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Walking from St Paul Ruins to the Camões Gardens

Landmarks of a Heritage

You can see the walls of Monte Fort from Senate Square, rising behind St. Dominic's Church (if you haven’t already seen it, be sure to visit the Church and its Museum of Sacred Art).

to the right of the church is Rua de S. Domingos.

take it to Rua da Palha and turn left.

the street becomes Rua de S. Paulo (lined with some excellent shops selling antique furniture, porcelain and souvenirs).

ahead is the grand staircase leading to the St. Paul's Ruins (built by the Jesuits in 1602, was destroyed by fire in 1835 except for its stone facade with carvings that tell the story of the Catholic Church in Asia).

Admire the carvings, then visit the restored crypt containing relics of Christian martyrs and a Museum of Sacred Art.

Cross the road to Monte Fort into which is built the Museum of Macau (with an astonishing range of exhibits to illustrate Macau’s bicultural history.

open 10am-6pm, closed Monday).

Go back down the grand staircase and turn right to follow Rua de S. António, a great street for antiques and reproductions, look for original dragon robes, Ching Dynasty furniture, porcelain, coins, lacquerware, hanging scrolls etc.

at the end of the road is St Antony’s Church and Camões Square.

Cross to the Old Protestant Cemetery (last resting place of 150 merchants, missionaries, seamen and 19th century residents such as artist George Chinnery).

next door is Casa Garden (once the home of the British East India Company president, now a small museum and art gallery).

Next door is the Camões Garden (named after Portugal’s national poet, Luís de Camões, who is said to have spent some time in Macau), which features a grotto containing a bust of the poet, landscaped gardens and a tree-covered belvedere with a pavilion and stone benches, where residents play chess and socialize.

From here you can end the walk by taking a taxi or bus back to the main square, or you can take a Tercena detour.

Leave Camões Square by Rua do Botelho and turn left onto Rua de Faitiões which soon becomes Rua da Tercena, where you find a small triangular sidewalk paved with wave-patterned stones and taken up by an overflow of goods from the surrounding shops that sell antiques, Chinese handcrafts, Mao memorabilia, opium pipes etc.

The street divides into two, both featuring craftsmen at work, such as woodcarvers making Chinese furniture, jade carvers, hand-press printers, tinsmiths producing family shrines and barrel makers, as well as a shop selling bamboo birdcages with tiny porcelain feeders and another displaying kites and temple offerings.

Explore the adjoining narrow streets before turning into Rua dos Mercadores, which leads to San Ma Lo (Av. Almeida Ribeiro).

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