Festive events to cap off the year

The difficulty to travel should not keep the Christmas joy away from the city’s residents, who live in this haven free from Covid-19. The Times has rounded up some festive events, performances, and markets where residents can take part in.

Also, other integrated resorts, from the peninsula to Cotai, are offering special season deals for accommodation and restaurants, and bookings are in great demand, the Times has learned.

Shows

The Macao Light Festival, organized by the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and running since 2015, has become well-known and loved by locals and visitors to the city alike, and is now celebrated every year in different locations across the Macau Islands.

The Nam Van Lake area hosts part of the light festival as well as being home to the first edition of the Light Up Macao Drone Gala. The event has been dazzling the city twice each Saturday night, and its last shows will take place this week, on Christmas evening. The ongoing Lilies of Eternal Harmony – Winter Flower Show 2021 showcases a lively spectacle of blooms. Around 28,000 flowerpots will be on display in the show. The Municipal Affairs Bureau will arrange a number of  exhibitions and activities featuring lilies throughout the period of the show.

Fun

Tap Seac Square is again host to an annual Christmas Market, with a number of gift stalls and some snack stalls. The family-friendly market has many eye-catching features, such as a Christmas tree with dazzling lights, canopy light decorations, a manger and Christmas huts, creating a magnificent hub for photo opportunities. There is also other entertainment for children, including an outdoor merry-go-round, an artificial ski slope, an LED piano dance floor and interactive performances.

For even more fun and joy of the season, kids  can unleash their creativity in the Sweet Tooth Workshops at MGM Cotai’s Anytime.

Children and parents are invited to decorate their own donuts or gingerbread with colorful candy toppings at the Winter Festive Donut Decoration Workshop and Gingerbread Icing Cookie Decoration Workshop, creating their own edible masterpiece while also enjoying some  time together as a family.

Performances

MGM Cotai is hosting an innovative ethnic dance drama called “MGM Awakening Lion,” which pays homage to the classic cultural performances of the Greater Bay Area. The 70-minute techno-cultural dance drama is presented by MGM and the Guangzhou Song and Dance Theater, and has been re-arranged for the occasion, having been awarded best dance drama in the China Lotus Awards.

For young children, the Culture Center is presenting “Sleepless Rascals” from today until Sunday. The Little Devil, a lively and funny show originally created by the Shanghainese children’s theatre Little Player, illustrates the struggles many parents face with their kids at bedtime. Staff reporter