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What is Macau like to live and work?

What is Macau like to live and work?

Old Aug 30th 2005, 1:19 pm
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Default What is Macau like to live and work?

Is anyone living, or has lived in Macau as an expat?

I can't find much information about the place, although I do belive it's a small place. Any info advice would be great!

We are a family with 2 kids (2 yrs and newborn baby). Any mother & toddler groups, playgroups, nurseries (English speaking) - is there a lot to do?

Thanks!
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Old Aug 30th 2005, 5:55 pm
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Default Re: What is Macau like to live and work?

Originally Posted by mollymalone
Is anyone living, or has lived in Macau as an expat?

I can't find much information about the place, although I do belive it's a small place. Any info advice would be great!

We are a family with 2 kids (2 yrs and newborn baby). Any mother & toddler groups, playgroups, nurseries (English speaking) - is there a lot to do?

Thanks!
Only ever lived in HK and visited Macau but many moons back - 1992/93.

Back then it was slanted to more Portugese/Chinese surrounds. I found it very small place, a mini version of Hong Kong, manic but not as manic if you get my drift. Of course the same humid weather.

Not sure about expats there, most I knew worked & lived in Honkers and went to Macau for R&R. The usual stuff as Maccas to be found. Fab bakeries on the little islands attached by mad bridges.

There is a poster called JTL (Mrs JTL) who is very up with Hong Kong side and is always very kind to those asking questions. I know she and other half (ADL) are growing their own little JTL and not sure if they post as much. Maybe worth sending a PM to her.

Best of luck
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Old Aug 31st 2005, 3:50 am
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Default Re: What is Macau like to live and work?

Originally Posted by mollymalone
Is anyone living, or has lived in Macau as an expat?

I can't find much information about the place, although I do belive it's a small place. Any info advice would be great!

We are a family with 2 kids (2 yrs and newborn baby). Any mother & toddler groups, playgroups, nurseries (English speaking) - is there a lot to do?

Thanks!
Can't help on living there but I have just returned from a vacation where we spent two days in Macau. It is a former Portugese colony but it's now very Chinese. Very few people speak English. The food's great though. If you can bear the weather then good luck, hot and humid and wet! Well, it was when we were there. Things to do? You could take the kids for a trip downtown, they'll look in all the restaurant windows and think it's Sea World!
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Old Aug 31st 2005, 4:43 am
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Default Re: What is Macau like to live and work?

Thanks B for the introduction!

Hi Molly,

Macau's a very small city, population 0.5 million, and much more laid back than Hong Kong. Everything goes a bit slower there. I used to do day trips to Macau on Saturdays to get away from the crowd in HK. Cost of living in Macau is much lower than in Hong Kong but the pay is also significantly lower. For example, a factory worker in HK gets paid HKD7000 but only about HKD5000 in Macau. I think that's one of the reasons lots of HKers take the ferry to Macau for a weekend's entertainment (i.e. casinos and greyhound racing) and very reasonably priced Macanese, Chinese or Portugese meals. It's also a gateway to Zhuhai, an industrial mainland Chinese city.

If you haven't been to Macau before and don't speak Cantonese, you'll find it a bit difficult to settle in. The expat community is very small as most expats are either stationed in HK or across the border in Zhuhai. Personally I don't know of any expats living in Macau, but there are many who live in HK and travel frequently for work/gaming between Macau, Zhuhai and HK.

I have never considered living in Macau mostly because of lack of jobs, but that depends on what you do too. If you are in tourism/hospitality, there would be plenty of jobs, but not for IT and other professions.

An interesting fact if you haven't heard before - I've know it since I was a little girl - Macau has the highest population density in the world, with over 17,000 people per sq km, closely followed by Monaco, and nearly 3 times the population density of Hong Kong.

Sorry I'm not not helpful on living and working in Macau. Hopefully someone living there can tell you more. If you want to know where to visit and what to do, I have many recommendations.

Cheers,
Mrs JTL
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Old Sep 9th 2005, 9:54 am
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Default Re: What is Macau like to live and work?

JTL- I beleive Ap Lei Chau is now the densest populated place on earth (Macau is the densest populated country though). What a claim for HK!

My ex-girlfriend (a Scot who used to live with me in Oman so knows discomfort!) lived there for a year and couldn't wait to leave. She described it in the most unflattering terms and often referred to fat sweaty mainlanders there for the gambling and drunk Hong Kongers there for the gambling. I'm sure it has it's merits but I think they're few and far between for more than a weekend visit. If it is a good career move then there's the possibility of wife and kids living in HK with husband living there Mon-Fri (based on the husband being the career person- no sexism intended!)
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Old Sep 10th 2005, 8:34 am
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Default Re: What is Macau like to live and work?

Originally Posted by mollymalone
Is anyone living, or has lived in Macau as an expat?

I can't find much information about the place, although I do belive it's a small place. Any info advice would be great!

We are a family with 2 kids (2 yrs and newborn baby). Any mother & toddler groups, playgroups, nurseries (English speaking) - is there a lot to do?

Thanks!
I have some family there and last time I visited they said I had pretty much seen everything in the first day! It's small and a little cheaper than HK but it was less hectic. Also they have the best egg tart bakery! Not sure about getting by on English though, HK would be better for that.
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