Macau
The title of this article is ambiguous. For the French municipality, see Macau (Gironde); for other meanings, see also Macau.
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Macau (Chinese 澳門 / 澳门, pinyin Àomén, Jyutping Ou3mun4*2, English Macao; Portuguese Macau) is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China located about 50 kilometres west of Hong Kong. It was a Portuguese colony until 1999. Macau is rich in colonial-era landmarks. The main sources of income there are legal gambling and related tourism from Hong Kong and mainland China, which is why Macau is often referred to as the Monte Carlo of the East or the Las Vegas of the East.
The growth of the Chinese middle class and the resulting tourism have triggered a rapid economic boom in Macau. Counted as an independent state, Macau would be the fourth richest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita.
Macao is among the most developed countries in terms of the Human Development Index.
Name
The full name of Macau is in Cantonese Jūng'wàh Yàhnmàhn Guhng'wòhgwok Oumún Dahkbiht Hàhngjingkēui resp. in High Chinese Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Àomén Tèbié Xíngzhèngqū (中華人民共和國澳門特別行政區 / 中华人民共和国澳门特别行政区 
) and in Portuguese ( ).
Geography
Landscape
Macau is located in the estuary delta of the Pearl River. The territory of today's Special Administrative Region originally consisted of three islands. The islands of Taipa and Coloane were connected to each other and Macau to the mainland by land fill. The islands are connected to the peninsula and the mainland by several bridges.
Both the peninsula and the island area consist of small granite hills surrounded by lowland areas. Before the hills were cleared for firewood and timber, the original vegetation was evergreen tropical rainforest. The highest point is Alto de Coloane on Coloane at 172.5 meters.
· 
Aerial view of the Macau Peninsula (2004)
· 
Lago Nam Van (2013)
Climate
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| Monthly average temperatures and precipitation for Macau
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Partly tropical influences give Macau a dry, humid monsoon climate. Four-fifths of the average rainfall of 2,120 mm/m² falls in the rainy summer season (April to September), when the southwestern monsoon blows. Temperatures range from 15 °C in winter to an average of 29 °C in summer. Apart from the rain, the summer months are hot, humid and uncomfortable. The winter months, on the other hand, are slightly cooler, less humid and more bearable.
