Coloane
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Coloane (Traditional Chinese: 路環島; Simplified Chinese: 路环岛; pinyin: Lùhuán DÇŽo; Jyutping: Lou6-waan4 Dou2, literally "Road Ring Island") is one of the two main islands of the former Portuguese colony of Macau, in the People's Republic of China. It is located directly south of the other main island, Taipa (氹仔), and east of the Greater Hengqin Island (大横ç´å³¶) of Zhuhai, Guangdong province.
Coloane was known as Jiuaoshan (TC: ä¹æ¾³å±±, Cantonese: Gau-Ou Saan, "Nine-inlet Mountain"), Yanzaowan (TC: é¹½ç¶ç£, Cantonese: Yim-Zou Waan, "Salt-stove Bay"), and Guoluhuan (TC: éŽè·¯ç’°, Cantonese: Gwo-Lou Waan, "Passing-road Ring"). The Portuguese name of "Coloane" is said to derive from the Cantonese pronunciation of "éŽè·¯ç’°".
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[edit] Geography
Coloane has an area of 8.07 km² (4-km long) and is 5.6 km from the Macau Peninsula. It is connected to Taipa by a 2.2-km land-fill bridge, the Estrada do Istmo, however land reclamation has physically connected the two islands and a new town called Cotai (路氹) has been built between Taipa and Coloane, which is home to the Cotai Strip and many other casinos under development.
The narrowest part of Coloane is 300 metres. The highest points in Macau are eastern and central Coloane, with the highest point being the 171-metre Alto de Coloane (疊石塘山). The northern shore of the island is 4.5 m deep, and is the site of the Macau Deepwater Port. The eastern Hac Sa Beach (BaÃa de Hác Sá, é»‘æ²™æµ·ç˜ or "Black Sand Beach") and the southern BaÃa de Cheoc Van (竹ç£, literally "Bamboo Bay") are popular swimming beaches. At BaÃa de Hác Sá there is a Portuguese restaurant called "Fernandos", famous amongst locals in Macau and tourists from Hong Kong.
[edit] History
From the Song Dynasty onwards and until the Portuguese arrival in 1864, Coloane was a sea salt farm for China. After their arrival, the Portuguese made Macau an important trading port, but Coloane remained deserted, which was used as a base by pirates until 1910. The island has become more populated after the Estrada do Istmo was finished in 1969.
[edit] Tourism
Famous sites on the island include:
- Tam Kung Temple (èšå…¬å»Ÿ), dedicated to Lord Tam, a Taoist god of seafares
- Old Tin Hau Temple (天åŽå¤å»Ÿ)
- A-Ma Statue (媽祖åƒ), built on October 28, 1998 (lunar calendar: September 9)
- Church of Our Lady of Sorrows (ä¹æ¾³ä¸ƒè‹¦è–æ¯å°å ‚)
- Chapel of St. Francis Xavier (è–方濟å„è–å ‚), of the São Francisco Xavier Parish (è–方濟å„å ‚å€). The chapel, built in 1928, is located on the southern coast of the island and stands near a monument commemorating a victory over pirates in 1910. The chapel contains some of the most sacred Christian relics in Asia, including the remains of 26 foreign and Japanese Catholic priests who were crucified in Nagasaki in 1597, as well as those of some of the Japanese Christians who were killed during the Shimabara Rebellion in 1637. The chapel also housed a bone from the arm of St. Francis Xavier, who died in 1552 on Sanchuan Island, 50 miles from Macau, before it was transferred to Saint Joseph's Seminary and the Sacred Art Museum [1].
- Museum of Nature and Agriculture (土地暨自然åšç‰©é¤¨)
- Avenida de Cinco de Outubro (å月åˆäº”馬路)
- Hac Sa Bay Park and Coloane Park
[edit] See also
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1 1975 is the date of East Timor's Declaration of Independence and subsequent invasion by Indonesia. In 2002, the independence of East Timor was recognized by Portugal and the rest of the world. |
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