TIGER ORCHID (grammatophyllum speciosum)

         
The Tiger orchid (grammatophyllum speciosum) blooming at Poring Hot Spring a week ago.  This largest orchid plant in the world can grow upto 3 metres and weigh few hundred kgs!

It only blooms every 3-5 years apparently, so, look out for it when you visit Poring Hot Spring, Kinabalu Park for the next 2 weeks or so.  The flowers stay in bloom for about a month.

Captivating View From Manukan Island

                Panorama View from Manukan Island

Was here couple of days ago with my guests and it never failed to amaze me how beautiful it is and how blessed we are to live here in Sabah!

Manukan is of the 5 islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park and it is only 15 minutes boat ride from Kota Kinabalu. The other 4 islands are Gaya, Sapi, Mamutik and Sulug. Locals called it coral islands as they are surrounded by corals. All the islands are opened for visits except Sulug island.

Apart from Snorkelling, you can just soak in the sun on the beach or join the numerous attractive water sports available such as parasailing, jet ski, banana boat, kong boat, flyfish, sea walking and scuba doo.

To get there is easy : Go to one of following jetty/marina :
Jesselton Point
Sutera Harbor

My advice is never ever get into a boat not at the above jetties! You might find yourself abandoned at a remote area on of the islands!

Ciao and have a great time on the islands!

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Rasa Ria Nature Reserve and Orang Utan Rehabilitation program

           Katie, a six year old Orang Utan at Rasa Ria Nature Reserve

The 64 acres nature reserve was established with the aim of educating and promoting conservation.
The Rasa Ria Nature Reserve was established by Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort in collaboration with the State Wildlife Department of Sabah.

This protected ecological space aims to facilitate rehabilitation programmes for endangered species of animals as well as those endemic in Sabah. The Rasa Ria Nature Reserve provides a home until they ready to be rehabilitated into their natural habitat.

The main focal point is the young orphaned orang utans and providing a platform to educate on conservation. They had various programs at the nature reserve including nocturnal activities.
When I brought my guests for a visit on 26 April 2013, there were 4 orang utans under the stage 1 rehabilitation program.

Feeding time : 10am and 2pm
(Need to be there at least 40 minutes in advance for registration, a short video show, briefing before heading for the 10 minutes hike up to the feeding platform.)
Conservation fees : MYR65
Booking : 3 days in advance
Journey to Rasa Ria :45min -1 hr
Contact : 6088 792888
Website : http://www.shangri-la.com/kotakinabalu/rasariaresort/sports-recreation/nature/nature-reserve-activities/

OR contact me if you want a personalized tour with me as your guide with transport!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Complementary KK Heritage Walk

KK HERITAGE WALK is kicking STRONG!!!! as proven by the these popular publications!

To promote the Walk even further,COMPLIMENTARY WALK is now introduced for the 2nd & 4th Sat of every month. As space is limited, please do make your prior reservation through:
Grace @ Tel:0128028823 or email: grace@kkheritagewalk.com

Happy Walking!

KAAMATAN IN SABAH

Kadazandusuns, Muruts, Rungus, Lundayeh celebrate harvest festival or as they called it “Kaamatan” during the month of May.  All districts throughout Sabah will hold their own celebration on different days of the month.  The normal activities during the celebration includes traditional sports competition, singing competition, the Unduk Ngadau “Beauty Queen” contest, traditional dances performances and just merry making with flowing rice wine continuously………..

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The Sabah State level celebration is held on 30th & 31st May every year at the Kadazan Dusun Cultural Association  Penampang.  This year, I brought 2 bloggers and another guest to the event and we had a cultural extravaganza which I bet will linger in our mind for a long time to come.

We went visiting some of the stalls which showcased the traditional food, desserts, cookies, etc and the  several traditional houses with traditional dances performances, rice wine tasting..…..

Inside the main hall, there were singing performances, traditional dances and the appearing of “Unduk Ngadau” from the various districts.  Wow, really a handfull and not enough time to do so much.

The grand finale falls on 31st May with the closing “Magavau” ritual performance by the High Priestess “Bobohizan” and also the “Unduk Ngadau” Contest and final.  I actually had my buttocks glued to my seat from 11am right until 5:30pm!  What a day!

It was definitely an eye opener for my guests as they witness the unique multi racial harmony during this special festive occasion when hundreds of all walks of life converge at this venue for merry making.

THE LEGEND OF UNDUK NGADAU
Legend had it that the Kadazan Dusun God, Kinoingan had a beautiful daughter, Huminodun.  During a famine, Kinoingan had to sacrifice Huminodun with her consent and changed her body parts into various food so that people has food to eat.  Her hair was changed into padi, head – coconut, knees – yam, fingers – maize, etc.

During the harvesting of the padi, Huminodun’s spirit appeared and instructed the Priestess to perform a ritual so that the people will have a bountiful harvest the following year.  The ritual was to take 7 best stalks of the padi and tie them at the end a bamboo and put it in the centre of the field during harvesting.  After harvesting, the bamboo with the 7 stalks of padi was to be placed inside the rice/padi container. 

It was till this day, the ritual continued and the people choose among the fair maiden among them to represent this iconic Legendary Huminodun.

Drop by to witness this unique Kaamatan and schedule your visit to coincide with this auspicious event to enjoy a cultural extravanza at its best the next time you come A VISITING SABAH!

Heritage Walk + Gaya Street Sunday Market

 

Was doing the KK Heritage Walk yesterday with the above couple and they love the Walk……..plus of course they got the chance to stroll along this oldest street in the history of KK on a Sunday!  As the Sunday Gaya Street Fair was on, this couple has a nice chance to browse around and got something for themselves at a good bargain.

This Sunday market has become a tourist attraction of late and whenever time permit, this is one of the must visit place when in Kota Kinabalu.  And, of course, to visit it at the same time while doing the KK Heritage Walk is truly an added bonus !

Remember to do it with the KK Heritage Walk.  You’ll never forget KK and this unique Sunday Market.

Sabah - Lest We Forget

Wow ! This is even more interesting and encouraging to find that the Ministry of Tourism has written something about my KK Heritage Walk at their website! See for yourself! :)

Click on the Title or below link:

Another First Time Experience!

It was yet again another first time experience of dealing with a group of American Boy Scouts and their parents. I did the ground arrangement for them with transport, camping sites and tours too. They also did the Mt. Kinabalu climbing which they booked in advance on their own. Very interesting group and I'm glad that they have enjoyed themselves especially Elysa, the cute little girl as can be seen from the photos:

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#

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"!

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:

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..............

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!

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.

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....................