Tourism conference photo contest
Date Posted: 09 Sep 2010
KOTA KINABALU: Shutterbugs are invited to take part in the World Tourism Conference photo contest organized by the Environmental Action Centre (EAC). Participants can send in photos showing the beauty of Sabah, including places, culture, people, scenery, flora and fauna. Fifty photos would be selected for the competition. Photographers are requested to submit their work by noon Sept 13 to 1st Floor, Environmental Action Centre at the Kebudayaan Building or Victor Wah Consultants, G/F Block D, Bangunan KWSP, Karamunsing here. "Participants are required to download four of their photos in a CD, with a RM20 entry fee, and they can submit as many set of four photos as possible," said ...

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12,000 are due for first Malaysia Day joy
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2010
Kota Kinabalu: The Malaysia Day celebration on Sept. 16 being held for the first time 47 years after the country's formation is expected to attract more than 12,000 visitors. State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said it is time for people to know the difference between Malaysia Day and Independence Day, which was why it is important that people recognise this day. He said the event, which the Government had spent about RM1.5 million, would showcase many patriotic activities. Many Ministers have confirmed attendance, apart from support from 11 foreign ambassadors. Among the highlights would be the special icon award for those who have contributed ...

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Swede stays with Bajaus to understand Ramadhan
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2010
KOTA BELUD: Spending 10 days with a Bajau family in Kota Belud gave 20-year-old Swede Sandra Lindmark the opportunity to understand the meaning of Ramadhan.Sandra, who had never imagined that she would be in Sabah for a vacation, said she was really excited to learn how the people celebrated Ramadhan from the Dolkassim Andanan family in Kampung Taun Gusi Padang. She said she would remember her experience as something sweet for the whole of her life. According to her, she has travelled to several Southeast Asia countries such as Laos, Brunei and Vietnam. “I have learnt people’s cultures and religions from the countries I visited,” she said. Sandra said with similar ...

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Chong sets new record with a mega Batik fan
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2010
Kota Kinabalu: Sabahans need to start thinking out of the box and stop giving themselves a limit in trying to achieve excellence in life. The call came from State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun when he unveiled Malaysia's biggest batik fan at Wisma Budaya, Monday. "There is actually no limit or an end in our attempt to achieve excellence in life through our creativity," he said, adding this is probably the message delivered by Benedict Chong, the creator of the gigantic batik fan. The event was organised by the Sabah Art Gallery of the Sabah Cultural Board in conjunction with the Hari Malaysia celebrations. The batik fan, 20 feet high and 30 feet wide ...

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Govt proposes listing Danum Valley as a World Heritage Site
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2010
KOTA KINABALU: The state government plans to propose Danum Valley for listing as a World Heritage Site. Tourism, Environment and Culture Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said the area located 83 km from Lahad Datu is rich with flora and fauna. He added that apart from the Sumatran rhino, orang utan, barking deer and clouded leopard, some 270 species of birds are also found in the area. Speaking to reporters after launching the Malaysia’s largest batik fan here yesterday, Masidi said the government also wanted to propose Maliau Basin and as such a technical committee has been formed to forward the proposals to UNESCO. “It will be a long process…it might take years as we ...

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Capturing Borneo’s elusive feline species
Date Posted: 07 Sep 2010
DANAU GIRANG: Oxford University researcher, Andrew Hearn, has been religiously visiting villages in rural Sabah, speaking to the locals and trudging through rough terrains placing camera traps and collecting data on five of Borneo’s cat species. He has been doing this for nearly four years and remains very passionate about his quest. There are five species of cats in Borneo, he says. And almost nothing is known about all of them. Andrew, who is currently based at the Danau Girang Field Centre in Kinabatangan, a facility co-managed by the Sabah Wildlife Department and Cardiff University said that the Borneo cat species comprise of the Leopard Cat, the Bornean Bay Cat, the Flat ...

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Bus fares remain the same
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2010
KOTA KINABALU: Whenever Hari Raya Aidilfitri comes, the busiest place would be the bus terminal where people rush there to buy their ticket to go back to their hometowns.According to a ticketing staff at Delima Zamrud Ekspress, their tickets are adequate until the last operation on Sept 9 at 9am. “Prices are still the same as previous years and for safety, we always check each bus before it leaves the station,” she said to reporters at the bus terminal in Inanam yesterday. Meanwhile, another worker of the same company, Arbain Bacho, 25, said they provide services from Kota Kinabalu-Lahad Datu-Tawau. “So far, the response from commuters is good and we have received a ...

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New operator, better deals at Atmosphere Restaurant
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2010
KOTA KINABALU: While everyone in the city is looking for great dining spots that serve good food at affordable prices, Atmosphere Revolving Restaurant and Bar has come out with a better deal. Atmosphere Revolving Restaurant and Bar directors Fritz J. Klug and Ganeson Suppiah. The new management of the only restaurant of its kind in Sabah, at the 18th floor of Yayasan Sabah building in Likas, has changed its menu to attract more local and international food lovers. With years of experience in hotel line and food industry, its two directors, Fritz J. Klug and Ganeson Suppiah took over Atmosphere Revolving Restaurant and Bar two weeks ago to give customers a better deal. “We are ...

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Beauty goes from good, better and best
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2010
Julylen Liew Ei Ling or G’zell to her friends was crowned Miss Malaysia Tourism Queen International 2010 in Penang recently, and that was a result of perseverance in learning and improving herself. Julylen after being crowned. The 20-year-old young lady who hails from Kg Inanam Laut, Inanam says she was very happy to be crowned queen for that pageant as she had entered many and various beauty pageants before but always ended up third or with subsidiary titles. This lankly girl with an enviable figure said her initial competitive venture was into singing. Her first contest was in My Starz LG singing competition. “I believed I did alright. In fact I was quite happy with ...

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San Chiang Mid-Autumn Night celebration
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2010
Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah San Chiang Association will be organising a "San Chiang Mid-Autumn Night" celebration, in conjunction with the Mid-Autumn Festival, on Sept 18. The highlight of the event, to be held at Royal China Restaurant, will include a lantern quiz competition and song presentations by representatives from several clan associations. The Mid-Autumn Festival is also a celebration of courage as recorded in the Chinese history. The occasion is also dubbed "Chinese Valentine's Day" because courting couples will meet for an evening outing. Sabah San Chiang Association is made up of members who hail mainly from Kiangxu, Kiangsi and Jiangkiang provinces of China. It was ...

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