| NEW YORK | LONDON | HONG KONG |
| NEW YORK | LONDON | HONG KONG |
The merry month of May is upon us and, over the next four weeks, global merriment does indeed abound! Spain sees Barcelona hosting the Santander Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuito de Catalunya on 11 to 13 May, a track, aficionados tell me, that is hugely popular with the drivers. While in Switzerland, the extraordinary Palexpo and Geneva International Airport host the annual three-day get-together for the European business aviation community at EBACE (14 to 16 May). London’s world-renowned showcase for all things green and floral, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, opens its gardens to the public from 22 to 26 May. Tennis fans will be knocked out by the talent on display at the clay courts of the Roland Garros championship in Paris, 25 May to 9 June, and Prague stages its 67th Spring International Music Festival, 12 May to 3 June, with participating musicians and orchestras from all around the world, and has a weekend of events surrounding its marathon, held on 12 to 13 May. For the more faint-hearted there are also slightly less taxing family races and even competitive dog-walking events to enjoy.
May will also involve lots of hot-footing it in San Francisco for the 100,000 or so participants in the Bay to Breakers annual run (20 May) which is, deep breaths please, 7.46 miles long and more than 100 years old. There will be races of a different kind, this time in dinghies and on bicycles, as well as fabulous parades throughout downtown Hamilton, to celebrate Bermuda’s Heritage Day on 24 May.
Those who suffer from vertigo, look away now! The world’s tallest tower, Tokyo’s Skytree, will open for business on 22 May. Spring Sumo takes place from 6 to 20 May; these highly revered wrestlers are plied with food from dozens of restaurants that queue up to have the honour of providing these idolised warriors with the calories necessary for them to reach the pinnacles of their power. Tokyo also celebrates the Asakusa Sanja Matsuri Festival (18 to 20 May). One of the three great Shinto festivals in Tokyo, it is held annually on the third weekend of this month and attracts up to 2 million locals and tourists who come to watch the parading of the three mikoshi (portable shrines) and enjoy the traditional dances and music.
Kuala Lumpur will be ablaze with fireworks on 19 May at its annual Colours of Malaysia parade. Prepare to be spellbound by bright local costumes, dazzling sights and tantalising sounds. And in Chiang Mai, it’s the Visahka Bucha Day pilgrimage on 11 May, when thousands of people make the trek to visit the Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, one of the most venerated Buddhist temples in Thailand. Both Singapore (18 May to 2 June) and Hong Kong (17 to 21 May) are holding art festivals this month. Singapore celebrates theatre, dance, music, poetry and the visual arts, while Hong Kong’s festival, in collaboration with Art Basel, is focused on the contemporary arts scene, with 266 participating galleries from more than 38 countries showcasing works by some of the world’s greatest artists. In fact, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong is showing an exhibition by the highly acclaimed, local young artist Tang Kwok Hin, from 1 to 26 May, in the Clipper Lounge, where you can also try Michelin-starred chef Uwe Opocensky’s cake creations inspired by the artist’s work. Macau also holds a month-long arts festival in May, so it seems appropriate to ask on-the-ground expert and frequent MO contributor Lois Iwase to give us the lowdown on the best happenings in the city right now.
Zoë Manzi
Editor, MO magazine, The Condé Nast Publications
The entire city is a stage in May, rolling out the welcome mat for culture vultures from the region and artists from all over the world who are gathered for the annual Macau Arts Festival. Some of them (artists, that is, but feel free) will be performing at the usual venues, such as the Cultural Centre and Macau Tower, but others will appear in famous World Heritage sites, such as Lou Kau Mansion and the Dom Pedro V Theatre, or outdoors at the Ruins of St Paul’s. From classical to avant-garde, Chinese and Western, lowbrow and highbrow, there’s lots to entertain and delight young and old. The Macau Arts Festival website (www.icm.gov.mo/fam) has details on tickets and programmes.
On 13 and 22 May, Spanish group Telenoika brings its high-tech wizardry to a free open-air show, Encounters: Audiovisual Mapping of St Paul’s Ruins, at Macau’s most famous landmark, using video created in both 2D and 3D. Denmark’s Sofie Krog Theatre offers tense drama in a magical universe with Diva. Expect light, music, sound effects, cartoon comics and puppetry at the historic Lou Kau Mansion, on 20 and 22 May. And the lovely old Dom Pedro V Theatre is a fitting place to catch the Macao Portuguese Folk Dance Association, cooking up a taste of the local culture of yesteryear, in Macau’s Heart, the Legend of Lilao, on 27 May.
Midtown traffic may be tied up on 13 May, when the city’s faithful, and the merely curious, recall Macau’s Portuguese roots as the Procession of Our Lady of Fatima winds its way from Santa Domingo’s church to Penha Chapel for an open-air mass. A seemingly solemn event, it still makes for a colourful photo opportunity.
There’s no need to buy a ticket to museums, memorial houses and exhibition halls on 18 May – it’s International Museum Day, when they’re all free, even putting on special events in celebration (www.museums.gov.mo/eng/main.html). Topping the list of must-sees: the I M Pei-designed Science Centre (which is within easy reach and view of Mandarin Oriental, Macau) on the Outer Harbour, the Grand Prix Museum and the Macau Wine Museum.
The ‘green houses’ (jade-coloured villas) on the old Taipa Praia show how typical Macanese families once lived, but to recreate the sort of culinary dishes they fancied then and are still famous for today, the Grand Lapa serves up Macanese specialities at the Café Bela Vista, in an atmosphere that evokes the beloved old seaside hotel where Macau’s smart set once danced till dawn. Not that dancing until dawn has gone out of style – far from it, at Sky 21 (www.sky21macau.com). In this multi-level pleasure palace the sky is literally the limit with live music under the stars on the outdoor deck.
Macau is a dream come true for shoppers at any time of year, but there’s no need to shun the blissful days of springtime as you shop. One Central lines up the world’s hottest luxury brands in a huge (200,000 square foot) complex, which brings some of downtown’s best harbour and lake views to the retail scene. In the heart of the city’s busiest commercial district, it’s just around the corner from Mandarin Oriental, Macau. In fact, try a signature therapy at The Spa, or treat someone to a gift. Some of the treatments are inspired by local traditions and customs, but all are designed to leave the body, mind and spirit in perfect harmony.
Lois Iwase
Photography by Alamy, Getty Images, I M Pei Partnership/Tracy Turner Design
