easily upset with my life pressure. However, now, I tell myself I cannot always

fall into the negativity because I get several great challenges in front of me. I need to deal with these missions in a more pro-ductive and motivational way,” said Lo.

Lo was a graduate of English Communication in 2007 in the University of Macau. Without a training in education, she has been under heavy stress as she is working in the secondary school and simultaneously has to study a postgraduate degree in education. This year, she even has to teach a class of students with mild Attention Deficit Hy-peractivity Disorder (ADHD), and an autistic student after other regular classes. However, she is becoming wiser in dealing with he r personal stress now.

“I’m less distressed com-pared to the past because now I pay more attention to the tasks in front of me than to the negative emotion. In this way, I feel my ‘shoulders’ are more relaxed,” Lo shared in the inter-

kit lo, A seconDAry school teAcher, shAreD her ForMulA oF coping with stress in An interview

view.One Social Psychology

professional, who prefers to be anonymous, gave further ad-vice. If people perceive stress as a process through which they can make progress or possibly gain rewards, it can turn into positive stress (eustress); on the other hand, if they consider stress as some constraints in life, it will become relatively unhealthy stress (distress), distressing them and impairing their work efficiency.

When stress is nowadays part of our lives, why don’t we try to take reference from Lo’s formula, and deal with our stress in a more healthy way?

remedy offered to stressful ones By tony Cheong

in MAcAo, very coM-Monly, people tenD to

clAiM thAt they live UNder sTress.

Bridges | FALL 2012 18 17 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e A M B i g U i T Y

I N V I S I B L E

E T H N I C S

Bridges | FALL 2012 20 19 FALL 2012 | Bridges

I N V I S I B L E

E T H N I C S

Bridges | FALL 2012 20 19 FALL 2012 | Bridges

Over the years, Macao has been de-veloping rapidly after the handover to China and

opening up the casino conces-sions. It thus attracts tens of mil-lions of people from Hong Kong, mainland China and Southeast Asia to come to visit here, and even work here.

With all these different eth-nicities (people from different cultures and races), what is the impact brought to local citizens in terms of fashion, cuisine (di-etary habits), housing and trans-portation? These four aspects constitute an essential texture in our livelihood.

In this report, we are going to explore the status quo in Macao: the multicultural society, dif-ferent ethnicities, problems in urban housing, traffic and trans-portation, and deviant behaviors. It attempts to divide it into dif-ferent parts to present an expan-sive picture of the issues from a sociological and stereotypical perspective instead of focusing on one problem in detail.

There are pros and cons about having diverse ethnicities in Macao. Cultural integration allows us to have a variety of

macao:a multiCultural familyBy aLex Lam, genista Wong, JeKsKrim Fu, yan siu

cuisine (dietary habits) Aside from fashion, there is

also a huge variety of food to choose from. From food shops to restaurants, Macao people can find fresh and creative new styles of food all over the city. Besides traditional Cantonese food, we can enjoy different Chinese cui-sines like Sichuan, Shanghainese, Taiwanese and Chaozhou food. International cuisines like Ital-ian, French, Japanese, Korean,

Burmese, Vietnamese, Indian and Portuguese food are all available here as well. Macao is a small city by size, but it is a place of choices in cuisine. About 84% of the students surveyed think that different ethnicities in Macao brought a positive impact on dining habits to them. They think that the food and cuisine from other countries or regions are delicious so it is good to have various foods in Macao. How-ever, 11% of them think that the foods from different ethnicities are not delicious, or too spicy or not healthy, so the non-local dietary habit is not appealing to them.

choices in clothing and restau-rants. However, it may also lead to problems of the quality of life and transportation.

So what do students think about different ethnicities living here? We have conducted a sur-vey and gathered opinions from 100 students at the University of Macau (UM).

We wanted to find out what are the advantages and disad-vantages caused by different ethnicities living in Macao from the students’ point of view. We conducted a survey to ask UM students the questions about different ethnicities’ influence on fashion style, dining habits, liv-ing problems and public trans-portation. We started the survey on October 22-23 and randomly selected 100 UM students to participate. Here is the summary of the results in these abovemen-tioned four perspectives:

fashionIn recent years, a lot of small

boutiques with different styles have been launched in Macao, especially Japanese and Korean styles. The Japanese mall Cere-jeira has two branches in both Macao and Taipa. Koreans also started their fashion boutiques in Macao. It is good that Macao people now have more choices

in terms of fashion. According to our survey results, about 89% of the students think different eth-nicities in Macao brought a posi-tive impact on fashion to them. They think that they can have more choices in clothing such as Japanese and Korean dressing styles. 10% of the students think that there is a negative impact because they think that the Chinese dressing style is enough and other ethnicities’ styles may be too much for them.

f e a t u r e

89% positive iMpAct10% negAtive iMpAct1% NeUTrAL

84% positive iMpAct11% negAtive iMpAct5% NeUTrAL

21 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 22

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

Over the years, Macao has been de-veloping rapidly after the handover to China and

opening up the casino conces-sions. It thus attracts tens of mil-lions of people from Hong Kong, mainland China and Southeast Asia to come to visit here, and even work here.

With all these different eth-nicities (people from different cultures and races), what is the impact brought to local citizens in terms of fashion, cuisine (di-etary habits), housing and trans-portation? These four aspects constitute an essential texture in our livelihood.

In this report, we are going to explore the status quo in Macao: the multicultural society, dif-ferent ethnicities, problems in urban housing, traffic and trans-portation, and deviant behaviors. It attempts to divide it into dif-ferent parts to present an expan-sive picture of the issues from a sociological and stereotypical perspective instead of focusing on one problem in detail.

There are pros and cons about having diverse ethnicities in Macao. Cultural integration allows us to have a variety of

macao:a multiCultural familyBy aLex Lam, genista Wong, JeKsKrim Fu, yan siu

cuisine (dietary habits) Aside from fashion, there is

also a huge variety of food to choose from. From food shops to restaurants, Macao people can find fresh and creative new styles of food all over the city. Besides traditional Cantonese food, we can enjoy different Chinese cui-sines like Sichuan, Shanghainese, Taiwanese and Chaozhou food. International cuisines like Ital-ian, French, Japanese, Korean,

Burmese, Vietnamese, Indian and Portuguese food are all available here as well. Macao is a small city by size, but it is a place of choices in cuisine. About 84% of the students surveyed think that different ethnicities in Macao brought a positive impact on dining habits to them. They think that the food and cuisine from other countries or regions are delicious so it is good to have various foods in Macao. How-ever, 11% of them think that the foods from different ethnicities are not delicious, or too spicy or not healthy, so the non-local dietary habit is not appealing to them.

choices in clothing and restau-rants. However, it may also lead to problems of the quality of life and transportation.

So what do students think about different ethnicities living here? We have conducted a sur-vey and gathered opinions from 100 students at the University of Macau (UM).

We wanted to find out what are the advantages and disad-vantages caused by different ethnicities living in Macao from the students’ point of view. We conducted a survey to ask UM students the questions about different ethnicities’ influence on fashion style, dining habits, liv-ing problems and public trans-portation. We started the survey on October 22-23 and randomly selected 100 UM students to participate. Here is the summary of the results in these abovemen-tioned four perspectives:

fashionIn recent years, a lot of small

boutiques with different styles have been launched in Macao, especially Japanese and Korean styles. The Japanese mall Cere-jeira has two branches in both Macao and Taipa. Koreans also started their fashion boutiques in Macao. It is good that Macao people now have more choices

in terms of fashion. According to our survey results, about 89% of the students think different eth-nicities in Macao brought a posi-tive impact on fashion to them. They think that they can have more choices in clothing such as Japanese and Korean dressing styles. 10% of the students think that there is a negative impact because they think that the Chinese dressing style is enough and other ethnicities’ styles may be too much for them.

f e a t u r e

89% positive iMpAct10% negAtive iMpAct1% NeUTrAL

84% positive iMpAct11% negAtive iMpAct5% NeUTrAL

21 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 22

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

housing Due to the large population

that has expanded in Macao in the past few years, decent living quarters have become an intense social problem. For instance, Fili-pinos are comparatively active after midnight; they like to live in an apartment together with a group of five or more, which can be annoying to neighbors. Local Macao people have been experiencing a tough time find-ing an ideal living place. From the survey, 33% of the students think that it is acceptable to have neighbors from different ethnici-ties. They think they can make friends and know more about other cultures. However, 58% of them believe there is a negative impact. For example, one of the students said that he has some

Transportation It has also become a chal-

lenging social problem for the government. Despite the con-tinuous improvement that the government made, it is still not enough to meet the demands of

It’s without a doubt that foreigners and immigrants in Macao do affect the normal live-lihood of local citizens in ways like transportation and housing. The problems can become very serious if appropriate policies are not set up, and they could even trigger dissatisfaction of local citizens towards foreigners and immigrants.

For us, we do not find that particularly a big problem when

sharing our neighborhoods with people coming from other parts of the world - most of the time we believe they are not interven-ing in our lives and we can all perfectly face each other with total respect and understanding; and we found consonance of this perspective from most of the lo-cal citizens, too.

But the problems we men-tioned previously do not origi-nate from their existence. There is no problem for us to com-municate with foreigners and immigrants, and we would not be dissatisfied as long as they do not change the already estab-lished social norms in our society - but sadly, sometimes they do.

Now the habits of taking pub-lic transportation of local people have changed. The environment

Filipino neighbors who always make lots of noise at night. The other student has a Vietnam-ese neighbor who always sings loudly in the afternoon. Both of which are annoying to them.

citizens. Macao people com-plain a lot about not being able to get on public transportation due to the massive number of tourists. Laborers and tourists from the mainland often occupy buses from 5pm to 7pm daily. The situation that taxi drivers often reject local Macao people is also cited as a serious factor that leads to poor transportation service. When asked about what influences different ethnicities have on public transportation, 19% of the students think there is a positive impact. They think that it does not cause any prob-lems to them. But 78% of the students think there is a nega-tive impact on this issue. For instance, there are not enough buses for Macao citizens.

of the residences has changed. Cultural values are more diversi-fied but not mutually respected. Even between local people and Chinese from the mainland we could see many cases of differ-ences between cultural practices and beliefs. From the way of driving a car to the level of vol-ume when talking in a restau-rant, the differences can some-times become quite problematic to both groups of people.

Ironically we do not think there is any solution to this mat-ter, as it almost happens every-where in the world. Cultural dif-ferences are going to happen all the time and we cannot simply deny the rights of foreigners and immigrants to come in.

f e a t u r e

33% positive iMpAct58% negAtive iMpAct9% NeUTrAL

19% positive iMpAct78% negAtive iMpAct3% NeUTrAL

23 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 24

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

housing Due to the large population

that has expanded in Macao in the past few years, decent living quarters have become an intense social problem. For instance, Fili-pinos are comparatively active after midnight; they like to live in an apartment together with a group of five or more, which can be annoying to neighbors. Local Macao people have been experiencing a tough time find-ing an ideal living place. From the survey, 33% of the students think that it is acceptable to have neighbors from different ethnici-ties. They think they can make friends and know more about other cultures. However, 58% of them believe there is a negative impact. For example, one of the students said that he has some

Transportation It has also become a chal-

lenging social problem for the government. Despite the con-tinuous improvement that the government made, it is still not enough to meet the demands of

It’s without a doubt that foreigners and immigrants in Macao do affect the normal live-lihood of local citizens in ways like transportation and housing. The problems can become very serious if appropriate policies are not set up, and they could even trigger dissatisfaction of local citizens towards foreigners and immigrants.

For us, we do not find that particularly a big problem when

sharing our neighborhoods with people coming from other parts of the world - most of the time we believe they are not interven-ing in our lives and we can all perfectly face each other with total respect and understanding; and we found consonance of this perspective from most of the lo-cal citizens, too.

But the problems we men-tioned previously do not origi-nate from their existence. There is no problem for us to com-municate with foreigners and immigrants, and we would not be dissatisfied as long as they do not change the already estab-lished social norms in our society - but sadly, sometimes they do.

Now the habits of taking pub-lic transportation of local people have changed. The environment

Filipino neighbors who always make lots of noise at night. The other student has a Vietnam-ese neighbor who always sings loudly in the afternoon. Both of which are annoying to them.

citizens. Macao people com-plain a lot about not being able to get on public transportation due to the massive number of tourists. Laborers and tourists from the mainland often occupy buses from 5pm to 7pm daily. The situation that taxi drivers often reject local Macao people is also cited as a serious factor that leads to poor transportation service. When asked about what influences different ethnicities have on public transportation, 19% of the students think there is a positive impact. They think that it does not cause any prob-lems to them. But 78% of the students think there is a nega-tive impact on this issue. For instance, there are not enough buses for Macao citizens.

of the residences has changed. Cultural values are more diversi-fied but not mutually respected. Even between local people and Chinese from the mainland we could see many cases of differ-ences between cultural practices and beliefs. From the way of driving a car to the level of vol-ume when talking in a restau-rant, the differences can some-times become quite problematic to both groups of people.

Ironically we do not think there is any solution to this mat-ter, as it almost happens every-where in the world. Cultural dif-ferences are going to happen all the time and we cannot simply deny the rights of foreigners and immigrants to come in.

f e a t u r e

33% positive iMpAct58% negAtive iMpAct9% NeUTrAL

19% positive iMpAct78% negAtive iMpAct3% NeUTrAL

23 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 24

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

As inhabitants of one of the seven continents on the planet, Africans have shown the world their persistence and power to adapt to differ-ent ideologies and communities. They fought colonialism for centuries, and survived with establishing their own countries. Despite being respectable nations, Africans are still one of

the most vulnerable groups towards discrimination. Even here, in Macao.

Similar to other groups of foreign students, African students studying in Macao also have to face pressures and problems gener-ated from local people and society. Not only do they have to over-come difficulties of communication and integration, they also need to tackle the hardship of adapting to a new culture, and facing the challenges of life such as being discriminated. While discrimination is usually not a problem for students from Europe or the Ameri-cas, what the African students have to endure may be beyond our imagination.

Emmanuel Omoleye, who is a Nigerian student majoring in English Literature in the University of Macau, came to Macao almost five years ago and has witnessed the serious problem of discrimination here. He thinks that local people, from all ages,

CommuniCation or disCrimination?By aLex Lam

always have a problem communicating with Africans, which makes Omoleye and his friends feel hostile occasionally. In defense of that, he believes this is a problem caused by the misunderstanding between different cultures: local people tend to relate Africans to poverty and crimes, which can be a key fac-tor towards all the acts of discrimination and disrespect. Aside from that, Omoleye also points out that it is extremely hard for African students to look for jobs outside the campus, and sometimes waiters/waitresses in restaurants may even refuse to serve African students, without even knowing who they are and where they come from.

How could the situation be improved? Another student from Cape Verde, David Pires, believes that communication and edu-cation are the key. He suggests that children in Macao should be taught about how to respect different cultures in the world, and to be more active in communicating with different people.

Both Omoleye and Pires went through different periods of difficulty and hardship when they first arrived Macao. They hid their emotions and chose to adapt to the local people and surroundings. They were the ones who compromised. If the local community can show a more welcoming attitude in the first place, life for African students like them could be relatively easier.

CommuniCation

disC

rimin

atio

N

25 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 26

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

As inhabitants of one of the seven continents on the planet, Africans have shown the world their persistence and power to adapt to differ-ent ideologies and communities. They fought colonialism for centuries, and survived with establishing their own countries. Despite being respectable nations, Africans are still one of

the most vulnerable groups towards discrimination. Even here, in Macao.

Similar to other groups of foreign students, African students studying in Macao also have to face pressures and problems gener-ated from local people and society. Not only do they have to over-come difficulties of communication and integration, they also need to tackle the hardship of adapting to a new culture, and facing the challenges of life such as being discriminated. While discrimination is usually not a problem for students from Europe or the Ameri-cas, what the African students have to endure may be beyond our imagination.

Emmanuel Omoleye, who is a Nigerian student majoring in English Literature in the University of Macau, came to Macao almost five years ago and has witnessed the serious problem of discrimination here. He thinks that local people, from all ages,

CommuniCation or disCrimination?By aLex Lam

always have a problem communicating with Africans, which makes Omoleye and his friends feel hostile occasionally. In defense of that, he believes this is a problem caused by the misunderstanding between different cultures: local people tend to relate Africans to poverty and crimes, which can be a key fac-tor towards all the acts of discrimination and disrespect. Aside from that, Omoleye also points out that it is extremely hard for African students to look for jobs outside the campus, and sometimes waiters/waitresses in restaurants may even refuse to serve African students, without even knowing who they are and where they come from.

How could the situation be improved? Another student from Cape Verde, David Pires, believes that communication and edu-cation are the key. He suggests that children in Macao should be taught about how to respect different cultures in the world, and to be more active in communicating with different people.

Both Omoleye and Pires went through different periods of difficulty and hardship when they first arrived Macao. They hid their emotions and chose to adapt to the local people and surroundings. They were the ones who compromised. If the local community can show a more welcoming attitude in the first place, life for African students like them could be relatively easier.

CommuniCation

disC

rimin

atio

N

25 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 26

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

Up-close with amante

W: How do you identify yourself in terms of eth-nicity?A: It’s really quite hard to identify myself in terms of that. I do struggle a lot when it comes to that matter. I would say 60% Chinese and 40% Western, and I would consider myself as 50% Chinese and 50% Portuguese if I speak Portuguese. I was very much into the Japanese culture and speak Japanese as well, so I’m really a mixed culture person if I have to identify, but not only one ethnicity.

W: Do you feel special to be “mixed”? And why?A: Yes, in terms of: having a Portuguese name with an oriental-mixed appearance; despite the Portuguese name, I do not actually know how to speak Portuguese; I am not quite familiar with the traditional culture, for instance, traditional Chi-nese cultures. My parents do not have any special cultures or rules that I need to follow when I am at home. They are comparatively open-minded. For instance, I am 26 years old already and they would not urge me to get married like other Chinese par-ents would do.

W: Do you think you are keen on any cultures (Chinese or Portuguese)?A: I really think I’m half half, in the conflict. I did not study in a Portuguese school in Macao, so I was more into the Chinese and Japanese cultures when I was younger. When I went to college in London, which was the time when I really lived in a Western society. It then changed my concept to a more Western one, and now I would consider myself as half half.

up-Close to the “mix”By genista Wong

Macanese are a special group of people in Macao who have a unique identity. They are referred to as those with mixed blood of Portuguese and Chinese, specifically those who have

Portuguese last names. There are approximately 20,000 to 30,000 Macanese in Macao. The following is an interview with Adelina Amante, a 26-year-old Macanese fashion designer who is half Chinese and half Portuguese. She lived in England for sev-en years studying fashion design, and is fluent in Cantonese, Mandarin, English and Japanese. Now, she works in the wardrobe section of The House of Dancing Water, a unique spectacular water show created by the City of Dreams in Macao. She iden-tifies herself as “the mixture of cultures”.

W: Is there any moment when you feel uncomfort-able about your identity?A: The worst is when Portuguese people ask me, “How come you don’t speak Portuguese?” I re-gretted not learning Portuguese when I was little. I do not know quite clearly where my hometown is. I don’t have a Chinese hometown, nor a Portu-guese one. I can only say Macao is my hometown.

W: Is there any moment when you feel good about your identity?A: When I was studying fashion design, my profes-sors thought I was special when they found out my identity. They would try to have me illustrate dif-ferent designs which were derived from my mixed cultural background.

W: What types of people do you normally hang out with in Macao?A: Various. My company (The House of Dancing Water) is like a “United Nations”! My department is full of British, Canadians, Australians, Brazilians and Japanese. Except my colleagues, I also hang out with my high school friends who are locals.

W: Do you have any comments on the situation of Macao integrating with diverse cultures?A: I hope our society will have more facilities to compromise and integrate diverse cultures. I like that when supermarkets have more varieties of food, which is good. Macao feels bigger than before because it has become a more interesting place from culture integration. However, local people are proud of their own Macao cultures, and some-times quite stubborn to accept or learn from other cultures.

27 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 28

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

Up-close with amante

W: How do you identify yourself in terms of eth-nicity?A: It’s really quite hard to identify myself in terms of that. I do struggle a lot when it comes to that matter. I would say 60% Chinese and 40% Western, and I would consider myself as 50% Chinese and 50% Portuguese if I speak Portuguese. I was very much into the Japanese culture and speak Japanese as well, so I’m really a mixed culture person if I have to identify, but not only one ethnicity.

W: Do you feel special to be “mixed”? And why?A: Yes, in terms of: having a Portuguese name with an oriental-mixed appearance; despite the Portuguese name, I do not actually know how to speak Portuguese; I am not quite familiar with the traditional culture, for instance, traditional Chi-nese cultures. My parents do not have any special cultures or rules that I need to follow when I am at home. They are comparatively open-minded. For instance, I am 26 years old already and they would not urge me to get married like other Chinese par-ents would do. W: Do you think you are keen on any cultures (Chinese or Portuguese)?A: I really think I’m half half, in the conflict. I did not study in a Portuguese school in Macao, so I was more into the Chinese and Japanese cultures when I was younger. When I went to college in London, which was the time when I really lived in a Western society. It then changed my concept to a more Western one, and now I would consider myself as half half.

up-Close to the “mix”By genista Wong

Macanese are a special group of people in Macao who have a unique identity. They are referred to as those with mixed blood of Portuguese and Chinese, specifically those who have

Portuguese last names. There are approximately 20,000 to 30,000 Macanese in Macao. The following is an interview with Adelina Amante, a 26-year-old Macanese fashion designer who is half Chinese and half Portuguese. She lived in England for sev-en years studying fashion design, and is fluent in Cantonese, Mandarin, English and Japanese. Now, she works in the wardrobe section of The House of Dancing Water, a unique spectacular water show created by the City of Dreams in Macao. She iden-tifies herself as “the mixture of cultures”.

W: Is there any moment when you feel uncomfort-able about your identity?A: The worst is when Portuguese people ask me, “How come you don’t speak Portuguese?” I re-gretted not learning Portuguese when I was little. I do not know quite clearly where my hometown is. I don’t have a Chinese hometown, nor a Portu-guese one. I can only say Macao is my hometown.

W: Is there any moment when you feel good about your identity?A: When I was studying fashion design, my profes-sors thought I was special when they found out my identity. They would try to have me illustrate dif-ferent designs which were derived from my mixed cultural background.

W: What types of people do you normally hang out with in Macao?A: Various. My company (The House of Dancing Water) is like a “United Nations”! My department is full of British, Canadians, Australians, Brazilians and Japanese. Except my colleagues, I also hang out with my high school friends who are locals.

W: Do you have any comments on the situation of Macao integrating with diverse cultures?A: I hope our society will have more facilities to compromise and integrate diverse cultures. I like that when supermarkets have more varieties of food, which is good. Macao feels bigger than before because it has become a more interesting place from culture integration. However, local people are proud of their own Macao cultures, and some-times quite stubborn to accept or learn from other cultures.

27 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 28

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

problems of hiring illegal workersBy JeKsKrim Fu

According to a state-ment of anti-illegal workers operation from the Public Se-curity Police (PSP)

and the Labor Affairs Bureau (DSAL) in August, a total of 42 illegal workers were discovered in a total of 467 locations.

Over the years, Macao has been developing rapidly after the handover to China and the opening up of casino conces-sions. It thus attracted hundreds of thousands of people who are from Hong Kong, mainland Chi-na, even from Southeast Asia to

work here. It makes things right if the government imports for-eign workers. But nowadays, for the tension of labor shortage and the large amount of construc-tions in Macao, the problems of hiring illegal workers increase.

The first reason for hiring illegal workers is the demand for workers and a shortage in the local labor force. Hiring illegal workers happens in different working locations, especially in construction sites, commercial units and factories.

The second reason is the low cost. In the perspective of em-

ployers, they would like to hire cheap labor in order to maximize profits. That is why many people are drawn to Macao for jobs, and some employers have taken advantage of the unauthorized labor force as a source of cheap labor supply.

Xue, a visitor from Shanxi Province in the mainland, said, “I draw my luck to see if I can find a job here, and make some money before going back to my place in a couple days.”

Tinh, a visitor from Vietnam, said, “I don’t have a work per-mit, my friend offered me a job

‘i just cAlleD My MAiD to cleAn the Floor AnD wAsh The dishes iN MY resTAUrANT. you Don’t hAve to worry.

no one will ever know.’

here. So I stayed.”Mr. Wong, a boss of restau-

rant, said, “I just called my maid to clean the floor and wash the dishes in my restaurant. You don’t have to worry. No one will ever know.”

As the situation has become serious, the government revised the law of employment. Accord-ing to the new labor law (Decre-to-Lei n. 50/85M), the penalties are imposed on employers and employees who violate the labor laws. Any employer hiring people who do not have official documents, may face imprison-

ment up to two years maximum. As for illegal immigrants, they would be banished from Macao and prohibited from entering Macao. Problems of illegal work-ers may also involve violations of several other laws, such as illegal entry, falsification of docu-ments and so on.

All in all, for employers, the advice is that you should main-tain a healthy work environ-ment. It is not worthy running the risk. Hiring illegal workers would make you lose more than gain. Be a smart employer.

29 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 30

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

problems of hiring illegal workersBy JeKsKrim Fu

According to a state-ment of anti-illegal workers operation from the Public Se-curity Police (PSP)

and the Labor Affairs Bureau (DSAL) in August, a total of 42 illegal workers were discovered in a total of 467 locations.

Over the years, Macao has been developing rapidly after the handover to China and the opening up of casino conces-sions. It thus attracted hundreds of thousands of people who are from Hong Kong, mainland Chi-na, even from Southeast Asia to

work here. It makes things right if the government imports for-eign workers. But nowadays, for the tension of labor shortage and the large amount of construc-tions in Macao, the problems of hiring illegal workers increase.

The first reason for hiring illegal workers is the demand for workers and a shortage in the local labor force. Hiring illegal workers happens in different working locations, especially in construction sites, commercial units and factories.

The second reason is the low cost. In the perspective of em-

ployers, they would like to hire cheap labor in order to maximize profits. That is why many people are drawn to Macao for jobs, and some employers have taken advantage of the unauthorized labor force as a source of cheap labor supply.

Xue, a visitor from Shanxi Province in the mainland, said, “I draw my luck to see if I can find a job here, and make some money before going back to my place in a couple days.”

Tinh, a visitor from Vietnam, said, “I don’t have a work per-mit, my friend offered me a job

‘i just cAlleD My MAiD to cleAn the Floor AnD wAsh The dishes iN MY resTAUrANT. you Don’t hAve to worry.

no one will ever know.’

here. So I stayed.”Mr. Wong, a boss of restau-

rant, said, “I just called my maid to clean the floor and wash the dishes in my restaurant. You don’t have to worry. No one will ever know.”

As the situation has become serious, the government revised the law of employment. Accord-ing to the new labor law (Decre-to-Lei n. 50/85M), the penalties are imposed on employers and employees who violate the labor laws. Any employer hiring people who do not have official documents, may face imprison-

ment up to two years maximum. As for illegal immigrants, they would be banished from Macao and prohibited from entering Macao. Problems of illegal work-ers may also involve violations of several other laws, such as illegal entry, falsification of docu-ments and so on.

All in all, for employers, the advice is that you should main-tain a healthy work environ-ment. It is not worthy running the risk. Hiring illegal workers would make you lose more than gain. Be a smart employer.

29 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 30

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

songkran festival in maCaoBy yan siu

with news oF burMA becoMing More proMinent on television recently, we MAy Discover

soMething burMese in our city Have you ever expe-rienced the “Songkran Festival” (the Water-Splashing

Festival) in Macao? There is a chance if you go to the Hac Sa Beach on April 17 you may en-counter one. Each year, Burmese and Chinese-Burmese living in Macao celebrate their “Songkran Festival”. During the festival, you will see that from the entrance of the beach to the end of the tree-lined area, there would be color-ful flags with words of “Macao Chinese Burmese Songkran Fes-tival” (澳門緬華潑水節) studded on the both sides of the path.

The Songkran Festival is a 700-year-old traditional festival in Myanmar, Thailand and some Southern Asian countries. It is also marked by some ethnic mi-nority groups in Yunnan, China. The Macao event is not only at-tended by Burmese and Chinese Burmese, but also by the Macao

government representatives, mainland guests and diplomats from the consulates-general of ten Southeast Asian countries. The participants will splash water on each other after they perform some songs and dances. Visitors can also join the activi-ties, enjoying splashing water on each other and using water to wash away troubles and bad luck.

Macao is a place where there is a mixture of Eastern and West-ern cultures. There are different groups of Eastern cultures too. For example, Burmese, especially the Chinese Burmese started to come to Macao in the 1960s. Some of them operate restau-rants in Macao; some work in hotels and educational institutes. A part of the contribution of the economic growth comes from those laborers.

Karen, who is one of my class-mates in university, is Burmese. She can speak fluent Chinese so at first I did not know she was Burmese. I had an interview

with her. She told me that the Songkran Festival was very im-portant to Burmese. The festival is from April 13 to April 16 each year. It is also the New Year of Myanmar so “splashing water” becomes a grand celebration. She had been to the festival but never tried to “splash water” on others. She was told by her parents that in Myanmar, the celebration of the Songkran Festival would continue for three days. People would wake up early and take a shower. After that, they would use pure water to splash others outside the house in the morn-ing. They wish it would help them to wash away the troubles in the past year and bring them luck in the New Year. Moreo-ver, they would have a show of singing and dancing at night. The atmosphere of the festival in Myanmar is more lively than in Macao. But Burmese in Macao feel happy and satisfied because they could celebrate their New Year in Macao, said Karen.

courtesy: http://the-sun.on.cc/cnt/liFestyle/20110414/00480_007.htMl

‘burMese in MA-cAo Feel hAppy ANd sATisFied becAuse they coulD celebrAte their new yeAr in MAcAo’

31 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 32

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

songkran festival in maCaoBy yan siu

with news oF burMA becoMing More proMinent on television recently, we MAy Discover

soMething burMese in our city Have you ever expe-rienced the “Songkran Festival” (the Water-Splashing

Festival) in Macao? There is a chance if you go to the Hac Sa Beach on April 17 you may en-counter one. Each year, Burmese and Chinese-Burmese living in Macao celebrate their “Songkran Festival”. During the festival, you will see that from the entrance of the beach to the end of the tree-lined area, there would be color-ful flags with words of “Macao Chinese Burmese Songkran Fes-tival” (澳門緬華潑水節) studded on the both sides of the path.

The Songkran Festival is a 700-year-old traditional festival in Myanmar, Thailand and some Southern Asian countries. It is also marked by some ethnic mi-nority groups in Yunnan, China. The Macao event is not only at-tended by Burmese and Chinese Burmese, but also by the Macao

government representatives, mainland guests and diplomats from the consulates-general of ten Southeast Asian countries. The participants will splash water on each other after they perform some songs and dances. Visitors can also join the activi-ties, enjoying splashing water on each other and using water to wash away troubles and bad luck.

Macao is a place where there is a mixture of Eastern and West-ern cultures. There are different groups of Eastern cultures too. For example, Burmese, especially the Chinese Burmese started to come to Macao in the 1960s. Some of them operate restau-rants in Macao; some work in hotels and educational institutes. A part of the contribution of the economic growth comes from those laborers.

Karen, who is one of my class-mates in university, is Burmese. She can speak fluent Chinese so at first I did not know she was Burmese. I had an interview

with her. She told me that the Songkran Festival was very im-portant to Burmese. The festival is from April 13 to April 16 each year. It is also the New Year of Myanmar so “splashing water” becomes a grand celebration. She had been to the festival but never tried to “splash water” on others. She was told by her parents that in Myanmar, the celebration of the Songkran Festival would continue for three days. People would wake up early and take a shower. After that, they would use pure water to splash others outside the house in the morn-ing. They wish it would help them to wash away the troubles in the past year and bring them luck in the New Year. Moreo-ver, they would have a show of singing and dancing at night. The atmosphere of the festival in Myanmar is more lively than in Macao. But Burmese in Macao feel happy and satisfied because they could celebrate their New Year in Macao, said Karen.

courtesy: http://the-sun.on.cc/cnt/liFestyle/20110414/00480_007.htMl

‘burMese in MA-cAo Feel hAppy ANd sATisFied becAuse they coulD celebrAte their new yeAr in MAcAo’

31 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 32

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

I N V I S I B L E

T R A D I T I O N

Bridges | FALL 2012 34 33 FALL 2012 | Bridges

I N V I S I B L E

T R A D I T I O N

Bridges | FALL 2012 34 33 FALL 2012 | Bridges

the Chinese marriage

From the time Portuguese started trading and set-tled in the 16th century, Macao has become a multicultural village inte-grated with Eastern and Western cultures. Inter-

marriage is one of the typical features of this integrated culture. As time flies, the true meaning of the ritual is un-derappreciated. Yet, it is precious and worth to inherit.

By anna Leong, Caryn Kuong, CrystaL maK, rainBoW Lao

wedding rituals

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 36 35 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

the Chinese marriage

From the time Portuguese started trading and set-tled in the 16th century, Macao has become a multicultural village inte-grated with Eastern and Western cultures. Inter-

marriage is one of the typical features of this integrated culture. As time flies, the true meaning of the ritual is un-derappreciated. Yet, it is precious and worth to inherit.

By anna Leong, Caryn Kuong, CrystaL maK, rainBoW Lao

wedding rituals

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 36 35 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

Many girls describe the wedding day as the most gorgeous day in their life, but do you know why? “Well, it is because every girl will be incred-ibly fabulous in their wedding dress,” Chao Lai, a Chinese bride-to-be said.

However, the “wedding dress” that she is talk-ing about is, obviously, not the traditional Chinese bridal dress but the Western one.

Nowadays, because of the influence of the Western culture, wedding style in Macao and the surrounding area is changing, and the most popular wedding style is “Chinese plus Western” - combi-nation of both Chinese and Western rituals, and it seems that the Western tradition is taking a more important position in the recent decade. That is the reason why the traditional Chinese bridal dress shops are gradually disappearing.

“We won’t be able to survive if we run the shop by selling and renting only Chinese bridal dresses, it’s impossible,” said Wong Wing So, the owner of Choi Heng Long, a century-old Chinese bridal dress shop.

The shop was established to sell cloth in 1900s; it changed to a traditional Chinese bridal dress shop when Wong took it over in the 1950s. At that time, the shop was engaged only in selling Chinese bridal dresses and some wedding related accessories. Nevertheless, the owner started to bring in differ-

ent elements to the shop from the 1980s, like renting Western evening dresses, decorating wedding floats and wedding halls.

“We keep changing in order to survive; we have to cater to the needs of our customers. If they want something more, we have to think if we can do it even if it’s not that familiar for us,” Wong pointed to their wedding float photos.

All the traditional bridal dresses in Wong’s shop are hand-made, and it takes many months to com-plete a wedding dress as patterns on the dress are either embroidered with gold and silver threads or beads; such handcraft cannot be finished by ma-chines as they will de-emphasize the dimensionality of the patterns.

In the old days, the traditional bridal dress symbolized one’s identity, only the richest could af-ford a gold and silver bridal dress as its price could be the equivalent of that of half of an apartment in the 1950s, Wong said. Nonetheless, because of the complicated production process and the declining demand for traditional bridal dresses, fewer and fewer people entered the business, which led to a serious shortage of sewing masters.

Despite of the fact that the traditional bridal dress is becoming more and more precious, the price is usually under MOP100,000, far from the price of half of an apartment nowadays.

Basically, the traditional Chinese wedding ritual is divided into nine parts which is comparatively complicated to foreigners. They are:

1. Exchange of betrothal gifts;2. Installation of the bridal bed;3. Bride’s dowry;4. Hair combing ritual;5. Escorting the bride;6. Ritual kneeling;7. Journey to the groom’s house;8. Arriving at the groom’s house;9. The return of the bride.

None of these steps can be missed in a Chinese wedding because each of them contains different but significant meanings.

However, people’s minds have changed; they tend to simplify the traditional rituals nowadays. And the pity is that, in the process of ritual simplifi-cation, the cultural meanings of the ritual are being lost .

For instance, the exchange of betrothal gifts is a very important step before the wedding because once the ritual is done the couple has their official engagement. On this day, the groom’s family will send a cash gift and other different kinds of gifts to the bride’s family for good luck and appreciation to the bride’s parents for raising up their daughter for years. The gifts will include more than 20 things,

including ceremony cakes, different kinds of dry seafood, a pair of live chickens, wine, nuts, fruits, candies, and so forth. To simplify it nowadays, peo-ple put them all in a little basket with everything a mini size. People can actually buy it in Wong’s shop. The funny thing is that, people have invented something called “seafood money” as Wong men-tioned, that is, put some money into a red pocket as a substitute of the real seafood.

All of these are actually killing the rituals as well as the culture. What is the point to save only the form without the actual meaning? It seems that the fast food culture is, actually, showing up every-where in our life.

“That’s why we are here to remind people the culture and the meaning behind the rituals, to draw them back from the Western culture to some extent, so that they can’t go so far as to forget about our own customs,” Wong emphasized.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 38 37 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

Many girls describe the wedding day as the most gorgeous day in their life, but do you know why? “Well, it is because every girl will be incred-ibly fabulous in their wedding dress,” Chao Lai, a Chinese bride-to-be said.

However, the “wedding dress” that she is talk-ing about is, obviously, not the traditional Chinese bridal dress but the Western one.

Nowadays, because of the influence of the Western culture, wedding style in Macao and the surrounding area is changing, and the most popular wedding style is “Chinese plus Western” - combi-nation of both Chinese and Western rituals, and it seems that the Western tradition is taking a more important position in the recent decade. That is the reason why the traditional Chinese bridal dress shops are gradually disappearing.

“We won’t be able to survive if we run the shop by selling and renting only Chinese bridal dresses, it’s impossible,” said Wong Wing So, the owner of Choi Heng Long, a century-old Chinese bridal dress shop.

The shop was established to sell cloth in 1900s; it changed to a traditional Chinese bridal dress shop when Wong took it over in the 1950s. At that time, the shop was engaged only in selling Chinese bridal dresses and some wedding related accessories. Nevertheless, the owner started to bring in differ-

ent elements to the shop from the 1980s, like renting Western evening dresses, decorating wedding floats and wedding halls.

“We keep changing in order to survive; we have to cater to the needs of our customers. If they want something more, we have to think if we can do it even if it’s not that familiar for us,” Wong pointed to their wedding float photos.

All the traditional bridal dresses in Wong’s shop are hand-made, and it takes many months to com-plete a wedding dress as patterns on the dress are either embroidered with gold and silver threads or beads; such handcraft cannot be finished by ma-chines as they will de-emphasize the dimensionality of the patterns.

In the old days, the traditional bridal dress symbolized one’s identity, only the richest could af-ford a gold and silver bridal dress as its price could be the equivalent of that of half of an apartment in the 1950s, Wong said. Nonetheless, because of the complicated production process and the declining demand for traditional bridal dresses, fewer and fewer people entered the business, which led to a serious shortage of sewing masters.

Despite of the fact that the traditional bridal dress is becoming more and more precious, the price is usually under MOP100,000, far from the price of half of an apartment nowadays.

Basically, the traditional Chinese wedding ritual is divided into nine parts which is comparatively complicated to foreigners. They are:

1. Exchange of betrothal gifts;2. Installation of the bridal bed;3. Bride’s dowry;4. Hair combing ritual;5. Escorting the bride;6. Ritual kneeling;7. Journey to the groom’s house;8. Arriving at the groom’s house;9. The return of the bride.

None of these steps can be missed in a Chinese wedding because each of them contains different but significant meanings.

However, people’s minds have changed; they tend to simplify the traditional rituals nowadays. And the pity is that, in the process of ritual simplifi-cation, the cultural meanings of the ritual are being lost .

For instance, the exchange of betrothal gifts is a very important step before the wedding because once the ritual is done the couple has their official engagement. On this day, the groom’s family will send a cash gift and other different kinds of gifts to the bride’s family for good luck and appreciation to the bride’s parents for raising up their daughter for years. The gifts will include more than 20 things,

including ceremony cakes, different kinds of dry seafood, a pair of live chickens, wine, nuts, fruits, candies, and so forth. To simplify it nowadays, peo-ple put them all in a little basket with everything a mini size. People can actually buy it in Wong’s shop. The funny thing is that, people have invented something called “seafood money” as Wong men-tioned, that is, put some money into a red pocket as a substitute of the real seafood.

All of these are actually killing the rituals as well as the culture. What is the point to save only the form without the actual meaning? It seems that the fast food culture is, actually, showing up every-where in our life.

“That’s why we are here to remind people the culture and the meaning behind the rituals, to draw them back from the Western culture to some extent, so that they can’t go so far as to forget about our own customs,” Wong emphasized.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 38 37 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

In the Catholic Church, the marriage is a Sacra-ment. According to Father Manual, the priest of St. Joseph the Worker Church, “Marriage is a symbol of God’s love, a visible sign instituted by Christ

to give grace. In order to hold a rite of marriage in a Catholic Church, either the bride or groom should be a Catholic. If both of them are Catholics, their wedding ceremony can be held as a Mass.

the maCanese marriage

A Rite of Marriage will start from the Introductory Rites, the liturgy of the Word and the Eucharist. Fol-lowed by the Rite of Marriage, the time when the bride and groom state their intention of the duties of mar-riage in mutual and lasting fidelity. After that is the Blessing and Exchange of Rings, the Priest will bless the rings in God’s name, and then the bride and groom will exchange the rings as a sign of their love and fidelity to one another. The ceremony will continue with the Eucharist Prayer. If it is a Wedding Mass, the part of the Communion Rite will be added. And finally, it comes to the Concluding Rite.

“I have been married three times. However, I had only one experience of getting married in the church,” Can-dido Augusto Serrao, over 50 years old, a local Macanese said. According to Christianity, marriage is the sacrament of everyone’s life, which can only be done once. There is a line spoken by the priest in a Rite of Marriage, “What God has joined, men must not divide.” From the time of the Old and New Testaments, marriage is monogamy, a sacrament from God. So, there should not be any reason for a couple to divorce.

Serrao has a typical foreign face but he speaks Cantonese fluently. He is a typical Macanese. His wife is Chinese. Thus, when they got married, they received the “multi-cultural affection”. On the day they were married, they had both the Eastern and Western wedding rituals. “The wedding ritual is a kind of cultural shock!” said Serrao. At the day time, they had the traditional Chinese wedding ritual. In the very early morning the groom had to come to the bride’s home. After that, there was a series of complicated etiquette steps like serving tea to his wife’s parents; exchanging of betrothal gifts, etc. In the afternoon, they went to the church for the Western wedding ritual. At night, they followed the Chinese wedding ritual so that they had the wedding banquet with relatives and friends. However, the West-ern one is simpler, which is always a private buffet. Serrao said that in general, the Western wedding ritual is more serious than the Chinese one. It might be that people have to follow the priest’s words to continue their wedding. The Chinese one is more relaxed and lively which places marriage as “two families’ big issue” whereas the Western one focuses more on the couple themselves. This might be the biggest difference between the Chinese and Portuguese wedding rituals.

The wedding ritual is part of the culture that we should preserve. Cul-ture means people’s “way of life”, or simply means the way they do things. The wedding ritual is a kind of symbol and an invisible bond that ties people of a community together. Through the traditional wedding ceremony, it’s a blessing to the new couple, a meaning of happiness to each of them.

“what god has joined, men must not divide.”

mr. Candido augusto serrao

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 40 39 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

In the Catholic Church, the marriage is a Sacra-ment. According to Father Manual, the priest of St. Joseph the Worker Church, “Marriage is a symbol of God’s love, a visible sign instituted by Christ

to give grace. In order to hold a rite of marriage in a Catholic Church, either the bride or groom should be a Catholic. If both of them are Catholics, their wedding ceremony can be held as a Mass.

the maCanese marriage

A Rite of Marriage will start from the Introductory Rites, the liturgy of the Word and the Eucharist. Fol-lowed by the Rite of Marriage, the time when the bride and groom state their intention of the duties of mar-riage in mutual and lasting fidelity. After that is the Blessing and Exchange of Rings, the Priest will bless the rings in God’s name, and then the bride and groom will exchange the rings as a sign of their love and fidelity to one another. The ceremony will continue with the Eucharist Prayer. If it is a Wedding Mass, the part of the Communion Rite will be added. And finally, it comes to the Concluding Rite.

“I have been married three times. However, I had only one experience of getting married in the church,” Can-dido Augusto Serrao, over 50 years old, a local Macanese said. According to Christianity, marriage is the sacrament of everyone’s life, which can only be done once. There is a line spoken by the priest in a Rite of Marriage, “What God has joined, men must not divide.” From the time of the Old and New Testaments, marriage is monogamy, a sacrament from God. So, there should not be any reason for a couple to divorce.

Serrao has a typical foreign face but he speaks Cantonese fluently. He is a typical Macanese. His wife is Chinese. Thus, when they got married, they received the “multi-cultural affection”. On the day they were married, they had both the Eastern and Western wedding rituals. “The wedding ritual is a kind of cultural shock!” said Serrao. At the day time, they had the traditional Chinese wedding ritual. In the very early morning the groom had to come to the bride’s home. After that, there was a series of complicated etiquette steps like serving tea to his wife’s parents; exchanging of betrothal gifts, etc. In the afternoon, they went to the church for the Western wedding ritual. At night, they followed the Chinese wedding ritual so that they had the wedding banquet with relatives and friends. However, the West-ern one is simpler, which is always a private buffet. Serrao said that in general, the Western wedding ritual is more serious than the Chinese one. It might be that people have to follow the priest’s words to continue their wedding. The Chinese one is more relaxed and lively which places marriage as “two families’ big issue” whereas the Western one focuses more on the couple themselves. This might be the biggest difference between the Chinese and Portuguese wedding rituals.

The wedding ritual is part of the culture that we should preserve. Cul-ture means people’s “way of life”, or simply means the way they do things. The wedding ritual is a kind of symbol and an invisible bond that ties people of a community together. Through the traditional wedding ceremony, it’s a blessing to the new couple, a meaning of happiness to each of them.

“what god has joined, men must not divide.”

mr. Candido augusto serrao

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 40 39 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

Tips of

Exchange of betrothal gifts (過大禮) : Sending betrothal gifts to the bride and returning gifts to the prospective groom.

Exchange of betrothal gifts, is the most ceremonious ritual of engagement, which is held after sending the gifts to the prospective bride’s family. The formal engagement is established after this ceremony, the prospective bride and groom are committed to a marriage without regret.

Installation of the bridal bed (安床): Decoration of fortune materials such as lotus seeds and a pair of bedside lamps in the bridal room to symbolize more sons to the family.

It is a kind of blessing to the bride and groom that new generations and a good wealth could be produced by this ritual. A “lucky woman”, who has her hus-band, sons and grandsons together, will decorate the bed before the wedding.

Bride’s dowry (嫁妝): A set of blessed gifts from the bride’s family that may be included during the day of betrothal. These include beddings such as pillows and blankets and gold jewelry as well.

Giving the dowry means sending the blessing to the bride and groom and also the gifts to decorate their new house.

Hair combing ritual (上頭): Combing hair four times with blessings to wish the couple a long lasting and sweet marriage.The girl, once she goes through this ritual, is considered a bride-to-be. And the hair combing is usually held at night before the wedding.

Escorting the bride (迎親): The groom’s family sends a sedan chair (花轎) to escort the bride to the wedding.

Escorting the bride is the most ceremonious eti-quette of the wedding. The groom has to marry the bride on that day.

Ritual kneeling (拜堂): Making formal bows by the bride and groom to pay respect to the heaven, earth, parents and most importantly, themselves. There are two ritual kneeling ceremonies to both groom’s and bride’s parents.

After the ritual kneeling, the bride formally be-comes a member of the groom’s family.

Journey to the groom’s house (出門): The ritual cel-ebration and ceremony are being performed along the way to the groom’s house such as setting off firecrack-ers to frighten away evil spirits.

It means that the bride is ready to leave her family on the way to the groom’s house. It’s the initial cer-emony of the wedding day.

Arriving at the groom’s house (過門): The bride is required to step over a lit stove before entering the doorway of the groom’s house to cast out evil influ-ences.

It is the first step for the bride to step into the groom’s door gate, which symbolizes that she is a member of the groom’s family. Meanwhile, the bride has to give the bow to the groom’s elderly relatives to show respect to them.

The return of the bride (三朝回門): The bride returning to her parents’ home on the third day of the wedding.

Also, she has to go back to the family to visit her parents. Meanwhile, the groom will bring some food to them as a sign of gratitude. This return could be the last chance for the bride to get together with her par-ents if the groom’s home is far away from her family.

Chinese marriage ritual

Bridges | FALL 2012 42 41 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

Tips of

Exchange of betrothal gifts (過大禮) : Sending betrothal gifts to the bride and returning gifts to the prospective groom.

Exchange of betrothal gifts, is the most ceremonious ritual of engagement, which is held after sending the gifts to the prospective bride’s family. The formal engagement is established after this ceremony, the prospective bride and groom are committed to a marriage without regret.

Installation of the bridal bed (安床): Decoration of fortune materials such as lotus seeds and a pair of bedside lamps in the bridal room to symbolize more sons to the family.

It is a kind of blessing to the bride and groom that new generations and a good wealth could be produced by this ritual. A “lucky woman”, who has her hus-band, sons and grandsons together, will decorate the bed before the wedding.

Bride’s dowry (嫁妝): A set of blessed gifts from the bride’s family that may be included during the day of betrothal. These include beddings such as pillows and blankets and gold jewelry as well.

Giving the dowry means sending the blessing to the bride and groom and also the gifts to decorate their new house.

Hair combing ritual (上頭): Combing hair four times with blessings to wish the couple a long lasting and sweet marriage.The girl, once she goes through this ritual, is considered a bride-to-be. And the hair combing is usually held at night before the wedding.

Escorting the bride (迎親): The groom’s family sends a sedan chair (花轎) to escort the bride to the wedding.

Escorting the bride is the most ceremonious eti-quette of the wedding. The groom has to marry the bride on that day.

Ritual kneeling (拜堂): Making formal bows by the bride and groom to pay respect to the heaven, earth, parents and most importantly, themselves. There are two ritual kneeling ceremonies to both groom’s and bride’s parents.

After the ritual kneeling, the bride formally be-comes a member of the groom’s family.

Journey to the groom’s house (出門): The ritual cel-ebration and ceremony are being performed along the way to the groom’s house such as setting off firecrack-ers to frighten away evil spirits.

It means that the bride is ready to leave her family on the way to the groom’s house. It’s the initial cer-emony of the wedding day.

Arriving at the groom’s house (過門): The bride is required to step over a lit stove before entering the doorway of the groom’s house to cast out evil influ-ences.

It is the first step for the bride to step into the groom’s door gate, which symbolizes that she is a member of the groom’s family. Meanwhile, the bride has to give the bow to the groom’s elderly relatives to show respect to them.

The return of the bride (三朝回門): The bride returning to her parents’ home on the third day of the wedding.

Also, she has to go back to the family to visit her parents. Meanwhile, the groom will bring some food to them as a sign of gratitude. This return could be the last chance for the bride to get together with her par-ents if the groom’s home is far away from her family.

Chinese marriage ritual

Bridges | FALL 2012 42 41 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

the taste of traditioN

By Caryn Kuong

“We prefer a simple and peaceful life; money can never be the substitute. Thus,

I strongly urge the government not to develop this village into a commercial district,” said Mrs. Chan, who is the owner of a marine food products store in Coloane.

shop is called

), it has

Chan hve engaged in They said that they are

but also kind of culture

They have a par-

that is only handed to generation. They also

-

Lee, 65 years old, has

fish for over 30 years.

meal of mine must have it otherwiseI will have

e

that no one will keep

-

higher as the economy

develops, making their life harder.

Recently, they received news that the government is going to change their neigh-borhood into a new commercial district. It is going to be another Rua Do Cunha (官也街). According to Mrs. Chan, most of the villagers object to this decision. They think once the government rebuilds the area, the unique fishing village tradition will be affect-ed. The streets are not wide enough for tour buses and there will not be enough park-ing spaces for locals as well. Besides, most of the stores here are run by families. Once the number of customers increases, they will not have enough workers to handle the heavy workload. In general, the villagers cannot maintain their daily life as before, such devel-

opment plan should not be proposed, Mr. Chan said.

In order to protect their life style, they have also refused people who wanted to cooperate with them for chain stores. Mr. Chan added that villag-ers here prefer a simple life. Though we might not earn much money without development, we insist on keeping the original life style, he emphasized.

As we know, the popular Macao souvenirs are almond cakes or dried beef. People may forget that salted fish is also one of the traditional foods of Macao. Thus people start to forget the taste of tradi-tion as well.

the best seller oF tong kei is the Most trADitionAl FlAvor.

the MAking oF shriMp pAste.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 44 43 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

The shop is called Loja De Peixe Tong Kei (棠記魚鋪), it has been running for over 40 years. Mr. and Mrs. Chan have engaged in this career for 30 years. They said that they are not only selling food, but also a kind of culture of this place.

They have a par-ticular business model that is only handed down from generation to generation. They also have their own particu-lar customer group. Mrs. Lee, 65 years old, has been buying their salted fish for over 30 years. She said, “I love the flavor here, salted fish is my eating habit. Every meal of mine must have it otherwise I will have no appetite.”

However, they are facing a big problem that no one will keep running their business. Furthermore, operat-ing costs get higher and higher as the economy

develops, making their life harder.

Recently, they received news that the government is going to change their neigh-borhood into a new commercial district. It is going to be another Rua Do Cunha (官也街). According to Mrs. Chan, most of the villagers object to this decision. They think once the government rebuilds the area, the unique fishing village tradition will be affect-ed. The streets are not wide enough for tour buses and there will not be enough park-ing spaces for locals as well. Besides, most of the stores here are run by families. Once the number of customers increases, they will not have enough workers to handle the heavy workload. In general, the villagers cannot maintain their daily life as before, such devel-

opment plan should not be proposed, Mr. Chan said.

In order to protect their life style, they have also refused people who wanted to cooperate with them for chain stores. Mr. Chan added that villag-ers here prefer a simple life. Though we might not earn much money without development, we insist on keeping the original life style, he emphasized.

As we know, the popular Macao souvenirs are almond cakes or dried beef. People may forget that salted fish is also one of the traditional foods of Macao. Thus people start to forget the taste of tradi-tion as well.

the best seller oF tong kei is the Most trADitionAl FlAvor.

the MAking oF shriMp pAste.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 44

in sense of inCense

By rainBoW Lao

Mr. Tam, the owner of Weng Heng Cheng Incense (榮馨祥香莊), started his incense making career at the age of eight, and has been running the business for more than 40 years. Nevertheless, being devoted to the busi-ness, Tam said that the future of this incense industry is not optimistic in Macao.

During the 50s to 70s, production of firecrackers, matches and incense formed the three biggest and most important traditional industries in Macao. The impact on Macao could be comparable to that of the gambling industry in our age. As time went by, the firecracker and match industries no long existed in Macao, and the incense making is the only one which is still struggling to survive in this glory century.

Tam’s shop is filled with different kinds of incense, with a congratulat-ing plaque hanging in the corner, which was given by a friend of Tam’s father’s when the shop was established in 1968; and an old radio, Tam’s only “friend” in the shop.

Working every day from 8 am to 7 pm, there is no holiday in his shop, not even for the Chinese Lunar New Year. However, it is not making Tam a fortune for working “400 days” a year as he said.

“My life is very simple, it’s all for work, for a better life. Although the industry is going down and it’s not making me a fortune, it’s the only thing I know the best; and I never feel bored or tired because it’s my own business,” said Tam. “Of course I can just close the shop for a few days, take a rest or go traveling, it’s not a big deal; but if you want a better life you can’t slack off on your career,” Tam smiled.

In the old days, Buddhism was the biggest religion in China. For ances-tor-worship, people burned thousands of incense sticks every day. Despite the fact that most of the new generation do not do anything about the wor-ship nowadays, Tam’s shop still gets some loyal customers who come from Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Taiwan and even some foreign countries.

He took out a photo and explained very proudly, “The photo was taken here more than 10 years ago, my father and the Portuguese Prime Minister, who came to visit here once.”

Journalist: “How old are you?”Mr. Tam: “Believe it or not, I’m 61 years old.”

Looking much younger than his age, he took out his personal ID immediately, and laughed.

Journalist: “When would you like to retire?”“I won’t stop working until I can’t work,” he

emphasized.

‘i won’t stop working until i Can’t work,’ he emphasized.

Bridges | FALL 2012 46 45 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

in sense of inCense

By rainBoW Lao

Mr. Tam, the owner of Weng Heng Cheng Incense (榮馨祥香莊), started his incense making career at the age of eight, and has been running the business for more than 40 years. Nevertheless, being devoted to the busi-ness, Tam said that the future of this incense industry is not optimistic in Macao.

During the 50s to 70s, production of firecrackers, matches and incense formed the three biggest and most important traditional industries in Macao. The impact on Macao could be comparable to that of the gambling industry in our age. As time went by, the firecracker and match industries no long existed in Macao, and the incense making is the only one which is still struggling to survive in this glory century.

Tam’s shop is filled with different kinds of incense, with a congratulat-ing plaque hanging in the corner, which was given by a friend of Tam’s father’s when the shop was established in 1968; and an old radio, Tam’s only “friend” in the shop.

Working every day from 8 am to 7 pm, there is no holiday in his shop, not even for the Chinese Lunar New Year. However, it is not making Tam a fortune for working “400 days” a year as he said.

“My life is very simple, it’s all for work, for a better life. Although the industry is going down and it’s not making me a fortune, it’s the only thing I know the best; and I never feel bored or tired because it’s my own business,” said Tam. “Of course I can just close the shop for a few days, take a rest or go traveling, it’s not a big deal; but if you want a better life you can’t slack off on your career,” Tam smiled.

In the old days, Buddhism was the biggest religion in China. For ances-tor-worship, people burned thousands of incense sticks every day. Despite the fact that most of the new generation do not do anything about the wor-ship nowadays, Tam’s shop still gets some loyal customers who come from Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Taiwan and even some foreign countries.

He took out a photo and explained very proudly, “The photo was taken here more than 10 years ago, my father and the Portuguese Prime Minister, who came to visit here once.”

Journalist: “How old are you?”Mr. Tam: “Believe it or not, I’m 61 years old.”

Looking much younger than his age, he took out his personal ID immediately, and laughed.

Journalist: “When would you like to retire?” “I won’t stop working until I can’t work,” he

emphasized.

‘i won’t stop working until i Can’t work,’ he emphasized.

Bridges | FALL 2012 46 45 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

“The Procession of the Passion of Our Lord the God Jesus,” also called, “The Big Jesus” is a traditional annual event in Macao. Catholics will lift up the

statue of Christ carrying the Cross and walk from St. Augustine’s Church to the Cathedral, then carry it back the next day. Many people just think that it is a parade for a religious celebration, but how many of us really know the legend behind it?

“The procession isn’t a celebration, instead, it is the first Stations of the Cross before Easter, depict-ing Christ carrying the cross to his crucifixion,” said Joseph Chan, president of Confraternity of our Lord Jesus. He mentioned that in the past the followers who attended the procession usually wore all black, as it was a recall of the Passion of Christ.

This kind of procession is a tradition that originated from Northern Europe. Many European countries like Portugal and Spain, and even the Philippines, a coun-try that had been colonized by the Spanish, also had

passion of maCao street paradeBy CrystaL maK

the procession of Christ. Tradi-tionally, the procession would be held annually on the first Satur-day and Sunday after the Novena and Feast in honor of the Lord God Jesus (“Novena e Festa em Honra do Senhor Bom Jesus dos Passos” in Portuguese), which is the nine days before Lent. It is a period reminding believers to be ready for the penance and self-denial during Lent.

To many people, even Catho-lics, this statue of Christ is always a myth. Chan said the statue has a history of 400 years and there are several legends about it. Many years ago, a wood cabinet was said to have floated to the coast of Nam-Wan. Inside the cabinet, there were pieces of wood, which could be formed into a statue. Hence, the people pieced the wood together as a statue, and put it at the St. Augus-tine Church.

According to Fr. Peter Chung Chi Kin, Vicar General of the Macau Diocese, there is another legend. Long time ago, a secu-rity guard of the Cathedral heard someone knocking at the door while he was sleeping, and he just ignored it. So that person went away and walked to St. Augus-tine’s Church. And finally, people found out that person was Jesus. So people made a statue and put in the church. Therefore, the route of the procession now is the route that Jesus walked before.

All in all, these are just leg-ends, and no verified documents recorded where the statue really came from.

Aside from the procession of the Passion of Our Lord the God Jesus, there is also the proces-sion of Our Lady of Fatima in May and the procession of Jesus’ corpse at the Cathedral during Easter time. These religious pa-rades are also part of the unique and traditional features in this “City of God”, Macao.

the procession oF the pAssion oF our lorD the goD jesus.

the stAtue oF christ At st. Augustine church. insiDe st. Augustine church.

photo by Fok shu gun

Bridges | FALL 2012 48 47 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

“The Procession of the Passion of Our Lord the God Jesus,” also called, “The Big Jesus” is a traditional annual event in Macao. Catholics will lift up the

statue of Christ carrying the Cross and walk from St. Augustine’s Church to the Cathedral, then carry it back the next day. Many people just think that it is a parade for a religious celebration, but how many of us really know the legend behind it?

“The procession isn’t a celebration, instead, it is the first Stations of the Cross before Easter, depict-ing Christ carrying the cross to his crucifixion,” said Joseph Chan, president of Confraternity of our Lord Jesus. He mentioned that in the past the followers who attended the procession usually wore all black, as it was a recall of the Passion of Christ.

This kind of procession is a tradition that originated from Northern Europe. Many European countries like Portugal and Spain, and even the Philippines, a coun-try that had been colonized by the Spanish, also had

passion of maCao street paradeBy CrystaL maK

the procession of Christ. Tradi-tionally, the procession would be held annually on the first Satur-day and Sunday after the Novena and Feast in honor of the Lord God Jesus (“Novena e Festa em Honra do Senhor Bom Jesus dos Passos” in Portuguese), which is the nine days before Lent. It is a period reminding believers to be ready for the penance and self-denial during Lent.

To many people, even Catho-lics, this statue of Christ is always a myth. Chan said the statue has a history of 400 years and there are several legends about it. Many years ago, a wood cabinet was said to have floated to the coast of Nam-Wan. Inside the cabinet, there were pieces of wood, which could be formed into a statue. Hence, the people pieced the wood together as a statue, and put it at the St. Augus-tine Church.

According to Fr. Peter Chung Chi Kin, Vicar General of the Macau Diocese, there is another legend. Long time ago, a secu-rity guard of the Cathedral heard someone knocking at the door while he was sleeping, and he just ignored it. So that person went away and walked to St. Augus-tine’s Church. And finally, people found out that person was Jesus. So people made a statue and put in the church. Therefore, the route of the procession now is the route that Jesus walked before.

All in all, these are just leg-ends, and no verified documents recorded where the statue really came from.

Aside from the procession of the Passion of Our Lord the God Jesus, there is also the proces-sion of Our Lady of Fatima in May and the procession of Jesus’ corpse at the Cathedral during Easter time. These religious pa-rades are also part of the unique and traditional features in this “City of God”, Macao.

the procession oF the pAssion oF our lorD the goD jesus.

the stAtue oF christ At st. Augustine church. insiDe st. Augustine church.

photo by Fok shu gun

Bridges | FALL 2012 48 47 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

lovE and attaChment

in garment industry By anna Leong

“We are pleased to have a small workshop for us to do what we love to do,” said Lam. Although they do not have a proper license to run as a business, they enjoy this small workshop environment. Their custom-ers are acquaintances, people who live in the neighbor-hood or some clothing stores. They could gain one dol-lar for a button and seven dollars for altering a piece of clothing. Thus they earn some money to survive, but not enough for a living. They are just working because of their attachment to the industry.

With the prosperity of the gaming economy in recent years, many garment factories were moved to China, and this industry has gradually disappeared in Macao. People prefer to buy in department stores be-cause of the “low-cost and diversity”, Lam explained. However, people still need some sewing services. Although it might look like trivial, they are still pas-sionate about it.

In making a shirt, no single stitch can be omitted. In society, no single job can be missed, even though they may be “small potatoes”, they provide indispensable service in their job. “We must keep this traditional industry as long as we can,” Ho said.

“The garment industry is no more prosperous as before, we were weeded out eight years ago,” said Mrs. Lam, a

semi-retired tailor, who has engaged in the garment industry for over 30 years and has witnessed the rise and fall of the garment industry in Macao. Yet she still has enthusi-asm for it.

Mrs. Lam and Mrs. Ho, both are about 45 years old, are close friends and working part-ners for over 20 years. They are working in a small workshop doing alterations and retail-ing clothes’ buttons and accessories because of their fondness in sewing and tailoring.

They do not have their “own shop” to run the business. They only rented a tiny place from an old man who lives at the back of the “shop” at Rua dos Mercadores (草堆街) in Macao. They work for the whole week except Sunday morning.

“We are running the ‘family businesses,” said Ho. In the small workplace stuffed with buttons and zippers, there are two old fash-ioned machines: a sewing machine and a but-ton machine. Lam and Ho each operates one of them but has no idea how to run the other one. Thus, they have to cooperate well with each other and also build up a good relation-ship from this teamwork.

Mrs. ho sews A piece oF clothing .

clo

thin

g A

cc

esso

ries

in t

he

sho

p.

Bridges | FALL 2012 50 49 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

lovE and attaChment

in garment industry By anna Leong

“We are pleased to have a small workshop for us to do what we love to do,” said Lam. Although they do not have a proper license to run as a business, they enjoy this small workshop environment. Their custom-ers are acquaintances, people who live in the neighbor-hood or some clothing stores. They could gain one dol-lar for a button and seven dollars for altering a piece of clothing. Thus they earn some money to survive, but not enough for a living. They are just working because of their attachment to the industry.

With the prosperity of the gaming economy in recent years, many garment factories were moved to China, and this industry has gradually disappeared in Macao. People prefer to buy in department stores be-cause of the “low-cost and diversity”, Lam explained. However, people still need some sewing services. Although it might look like trivial, they are still pas-sionate about it.

In making a shirt, no single stitch can be omitted. In society, no single job can be missed, even though they may be “small potatoes”, they provide indispensable service in their job. “We must keep this traditional industry as long as we can,” Ho said.

“The garment industry is no more prosperous as before, we were weeded out eight years ago,” said Mrs. Lam, a

semi-retired tailor, who has engaged in the garment industry for over 30 years and has witnessed the rise and fall of the garment industry in Macao. Yet she still has enthusi-asm for it.

Mrs. Lam and Mrs. Ho, both are about 45 years old, are close friends and working part-ners for over 20 years. They are working in a small workshop doing alterations and retail-ing clothes’ buttons and accessories because of their fondness in sewing and tailoring.

They do not have their “own shop” to run the business. They only rented a tiny place from an old man who lives at the back of the “shop” at Rua dos Mercadores (草堆街) in Macao. They work for the whole week except Sunday morning.

“We are running the ‘family businesses,” said Ho. In the small workplace stuffed with buttons and zippers, there are two old fash-ioned machines: a sewing machine and a but-ton machine. Lam and Ho each operates one of them but has no idea how to run the other one. Thus, they have to cooperate well with each other and also build up a good relation-ship from this teamwork.

Mrs. ho sews A piece oF clothing .

clo

thin

g A

cc

esso

ries

in t

he

sho

p.

Bridges | FALL 2012 50 49 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e T r A d i T i o N

I N V I S I B L E

H A P P I N E S S

Bridges | FALL 2012 52 51 FALL 2012 | Bridges

I N V I S I B L E

H A P P I N E S S

Bridges | FALL 2012 52 51 FALL 2012 | Bridges

12, and now I have been swimming for 15 years,” Wong said. Wong has won 15 awards in domestic and even international swimming competitions.

“Wong is an active girl and she likes to share her story with others,” said Siu Yu Ning, the coach of Wong. “Now Wong understands that she can make progress only if she works harder,” said Siu. “I always tell her that today you can take part in the game, but there is no guarantee that you can also swim in the next game. Just keep up the hard work.

Wong said, “In fact, I really want to thank my families, my friends and also my coach for their support for me. I would not have succeeded without them.”

Another girl, Lau Chi Ian impressed us most with her bright smile, “I like working in SMC because I can learn a lot of things here,” said Lau.

Lau, 23 years old, graduated from a special education school, has been one of the trainees in SMC since August 2012. It took her only a few months to learn all the skills that trainers taught her. Lau said that she is grateful to work here because SMC gave her the chance to convert her abilities to contribution.

Lau likes making desserts a lot. “I feel accom-plished when people say that I make good des-serts,” said the girl with a big smile on her face. She wanted to be a clerk in the future because she likes working with documents.

“i useD to be very AFrAiD thAt people Might look At Me

DiFFerently, but now i grow More conFiDent AnD inDepenD-

ent,” wong hoi MAn sAiD.

By irene Chen, moon Lei, Kara Lei, Catherine Lau

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 54 53 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

In Macao, there is a tiny group, which is the most easily forgettable in society. We called them “mentally challenged”. Even they are always neglected and stereotyped as lacking self-care abilities, they have tried their best

in contributing to this society. Wong Hoi Man is one of the examples.

Wong Hoi Man, 26-year-old, was trained in Sam Meng Chi CafÈ (SMC) from 2008 to 2010 and now works in the housekeeping department of one of the biggest casinos in Macao.

When she was six months old, a terrible fever left a permanent mark on her, a mild mental impairment. “I was very lucky that I had a chance to be part of SMC,” Wong said. Through the shop, she obtained some basic adaptive skills which enabled her to enter society. “I learned how to make sandwiches, how to deliver food to custom-ers and how to communicate with others,” Wong said. “I used to be very afraid that people might look at me differently, but now I grow more confi-dent and independent.”

Sport is another important part of Wong’s life. As an athlete of the Macau Special Olympics (MSO), Wong was in tracks at the beginning and later switched to swimming. She became an ath-lete when the MSO was recruiting new members. “At first, I was not willing to join the training, but I felt better when getting praises from coaches,” said Wong. “I changed to swimming when I was

invisiblE happinEss

12, and now I have been swimming for 15 years,” Wong said. Wong has won 15 awards in domestic and even international swimming competitions.

“Wong is an active girl and she likes to share her story with others,” said Siu Yu Ning, the coach of Wong. “Now Wong understands that she can make progress only if she works harder,” said Siu. “I always tell her that today you can take part in the game, but there is no guarantee that you can also swim in the next game. Just keep up the hard work.

Wong said, “In fact, I really want to thank my families, my friends and also my coach for their support for me. I would not have succeeded without them.”

Another girl, Lau Chi Ian impressed us most with her bright smile, “I like working in SMC because I can learn a lot of things here,” said Lau.

Lau, 23 years old, graduated from a special education school, has been one of the trainees in SMC since August 2012. It took her only a few months to learn all the skills that trainers taught her. Lau said that she is grateful to work here because SMC gave her the chance to convert her abilities to contribution.

Lau likes making desserts a lot. “I feel accom-plished when people say that I make good des-serts,” said the girl with a big smile on her face. She wanted to be a clerk in the future because she likes working with documents.

“i useD to be very AFrAiD thAt people Might look At Me

DiFFerently, but now i grow More conFiDent AnD inDepenD-

ent,” wong hoi MAn sAiD.

By irene Chen, moon Lei, Kara Lei, Catherine Lau

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 54 53 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

In Macao, there is a tiny group, which is the most easily forgettable in society. We called them “mentally challenged”. Even they are always neglected and stereotyped as lacking self-care abilities, they have tried their best

in contributing to this society. Wong Hoi Man is one of the examples.

Wong Hoi Man, 26-year-old, was trained in Sam Meng Chi CafÈ (SMC) from 2008 to 2010 and now works in the housekeeping department of one of the biggest casinos in Macao.

When she was six months old, a terrible fever left a permanent mark on her, a mild mental impairment. “I was very lucky that I had a chance to be part of SMC,” Wong said. Through the shop, she obtained some basic adaptive skills which enabled her to enter society. “I learned how to make sandwiches, how to deliver food to custom-ers and how to communicate with others,” Wong said. “I used to be very afraid that people might look at me differently, but now I grow more confi-dent and independent.”

Sport is another important part of Wong’s life. As an athlete of the Macau Special Olympics (MSO), Wong was in tracks at the beginning and later switched to swimming. She became an ath-lete when the MSO was recruiting new members. “At first, I was not willing to join the training, but I felt better when getting praises from coaches,” said Wong. “I changed to swimming when I was

invisiblE happinEss

f e a t u r e

55 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 56

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

sAM Meng chi, heArt oF hAppinessHave you ever heard of “Sam Meng Chi”? It’s a

cafe which has gathered a group of happiness and the innocent. They serve every customer with their childlike smile. It is the happiest place of Macao.

In 2002, Sam Meng Chi Cafe (SMC) was first launched in Macao by the Macao Association for the Mentally Challenged and is subsidized by the Social Welfare Bureau (SWB). This special cafe is a training shop for the mildly and moderately mentally chal-lenged between ages of 16-45, who are recommend-ed by the SWB. Currently it has nine students led by one training consultant and one social worker.

“The mentally challenged are students of SMC, we are the teachers, teaching them how to work and the most important, the attitudes toward life,” said Tsui Siu Yuk, the training consultant of SMC. Students can learn and practice working skills through training in the cafe. At the beginning, they will learn how to clean. Later they will learn how to make sandwiches and hot drinks, finally they will learn how to deal with money. The training will last for two years; the length may vary for students with various levels of disability. Students will also discover their own strength and interest by work-ing in SMC. Sooner they will apply jobs and work outside. According to Grace Lao, the manager and social worker of SMC, since 2002, there have been 49 graduated students and more than 30 students suc-cessfully found a job.

SMC has provided a great platform for mentally challenged. In this small place, working skills and experience are not the only things they can earn, but

also sociability. Tsui said that most of the students are passive and not willing to communicate with others at first, but after training, they become more active and optimistic. Students and graduates often have a gathering to share their daily life and work-ing status. Tsui and Lao both thought they are so glad to have an opportunity to work with them. “We have learned a lot from them,” Tsui stated. If you haven’t been to SMC, you should give yourself a chance to feel this happiest place.

MeNTAL reTArdATioNMental retardation (MR) is a generalized disorder appearing before adulthood, characterized by significantly impaired cognitive functioning and deficits in two or more adaptive behaviors, such as daily living skills, communication skills, and social skills. A person with IQ below 70 is considered MR. MR is a permanent disability unlike diseases that might heal. People with MR can see you clearly, hear you well and walk as you do. However, they might have some trouble understanding the world.

Their intelligence may be limited, but with proper training they can still contribute to the society. Maybe what they really need is not an extra attention but being treated as normal people, and given a job like everyone else.

Mandy Chan, the staff of the SWB of Macao SAR Government, estimates that there are around 3,000 people who are mentally impaired. The gov-ernment issues a yearly allowance of MOP6, 000 to 12,000 to people with disabilities. As basic living costs have increased dramatically, the money is no

longer adequate to support a family with a men-tally handicapped member. The financial situation is even tighter for some families if a family member might not be able to work outside in order to take care of a MR person.

Although the Social Welfare Bureau has helped setting up some non-profit organizations that provide people with mental handicap occupational training such as making sandwiches and doing laundry, the future of these organizations does not seem promising if their support only comes from the government.

In order to have a better understanding of the difficulties that the intellectually challenged face when finding a job, our reporters interviewed 50 local business owners of restaurants and stores. Among all the interviewees, only five of them would consider hiring an intellectually challenged person and would offer them the same salary as a normal worker.

Most of those who said that they would refuse to hire an intellectually challenged were concerned about their ability to understand demands, to com-municate with coworkers. A big obstacle to the job hunting of the intellectually challenged is a worry of their work performance since most storeowners assumed that they would not perform as well as normal workers. Also, business owners worried that their fragile mental condition might bring un-necessary problems during work. Only 2% of them would choose an intellectually challenged worker with better attitude over a normal worker with an equal ability but not as good attitude.

lAu chi iAn with her bright sMile.

f e a t u r e

55 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 56

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

sAM Meng chi, heArt oF hAppinessHave you ever heard of “Sam Meng Chi”? It’s a

cafe which has gathered a group of happiness and the innocent. They serve every customer with their childlike smile. It is the happiest place of Macao.

In 2002, Sam Meng Chi Cafe (SMC) was first launched in Macao by the Macao Association for the Mentally Challenged and is subsidized by the Social Welfare Bureau (SWB). This special cafe is a training shop for the mildly and moderately mentally chal-lenged between ages of 16-45, who are recommend-ed by the SWB. Currently it has nine students led by one training consultant and one social worker.

“The mentally challenged are students of SMC, we are the teachers, teaching them how to work and the most important, the attitudes toward life,” said Tsui Siu Yuk, the training consultant of SMC. Students can learn and practice working skills through training in the cafe. At the beginning, they will learn how to clean. Later they will learn how to make sandwiches and hot drinks, finally they will learn how to deal with money. The training will last for two years; the length may vary for students with various levels of disability. Students will also discover their own strength and interest by work-ing in SMC. Sooner they will apply jobs and work outside. According to Grace Lao, the manager and social worker of SMC, since 2002, there have been 49 graduated students and more than 30 students suc-cessfully found a job.

SMC has provided a great platform for mentally challenged. In this small place, working skills and experience are not the only things they can earn, but

also sociability. Tsui said that most of the students are passive and not willing to communicate with others at first, but after training, they become more active and optimistic. Students and graduates often have a gathering to share their daily life and work-ing status. Tsui and Lao both thought they are so glad to have an opportunity to work with them. “We have learned a lot from them,” Tsui stated. If you haven’t been to SMC, you should give yourself a chance to feel this happiest place.

MeNTAL reTArdATioNMental retardation (MR) is a generalized disorder appearing before adulthood, characterized by significantly impaired cognitive functioning and deficits in two or more adaptive behaviors, such as daily living skills, communication skills, and social skills. A person with IQ below 70 is considered MR. MR is a permanent disability unlike diseases that might heal. People with MR can see you clearly, hear you well and walk as you do. However, they might have some trouble understanding the world.

Their intelligence may be limited, but with proper training they can still contribute to the society. Maybe what they really need is not an extra attention but being treated as normal people, and given a job like everyone else.

Mandy Chan, the staff of the SWB of Macao SAR Government, estimates that there are around 3,000 people who are mentally impaired. The gov-ernment issues a yearly allowance of MOP6, 000 to 12,000 to people with disabilities. As basic living costs have increased dramatically, the money is no

longer adequate to support a family with a men-tally handicapped member. The financial situation is even tighter for some families if a family member might not be able to work outside in order to take care of a MR person.

Although the Social Welfare Bureau has helped setting up some non-profit organizations that provide people with mental handicap occupational training such as making sandwiches and doing laundry, the future of these organizations does not seem promising if their support only comes from the government.

In order to have a better understanding of the difficulties that the intellectually challenged face when finding a job, our reporters interviewed 50 local business owners of restaurants and stores. Among all the interviewees, only five of them would consider hiring an intellectually challenged person and would offer them the same salary as a normal worker.

Most of those who said that they would refuse to hire an intellectually challenged were concerned about their ability to understand demands, to com-municate with coworkers. A big obstacle to the job hunting of the intellectually challenged is a worry of their work performance since most storeowners assumed that they would not perform as well as normal workers. Also, business owners worried that their fragile mental condition might bring un-necessary problems during work. Only 2% of them would choose an intellectually challenged worker with better attitude over a normal worker with an equal ability but not as good attitude.

lAu chi iAn with her bright sMile.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 58 57 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

tsui siu yuk with other trAinees.

survey results: employers’ opinion on hiring Persons with mental disabilitiesClassification of Mental RetardationIn other words, our society stereotypes these people as incapable of working as a normal person. As mentioned above, if trained properly in areas not intellectually challenging as law or medicine, they can definitely work as a cook or even an office assistant. Besides financial assistance and material subsidy, one thing that they long for is to be ac-knowledged. They are more than willing to work if they were given a chance.

How to refer to a person with mental retardation?The terms mental retardation and mentally

retarded were invented in the middle of the 20th century to replace the previous set of terms, which were deemed to have become offensive. By the end of the 20th century, these terms themselves have come to be widely seen as disparaging and politi-cally incorrect and in need of replacement. The term intellectual disability or intellectually challenged is now preferred by most advocates in most English- speaking countries.

‘we hAve leArneD A lot FroM theM,’ tsui sAiD.

f e a t u r e

Bridges | FALL 2012 58 57 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

tsui siu yuk with other trAinees.

survey results: employers’ opinion on hiring Persons with mental disabilitiesClassification of Mental RetardationIn other words, our society stereotypes these people as incapable of working as a normal person. As mentioned above, if trained properly in areas not intellectually challenging as law or medicine, they can definitely work as a cook or even an office assistant. Besides financial assistance and material subsidy, one thing that they long for is to be ac-knowledged. They are more than willing to work if they were given a chance.

How to refer to a person with mental retardation?The terms mental retardation and mentally

retarded were invented in the middle of the 20th century to replace the previous set of terms, which were deemed to have become offensive. By the end of the 20th century, these terms themselves have come to be widely seen as disparaging and politi-cally incorrect and in need of replacement. The term intellectual disability or intellectually challenged is now preferred by most advocates in most English- speaking countries.

‘we hAve leArneD A lot FroM theM,’ tsui sAiD.

Lee visits sex workers five days a week, provid-ing them with information on health care services, their legal rights and other resources. Distribut-ing condoms and offering information on the Pap smear test (a test which can tell if you have an in-fection, unhealthy cervical cells, or cervical cancer), Lee has earned sex workers’ respect and trust so that they would talk to her about what they need.

Lee is not alone, working with her is another social worker, Yim Ut Lin. When asked how they help sex workers, Yim emphasized, “We won’t say that we are helping sex workers since there is noth-ing we can do for them unless we bring them more customers but we can’t. Therefore what we do is to teach them how to protect themselves and let them know that there are people who actually care about them and try hard to eliminate the discrimination against them.”

According to Lee and Yim, both are from Hong Kong, the reason that they established this organi-zation is that there was no one speaking for sex workers in Macao. They believed that sex work was just another occupation and sex workers had the right to do what they wanted. They had control over their own bodies and they could make use of them. “Why should people look down upon them when they just work as hard as we do?” they questioned. They established this organization first

in Hong Kong with people who shared the same view.

Ironically, the people who are trying to fight for sex workers’ right in Macao are not from Macao, but two Hong Kong social workers. They feel frustrated that few people in Macao really want to come out to help sex worker seriously. Most of lo-cal volunteers just started out of curiosity and quit after a while. They said that because of the social environment and legal system in Macao, this kind of organization is very difficult to survive and let alone to develop. They are struggling, but it seems there are not many people interested in joining them.

Zi Teng (Hong Kong) is a non-governmental organization set up in 1996 in Hong Kong to pro-vide social help for sex workers. In 2000, it started to reach out to sex workers in Macao. In 2006, it officially set up Chi Tang Women Association in Macao. It aims to eliminate social discrimination against sex workers and at the same time educate sex workers so that they can understand their rights and protect themselves from diseases and violence. At present, Chi Tang has two full-time staff, one volunteer doctor and six volunteers in its Macao office.

the invisible purple l ve!By Catherine Lau

澳紫

Bridges | FALL 2012 60 59 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

“There was a time when I doubted that my sister was engaged in sex work. After a week of consideration, I finally realized the fact that sex work was just an

occupation. If that was how she would like to sup-port her life on her own, why should I worry about it?” said Lee Yuk Lan, a leader of Macao’s Chi Tang Women Association (Chi Tang means purple rattan in Chinese).

Sex work in Macao is legal if workers are over 16 years old and self-employed. However, most of sex workers in Macao only hold a travel document, which means they are illegal workers. Therefore if they encounter looting or are abused by the pimps, they can only suffer in silence.

Lee visits sex workers five days a week, provid-ing them with information on health care services, their legal rights and other resources. Distribut-ing condoms and offering information on the Pap smear test (a test which can tell if you have an in-fection, unhealthy cervical cells, or cervical cancer), Lee has earned sex workers’ respect and trust so that they would talk to her about what they need.

Lee is not alone, working with her is another social worker, Yim Ut Lin. When asked how they help sex workers, Yim emphasized, “We won’t say that we are helping sex workers since there is noth-ing we can do for them unless we bring them more customers but we can’t. Therefore what we do is to teach them how to protect themselves and let them know that there are people who actually care about them and try hard to eliminate the discrimination against them.”

According to Lee and Yim, both are from Hong Kong, the reason that they established this organi-zation is that there was no one speaking for sex workers in Macao. They believed that sex work was just another occupation and sex workers had the right to do what they wanted. They had control over their own bodies and they could make use of them. “Why should people look down upon them when they just work as hard as we do?” they questioned. They established this organization first

in Hong Kong with people who shared the same view.

Ironically, the people who are trying to fight for sex workers’ right in Macao are not from Macao, but two Hong Kong social workers. They feel frustrated that few people in Macao really want to come out to help sex worker seriously. Most of lo-cal volunteers just started out of curiosity and quit after a while. They said that because of the social environment and legal system in Macao, this kind of organization is very difficult to survive and let alone to develop. They are struggling, but it seems there are not many people interested in joining them.

Zi Teng (Hong Kong) is a non-governmental organization set up in 1996 in Hong Kong to pro-vide social help for sex workers. In 2000, it started to reach out to sex workers in Macao. In 2006, it officially set up Chi Tang Women Association in Macao. It aims to eliminate social discrimination against sex workers and at the same time educate sex workers so that they can understand their rights and protect themselves from diseases and violence. At present, Chi Tang has two full-time staff, one volunteer doctor and six volunteers in its Macao office.

the invisible purple l ve!By Catherine Lau

澳紫

Bridges | FALL 2012 60 59 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

“There was a time when I doubted that my sister was engaged in sex work. After a week of consideration, I finally realized the fact that sex work was just an

occupation. If that was how she would like to sup-port her life on her own, why should I worry about it?” said Lee Yuk Lan, a leader of Macao’s Chi Tang Women Association (Chi Tang means purple rattan in Chinese).

Sex work in Macao is legal if workers are over 16 years old and self-employed. However, most of sex workers in Macao only hold a travel document, which means they are illegal workers. Therefore if they encounter looting or are abused by the pimps, they can only suffer in silence.

61 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 62

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

‘i hope i cAn hAve A concert in My seconDAry school,‘ chAn sAiD.

invisible dream of a Casino dealerBy Kara Lei

Many young people work as dealers with the boom of

the gaming industry in Macao. Jerry Chan is one of them. How-ever, a little bit different from an ordinary dealer, he is also an aspiring guitarist.

“I can live without a lot of money. I can live without a girlfriend. But I can never live without my guitar,” said Chan, a 25-year-old dealer who works in one of the biggest casinos in

Macao. Chan was totally lost in his world of music when our reporter arrived at his home. “Although I am working in the casino now, I will never give up my guitar,” said Chan with his guitar in his hands.

Chan felt very frustrated in secondary school because he was not good at school work. Although he tried his best, the results turned out to be the same. The frustration drove him away from school and pushed him towards the guitar. Not long af-ter, Chan dropped out of school and found himself a job in the casino. He also admitted that the

casino’s high salary was another reason that made him give up his studies. After three years working as a dealer, Chan is now promot-ed to the position of a supervisor. “My job gives me confidence,” said Chan.

“But, sometimes, I will miss the time when I was in secondary school,” Chan said while smil-ing. “When I am playing guitar, the days of secondary school just flash back as they just happened yesterday; when music is flow-ing around, I have pictures in my mind.” He spent a lot of his spare time on the guitar. As a member of a band, he felt that he is a little

bit closer to his dream. “Playing music does not

mean that I have to be an artist in the future. Actually I’m quite pleased with my work now,” Chan said. He is happy as long as he can still play his guitar after work.

Chan’s dream is that one day he can have a concert in his sec-ondary school and share music with students and encourage them to chase their dreams.

61 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 62

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

‘i hope i cAn hAve A concert in My seconDAry school,‘ chAn sAiD.

invisible dream of a Casino dealerBy Kara Lei

Many young people work as dealers with the boom of

the gaming industry in Macao. Jerry Chan is one of them. How-ever, a little bit different from an ordinary dealer, he is also an aspiring guitarist.

“I can live without a lot of money. I can live without a girlfriend. But I can never live without my guitar,” said Chan, a 25-year-old dealer who works in one of the biggest casinos in

Macao. Chan was totally lost in his world of music when our reporter arrived at his home. “Although I am working in the casino now, I will never give up my guitar,” said Chan with his guitar in his hands.

Chan felt very frustrated in secondary school because he was not good at school work. Although he tried his best, the results turned out to be the same. The frustration drove him away from school and pushed him towards the guitar. Not long af-ter, Chan dropped out of school and found himself a job in the casino. He also admitted that the

casino’s high salary was another reason that made him give up his studies. After three years working as a dealer, Chan is now promot-ed to the position of a supervisor. “My job gives me confidence,” said Chan.

“But, sometimes, I will miss the time when I was in secondary school,” Chan said while smil-ing. “When I am playing guitar, the days of secondary school just flash back as they just happened yesterday; when music is flow-ing around, I have pictures in my mind.” He spent a lot of his spare time on the guitar. As a member of a band, he felt that he is a little

bit closer to his dream. “Playing music does not

mean that I have to be an artist in the future. Actually I’m quite pleased with my work now,” Chan said. He is happy as long as he can still play his guitar after work.

Chan’s dream is that one day he can have a concert in his sec-ondary school and share music with students and encourage them to chase their dreams.

persistenCe under the tin house

By irene Chen

63 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 64

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

In a narrow alley near the Ruins of St. Paul’s, the most crowded tourist spot in Macao, there is a rusty tin house lying qui-etly at the corner. Under the iron sheets lies an old

man’s life. When we are all com-plaining about exhausting work and school, this old man has promised himself to work till the day he stops breathing. The old man is Kao, 75 years old. He is a tailor, and has been in this trade since he was a young man. As people come and go, buildings being built and tore down. Kao is still here, seeing changes of the world while the world witnesses the old man’s persistence.

Five years ago, Kao had a surgery on his throat. Since then, he has to attach a special machine to his throat when he talks, otherwise he would not be able to make any sound. From a conversation with Kao, you may not be able to hear every word

he says, but you surely will learn more about “perseverance”.

R (Reporter): How long have you been a tailor?

K (Kao): I was born in main-land China in 1937. When I came to Macao in 1962, I became an apprentice of an old tailor and started to learn how to make clothes. A couple years later, I decided to start my own busi-ness, which is where I am right now, Kao Kei Tailoring.

R: How is the business nowa-days compared to the old time?

K: The business has been go-ing down steeply compared to what it was 30 years ago. In the past, customers lined up to ask me to make them a decent suit. I was busy all day long. However, now, as you can see, I don’t have much to do. Everybody goes to department stores to buy clothes now. Barely anyone sticks to handmade clothes. The time has changed.

R: Why are you still working

when your health condition is a lot worse than before? Do you need money to support your life?

K: Well...It kills time. I don’t need this money to support my-self since my kids are all grown up and they take very good care of me. Again, I don’t have much business now. The customers are usually neighbors who come to sew a button or trim an edge of their pants. Besides, I’m old now. My eyesight is declining and my hands are shaky. I can’t make a nice suit anymore. But there is no reason for me to stop working. This is what I do and I love what I do. I can still work, even if it’s just as simple as sewing a button. I enjoy working with my own hands because it makes me feel accomplished.

R: When are you considering retirement?

K: Retirement is not in my agenda. I will keep working until the day I can’t move, the day I stop breathing. This little tin

house is my life. As long as I am still living in this world, I would not leave it alone.

During the interview, Kao’s grandson stopped by after kin-dergarten. The old man looked at him and smiled like a child. As soon as the interview was over, the old man put his glasses back on and picked up the scis-sors to cut the cloth in front of him. Crowds of tourists pass by his tin house to see the famous Ruins of St. Paul’s while this old man concentrates on his sewing as he did 50 years ago.

persistenCe under the tin house

By irene Chen

63 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 64

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

In a narrow alley near the Ruins of St. Paul’s, the most crowded tourist spot in Macao, there is a rusty tin house lying qui-etly at the corner. Under the iron sheets lies an old

man’s life. When we are all com-plaining about exhausting work and school, this old man has promised himself to work till the day he stops breathing. The old man is Kao, 75 years old. He is a tailor, and has been in this trade since he was a young man. As people come and go, buildings being built and tore down. Kao is still here, seeing changes of the world while the world witnesses the old man’s persistence.

Five years ago, Kao had a surgery on his throat. Since then, he has to attach a special machine to his throat when he talks, otherwise he would not be able to make any sound. From a conversation with Kao, you may not be able to hear every word

he says, but you surely will learn more about “perseverance”.

R (Reporter): How long have you been a tailor?

K (Kao): I was born in main-land China in 1937. When I came to Macao in 1962, I became an apprentice of an old tailor and started to learn how to make clothes. A couple years later, I decided to start my own busi-ness, which is where I am right now, Kao Kei Tailoring.

R: How is the business nowa-days compared to the old time?

K: The business has been go-ing down steeply compared to what it was 30 years ago. In the past, customers lined up to ask me to make them a decent suit. I was busy all day long. However, now, as you can see, I don’t have much to do. Everybody goes to department stores to buy clothes now. Barely anyone sticks to handmade clothes. The time has changed.

R: Why are you still working

when your health condition is a lot worse than before? Do you need money to support your life?

K: Well...It kills time. I don’t need this money to support my-self since my kids are all grown up and they take very good care of me. Again, I don’t have much business now. The customers are usually neighbors who come to sew a button or trim an edge of their pants. Besides, I’m old now. My eyesight is declining and my hands are shaky. I can’t make a nice suit anymore. But there is no reason for me to stop working. This is what I do and I love what I do. I can still work, even if it’s just as simple as sewing a button. I enjoy working with my own hands because it makes me feel accomplished.

R: When are you considering retirement?

K: Retirement is not in my agenda. I will keep working until the day I can’t move, the day I stop breathing. This little tin

house is my life. As long as I am still living in this world, I would not leave it alone.

During the interview, Kao’s grandson stopped by after kin-dergarten. The old man looked at him and smiled like a child. As soon as the interview was over, the old man put his glasses back on and picked up the scis-sors to cut the cloth in front of him. Crowds of tourists pass by his tin house to see the famous Ruins of St. Paul’s while this old man concentrates on his sewing as he did 50 years ago.

beauty of maCao

a blue macau Tower Have you ever seen the Macao tower

dressed in blue? The tower was under the blue spotlight on April 2 to 4 to introduce the World Autism Awareness Day to Macao citi-zens. This event is called “light it up blue”. Many countries around the world joined this event by lighting up their famous build-ings in blue to show their support to autistic people.

By moon Lei

invisible

Bridges | FALL 2012 66 65 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

The brightest street in macao Whenever a festival comes, Largo do Senado

will be decorated in themes. In the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole street was decorated with a variety of tasty fruits, which Chinese eat during the festival. All of the fruits had different facial expressions; they made the street look lively. The popular street will give you another feeling when the night comes. You will suddenly realize that you are under thousands of stars, the lights have brightened the whole Largo do Senado. This year at Largo do Senado during the Moon Festival, there was also a memorial archway that marked China’s National Day. You definitely enjoyed the two festivals at once in the square.

beauty of maCao

a blue macau Tower Have you ever seen the Macao tower

dressed in blue? The tower was under the blue spotlight on April 2 to 4 to introduce the World Autism Awareness Day to Macao citi-zens. This event is called “light it up blue”. Many countries around the world joined this event by lighting up their famous build-ings in blue to show their support to autistic people.

By moon Lei

invisible

Bridges | FALL 2012 66 65 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

The brightest street in macao Whenever a festival comes, Largo do Senado

will be decorated in themes. In the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole street was decorated with a variety of tasty fruits, which Chinese eat during the festival. All of the fruits had different facial expressions; they made the street look lively. The popular street will give you another feeling when the night comes. You will suddenly realize that you are under thousands of stars, the lights have brightened the whole Largo do Senado. This year at Largo do Senado during the Moon Festival, there was also a memorial archway that marked China’s National Day. You definitely enjoyed the two festivals at once in the square.

A Western Style for Mid-autumn Festival In Macao, whenever there is a festival, you

will find that there are various lanterns dis-played in streets, which are colorful and very eye catching. This has been a custom in Macao and these lanterns help to enhance a festival atmosphere. In addition to traditional patterns of lanterns, several foreign doll lanterns were introduced in the Mid-Autumn Festival this year. Behind the dolls, there was a full moon, which was likely to say that in Chinese, having a family reunion under the full moon, isn’t it?

Bridges | FALL 2012 68 67 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

invisible beauty of maCao

The Map of Memories The famous street in Macao, Rua do Cunha,

has a secret that is not easy to discover. It is a shop called Cunha Bazaar, which has very color-ful floor full of drawings. If you look at them very carefully, you can find out that those pictures drawn on the floor tell little stories of Macao. They are well known by Macao people. For instance, you can find the old and famous shops like Yo Kei dragon’s beard candy, fried chest-nut store in Largo do Senado. Dozens of Macao stories are made as a game map on the floor, in which you can discover lots of your childhood memories in Macao.

A Western Style for Mid-autumn Festival In Macao, whenever there is a festival, you

will find that there are various lanterns dis-played in streets, which are colorful and very eye catching. This has been a custom in Macao and these lanterns help to enhance a festival atmosphere. In addition to traditional patterns of lanterns, several foreign doll lanterns were introduced in the Mid-Autumn Festival this year. Behind the dolls, there was a full moon, which was likely to say that in Chinese, having a family reunion under the full moon, isn’t it?

Bridges | FALL 2012 68 67 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i n v i s i b l e h A p p i n e s s

invisible beauty of maCao

The Map of Memories The famous street in Macao, Rua do Cunha,

has a secret that is not easy to discover. It is a shop called Cunha Bazaar, which has very color-ful floor full of drawings. If you look at them very carefully, you can find out that those pictures drawn on the floor tell little stories of Macao. They are well known by Macao people. For instance, you can find the old and famous shops like Yo Kei dragon’s beard candy, fried chest-nut store in Largo do Senado. Dozens of Macao stories are made as a game map on the floor, in which you can discover lots of your childhood memories in Macao.

I N V I S I B L E . . .

Bridges | FALL 2012 70 69 FALL 2012 | Bridges

I N V I S I B L E . . .

Bridges | FALL 2012 70 69 FALL 2012 | Bridges

A single mother with short trousers and blue slippers everyday, nobody seems to

notice when she is walking by. In our dictionary, her name is called “foreign housemaid” or “bun bun” from the Philippines; how-ever, in her world, she’s Manda Sunsan Poau.

She has spent most of her life serving a family since 1999, the family which owns a furniture shop in Macao. She has experi-enced the weal and woe of the family, the irony is, once she was rich in the Philippines.

“I was the owner of a mobile phone shop in the Philippines, which was quite famous and well-developed during that time, until my husband died,” Poau says. “My husband became an alcoholic when we had our third child, my entire life collapsed.”

Her first marriage at the age of 15, after the sudden tragedy, she left her three children, carry-ing her dream and every piece of effort to Macao and started her new life. Throughout these years,

the invisible protagonist By sCarLet un

her short AnD brown-ish coloreD boDy,

wAlking ArounD the Furniture shop eve-

ryDAy, sweAting AnD sMiLiNg...

she took care of everything in the family, not only just the daily activities, but also the business chores. Unless a huge transac-tion was involved, otherwise she was trusted with a certain amount of money, she rushed to every bank whenever she had to, whether under a strong wind or the cruel sun. After finish-ing all these important jobs, she changes back to a pass-by and another “mother” of the family: by the time the first new life of the family was born.

“Taking care of children is my favorite job! It reminds me of my three lovely kids. I miss them so much. I have no choice, I have to earn as much money as I can. Everyday when I feed the baby, I will regard the baby as my child,” Poau says.

One of her works everyday is to help to call out all the staff in the company, so that they can enjoy the meal on time when it is ready, but nobody seems to pay attention to her, just go and eat whenever they want, she’s used to it. The second new born baby of the family gains her the power to face the difficulty of her life, as the birth day of the baby is the

same as her second son.“We (the Filipinos) are often

ignored by local residents and society, and even in the Philip-pines, our life is harsh. But my mum is just like a master and a superhero, I’m so proud of her strong spirit!” says Jay Coller Neian, one of Poau ‘s children who came to work in Macao a year ago. He is a great encour-agement for Poau.

She cares little about the ob-liviousness by the local people, but still she is full of passion in her living. Going to the market, delivering documents and taking care of the babies are her daily routine and she said she enjoys this kind of life. Those actions are also important to help either her or the host family, as the in-crease of salary adjustment will be affected by her performance.

“I’m beautiful! I want to be a wife for a second time!” Poau shouts, while she is thinking of her new boyfriend.

71 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 72

i N V i s i B L e . . .

A single mother with short trousers and blue slippers everyday, nobody seems to

notice when she is walking by. In our dictionary, her name is called “foreign housemaid” or “bun bun” from the Philippines; how-ever, in her world, she’s Manda Sunsan Poau.

She has spent most of her life serving a family since 1999, the family which owns a furniture shop in Macao. She has experi-enced the weal and woe of the family, the irony is, once she was rich in the Philippines.

“I was the owner of a mobile phone shop in the Philippines, which was quite famous and well-developed during that time, until my husband died,” Poau says. “My husband became an alcoholic when we had our third child, my entire life collapsed.”

Her first marriage at the age of 15, after the sudden tragedy, she left her three children, carry-ing her dream and every piece of effort to Macao and started her new life. Throughout these years,

the invisible protagonist By sCarLet un

her short AnD brown-ish coloreD boDy,

wAlking ArounD the Furniture shop eve-

ryDAy, sweAting AnD sMiLiNg...

she took care of everything in the family, not only just the daily activities, but also the business chores. Unless a huge transac-tion was involved, otherwise she was trusted with a certain amount of money, she rushed to every bank whenever she had to, whether under a strong wind or the cruel sun. After finish-ing all these important jobs, she changes back to a pass-by and another “mother” of the family: by the time the first new life of the family was born.

“Taking care of children is my favorite job! It reminds me of my three lovely kids. I miss them so much. I have no choice, I have to earn as much money as I can. Everyday when I feed the baby, I will regard the baby as my child,” Poau says.

One of her works everyday is to help to call out all the staff in the company, so that they can enjoy the meal on time when it is ready, but nobody seems to pay attention to her, just go and eat whenever they want, she’s used to it. The second new born baby of the family gains her the power to face the difficulty of her life, as the birth day of the baby is the

same as her second son.“We (the Filipinos) are often

ignored by local residents and society, and even in the Philip-pines, our life is harsh. But my mum is just like a master and a superhero, I’m so proud of her strong spirit!” says Jay Coller Neian, one of Poau ‘s children who came to work in Macao a year ago. He is a great encour-agement for Poau.

She cares little about the ob-liviousness by the local people, but still she is full of passion in her living. Going to the market, delivering documents and taking care of the babies are her daily routine and she said she enjoys this kind of life. Those actions are also important to help either her or the host family, as the in-crease of salary adjustment will be affected by her performance.

“I’m beautiful! I want to be a wife for a second time!” Poau shouts, while she is thinking of her new boyfriend.

71 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 72

i N V i s i B L e . . .

By Joey Wong promotion from the technology company I work for and Ribs’ business is also in progress. I want to do better in Ribs, but my responsibility in the company also increases. Time is really insuffi-cient for me to do all the things,” said Kou.

2012 is Ribs’ harvest year, it has made a good profit, but the owners are not satisfied with it. “We will use the profit to invest in Ribs. My partners are my col-lege classmates. Owning a shop was our dream in college,” said Kou seriously. “My expectation is to have crossovers with other well-known brands. If Ribs has a great development in the future, I will decide whether to have full participation to run Ribs,” Kou added.

them. They tried to cut what-ever expenses that could be cut. “The expense and revenue were balanced after one and a half years, but we have no money to manufacture new products. We need to raise funds again. I was very thankful for my sister who initiated to lend money to me,” said Kou with a grateful smile.

Another difficulty is time. Every day they take turns to ad-minister the business. Kou’s full-time job is an engineer in a tech-nology company. He can only manage his shop after work. “To participate in my full-time job and Ribs at the same time is not easy; it makes me extremely exhausted,” Kou added.

The time conflict always occurs in daily life. “I’ve got a

People always say that life is full of joys and sorrows. It is challeng-ing to do one job well; to do two jobs at the

same time is a double burden. There are various kinds of con-flicts, the most pressing ones are money, time and energy. Ribs, a Macao local brand clothes shop for male marks its third anniver-sary this year. Bosco Kou, one of the owners talked about the dilemma in running Ribs.

“We want our shop to be protective, as strong as Ribs,” said Kou.

“Ribs are part of our bodies to protect our lungs and hearts, they need to be tough enough to protect our organs. The message is to do everything by heart, stick to our goal, and be tough to face any difficulties,” said Kou.

Ribs was established in 2009 and run by three owners. All of them have their full-time jobs. “The first difficulty is money, and it is limited. We had five partners at the beginning, now there are three. I used all my savings to start Ribs,” Kou continued. They designed, manufactured and promoted the clothes on their own. Time and money were really limited for

terminal of

bitterness

73 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 74

i N V i s i B L e . . .

By Joey Wong promotion from the technology company I work for and Ribs’ business is also in progress. I want to do better in Ribs, but my responsibility in the company also increases. Time is really insuffi-cient for me to do all the things,” said Kou.

2012 is Ribs’ harvest year, it has made a good profit, but the owners are not satisfied with it. “We will use the profit to invest in Ribs. My partners are my col-lege classmates. Owning a shop was our dream in college,” said Kou seriously. “My expectation is to have crossovers with other well-known brands. If Ribs has a great development in the future, I will decide whether to have full participation to run Ribs,” Kou added.

them. They tried to cut what-ever expenses that could be cut. “The expense and revenue were balanced after one and a half years, but we have no money to manufacture new products. We need to raise funds again. I was very thankful for my sister who initiated to lend money to me,” said Kou with a grateful smile.

Another difficulty is time. Every day they take turns to ad-minister the business. Kou’s full-time job is an engineer in a tech-nology company. He can only manage his shop after work. “To participate in my full-time job and Ribs at the same time is not easy; it makes me extremely exhausted,” Kou added.

The time conflict always occurs in daily life. “I’ve got a

People always say that life is full of joys and sorrows. It is challeng-ing to do one job well; to do two jobs at the

same time is a double burden. There are various kinds of con-flicts, the most pressing ones are money, time and energy. Ribs, a Macao local brand clothes shop for male marks its third anniver-sary this year. Bosco Kou, one of the owners talked about the dilemma in running Ribs.

“We want our shop to be protective, as strong as Ribs,” said Kou.

“Ribs are part of our bodies to protect our lungs and hearts, they need to be tough enough to protect our organs. The message is to do everything by heart, stick to our goal, and be tough to face any difficulties,” said Kou.

Ribs was established in 2009 and run by three owners. All of them have their full-time jobs. “The first difficulty is money, and it is limited. We had five partners at the beginning, now there are three. I used all my savings to start Ribs,” Kou continued. They designed, manufactured and promoted the clothes on their own. Time and money were really limited for

terminal of

bitterness

73 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 74

i N V i s i B L e . . .

Walking under the blazing sun in Macao’s central area during summer can leave you exhausted. As a tourist, you would choose to walk around tourist spots or get a bike

taxi ride to experience the uniqueness of Macao in a different way.

You are traveling overseas, whether for busi-ness or pleasure, you are probably going to end up taking a taxi at some point. In Macao, you have another choice. You can take a local bike taxi to do sightseeing in a relaxed manner.

Transportation prices can vary dramatically. “It is $200 for a 30 minute ride. If you want an hour ride, the price will be $300,” Man Chiu, a 60-year-old bike taxi driver, said. Bike taxi fare for one ride

bike taxi, the most expensive taxi ride in maCaoBy Kam ying Lee

is double or triple of a normal taxi ride. “I was so surprised that the price would be so

expensive, but once I realized that I could go all the way across the city without getting sweaty, I thought it was awesome,” said Melissa Chan, a tourist from Hong Kong. “Once I tried it, I loved it.”

In the past decades since 1951, bike taxis used to be the most common transportation in Macao. The average bike taxi ride involved nothing more than a quick ride home from a night out or a short hop from one side of the city to the other. As time went by, other transportation vehicles became more popular in Macao. The bike taxi in Macao becomes a landmark more than just a transportation vehicle. According to Chiu, it is normal that the drivers earn nothing a day when no one wants to take a ride. They have to raise the taxi fares to survive.

“The ultimate purpose is to create comfort for passengers to enjoy the first class city trip from one location to another. Customers will end up with the unforgettable memory of the ride,” Chiu said. Next time, if you want to experience Macao, you can try out the bike taxi. You will likely get a brand new understanding of Macao.

“You get to see around and feel the wind. You don’t really feel that in taxis,” said a smiling six-year-old daughter of Mrs. Chan.

75 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 76

i N V i s i B L e . . .

Walking under the blazing sun in Macao’s central area during summer can leave you exhausted. As a tourist, you would choose to walk around tourist spots or get a bike

taxi ride to experience the uniqueness of Macao in a different way.

You are traveling overseas, whether for busi-ness or pleasure, you are probably going to end up taking a taxi at some point. In Macao, you have another choice. You can take a local bike taxi to do sightseeing in a relaxed manner.

Transportation prices can vary dramatically. “It is $200 for a 30 minute ride. If you want an hour ride, the price will be $300,” Man Chiu, a 60-year-old bike taxi driver, said. Bike taxi fare for one ride

bike taxi, the most expensive taxi ride in maCaoBy Kam ying Lee

is double or triple of a normal taxi ride. “I was so surprised that the price would be so

expensive, but once I realized that I could go all the way across the city without getting sweaty, I thought it was awesome,” said Melissa Chan, a tourist from Hong Kong. “Once I tried it, I loved it.”

In the past decades since 1951, bike taxis used to be the most common transportation in Macao. The average bike taxi ride involved nothing more than a quick ride home from a night out or a short hop from one side of the city to the other. As time went by, other transportation vehicles became more popular in Macao. The bike taxi in Macao becomes a landmark more than just a transportation vehicle. According to Chiu, it is normal that the drivers earn nothing a day when no one wants to take a ride. They have to raise the taxi fares to survive.

“The ultimate purpose is to create comfort for passengers to enjoy the first class city trip from one location to another. Customers will end up with the unforgettable memory of the ride,” Chiu said. Next time, if you want to experience Macao, you can try out the bike taxi. You will likely get a brand new understanding of Macao.

“You get to see around and feel the wind. You don’t really feel that in taxis,” said a smiling six-year-old daughter of Mrs. Chan.

75 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 76

i N V i s i B L e . . .

“I treasure my life, not just because I can’t see the world, but because I know that things deserve to be difficult,” said Ka Chon, a helper in the Rehabili-tation Centre for the Blind in Macau. The visually impaired

have never seen themselves as the “disabled,” but help people with their limited ability.

The Centre was created with the support from the American Foundation For Overseas Blind Inc in 1960, and has been directed and managed by the Macao Holy House of Mercy since 1963. The Centre provides visually impaired people with dif-ferent interest classes, a recreational activity room, and special computer equipment, etc. The Centre

was once a handicraft workshop and was turned into an activity center for the visually impaired to recreate and help them get into society healthily. There are around 50 members. They join interest classes to obtain techniques like playing Chinese and Western musical instruments, weaving rattan, using computers, and learning Braille (language for the Blind). They also make the best of themselves to help others, like knitting sweaters for the elderly in old age homes.

Janet Leung Sut Mui, director of the Centre, has been working in the Centre for 10 years. “I just wanted to find a stable job when I started work-ing here 10 years ago,” said Leung. “But my mind is different now.” She gradually realized that the visually impaired act no differently from ordinary people when they are in places they are familiar with.

Managing all affairs in the Centre by herself, Leung’s goal is to develop more and diversified functions in the Centre. Furthermore, the Centre is developing a food bank to help the underprivi-leged.

Ka Chon, suffered from congenital glaucoma, turned blind since he was six. He is a young, lively and optimistic guy. “I can’t see the beauty of the world, but I can devote more to it and make it a better place,” said Ka Chon.

Through media, like television, he realized that there are people in different parts of the world who need more help than he does. “Living in a small city like Macao, we are still better off than people in many other places.” This thought motivates him to take part in many voluntary works like teaching

Braille to other visually impaired or helping out in old age homes and orphanages.

According to Ka Chon, facilities for the disabled in Macao are insufficient. Especially in places far away from the Centre, they would get lost easily. He added that even the civic awareness of citizens varies in different districts; citizens living near the Centre have a better sense to help the blind which makes them feel better on the street. Besides, the bare special path (special pavement for the blind) does not reach the standard, he could hardly feel the path, and it sometime ends in the middle of the road which brings them inconvenience to go out alone, said Ka Chon.

“The Centre is like another home for them. I hope I could do more to help them,” said Leung. “I am pleased that they treasure and enjoy their lives here.” These visually impaired do not give up their chance and bring others burden, instead, they make use of their little efforts to make their lives more meaningful and to help people who they think really need help. They deserve our support and appreciation.

the light in the darknessBy Kennis Lou

77 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 78

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

“I treasure my life, not just because I can’t see the world, but because I know that things deserve to be difficult,” said Ka Chon, a helper in the Rehabili-tation Centre for the Blind in Macau. The visually impaired

have never seen themselves as the “disabled,” but help people with their limited ability.

The Centre was created with the support from the American Foundation For Overseas Blind Inc in 1960, and has been directed and managed by the Macao Holy House of Mercy since 1963. The Centre provides visually impaired people with dif-ferent interest classes, a recreational activity room, and special computer equipment, etc. The Centre

was once a handicraft workshop and was turned into an activity center for the visually impaired to recreate and help them get into society healthily. There are around 50 members. They join interest classes to obtain techniques like playing Chinese and Western musical instruments, weaving rattan, using computers, and learning Braille (language for the Blind). They also make the best of themselves to help others, like knitting sweaters for the elderly in old age homes.

Janet Leung Sut Mui, director of the Centre, has been working in the Centre for 10 years. “I just wanted to find a stable job when I started work-ing here 10 years ago,” said Leung. “But my mind is different now.” She gradually realized that the visually impaired act no differently from ordinary people when they are in places they are familiar with.

Managing all affairs in the Centre by herself, Leung’s goal is to develop more and diversified functions in the Centre. Furthermore, the Centre is developing a food bank to help the underprivi-leged.

Ka Chon, suffered from congenital glaucoma, turned blind since he was six. He is a young, lively and optimistic guy. “I can’t see the beauty of the world, but I can devote more to it and make it a better place,” said Ka Chon.

Through media, like television, he realized that there are people in different parts of the world who need more help than he does. “Living in a small city like Macao, we are still better off than people in many other places.” This thought motivates him to take part in many voluntary works like teaching

Braille to other visually impaired or helping out in old age homes and orphanages.

According to Ka Chon, facilities for the disabled in Macao are insufficient. Especially in places far away from the Centre, they would get lost easily. He added that even the civic awareness of citizens varies in different districts; citizens living near the Centre have a better sense to help the blind which makes them feel better on the street. Besides, the bare special path (special pavement for the blind) does not reach the standard, he could hardly feel the path, and it sometime ends in the middle of the road which brings them inconvenience to go out alone, said Ka Chon.

“The Centre is like another home for them. I hope I could do more to help them,” said Leung. “I am pleased that they treasure and enjoy their lives here.” These visually impaired do not give up their chance and bring others burden, instead, they make use of their little efforts to make their lives more meaningful and to help people who they think really need help. They deserve our support and appreciation.

the light in the darknessBy Kennis Lou

77 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 78

i n v i s i b l e e t h n i c s

‘URBAN DISEASE’ INVADES OUR LIVES

By aL Len sun In recent years, with the changing way of life and the fast pace of work, a new kind of disease is invading unconsciously our lives which is broadly recognized as

the “urban disease”. The ad-vancement of technology like the invention of high-tech comput-ers and tablets has brought us a new and more convenient way of life. However, it also brings us some ailments that we had never heard of, such as the “neck pain” and the “computer hands”.

“growing bone spur...is the worst situation”

The “neck pain”, also known as the “Cervical-Spondylosis” in the medical field, is a disorder in which there is abnormal wear on the cartilage and bones of the neck. It is a common cause of chronic neck pain and uncon-sciously affecting our daily lives in a bad way.

Smartphones and tablets have become parts of our lives, leav-ing our necks completely no time to rest which causes muscle ten-sion, as we are “overindulged” in them. According to a research conducted by the Hong Kong Medical Association in 2010, over 70 % of Hong Kong people have experienced neck pain. “Many students said that they have neck pain and some of them even had experienced paralysis in their

upper body,” Tin Kit Peng, a staff from the Campus Health Care Service, said. And she believes that they have a certain degree of cervical vertebra strain. “Grow-ing bone spur in the cervical vertebra is the worst situation,” said Tin. However, she men-tioned that strengthening the neck muscles through exercises and cooperating with certain medications if necessary are the ways to prevent and to ease the pain of the neck.

“...felt ‘extreme’ pain in her hands”

Using tablets and smart-phones also causes the “Car-pal Tunnel Syndrome” - the “computer hands”, which is a condition that causes inflam-mation of the joints of the hand and wrist. When the joints are affected, activities of daily living can be difficult. Holding a tablet or a phone with a palm for too long increases the finger joints pressure and it leads to inflam-mation. Lei Chong Mei, a Year 4 student from the University of Macau, is always busy writing assignments with a computer. After a day of non-stop typing, she felt “extreme” pain in her hands. Her situation has been diagnosed as the “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome”, in which a patient experiences numbness and pain in the fingers and palms. Tin said when we are using a tablet, our

fingers constantly perform repet-itive movements, and it causes hand-muscle injuries. However, “’computer hand’ can actually be prevented,” said Tin. Keeping our hands in a proper position when we are using computer mouse and the most important point is to always give a break to our fingers when using tablets or smartphones.

Prevention is the best “medi-cine”

If you want to get rid of the pain caused by either the “neck pain” or the “computer hands”, Tin reminded us that, the early prevention is the best “medicine” to those inconspicuous diseases. She also said that strengthening bones and muscles are exactly what we need. All in all, we should increase the amount of exercise and exposure to natu-ral sunlight to prevent calcium from leaching out. Besides, the government should also con-sider building more outskirts line trails to encourage citizens’ interest in exercise and sport, she said.

c o u r t e s y : h t t p : / / s i n g u l A r i t A r i A n . t u M b l r . c o M / p o s t / 3 4 7 6 3 7 3 0 8 3 0 / c o M p u t A t i o n A l - M e D i c i n e - e n h A n c e s - w A y - D o c t o r s - D e t e c t

79 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 80

i N V i s i B L e . . .

‘URBAN DISEASE’ INVADES OUR LIVES

By aL Len sun In recent years, with the changing way of life and the fast pace of work, a new kind of disease is invading unconsciously our lives which is broadly recognized as

the “urban disease”. The ad-vancement of technology like the invention of high-tech comput-ers and tablets has brought us a new and more convenient way of life. However, it also brings us some ailments that we had never heard of, such as the “neck pain” and the “computer hands”.

“growing bone spur...is the worst situation”

The “neck pain”, also known as the “Cervical-Spondylosis” in the medical field, is a disorder in which there is abnormal wear on the cartilage and bones of the neck. It is a common cause of chronic neck pain and uncon-sciously affecting our daily lives in a bad way.

Smartphones and tablets have become parts of our lives, leav-ing our necks completely no time to rest which causes muscle ten-sion, as we are “overindulged” in them. According to a research conducted by the Hong Kong Medical Association in 2010, over 70 % of Hong Kong people have experienced neck pain. “Many students said that they have neck pain and some of them even had experienced paralysis in their

upper body,” Tin Kit Peng, a staff from the Campus Health Care Service, said. And she believes that they have a certain degree of cervical vertebra strain. “Grow-ing bone spur in the cervical vertebra is the worst situation,” said Tin. However, she men-tioned that strengthening the neck muscles through exercises and cooperating with certain medications if necessary are the ways to prevent and to ease the pain of the neck.

“...felt ‘extreme’ pain in her hands”

Using tablets and smart-phones also causes the “Car-pal Tunnel Syndrome” - the “computer hands”, which is a condition that causes inflam-mation of the joints of the hand and wrist. When the joints are affected, activities of daily living can be difficult. Holding a tablet or a phone with a palm for too long increases the finger joints pressure and it leads to inflam-mation. Lei Chong Mei, a Year 4 student from the University of Macau, is always busy writing assignments with a computer. After a day of non-stop typing, she felt “extreme” pain in her hands. Her situation has been diagnosed as the “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome”, in which a patient experiences numbness and pain in the fingers and palms. Tin said when we are using a tablet, our

fingers constantly perform repet-itive movements, and it causes hand-muscle injuries. However, “’computer hand’ can actually be prevented,” said Tin. Keeping our hands in a proper position when we are using computer mouse and the most important point is to always give a break to our fingers when using tablets or smartphones.

Prevention is the best “medi-cine”

If you want to get rid of the pain caused by either the “neck pain” or the “computer hands”, Tin reminded us that, the early prevention is the best “medicine” to those inconspicuous diseases. She also said that strengthening bones and muscles are exactly what we need. All in all, we should increase the amount of exercise and exposure to natu-ral sunlight to prevent calcium from leaching out. Besides, the government should also con-sider building more outskirts line trails to encourage citizens’ interest in exercise and sport, she said.

c o u r t e s y : h t t p : / / s i n g u l A r i t A r i A n . t u M b l r . c o M / p o s t / 3 4 7 6 3 7 3 0 8 3 0 / c o M p u t A t i o n A l - M e D i c i n e - e n h A n c e s - w A y - D o c t o r s - D e t e c t

79 FALL 2012 | Bridges Bridges | FALL 2012 80

i N V i s i B L e . . .

invisible germs on your smartphoneBy sCarLet Cheng

There is a news report by Chongqing Evening News which says that germs a smartphone carries is more than that on the toilet seat. And after several tests, the researchers show that harmful germs a smartphone carries is tenfold more than what the toilet contains, and those kinds of bacteria will cause sickness and seri-ous problems in the stomach and intestines.

“It is possible,” said Chan Man Si, program coordinator, the Faculty of Health Sciences of The Macau University of Science and Technology.”Germs belong to a part of microorganism and germs can be classified into positive or negative. Gram positive is usually found in the community but Gram negative is usually found in the hospital. To distinguish a germ, we need to determinate its pigment, structure and shape.”

Chan said, “Most of the germs will not cause people to become sick. It is because germs are symbiotic with people.” However, a germ is pathogenic, if operated in coordination with two terms, then a per-son will get sick. Chan explained that one is necessary condition and the other one is sufficient condition. The necessary condition includes the way of being in touch with the germs, the amount and the power of the germs. The sufficient condition includes the cleanliness of the environment, a person’s resistance against diseases and the vaccine injection.

Chan mentioned that most germs are beneficial germs. For example some can make bread and beer, some turn nitrogen into fertilizers, some can decompose dead wood or leaf, and some can make medi-cine. In addition, if there were no germs in this world, we would die very soon as no more beneficial germs would protect us and no more medicine could be produced.

cold knoWledgeHow many germs does a person carry over the body?The answer is 90 trillion. The germs are everywhere, but we cannot see them, most of the germs on our body are beneficial germs. And we have a protection system to prevent the bad germs from harming our body.

Which kind of bank note in the world carries the most germs?The answer is the 50 cent note of RMB. And the cleanest is the note of North Korea. In addition, newer notes contain fewer germs.

TIPsHow to prevent the spread of germs?There are two good ways to avoid getting sick and prevent the spread of germs: Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. Hand washing before eating and after using the bathroom. And re-member to keep the room with good ventilation.

How to reduce the germs on the smartphone?Here are a few suggestions:• Wash your hands before using it• Remove the device’s case, clean its cracks and sanitize it often• Do not use your phone in the restroom• Do not share with othersTo conclude, the best defense is prevention!(inForMAtion collecteD FroM the internet)

Mr. chAn MAn si progrAM coorDinAtorthe FAculty oF heAlth sciences oF the MAcAu university oF science AnD technology

Bridges | FALL 2012 82 81 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e . . .

invisible germs on your smartphoneBy sCarLet Cheng

There is a news report by Chongqing Evening News which says that germs a smartphone carries is more than that on the toilet seat. And after several tests, the researchers show that harmful germs a smartphone carries is tenfold more than what the toilet contains, and those kinds of bacteria will cause sickness and seri-ous problems in the stomach and intestines.

“It is possible,” said Chan Man Si, program coordinator, the Faculty of Health Sciences of The Macau University of Science and Technology.”Germs belong to a part of microorganism and germs can be classified into positive or negative. Gram positive is usually found in the community but Gram negative is usually found in the hospital. To distinguish a germ, we need to determinate its pigment, structure and shape.”

Chan said, “Most of the germs will not cause people to become sick. It is because germs are symbiotic with people.” However, a germ is pathogenic, if operated in coordination with two terms, then a per-son will get sick. Chan explained that one is necessary condition and the other one is sufficient condition. The necessary condition includes the way of being in touch with the germs, the amount and the power of the germs. The sufficient condition includes the cleanliness of the environment, a person’s resistance against diseases and the vaccine injection.

Chan mentioned that most germs are beneficial germs. For example some can make bread and beer, some turn nitrogen into fertilizers, some can decompose dead wood or leaf, and some can make medi-cine. In addition, if there were no germs in this world, we would die very soon as no more beneficial germs would protect us and no more medicine could be produced.

cold knoWledgeHow many germs does a person carry over the body?The answer is 90 trillion. The germs are everywhere, but we cannot see them, most of the germs on our body are beneficial germs. And we have a protection system to prevent the bad germs from harming our body.

Which kind of bank note in the world carries the most germs?The answer is the 50 cent note of RMB. And the cleanest is the note of North Korea. In addition, newer notes contain fewer germs.

TIPsHow to prevent the spread of germs?There are two good ways to avoid getting sick and prevent the spread of germs: Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. Hand washing before eating and after using the bathroom. And re-member to keep the room with good ventilation.

How to reduce the germs on the smartphone?Here are a few suggestions:• Wash your hands before using it• Remove the device’s case, clean its cracks and sanitize it often• Do not use your phone in the restroom• Do not share with othersTo conclude, the best defense is prevention!(inForMAtion collecteD FroM the internet)

Mr. chAn MAn si progrAM coorDinAtorthe FAculty oF heAlth sciences oF the MAcAu university oF science AnD technology

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i N V i s i B L e . . .

a taste of the pastBy an yu Cheung

In a modern international tourism city like Macao, it sounds almost unbelievable for a traditional store to survive over a hundred years, where it still offers an opportunity for

us to have a remaining taste of the last century. Macao, a world renowned city for its cultural

diversity, has a unique cuisine culture mixing tastes from distinct areas along centuries. As the city develops and changes, restaurants are now increasingly looking at tourists as major custom-ers, trying new ideas and strategies all the time. While the number of commercialized local restau-rants is increasingly growing, there are however some very characteristic traditional dishes and snacks, which are still surviving, if not totally forgotten.

Among a large variety of cuisine styles, Alua (牛油糕), meaning butter cake in Chinese,perhaps is one of the most unfamiliar snacks in Macao. It is neither easily found in travel guides, nor well known by local citizens. Interestingly, the item can be found in a foreign trading company, instead of a restaurant or a snack bar.

Many people probably have walked past this shop, which has a red iron door and a big glass window, emitting a kind of a mysterious sense, but they may not know that there are three types of snacks available inside, which are stored in a glass cabinet, though of limited amount.

The shop owner is an Indian. Born in Macao, he is capable of speaking fluent Cantonese. He claims his shop is a hundred years old. The prod-uct we see today is made by local Portuguese, and the recipe has been improved over the years.

Originated from India and is usually associated with the celebration of New Year, Alua is one of the products exported from the country and is stored in cans. It is made from flour, rock candy, butter, almond and coconut milk. With a smell of gentle sweet, the taste is soft and easy. Consuming would not do any good for health, otherwise it is a delicious snack and worth trying.

The name of the store is Mossa And Companhia Lda., address, Rua Central 45, at the corner of Teatro de Pedro V.

In recent years, changes around Macao are big. It is sometimes a precious enjoyment that perhaps, we can stop for a while, and have a romantic taste of a remote past.

Bridges | FALL 2012 84 83 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e . . .

a taste of the pastBy an yu Cheung

In a modern international tourism city like Macao, it sounds almost unbelievable for a traditional store to survive over a hundred years, where it still offers an opportunity for

us to have a remaining taste of the last century. Macao, a world renowned city for its cultural

diversity, has a unique cuisine culture mixing tastes from distinct areas along centuries. As the city develops and changes, restaurants are now increasingly looking at tourists as major custom-ers, trying new ideas and strategies all the time. While the number of commercialized local restau-rants is increasingly growing, there are however some very characteristic traditional dishes and snacks, which are still surviving, if not totally forgotten.

Among a large variety of cuisine styles, Alua (牛油糕), meaning butter cake in Chinese,perhaps is one of the most unfamiliar snacks in Macao. It is neither easily found in travel guides, nor well known by local citizens. Interestingly, the item can be found in a foreign trading company, instead of a restaurant or a snack bar.

Many people probably have walked past this shop, which has a red iron door and a big glass window, emitting a kind of a mysterious sense, but they may not know that there are three types of snacks available inside, which are stored in a glass cabinet, though of limited amount.

The shop owner is an Indian. Born in Macao, he is capable of speaking fluent Cantonese. He claims his shop is a hundred years old. The prod-uct we see today is made by local Portuguese, and the recipe has been improved over the years.

Originated from India and is usually associated with the celebration of New Year, Alua is one of the products exported from the country and is stored in cans. It is made from flour, rock candy, butter, almond and coconut milk. With a smell of gentle sweet, the taste is soft and easy. Consuming would not do any good for health, otherwise it is a delicious snack and worth trying.

The name of the store is Mossa And Companhia Lda., address, Rua Central 45, at the corner of Teatro de Pedro V.

In recent years, changes around Macao are big. It is sometimes a precious enjoyment that perhaps, we can stop for a while, and have a romantic taste of a remote past.

Bridges | FALL 2012 84 83 FALL 2012 | Bridges

i N V i s i B L e . . .

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Bridges | FALL 2012 86 85 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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Bridges | FALL 2012 86 85 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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Bridges | FALL 2012 88 87 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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Bridges | FALL 2012 88 87 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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Bridges | FALL 2012 90 89 FALL 2012 | Bridges

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Bridges | FALL 2012 90 89 FALL 2012 | Bridges