Let's Go! Bring Your Mother-in-Law and Baby on a Food-Hunting Trip to Macau!

【Family Trip, Mother-in-Law & Daughter-in-Law Trip Preface】

It is said that no trip can fail to reveal true love. A couple can get to know each other better through traveling together; you'll know if you're suitable by taking a trip together.

I say, no in-law conflict can't be resolved by a trip. At home, no matter what your relationship with your in-laws is like, I believe that if you are willing to take them on a trip, your relationship will become more harmonious.

As a good wife who not only manages the household diligently but also handles the relationship with her in-laws well, I decided to take my in-laws and our little foodie baby on a two-day eating and sightseeing trip to Zhuhai and Macau over the weekend.

【Precautions for Family & In-Law Trips】

When taking a baby under one year old out, you must bring formula, feeding utensils, baby food, diapers, shoes, clothes, cleaning supplies, toys, medicine, stroller, and baby carrier.

The weather has been hot recently. When taking the baby out, be sure to bring a sun umbrella, enough water, and a rechargeable small fan. Since it's air-conditioned indoors, also bring a thin jacket and a scarf for the baby!!

Many people might ask, what does our little tomboy eat along the way? To be honest, I'm a bit embarrassed because we don't follow the child experts' advice to avoid adult food before age one. So when dining out, besides formula and rice cereal as staples, we also intentionally order fish, steamed egg, tofu, vegetables, etc., then rinse the salt and oil off with hot water before feeding her. Every time I see her curious look when trying something new, it's really funny.

Of course, every family has different habits. You can bring rice cereal, fruit puree, or buy a thermos cooker to make a small porridge. Put rice and hot water in the night before, and the next day you can have stomach-warming porridge, though the taste is certainly not as good as freshly cooked, haha.

This time we stayed at the IU Hotel, a chain budget hotel without a bathtub, so I specially brought a small plastic basin for the tomboy to bathe in.

If you're going far and it's inconvenient to bring a plastic basin, you can also buy a foldable portable basin on Taobao. For shower gel, I specially bought a small 10-yuan bottle of Harrowsheen, which is easy to carry every time we go out. So staying at a star-rated hotel with a baby is certainly good, but if not, there are other solutions.

※ Schedule Tips

When traveling with a baby, what worries me most is affecting the baby's routine.

But actually, babies are not as hard to "serve" as imagined; as long as they are tired, they will sleep. Therefore, the itinerary should be relaxed. When the baby wants to sleep, we stop and find a quiet, comfortable place (like a mall) to let them sleep enough before moving on.

※ Slow Down for the In-Law Trip

When taking my father-in-law and mother-in-law out, the route must be as leisurely and comfortable as possible. Don't eat too late. Rest for a while after walking a bit, and if really tired, go back to the hotel to rest.

【Why Choose Zhuhai IU Hotel】

As a thrifty good wife, staying overnight in Macau is too luxurious for me. Macau is not large; with a reasonable schedule, one day is enough to visit. So staying near the Gongbei Port in Zhuhai is a good choice. I've stayed at a budget hotel opposite Zhuhai Station before, but the environment and management were poor, and worst of all, the car horns downstairs were very loud, disturbing sleep!!! After comparing, I finally settled on IU Hotel, which is about an 8-minute walk from Gongbei Port.

IU Hotel is under Plateno, same group as 7 Days Inn but a bit higher-end.

The Zhuhai IU Hotel opened in February 2016, so the facilities are still quite new, and the location is quiet despite being in the middle of the city.

As a thrifty wife, I care a lot about cost-effectiveness. The Zhuhai IU Hotel perfectly fits my taste, at around 200 yuan per night! Absolutely recommended!

【Must-Eat Foods in Macau】

※ Margaret's Café e Nata

Address: No. 66, Rua do Comandante Mata e Oliveira, Macau

Recommendation: Freshly baked egg tarts are very fragrant, with crispy layered crust.

※ Yee Shun Milk Company

Address: No. 60, Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro (San Ma Lo)

Recommendation: Double skin milk is a signature, melts in your mouth with rich milk flavor.

※ Wong Chi Kei Noodle Shop

Address: Next to Watsons at Senate Square, San Ma Lo

Recommendation: An old brand noodle shop; fresh shrimp wonton noodles and signature shrimp roe noodles are must-orders!

※ Tai Lei Loi Kei Café

Address: Main shop at 35 Rua da Cunha, Taipa; branches at 25 Rua de São Paulo, Venetian Macao Food Court 2505A, and 12 Travessa do Cháo

Recommendation: The pork chop bun featured in "Twelve Flavors of the World" – tender and juicy pork chop with crispy bun.

Address: 12 Travessa do Cháo (大堂巷12号)

Recommendation: You can find fish balls, cheese-stuffed balls, and crab roe balls in many places, but the secret curry sauce on top can only be tasted at Heng You.

Address: 9A Rua do Cunha, Taipa

Recommendation: The durian ice cream is so rich that it's like eating an entire durian; the durian flavor lingers for a long time.

Address: 1/F, Sheraton Plaza, Rua do Regedor, Taipa

Recommendation: For authentic Portuguese chicken, curry crab, and oxtail in red wine, go to Comida de Portugal (Little Elephant).

(Similar Portuguese restaurants include Café Nine, ALBERGUE 1601)

※ Yang Liu Ji Beef Offal Congee

Address: No. 1B, Travessa das Galinhas, Rua dos Mercadores

Recommendation: Flavorful beef offal is put into congee; the plain congee absorbs the offal's aroma, and there is a great variety of offal.

Since the road from Guangzhou to Zhuhai is getting better, we arrived at IU Hotel in about 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Upon arrival, the tomboy was immediately attracted by the hotel's vibrant colors. Although the lobby is not big, it has comfortable sofas and a wall covering full of modern vibes. As a pseudo-artistic young woman, I love this style, you know!

When we approached the front desk, the girl there kindly handed us a cup of hot tea, which really warmed my heart!

The hotel has many interesting elements:

DUANG 1: The TV can be screen-mirrored!!!

This is amazing! Just follow the instructions to connect your phone to the TV. Since our tomboy loves seeing her own face, we let her enjoy herself for a bit~

DUANG 2: The hotel phone has only one button!

Because the tomboy needs to bathe several times a day, I had to call the front desk for two more towels. At that moment, I was surprised to find the IU Hotel phone has only one button, so you don't have to think about whether to dial 999 or 808 – just press it to reach the front desk. Very convenient~

DUANG 3: USB ports make charging your phone so easy!

When my foodie husband saw this design, he immediately praised its cleverness. Yes, as young people, we can't live without internet and phones!!

DUANG 4: Purified water, instant coffee, tea bags, and fruit are all free!!

Ahem, as a person who likes small perks – oh no, a thrifty wife – I love freebies like this. Maybe because we've experienced too many paid "traps," my father-in-law specifically asked me three times (seems he knows important things must be said three times, haha) whether the coffee and fruit cost extra.

DUANG 5: The face towels and soap look so handsome – do their mothers know?

When I first booked IU Hotel, I thought it would be very similar to 7 Days Inn: hair dryer outside, toiletries to bring yourself, yellow labels everywhere.

But IU Hotel is indeed much more refined than 7 Days Inn. Face towels, toiletries, hair dryer, wrapped towels – all provided. Even the shower gel is either Schwarzkopf or Lux, making the stay very comfortable.

【The Tomboy's First Trip to Macau】

Because IU Hotel was so fun, we delayed our departure to Macau.

Once in Macau, as a thrifty wife, I only used free shuttle buses from five-star hotels instead of public buses or taxis to get around.

The weather that day wasn't great; before it rained, it was hot and stuffy, and after the rain, it turned a bit chilly. So we only visited some key spots for a quick look and eat.

【Grand Lisboa Hotel】

After lunch, because it was raining and the tomboy was tired, we went to the nearby Grand Lisboa Hotel. Inside, it felt like a small museum with many beautiful decorations. The tomboy was so happy she danced.

【Ruins of St. Paul's】

In the afternoon, the rain finally stopped. To take photos at Macau's landmark so we can tell the tomboy later that she has been here, I took her to the Ruins of St. Paul's for a few shots.

The Ruins of St. Paul's is the symbol of Macau. Nearby are pharmacies and souvenir shops (pork jerky, egg rolls, almond cookies, sachima, etc.). If you want to save money like me by eating free samples, remember to be thick-skinned and try every shop and every item for free! Whether you buy or not, there are plenty of people willing to buy after tasting – missing one person won't make a difference. Hehe.

【Senado Square】

Senado Square (Largo do Senado), commonly known as the Fountain, is one of Macau's four major squares. It is located opposite the Leal Senado Building. The entire square is paved with wave-patterned cobblestones, and the surrounding roads are pedestrian-only. There are benches everywhere, and people like to gather here to relax.

Since there were seats and tree shade, the tomboy soon fell asleep.

【The Venetian Macao】

Many people must visit The Venetian Macao when in Macau. Inside, it's like a small indoor Venice, with artificial sky domes, Venetian architecture, arched bridges, canals, and gondolas beautifully decorated everywhere.

Along the canals are various shops, dazzling in every way. As someone short on money, I love window shopping most. When tired, we had a McDonald's ice cream to rest.

【Rua do Cunha, Taipa】

Rua do Cunha is only about 115 meters long and 5 meters wide – one of Macau's famous food streets. There are many old houses nearby, fun for photos. You can eat, then stroll to aid digestion. Here we enjoyed Mui Kee durian ice cream, Hong Pang beef offal, big fish balls, sawdust cake, Cheng Cheong crab congee, Tai Lei Loi Kei pork chop bun, and more.

【Fisherman's Wharf】

Many famous Fisherman's Wharfs exist in Europe and America, such as San Francisco's, Montreal's, Liverpool's, etc. Macau Fisherman's Wharf cleverly blends European style with Macau characteristics – a fine example of Sino-Western cultural fusion, worth a visit. Europe sounds far; Macau is very close to us. Though the two places seem unrelated, when strolling along the seaside near Guangzhou on early summer days, walking through quiet town streets and ancient Roman-style alleys, the European atmosphere greets you.

【Macau Night View is Beautiful】

Because my in-laws said they had never seen Macau's night view, we decided to stay in Macau for a good evening walk and dinner before returning to Zhuhai.

Maybe luck favors the beautiful – we happened to catch the night music fountain show at Wynn Macau when we passed by. It was stunning, and the tomboy stared with wide eyes!

Macau's night is enchanting. Night tours in Macau always feel like walking in a dream. There are many famous city nightscapes worldwide, but Macau is especially worth experiencing. When night falls, neon lights everywhere decorate this small city with a thousand charms, and its unique multicultural romance spreads through the night…

Throughout the day, stepping out with my father-in-law, mother-in-law, and the tomboy, my mother-in-law helped me take care of the baby and played with her. It felt truly happy!

This travelogue ends here. See you in the next one! Thank you for reading!