HEADHUNTERS IN SABAH !

A New Cultural Village with the name "Mari Mari Cultural Village" has opened its doors to tourists who want to have a closer look or insight into the ethnic groups of Sabah. A very interesting place with a few traditional houses and of course, the long houses too of the Muruts(Headhunter) and the Rungus.

#Note: Even though some of the natives still live in their traditional houses, the famous Muruts(Headhunters) do not practice any more Head hunting. So, DO NOT WORRY!

RESTAURANTS! FOOD, FOOD & FOOD!

When I travel to another place or country, I would always love to try out the local food and delicacies. The adventurous type, sometimes even even try out the UNTHINKABLE! For tourists intending to visit Sabah, I am embarking to do a bit of work here to list out some of the well known eateries and restaurants and hang-out cafes of the locals!

HERITAGEWALK for STUDENTS

Conducted a Walk on 08th December for 32 students + 4 teachers from Omman. Very interesting group of students. I've got 4 Heritage Guides to do the Walk for them while I tagged along to take some videos of the Walk. The Walk was slightly different as there were more questions in the Treasure Hunt to add in more fun for the students. Luckily, there's a winner for all the 4 groups of them. All in, its a satisfactory Walk with our very experienced Heritage Guides, C.K Leong, Lillian, John and Gwenda.

沙巴之旅十二月十号直十四号

各位亲爱的客人， 照片都已放在网上。 请进入这里哦! : From 沙巴之旅十二月十号直十四号

FISHING IN SABAH

From FISHING IN SABAH

From FISHING IN SABAH

A One Day all inclusive Fishing trip in Kota Kinabalu will leave you satisfy not just with the fishing but also with the food on board the fishing boat. What do you eat? Of course, all the fish you can eat which you have caught! Still, plenty of leftovers for you to take back to get some restaurants to cook for you for a small service charge. This is a must try tour for "Fishing Enthusiast". CAn contact me if interested to arrange the trip. Cost is RM490 per person and minimum is 4 persons. Can join with others too if minimum not met. It is definitely a "VALUE FOR MONEY" tour. The Fishing Guide is a very experienced guide. Please click on the following link to view more photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/nicharis/FISHINGINSABAH#

FILIPINO GROUP PHOTOS UPLOADED

 

Dear Filipino friends,
Your photos are all uploaded already. Please click on the "PHOTOS OF SABAH" on the right and use Picasa to download the photos. Ciao.......:)
Grace

PHOTOS FOR MY FILIPINO GROUP

Hi, my Filipino friends....... I am so sorry that I am still unable to upload the photos yet.....Soooooooooooo busy. Guess I can only be able to do it by tonight 07th Oct only. Please bear with me. Sorry lah! Grace

ELTRA GROUP

At last........I have uploaded all your photos. Please go the right of this blog and click on the link to the "Photos Of Sabah" and you can start download the photos you want........Happy downloading.

Tunku Abdul Rahman Park (Coral Islands)

"Let's go to the opposite island this holiday" is the popular saying of the locals whenever there's a holiday or on a Sunday. "Opposite island"? Yep, the 5 islands that made up the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park(gazetted as a Park in 1974) is just directly opposite Kota Kinabalu and it's a mere 15 minutes by boat ride! So...........near that lots of locals have not been there!Why? The norm is that the islands are always there and so what's the hurry? But, how to go there and what to expect?

First of all, a bit of info about the islands. The 5 islands are known as Gaya, Sapi, Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug. Gaya (derived from the word 'Goyoh' meaning 'Big' is the largest of the 5 islands. There's a Bajau settlement at the front facing Kota Kinabalu. There're also resorts on the islands. The more establised resort is the Gayana Eco Resort with only 44 rooms and the rooms are built above the sea using 'Belian' stilts. Very fantastic view and environment. You can go for nature trail walks here and can really experienced a forest setting and might get to see a wild boar, monitor lizard or others. For Snorkelling, there's the Hornbill beach or the police Bay, though both of these 2 beaches are not that popular.

Then, there's the favorite Sapi island. The small little island is actully sheltered from strong winds and current by Gaya Island, thus, a favorite spot for snorkelling and swimming. Keen snorkeller might be a bit disappointed though, cos, sometimes, there're lots of tourists here and throughout the years, many corals nearby were trampled upon and are dead now. So, you would really need to venture out further if one really wants to see corals. But, for fishes........well......beware, the fishes are in the hundreds and they are known to take a nibble at you, thinking it's food, as the tradition on these islands is to feed the fishes. Though, it is truly a sight of course, to see so many fishes and swim among them. You can see a few monitor lizards near the swampy area too. Ther's a canteen on Sapi serving different types of food, so, need not worry about being hungry after lots of swimming and exercising. Changing room, showers and toilets are available.

The other favorite island is Manukan, meaning 'Fish". This island has a long beach but quite diicult to stroll bare footed as there're lots of broken shells and corals at the shore. But, there's a good spot of very nice corals and of course, even right at the jetty, you behold again the hundreds of fishes. Ther's also a nice restaurant and a canteen too on this island as, accommodation at the little wooden chalets are available for rent. Theres' also a small Marine museum here.

Mamutik is the smallest island of all the five and it means ' place to collect sea shells', though, of course, you are not allowed to so now. This island has the most corals still alive and it is really a nice place to snorkel. Toilets, shower are also available.

Sulug island is named after one of the local ethnic groups. The island has no ideal shelter as the other islands, thus, attracts very few people there.

How to go the islands?
There're 3 possible ways:
1) Jesselton Point : It is the common jetty in the city centre. There're many boat ferries operator at the jetty. However, you would have to first pay a jetty fee of RM6 per person and the return boat trip might cost about RM20-25 per person.
2) Sutera Harbor : There're at least 3 boat operators from this jetty, but, you would need to pay a RM7 for use of the jetty too.
3) Marina Jetty (Shangri'la Tanjung Aru Resort) : No jetty fees but the boat ferry will cost slightly more.

Well, it does depends on where you stay for you to make a choice of where to take the ferry to the islands.

Do take note that you would also need to pay a entrance fee to the islands:
Malaysians :RM3
Non-Malaysians :RM10

Lastly, as this a Park "TAKE NOTHING AND LEAVE NOTHING"!

Technorati Profile

What You Should Not Do In A Nature Destination在生态景点不应该做的事 - Video

What You Should Not Do In A Nature Destination在生态景点不应该做的事

Some tourists came in a taxi to this Wetland conservation area and then BEGAN to feed the Wild Monkeys there. After advising them not to do so, they retorted "Look.... they are very hungry. No one feeds them!" I told them if everybody do the same, the monkeys will wait for people to feed them and eventually will not go into the jungle to search for food themselves. So, sooner or later, the food chain will be affected and it is all because of us!!! Guess what, they didn't believe me! The taxi driver who is apparently the person who taught them to buy the bananas to do the feeding disappeared from the scene when he heard me advising the tourists.

Note the video above:

Monitor Lizard Going For FOOD! 蜥蜴的午餐

SURPRISING AND ENCOURAGING GIFTS FROM TOURISTS小珍妮送的画

!The above picture is a drawing done by the cute little girl from my last group. Her photo is featured in my last post. This picture is presented to me as a gift together with something else as a token of appreciation.

The little boy featured in my last post had also presented me a gift as well. I was truly encouraged by them and their family to strive for service excellence.

好感动哦。小珍妮送给我的小礼物。还有妈妈的马币一百呢！给了我非常好的推动力来提供最好的服务。

A VER..........Y GOOD GROUP OF TOURISTS

Have just finished doing guiding for a group of 16 Taiwanese for 5 days which includes overnight at Pulau Tiga. The whole group though comprises of 6 families are all very nice tourists and they truly appreciate my services and the DVD and group photo which I gave them as gifts. The DVD is photos and video clips taken of them during the tour here. Their appreciation really encourages me to strive for service excellence. There are 2 kids in the tour who I also truly like. One is a little boy aged only 11 who apppreciates nature and wildlife tremendously. The other is a little girl who is just immensely cute.

Kinabalu Park and Poring Hot Spring 神山与波令温泉

I can still remember the day 29th November,2000. Headlines over most of the newspapers in Malaysia "KINABALU PARK, MALAYSIA'S FIRST WORLD HERITAGE SITE"

Gosh, was I thrilled with this news!!!! I have been bringing hundreds of tourists to Kinabalu Park (KNP) all these years and really love the place and its cool mountain air. It sure deserved the recognition. However, lots of people do not know how all this started.

Thanks to Sir Roland Turnbull, the Governor of British North Borneo. He came here in 1954 and became the most achieving Governor of North Borneo, setting up the Legislative Assembly and looked into conservation of the forest. He instructed George Carson, then the Conservator of Forest to conserve the 754sq km of forest surrounding the magnificent Mt. Kinabalu. George Carson subsequently became the Park first warden. If only Sir Turnbull had lived till the day when KNP bacame World Heritage Site, I am pretty sure he would be really thrilled and proud of it.! My due respect to this respectable Governor.

There was a time when I was really down and depressed and I took off to the mountain and stayed for a night at a hotel with the full view of the mountain in my room. I gazed at the mountain in the evening and at early dawn and mind you, it really helped to take away all my sorrows. Till now, I am never tired of taking pictures of the mountain and its many different faces everytime. To describe the mountain : Strong! majestic! wonderful ! Amazing! Why not! This huge granite rock has taken 150 million years to surface from the ground to its present height of 4095.2m and many believe it is still growing.

It has allowed 4 different types of vegetation to grow at its lower surface right upto more than 3,000 over metre, namely, Tropical Dipterocarp forest, montane forest, sub-alpine forest and moss/scrub forest, having more than half of the world's different species of flora. Not to mention the more than 1200 species of wild orchids ( including the native beautiful Queen of Slipper Orchid), more than 29 species of rhododendrons, 10 species of pitcher plants and more than 600 over species of ferns. And so much more...............

The nature trails walk at the Park are a sure nice experience for anyone who loves nature, well, especially the trails at the administration centre at 1520m. At the east is Poring Hot Spring, where there are limited bath tubs to soothe one's aching muscles or just for relaxation. Remember, it is a Park and not supposed to be too commercialised. So, do not take on the Park authorities for not making more tubs. But, one must try the Canopy Walkway. It takes about 15 minutes to go up the trail but it is a truly amazing experience once again. The Canopy walkway is 41 metre high and is about 170m long (5 sections) and hanged onto tropical trees namely, Seraya Emas(golden tree) and Mengaris(king of trees which can grow upto 90 over metre high). Enjoy the scenery around you and forget about height phobia..........phobia? what phobia?

Do not worry or disappointed if your health or stamina would not let you go all the way up the Canopy, cos, the Park authorities is constructing another canopy nearer the entrance (about 5 minutes, I think) and should be completed soon. Of course, it is not as thrilling as the original canopy which is much higher and longer but.............at least you get to try walking across A CONOPY! Your friends back home won't see the difference from the photos you show them anyway.

If you have enough time, take a walk to the Kipungit waterfall (15 minutes also)from the hot Spring area and enjoy the quiet and cool breeze of the waterfall. If you stay overnight at the Hot Spring area, don't miss the chance to trek up to the Langaggan Waterfall(1 1/2 hr), of course, you'll need the stamina to do so, cos, it is all the way up, up, up , and....................up!

Will talk about climbing the mountain in my next posting! Read on..............

IMPERIAL HOTEL

The hotel is 3 star but seems more like a boutique hotel with its interior of the rooms tastefully designed. It is only within 15 minutes from the airport is located right in the city centre.

It is within a new and up class shopping mall, Warisan Square and the front entrance facing Centre Point, another well known Shopping centre. At the back of the hotel, across the road, is the Water front night entertainment area with restaurants, cafes and pubs.

I have introduced this hotel to several of my tourists and they are just delighted with it.

Stronlgy recommend this hotel. Price for Standard Deluxe room should be about RM200 nett.

BUY ONE FREE ONE @ RM2

BUY ONE FREE ONE @ RM2 !
"?????????? " my Filipino guest looked around him in the restaurant and even upward to see where is the "ROOM NO 2" !!!!!!!! He just loves food and this sounds GOODDDDDDDDDD! But he couldn't find the Room No 2 and he was shy to ask, so, decided to just ignore it.

The next day when I was explaining certain custom and culture in the coach, our friend suddenly exclaimed "Oh my goodness, you meant RM means Ringgit Malaysia (Malaysian currency)? Last night, there was this sign in the restaurant and I thought there's a Room No 2 for the Buy One Free One! Oh my.................." Everybody in the coach roll with laughter!!!!!!

KK HERITAGE WALK亚庀(KK)怀旧步道

This Walk was initiated by me, Grace, in 2005. The walk takes you along the older parts of the city and covers historical places like the Independence Field, Atkinson Clock Tower, Malaysia Monument, North Borneo War Memorial, City Council, Gaya Street, Sabah Tourism Building, Independence Community Centre, Australia Place and of course lastly, a traditional tea break at the Museum Kopitiam.

The duration of the Walk including the tea break last about 3 hours. The Walk is actually a very leisure kind of a walk and certainly not difficult at all. It will definitely enlightens you a lot on the birth of the city and its 3 eras, namely, Pre War, Post War and Post Independence. It will also opens up the sights and sounds of the city and also its unique culture as well.

The Walk includes a Hertage Walk cap and booklet which will really complements the Walk perfectly. Of course, the Walk would not be complete without one of our specially selected and well trained Heritage Guides who have more than 15 over years of experience in guiding to lead the Walk! So, HAPPY WALKING !

Contact me @ Tel: 60 12 8028823 or email me grace@kkheritagewalk.com if you require any further information. Visit the Heritage Walk website for more info @ http://www.kkheritagewalk.com/

KK HERITAGE WALK - IT HAS TO START SOMEWHERE!

It has got to start somewhere! After doing several groups of media, tour agents introduced by Tourism Malaysia and FITS now and then, finally, a Taiwan tour agent decided to add my Heritage Walk into their tour package! Odd.................It has to come from Taiwan? What happen to the Australians and English? I thought they should be more interested as our history had a lot to do with them! Arh........... well, like I say it has to start somewhere. I am truly grateful to this Taiwan agent and the local agent Skyzone to do the tour.

Outcome and Response?..................... Fantastic! The guests like the walking tour very much and truly appreciate it. For this group ,I actually have to split the tour and the tea break due to time constraint. We had the tea break at the Museum Kopitiam on the last day, which was yesterday 05th April, 2008 and they loved it. This is definitely the better way to end the their last day in Sabah with our traditional coffee break!

Monitor Lizard Going For FOOD! 蜥蜴的午餐

I am still trying to upload a video on this but facing some problems with the loading. Please bear with me!

KELLYBAYS Part Two

Welcome to Kelly Bays!
"Argggg. It is so muddy and look so dirty........." one of the tourists exclaimed. I have to hurriedly explained " It is now low tide and at wetland, the soil is able to absorb a tremendous amount of water, thus, the muddiness, but mind you, it actually helps to prevent floods and blah, blah, blah............" on and on I went on to explain the importance of wetlands, mangroves and the different types of species found at Kelly Bays.

"Gosh...... I never know that mangroves are so important. This is interesting information. It really makes me appreciate wetlands." What a relief to me.
" Is this the boat???????Oh my goodness. This is going to be fun!" exclaimed yet another tourist."

" Please.....everybody, please........come over here and let me explain first. You can lie on the nylon swing bed later as long as you want", I pleaded with my tourists during my guided introduction tour around Kellybays. We were at the beach front then and the guests couldn't resist the temptation of the inviting swing beds!

"The lamb is just delicious, I am going to put on extra pounds.....I thought I can cut back a few pounds in Sabah but ..........."

Later, " I am so exhausted, our banana boat flipped over at least a dozen times and it get more difficult to climb back on each time...........giggle.....giggle....." yet another tourist related his ordeal!

Another tourist's wife comments"My husband has caught at least 3 different type of fishes the whole day!"

"Help!!!!!!!!! The monitor lizard is trying to grab the fish I've caught!" one female screamed.

"Hey, I have not seen you around here for a long time. Where were you?" I asked a young couple. " We are body surfing at the beach. It was really fun........" "And you?" I asked another elderly couple aged more than seventy. "Oh, we were speeding down the beach in the buggy. Gosh, it was really thrilling............." "What................!You must be kidding" I exclaimed.

Really......what a group and what a day!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BORNEO KELLYBAYS

A unique water sports and multi recreational area in a natural wetland environment located about 50 minutes drive from Kota Kinabalu city centre in the Tuaran district. If you stay in Shangri'la Rasa Ria Resort, its only about 10-15 mins drive. You can spend half day or whole day and choose from various packages to accommodate your schedule and interests. You will find at least sometime to do there :


WaterSports : Try out body surfing in the sea at the 7km long beach front or enjoy limitless banana boat rides, canoeing and water bicycling at the scenic river with mangroves fronting the restaurant. Or try out the sailboat available for rent.

Land activities : Be artistic in creatng your own batik painting, try your luck in fishing for varieties of fish or even monitor lizards! Blowpipes, volleyballing are all available for free or rent a beach buggy and go speeding down the 7km long beach. Try your luck too in the traditional crab catching or cruise down the mangrove river in a unique bamboo raft and listen to explanation by your guide on the importance of mangrove swamps and the wetlands and the different species.

FOOD : In between all the activities and exercises, go for the sumptious buffet thoughtfully spread out in a tradional setting with salad, fried mee, squids/sotong, lamb, chicken wings, soup and also the very localised Bubur Chacha for dessert! For tea-break, hands-on to try making your own roti canai and teh tarik!

Relax : Tired after all the activities and need winding down? Lie down at the beach or even at the restaurant for a quick nap or try out the traditional massage or foot reflexology at the jungle spa (advance booking required).


Before you know it, it time to bid goodbye and head back to the bustling city centre.

View more photos of KellyBay at my photo album
For more information visit : http://www.kellybays.com

Note : Advance booking is neceesary, so, please book through any tour operator or contact me for necessary arrangement.

ME TOUCHING A SEA SNAKE!

I have finally plucked up enough courage to touch a sea snake myself and it is not so horrifying after all. This photo is taken on 11th Feb, 2008.......A day to remember, during my last tour group to Pulau Tiga, the Survivor Island.

CHINESE NEW YEAR 农历新年

Christmas and New Year had just left us not too long ago and now the Chinese in Malaysia are looking forward to Chinese New Year which falls on 07th February, 2008. Well, I felt all excited while doing the Heritage Walk on 29h Jan as the festive mood was all in the air in the streets and of course, very much so along Gaya Street. Gaya Street will be holding this yearly celebration again in a grand way, especially on 30th January on its opening ceremony of the grand Gaya Street Chinese New Year celebrations from 30th Jan till 04th Feb. The street is closed at night for stalls and stalls of festive goods available for sale.

Plus, 02nd Feb is Kota Kinabalu City Day and celebration programmes are all lined up, like the grand International Tradional dances beginning 02nd Feb with its procession at night with fireworks and so on and so on ........ How can we not be excited?

Chinese New Year is not here yet but I have heard the sound of fireworks and fire crackers every night. Wow............ Don't forget, Chinese New Year last for 15 days!

For the first time, I am without a tourist group this New Year and is free to enjoy myself but I really do not know what to do with my free time as most of my friends are tourist guides and they are working. I am used to working during this festive season for several years already.

Enjoy my photos and video clips of this Chinese New Year in Kota Kinabalu! Go to Photos of Sabah for more!

UPLOADING PHOTOS/BROWSING LELONG

Have finally uploaded photos on KK Heritage Walk, Ker Yew's group in Sabah and........ Taiwan group in Pulau Tiga. Took a long time to complete it. A couple of the photos shown here. Take a peep in the "PHOTOS OF SABAH AND TOURS" for more.

Have been bidding for a new Dopod 3G mobile in the Lelong and now trying the 3rd bid item. Ai................. Hope I can get it. My last group tour leader is using one and it just look so tempting................................... My next tour look quite far off as I have to do Eco Host training for some guides on 16th Jan and Skyzone Tours told me the likely tour group for me is from 13-17th Jan. It crashes with my training.............! I would have to say bye bye to the group. Ai....................