The Guia Lighthouse and Fortress

Inspired by a fellow blogger recent visit to Macau, I decided to give it another go. The day started out fine.



Is that a "trinity" sitting above that clump of clouds growing fainter and fainter with the passage of time and eventually completely disappearing into the emptiness of space?

Whether or not that is the case, it certainly looks extremely cloudy from inside the waiting hall of the ferry to Macau

A pattern I found whilst waiting for the ferry. The sun has now become precious. It seems that it can be found only under networks and networks of metal and glass and overshadowing our city symbol !

Part of a boat

A short farewell to the harbour

My first glimpse of the Guia Light tower on Mount Fortress, built between 1622-1638 to as part of the military effort to ward off Dutch invasion of the former Portuguese colony. How many lonely days and nights passed there with nothing but clouds and sky for company, one's family and friends thousands of miles away across the oceans



The Lighthouse is protected by the Guia Chapel, with some primitive frescoes, dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The Chapel was built nearly 4 centuries ago, in 1622! The fate of soldiers, like that of sailors, is always uncertain. How comforting it is to think that somehow one has a heavenly mother to protect one?

A closer view of the Lighthouse. I like the shape of the tower and its beautiful door and windows

A lamp with an anchor motif above the entrance to the tower

The side of the chapel

An old canon guarding the fortress. Where are the rigs and sails of the frigates now ?

The flag of Macau fluttering over the harbor. Not so long ago, it was a different flag.



Before reaching the tower, there's a small room housing some typhoon and rainstorm signals which used to be hung there.

Another view of Black Rainstorm, the No.1, No.3, No. 6, 8 and No 10 signals.

A view of Macau from the top of the Guia Fortress. Over the horizon, dark storm clouds are gathering.

The entrance to an artillery magazine on the way up to the Lighthouse/Fortress. On my way down, I took cover from a shower under the canopy protecting the top of that underground magazine.

The cable car up Guia Fortress

A mural besides the children's playground outside the landing spot of the cable car midway to the Guia Light Tower

The moss-filled bark of a tree in the sun on the way up.

A lily growing at the side of the playground

Jakarandas on the garden on the way up to the Guia Lighthouse.

Another golden trumpet (Allamanda cathartica)   

A tiny yellow flower

a lotus on the pond at the bottom of the park

A bed of cigar flowers there

One of the cigars

Some flower like leaves in the garden, fresh, mottled, full of life.