Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Ruins of St. Paul's, Macau

The façade of the former Cathedral of St. Paul

This is one of the most famous landmarks of Macau. And I must say it's really worth to see, because it looks so much better in real. And it's no wonder, that there's so many tourists around that building. Most are from Chinese mainland, but I also saw Japanese, Koreans and quite few Westerners. It's very hard to take a picture without someone in it, because people take photos non-stop throughout the day, from early morning to late night. It's probably the main and most famous sight in Macau, but the Senado square is equally crowded and full of tourists, so it's really hard to say. Macau is really full of hidden historic treasures, I really loved to explore it.

In the past, this was the biggest Catholic cathedral in Asia. It was built in the 16th century by the Jesuits. But during a typhoon in 1835, the fire destroyed most parts of the building, only the southern façade was left. In the 1990s they reinforced its foundations, because the structure was dangerously leaning (source and more here).

I put together a bunch of photos for you to see the building from all angles. You can check them by clicking on the link below (or on one of the photos). It'll lead you to my photo blog.

In the three days of my Macao trip, I went to this spot every day at least once. I took photos in the morning and in the evening. You can see that later. The Portuguese name is Ruínas de São Paulo and the Chinese call it 大三巴牌坊 (pronounced Dà sān bā pái fāng).


See my photos of the Ruins of St. Paul's here>>


[Tell me in your comment how do you like the building?][All pics by MKL, 2010]

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