Australia for short. Located in the South China Sea of China. On the west side of the Pearl River Estuary, it consists of Macau Peninsula, Taipa Island and Coloane Island. It is connected to Zhuhai, Guangdong Province in the north, the Lotus Bridge in the west is connected to hengqin island, Zhuhai City, and it faces Hong Kong across the sea in the east. With a total area of 28.6 square kilometers, it has a subtropical climate. Macao has a population of 488,144 (25), with Chinese as the main residents, while Portuguese and other foreigners account for about 5%. Portuguese and Chinese are the current official languages, but Cantonese is widely spoken in daily communication.

Macao originally belonged to Guangdong province, and was gradually occupied by Portuguese colonists in 1535, which lasted for 4 years. On December 2, 1999, the China government resumed the exercise of sovereignty over Macao and established the Macao Special Administrative Region.

Macao is a free port, which was once extremely prosperous in history. With the opening and development of Hong Kong, the economic importance of Macao as an entrepot trade port has gradually declined.

Macao is one of the four largest gambling cities in the world, and the largest local casino, Lisboa Casino, is the most attractive place for tourists in Macao.

geographical overview

Macao is located on the southeast coast of mainland China. Located in the west bank of the Pearl River Estuary, it is separated from Hong Kong and Guangzhou in the outer edge of the Pearl River Delta. Lingdingyang faces Hong Kong in the east and Wanzai Town in Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province in the west. In the north, it is connected with Gongbei of Zhuhai City by ancient sand dikes, and the land boundary is only 24 meters. The south is bordered by the vast South China Sea. The Macao Peninsula is formed by a long and narrow strip connecting with Gongbei District of Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province. It is about 4 kilometers long from north to south and 1.8 kilometers wide from east to west. There are many hills on the peninsula, the highest is Songshan Mountain, which is 91.7 meters above sea level, and most others are about 5~75 meters above sea level.

climate characteristics

Macao has a subtropical monsoon marine climate. Light and heat are sufficient, warm and humid, and summer is long and winter is short. There is abundant rainfall, but it is often harmed by typhoons and heavy rains every year. The annual average temperature is 22.3℃, and the average temperature in January in Leng Yue is 14.5℃. In the hottest month, the average temperature in July is 28.6℃, and the average annual rainfall is 231.4 mm.

Transportation

In p>1969, a continuous highway with a length of about 2,225 meters was built between Taipa Island and Coloane Island by reclamation. In 1974, a 257-meter-long sea-crossing bridge was built between Macao Peninsula and Taipa Island, and a 438-meter-long friendship bridge was built in the east of it in 1994. Since then, the peninsula across the sea has been integrated with two outlying islands. In November 1995, Macau International Airport was completed and put into operation, with about 6 flights every day to more than 1 countries and cities in China. Between Macao and Hong Kong, however, there is a fleet of fast-moving ships that come and go every 15 to 3 minutes, with a voyage of about 6 minutes.

economic overview

since the 197s, Macao's economy has developed rapidly. Form an economic structure with industry, tourism, gambling and construction as the three pillars. The industry is mainly export-oriented processing industry, mainly including clothing, textiles, electronics, toys and other products. The tourism income driven by gambling accounts for about 5% of Macao's total annual income.

cultural customs

Macao used to be the center of religious culture, with ancient China religions such as Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, as well as later generations of Catholicism, Christianity and Islam. The diversity of religious culture has also been fully reflected in Macao, with Catholicism, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism and Mazu all reserved here. Therefore, throughout the year, Macao is filled with the festive atmosphere of Chinese and Western festivals. Among them, local Chinese attach great importance to traditional festivals such as Lunar New Year, Tomb-Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Double Ninth Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival. Festivals related to religion and customs, such as mother's birthday, drunken dragon and lion dance meeting, and the trip of the Virgin Mary, also have celebrations.

Mazu Pavilion

Mazu Pavilion is 73 meters above sea level, also known as Tianhou Temple and Mage Temple. The temple is built on the back of the mountain, facing the sea and surrounded by towering ancient trees. Beautiful and charming scenery. The main buildings in the temple include the main hall, Hong Ren Hall and Guanyin Pavilion.

St. Paul's archway

St. Paul's archway is located near St. Paul's Street. It is the ruins of St. Paul's church, formerly known as the front wall of the church. The church was built in 1637 and destroyed by fire in 1835. Only the front wall remains today. It is one of the most famous and oldest buildings in Macao, and it is also an important symbol of Macao. It is magnificent and lofty. A magnificent sculpture full of religious colors. The unique modeling makes the whole building have high cultural relics, artistic and historical values. The church belongs to baroque architectural style.

Puji Temple

, commonly known as guanyin temple, was founded in the apocalypse of the late Ming Dynasty. It has a history of more than 38 years. Together with Mage Temple and Lianfeng Temple, it is also known as the three major temples in Macau, and it is one of the few Zen temples in southern China that have been well preserved so far. Puji, one of the eight scenic spots in Macao, refers to this place. Puji Temple is a three-step building, and the first one is the Hall of Great Heroes. The second is the longevity Buddha Hall, and the third is the Guanyin Hall. The whole temple is magnificent, simple and elegant, and beautifully constructed. The courtyard is vast. With strong incense, it is a rare Buddhist temple complex in Hong Kong and Macao, and the temple atmosphere is quite rich.

Songshan Lighthouse

Songshan Lighthouse is the oldest coastal lighthouse in the Far East. Located at the top of Dongwangyang Mountain in the eastern part of Macao Peninsula. The lighthouse was built in the third year of Tongzhi in Qing Dynasty (1864). It was completed and put into use on the evening of September 24, 1865. The lighthouse is 13 meters high and can radiate circularly to the sea around Macao for 25 nautical miles. All night long. The structure of the tower is simple, the spotlight is located at the top of the tower, and there is a winding staircase winding up. At first, the fire water lamp was used to shine, and the wooden wheel rope hammer and other things were used to make the light rotate circularly. It was designed by a native Portuguese from Macau, Calus Vicente Ricardo Roberto Barreto da Rocha. In 1874, the typhoon Jiacheng destroyed the lighthouse. It stopped operating for more than 3 years, and after a long period of repair, it was replaced by a new machine. Equipped with a French mirror, it was put into use again on the evening of June 29, 191, the second year of Xuantong in Qing Dynasty. It still plays the role of navigation.