Heritage | 10 years after UNESCO listing | Living close to St Paul’s

The St Paul’s Ruins

It’s been a long time since the people who live near St Paul’s Ruins learned to deal with the flood of tourists. Residents adopt alternative routes and even accept the inflated prices in some of the shops close to the ruins.
Ms Chui is one of those people who avoids her own neighborhood during the day. “I like to go have a stroll in the area, but it’s hard to do that with so many people around. The place is usually crowded, but we need to receive the tourists, because they are our customers. The residents prefer to go there when it’s quieter,” she says.
The pensioner has been living in D. Belchior Carneiro Street for the past 15 years. Her house is located behind the ruins, close to the place where dozens of buses park everyday, transporting the crowds that visit what’s left of St Paul’s College – considered the first Western university in East Asia – and the Mother of God Church, built in 1565.
Octogenarian Ms Chui says that she welcomes the visitors and doesn’t resent the inconveniences that a large influx of people always brings: “It’s very crowded here, but I like the people and it is very beautiful at night, more tranquil. I guess that the Macau residents always welcome visitors; it is not like in Hong Kong,” she argues, adding that her quality of life has improved over the past ten years.
Macau is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the induction of the city’s historic center into the UNESCO’s World Heritage list that happened on July 5, 2005. Some residents contacted by Lusa say that they are proud of the distinction, although they admit that it has brought about some issues.  Mak is able to cross the St Paul’s Street as if there isn’t anybody else on the sidewalk because he has learned almost instinctively how to walk around the tourists and not feel bothered by the crowds.
“It is difficult to cross the street, but I have gotten used to it. During public holidays there are a lot of people, but we know the less used streets,” the 64 year-old former lifeguard explains.
Living at the core of the city’s historical center for the past 30 years, Mak says that he is unable to elect only one favorite place, given that all the heritage sites “bring profit to the locals.” Cultural tourism, together with the development of the gambling industry, has made life “increasingly better” for residents, he says.
But not all of his neighbors agree. Ms Wong, 48, isn’t totally pleased with the changes she has witnessed over the past 10 years. “The change is drastic. The streets are packed and this brings problems affecting everyday life.” Despite that, she admits that the tourists bring prosperity: “There is more income and the benefits surpass the obstacles.”
A shop owner at D. Belchior Carneiro Street, Lam, 40, has spent almost all of his life in the neighborhood. He thinks that the “negative feelings” of the population have increased over the past ten years. “Prices have increased and the buses are crowded, the quality of life has dropped. The economical development was so fast that it is difficult for the people who earn less,” he says. In spite of living close to the ruins, he says that he avoids the zone. “I don’t go there, unless I’m hosting someone. In fact, there is nothing to see there, it’s only rocks,” he said. MDT/Lusa