00:00I love the ambience of the city and what it stands for.
00:07The history of Macau is very great as well.
00:10So there's a lot of significance behind that with the Portuguese culinary,
00:14especially because I'm a chef.
00:16So yeah, it's quite an amazing city to live and be in.
00:24My name is Vanessa.
00:25So I was born and raised here.
00:28Originally, my parents are from the Philippines, so I am Filipino.
00:32I'm Denver.
00:33I'm from South Africa.
00:34And I've ended up in Macau because of her.
00:39So yeah, I blame her.
00:41We met in the U.S.
00:43After the internship, of course, I came back here.
00:45I had to finish my studies.
00:48He went back to South Africa.
00:50And then he decided to, he wanted to stay, be with me.
00:55So he decided to come here, look for a job.
00:58And lucky enough, he did find a job.
01:02And yeah, that's it.
01:03He's been here for the past 10 years now.
01:07I'm trapped, but no choice.
01:10Happily, happily.
01:11There has been people always telling me to do it.
01:20I didn't have the courage to do or to take the step.
01:26But when Aria was born, I decided, yeah, this is the time.
01:30I always believe to find the best quality ingredients is one of the most important.
01:34I think everyone can agree on that.
01:36Ingredients is something I never slack on.
01:38It's the best of nothing.
01:40I go to the local, we call it wet markets here.
01:43So all the seafood that I do use is always fresh.
01:46Number one, for sustainability.
01:48Number two, you can see what you buy.
01:50It makes all the difference.
01:52Our local markets are very good, to be honest.
01:56Of course, of course, they were hesitant because we are technically the first South African restaurant in Macau.
02:01Especially people who tried my food when I worked at local restaurants.
02:04But the Portuguese, as well as the Chinese local community, they have accepted us very well now.
02:11It took some time.
02:12You know, we've been open for two years now.
02:14And yeah, I think for any person to open up a business, it's not easy in the beginning.
02:18But Denver also says consistency is very important.
02:21So we always use high quality.
02:23And I think our customers know that.
02:24And that's one of the reasons why they come back.
02:26I guess one of the most important things for our daily life is, of course, take Aria out to play.
02:36So we like taking her to Kunyam Waterfront Park.
02:40So it's a really huge park.
02:42It's right by the waterfront.
02:43There's a science center there as well.
02:45I have a rule because of Aria.
02:49I want to take her to every park in Macau.
02:53I think I've almost achieved it.
02:55Because Macau is one of the things that I really like.
02:58The outdoor area is very good for kids, especially for development, for sun, radiation, everything.
03:04I really appreciate it.
03:05My favorite place to take her is at the bottom of the Ghia Hill.
03:09So at the bottom of the Ghia Hill, there is also a small animal park.
03:13There's some fish and birds.
03:18I'm very sports orientated.
03:21I like to, I've always been playing sports.
03:24Now I'm a runner.
03:26I've done a few Macau marathons.
03:28I've done a few trail runs in Hong Kong.
03:31There are a few running tracks in Macau.
03:34And I also like to climb all the mountains.
03:36Ghia Hill is one of them.
03:42We also like going to Haqsa, the beach area here in Macau.
03:47And we enjoy doing braai.
03:49Just right there on the spot, we just decide, let's go.
03:52Because we have this whole bag where everything is set up.
03:55And we just bring the bag and go to the Haqsa beach and have a braai.
03:59We invite our friends.
04:00A lot of my friends as well are from Chinese background and Portuguese.
04:07So yeah, cultural diversity is very good.
04:09I think the Macau spirit, what makes it unique is, I think, definitely the influence from
04:16the Portuguese.
04:17You will see a really interesting statue in the ruins of St. Paul.
04:21They call it the friendship statue.
04:23I think this is very interesting because it shows the friendship or the acceptance between
04:29two cultures.
04:29So you will see a Chinese woman giving a lotus to a Portuguese man.
04:34So this one, I guess, symbolizes the unity or acceptance between both cultures.
04:39So I think that's what makes Macau unique.
04:42I would say it's the people because the people shape the food.
04:46And the food, with food comes culture.
04:48I like the human connection.
04:49And I think that's what makes a place, a city, or anything feel like home and great.
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