On a winning streak - ArchiveAsia - Travel

On a winning streak - ArchiveAsia - Travel: "On a winning streak July 2, 2004 Where old and new meet ... Macau, a getaway for Hong Kong residents, is a beacon for shopping, eating and gambling. The Chinese city with a Portuguese accent is cashing in on its new popularity, reports Charmaine Chan. The American diarist Harriet Low lambasted Macau for being intolerably hilly, irregular and horribly paved. However, working from her attic on one of the city's steep, cobblestone roads, she also declared how much she loved its vibe. 'I cannot conceive of people calling this a dull place,' she wrote. 'I am pulled about in every direction.' Although Low lived in the former Portuguese enclave in the 1830s, she could have been describing 21st-century Macau, a Chinese hub on the Pearl River delta that is higgledy-piggledy, steep in parts and a no-no for high heels. But it is also a cultural Janus, one side Asian, the other Latin, and an arresting clash of new and old."