Arrived in Hong Kong yesterday. This was our 4th flight on Vietnam Airlines. All were good flights with surprisingly sufficient legroom. Apparently heavy rains have hit the south of Vietnam and are moving north. Our luck seems to be holding. Only one more day to go.

This morning we got on the hydrofoil service (Turbofoil) for the one hour trip to Macau. Hadn't realized that Hong Kong and Macau are considered foreign countries and passports are required. Quick run back to our hotel which was quite close to the terminal.

Macau was a Portuguese colony from the early 1500s until the 1980s when it, like Hong Kong a decade later, was returned to China. It remained quite a backwater distinguished by a few casinos until some degree of future certainty was established when it returned to China. From that point, the casino industry grew by leaps and bounds. A television program in Hong Kong this morning seemed to suggest that the gambling revenue in Macau is 6 times greater than Las Vegas, although Vegas attracts about 3.5 million visitors a year compared to 2.5 million in Macau. The old part of Macau still reflects some of the Portuguese architecture, but the city-state has plenty of casinos, hotels and apartments that could easily be located in Vegas.

The Macau Grand Prix is in town and practise runs were taking place while we were there. There were very few spots where you could view the track -- but the SOUND!! Dozens of high-powered engines with no mufflers resonated everywhere.

We head for the airport tomorrow to begin the trek home. I am ready.