That day sparked his lifelong love for Patua, a creole language from Macau's 442-year colonial history that mixes Portuguese, Cantonese and other influences, now rarely spoken and classified by UNESCO as "critically endangered".
"It's a Macau-born thing... For so many centuries, the old Maquista used this language as a means of communication aside from Portuguese," said Fernandes, 63, a lawyer who writes and directs Patua plays.
Twenty-five years after colonial ruler Portugal handed control back to Beijing, residents like Fernandes are making a case for Macau's cultural distinctiveness, even as the city is being subsumed into China's regional development blueprint, dubbed the Greater Bay Area (GBA).
Macau's breakneck reinvention over this period, which saw its skyline and economy shaped by glittering casinos, has also prompted a younger generation to ask who they are and what they stand for.
Before the Portuguese flag came down, colonial government minister Jorge Rangel successfully lobbied Beijing to include a clause in Macau's post-handover constitution to protect historical sites and relics.
Those with Portuguese or mixed ancestry make up roughly five percent of Macau's population, but their outsized influence can still be felt -- from cuisine to street names and architecture.
Rangel said the GBA's growth will be a "permanent challenge for us".
"(Macau) is a small entity within such a huge area, with a small population, with a different way of life," he said, adding that Macau must convince China of its usefulness.
Fernandes, whose plays are performed three nights a year to an audience of around 1,000, said he was well aware that Patua culture "will be fading".
"You have this Greater Bay Area that just sucks up everything," he said. "But if the next generation has a glimpse of the awareness that we can be unique, we might have a chance to survive."
- No longer 'invisible' -
Compared with Hong Kong and Taiwan, Macau's cultural output has been relatively "invisible" and lacks its own distinct flavour, according to cultural critic Lei Chin-pang.
"For people from Hong Kong or mainland China, there is not much interest in Macau except as a place nearby to have fun," Lei said.
Film director Tracy Choi is looking to change that.
Born and raised in Macau, she went abroad for university in the mid-2000s just as the city liberalised its gaming market.
She returned to find her home unrecognisable, not just in appearance but also in people's lifestyles and values.
"Those massive casinos were just being completed," said 36-year-old Choi. "The Macau from that point onward was totally detached from the Macau of my childhood."
That was the direct inspiration for "Sisterhood", Choi's 2016 debut feature, about two young women working in a Macau massage parlour in the final months of colonial rule.
"I chose (to depict) the profession of masseuse because they represented the Macau people of a bygone era," she said, recalling when some of these women -- friends of her mother -- would come over for mahjong.
Choi said her films were a counterweight to stereotypical depictions of Macau residents as rich and leisurely, adding the past decade saw more creative works on local identity.
"Sisterhood" was hailed as a breakthrough, but there was still a "long way to go" for Macau's film industry, as its population of 690,000 limited box office returns, Choi said.
"We are still searching for a direction forward, which lets us talk about Macau in the way we want, while making it accessible to other markets," she said.
Choi's next film, featuring a lesbian protagonist contending with pressures to "be ordinary" in a small community, is also a statement on what a future Macau identity can be.
"The Macau people of tomorrow should have more of a say, have more room for personal expression," she said.
- Integrate 'everywhere' -
As Macau turns 25 as a Chinese city, the history of the handover means little to Cecilia Cheang, who was born in Macau but studies at a Hong Kong university.
When she was young, her parents took her to the lavish hotels popping up but rarely discussed the city's past.
Cheang, 20, sometimes posts about Macau on Xiaohongshu, China's Instagram-like platform -- which performs well among her 20,000 followers.
"(Xiaohongshu favours) glamorous girls and extravagant lifestyle, and I feel like Macau is very much associated with this," she said.
Many Macau residents now consider cross-border trips part of their weekly routine as Beijing pushes for closer ties within the region.
A frequent traveller in southern China, Cheang thinks of herself as being from Macau but also as a GBA person.
That means being able to "go all around, leave whenever you want to leave, go anyplace", which she said suited her career as an aspiring singer-songwriter.
"I feel like, in terms of cultural exchange and cooperation... It's easier to integrate into everywhere and to get the gist of everywhere."
Xi hails Macau 'success' in visit for 25th anniversary of Chinese rule
Macau (AFP) Dec 18, 2024 -
Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed Macau's "world-recognised success" as he arrived in the city on Wednesday, kickstarting a three-day trip as the casino hub prepares to celebrate 25 years of Beijing rule.
The former Portuguese colony was handed over to China on December 20, 1999, under the "One Country, Two Systems" framework that promised autonomy and wider civil liberties than the Chinese mainland.
Xi lauded Macau's implementation of the framework after he landed at Macau International Airport on Wednesday afternoon and was greeted by the current and incoming city leaders.
"Over the past 25 years, the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle with Macau characteristics has achieved a world-recognised success, and has demonstrated vitality and a unique appeal," Xi said.
The Chinese president -- who last visited Macau in 2019 -- said he would use his trip to celebrate the anniversary with compatriots and to inspect Macau's "new developments and changes".
"In the next few days, I will go around and have a look, and have extensive and in-depth exchanges with our friends from all places, and discuss plans for Macau's development," he said.
The city -- the only place in China where casino gambling is permitted -- has long surpassed Las Vegas to be the world's top casino hub, fuelled by two decades of spending by Chinese visitors.
Xi will attend the inauguration of Macau's new administration during his trip and "also conduct an inspection tour", state news agency Xinhua reported.
- 'Barbaric expansion' -
Sam Hou-fai, the former president of Macau's highest court, will be sworn in on Friday as the city's fourth post-handover leader -- and the first to be born in China and not have a background in business.
Sam has said Macau cannot rely solely on casinos -- which account for 81 percent of government revenue -- and noted the sector's "barbaric expansion" over the years.
Macau saw just over 29 million visitor arrivals in the first 10 months of the year, compared with its resident population of 687,000 people.
Macau's economic diversification and integration into China's regional blueprint, dubbed the Greater Bay Area, will likely be the main themes during Xi's visit, experts told AFP.
"(Xi) will probably want to inspect the non-gaming investments that the Macau concessionaires have promised two years ago," said Ben Lee, a casino consultant.
Hengqin Island, which is partly leased to Macau to boost its land supply for development, will also be a likely focus of the visit, Lee said.
A retired teacher surnamed Cheong told AFP she was "excited" for Xi's visit and that Macau had a positive outlook, though it had not yet recovered fully from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
"(Xi) should be shown Macau's good side, but also the many things that should be improved," Cheong told AFP, citing issues around transportation and housing for young people.
"A lot of people in Macau have living environments that are less than ideal," she said.
Lau, a retired civil servant, said he hoped China could do more to bolster Macau's tourist-dependent economy.
Recalling the 1999 handover, Lau told AFP he had some concerns at the time, but "after 20-odd years, (Macau's) development has stabilised and so has my mood, which lets me hope for the future."
- Security tight -
Xi is expected to attend a dinner reception on Thursday. His full itinerary has not been disclosed.
Authorities have stepped up security measures in the casino hub, including a temporary drone ban and partial suspension of rail services.
US consular services in Macau were "postponed" on Wednesday due to China's foreign ministry "refusing to issue the required visas in time for our Consuls to travel to assist US citizens resident in Macau".
"Future outreach events may also be affected," the US Consulate General Hong Kong and Macau said on social media.
All About Macau, an online news outlet, said on Tuesday it "had to" take down an article that included residents' comments about the heightened security.
Multiple people associated with Macau's now-dormant pro-democracy movement told AFP they were warned not to make critical remarks in public ahead of the anniversary.
Asia's casino capital: Macau in five points
Macau (AFP) Dec 18, 2024 -
The former Portuguese colony of Macau on Friday marks the 25th anniversary of its return to Chinese rule under a semi-autonomous system similar to that granted Hong Kong.
Here are five things to know about the small territory, Asia's most famous gambling hub:
- Longtime Europe trading post -
The fishing port became the first European trading post in Asia in 1557 when a Chinese governor agreed to lease it to Portugal as a reward for fighting piracy.
For the next three centuries, it was the main point of passage for goods between China and the West, only surpassed in 1841 when nearby Hong Kong came under British control.
A Roman Catholic diocese was created in 1576 and Macau became a base for Catholic missions in China and beyond. Portuguese Jesuits set up Asia's first European university there in 1594.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the colony was an exit point for communist China's exports, notably of gold.
- 'One Country, Two Systems' -
After leftist riots in 1966, Portugal offered to hand Macau back to communist China but was rebuffed.
Nonetheless, Portugal agreed in 1987 to hand Macau back to China on December 20, 1999.
Under the deal, Macau would be a "Special Administrative Region" exempted from China's communist system for at least 50 years.
Macau's 1993 Basic Law, a mini-constitution drawn up by Beijing, allows it to maintain a capitalist Western system until at least 2049 and a high degree of autonomy.
- 1999 return to China -
At midnight on December 20, 1999, the Chinese flag was hoisted in Macau as Portugal ended 442 years of rule.
It was the only remaining colony of the Portuguese Empire and Europe's last in Asia.
Roughly 500 troops rolled in, welcomed by Macau's Chinese inhabitants, who make up 98 percent of the population, waving flags and flowers.
Beijing used the handover to restate its claims over Taiwan, which has been ruled separately since 1949.
Hong Kong returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and remains semi-autonomous.
- Bigger than Vegas -
While gambling is banned in China, it has been legal in Macau since 1844, and Chinese visitors today pour across the border to try their luck in 30 glitzy casinos.
Visitor arrivals peaked at 39.4 million in 2019 -- the vast majority from mainland China -- before Macau imposed travel curbs due to the coronavirus pandemic.
This compares with its resident population of 687,000 people, who live on 33.3 square kilometres (12.9 square miles).
After a Covid-era dip, Macau regained the crown as the world's top casino hub by gross gaming revenue, roughly four times that of Las Vegas.
For more than a decade, authorities have tried to wean the city off the gambling industry and diversify its economy, especially after a Beijing crackdown on high rollers.
But the gaming sector still accounts for around 80 percent of government revenue.
- Unique heritage -
Despite its plethora of modern hotels and casinos, glimpses of Macau's roots remain in its UNESCO-listed historic centre of baroque facades, ancient Chinese temples and the ruins of St Paul's cathedral -- and also in its famous Portuguese egg tarts.
Portuguese is its second official language.
Macau's population is the richest in China per capita, with a median monthly salary of around $2,200.
Situated on the Pearl River Estuary, it has been linked to Hong Kong and Zhuhai by a 55-kilometre (34-mile) bridge since 2018.
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