Happy New Year readers! And Kung Hei Fat Choi! We are looking forward to another year of covering exciting events and fascinating people in the city; a city that has certainly sprung vibrantly back to life in the past few weeks, so let’s hope this is a sign of positive things to come!
In December last year, the six gaming concessionaires all had their licences renewed, with the companies committing to invest over MOP100 billion to develop foreign source markets and non-gaming projects. Over the years, an important aspect of non-gaming in the city has been organising and hosting major international sporting events, something that has of course been more difficult in the past three years. Now that things seem to be returning to normal and the city is opening up, in this issue we look at whether Macau can really become a regional hub for major sporting meets and truly capitalise on sports tourism.
As we enter the Year of the Rabbit, we consult local Feng Shui master Mickey Hung to see what predictions he has for the year ahead. We also feature the winners of our 2022 Re-Awakening photo competition, and check out recent exhibitions Travels by André Carrilho and Involuntary Landscapes by Hugo Teixeira.
We chat with regular contributing writer for CLOSER, Joe Tang about his latest book The Curse of the Lost City, and also take a look back at some highlights from The Script Road – Macau Literary Festival held in town last December.
In Gourmet, we visit the exclusive new Japanese kappo restaurant Zuicho, which opened at Grand Lisboa Palace last November, and meet up with Roger Lai, owner of Mood & Moor Restaurant, as he introduces us to their extensive range of fine wines, all available by the glass thanks to their innovative wine dispensers.
And as always, we have great stories from our regular Opinion columnists, so make sure you don’t miss them.
Wishing you all a great 2023 and Year of the Rabbit. Happy Reading!
