OOctctoberober 20072007 VolVolumeume 8080 RM 1.00 SSeellaammaatt HHaarrii RRaayyaa AidilfitriAidilfitri Special Food Issue INSIDE: Kota Belud Tamu Besar, 4X4 Borneo Safari, Sabah map and more! ADVISOR YBhg. Dato’ Seri Tengku Zainal Adlin EDITOR Melissa Leong Contents DESIGNER Trevor Thomson LamC.W. What’s New At Kadaiku design by Charlieking Padasian PUBLISHER Sabah TourismBoard 3 Feature Personality 51 Gaya Street, 88000 Kota Kinabalu Albert Balcells, Director of Skyrunner World Series TRANSLATORS Chin Yen Sang (Chinese) Rie Harada (Japanese) Emzee Lee (Korean) Cover photo by Eddie Angat/ Sabah Tourism DESIGNED & PRINTEDBY 4 Happenings & Highlights Inna Kinabalu Sdn Bhd Pesta Gong Matunggong (Publisher of The New Sabah Times) Hari Raya Aidilfitri Jalan Pusat Pembangunan Masyarakat, Sembulan 88100 Kota Kinabalu Invitational Water Colour Painting Exhibition 4X4 Borneo Safari Every effort has been made to ensure that the information is correct at the time of publication. The publisher cannot be held Tamu Besar Kota Belud responsible for any inaccuracies, omissions and alterations which MV Doulos Comes to KK may occur as a result of la st minute changes. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of the Sabah Tourism Board. 7 Eating Out Eurocafe, Waterfront Editorial Sate Mesra At the8 Spa Essentials ou know what I love most recent SEAH Hair Spa about being Malaysian? The food! To us, food isn’t Y just sustenance. It is part of our 9 Places of I nterest culture and perhaps even an art Lok Kawi Wildlife Park form perfected over time. This month, I had a wonderful time researching local delicacies and 10 Feature international favourites to be Food, Glorious Food! featured in the October issue. It’s a tough job but somebody has to Enjoying fresh seafood at Mabul island do it! Sabah is a gastronomical 12 Through The Lens paradise: Not only can you find the ‘Makan’ Time in Sabah best in Chinese, Japanese, Italian, bargain with local traders and Korean and the like, we are also witness the Cowboys of the East in known for our abundant seafood, their vibrant attire and bell-decked 14 Culture fresh from the sea and onto your horses. For a complete list of events, Kuih Muih Melayu plate. If you’re a bit more refer to our Calendar of Events. adventurous, the ethnic local food is a featuremust-try. article Read on all page about 10. it in our We hope this magazine will help 15 What’s New at Kadaiku you in planning your holiday in Sabah Souvenirs & Handicrafts Sabah. O ur friendly tourist assistants October is also special as we at the Sabah Tourism Board and Sri celebrate the Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Pelancongan Sabah information 16 Bahasa Malaysia Section After a month of fasting, the Muslim centres in KK city are ever-ready to community greets the Hari Raya, answer your questions. Leave your which marks the New Year according worries behind and have an 18 Chinese Section to the Islam calendar. This is a great unforgettable holiday right here in opportunity to savour ‘Raya’ delights Sabah Malaysian Borneo. J umpa during ‘open house’ – a Malaysian lagi! 20 J apanese Section practice where friends and family visit the homes of those celebrating the season. Check out our Kadaiku 22 Korean Section section for gift ideas when visiting an open house. 24 Directory Listings Other exciting events for this month include the 4X4 Borneo Safari, throughwhich takes challenging high-powered terrain vehiclesacross 25 Sabah Map & Listings Sabah, and the Gong Festival (Pesta Gong) in Matunggong. Not to be 26 Weston Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary missed is the colourful Kota Belud Tamu Besar. Hailed the mother of all ‘Tamu’ (open air market), experience Melissa Leong the tamu at its grandest scale, Editor Pesta Nelayan Menumbok October 2007 This is a festivity for fishermen held at Mempakul, Menumbok beach as they celebrate their industry with various games and competitions such as beach volleyball, fishing, cooking and many more. PejabatOrganiser: Daerah Kecil Menumbok For further info: Ag. Damit @ Ag. Sahzain Pg. Abd. Razak Tel: +60 87 831216 Fax: +60 87 831071 Email: [email protected] best and ride their extravagantly decorated horses. Other highlight include the crowning of the Ratu Sarempak (Sarempak Beauty Queen) Pesta Gong Matunggong 2007 and an exciting buffalo-riding race. A wild, wild 24 October 2007 east experience with a Borneo twist! This event celebrates the gong, one of Sabah’s Organisers: vital traditional musical instruments. The District Office of Kota Belud picturesque town of Matunggong in Kudat Sri Pelancongan Sabah Sdn Bhd comes alive in this festival, where most of the For further info: Mohd. Najib Muntok gongs are produced. Zachary Mobijohn Organiser: Hari Raya Aidilfitri Matunggong District Office Fax:Tel: +60 +60 88 88 976621, 977064, 232121 265540 13 – 14 October 2007 For further info: Email: [email protected] After a whole month of fasting, the Muslim Encik Arnold Joibi community in Malaysia celebrates ‘Hari Raya’ Tel: +60 88 613760 Fax: +60 88 613786 with joyous family gatherings and open houses. Email: [email protected] MV Doulos – World’s Largest Floating Book Join in the merry-making and taste the Fair In Kota Kinabalu delicious traditional Malay favourites such as 13-25 October rendang and ketupat. 4 x 4 Borneo Safari All aboard the MV Doulos as it makes its way to For further info: 28 October – 4 November 2007 the port of Kota Kinabalu this month! Built in Email: [email protected] A very unique event that takes you deep into 1914, Doulos is the world’s oldest ocean-going the heart of Sabah with powerful 4WD vehicles passenger ship and today it serves as the Invitational Water Colour Painting modified to challenge the tracks in one of the world’s largest floating book fair. You can also Exhibition world’s most beautiful jungle terrains. Fit for meet the 350 volunteer multi-cultural crew from 18 October – 19 November 2007 those who love adventure and challenges that 50 different nations and explore the vessel on Sabah’s artists display their most recent works are out of the ordinary. October 13 and 19 (1pm-5pm), 14 and 21 of art in water colour of more than 30 paintings Organiser: (2pm-5pm) and 15 (11am-5pm). The MV depicting a delightful and fascinating collection Kinabalu Four Wheel Drive Club Doulos will be open daily from the 13th to the of everyday life, culture, nature in various For further info: 25th from 10:00am to 10:00pm except for approaches and media. Thomas Chin Sunday the 14th and Monday the 22nd (open- Organiser: Mobile: 013 8647737, 014 6723723 ing hours will be from 2:00pm to 10:00pm) at Sabah Art Gallery Email: [email protected] Berth 8, Kota Kinabalu Port. Don’t miss this For further info: great opportunity! Admission is free. Datuk Mohd. Yaman Hj. Ahmad Mus Tamu Besar Kota Belud 2007 Organiser: Tel: +60 88 268875 Fax: +60 88 210040 27 – 28 October 2007 GBA, (Gute Buecher fuer alle e. V.) Email: [email protected] The ‘Tamu’ is Borneo’s traditional open market. For further info:Lissi Ottacher On this day, the Bajau horsemen known as Tel: +6012 829 6965 / 088-251523 ‘Cowboys of the East’ dress in their traditional Email: [email protected] Feature Personality 3 Albert Balcells, Director of Skyrunner World Series or Albert Balcells, the sky really is that a smaller physique is sometimes a the limit. As the Director of the good thing as it makes it easier for the FSkyrunner World Series, Albert runner to carry their own weight – Look travels the world to organize and at Ricardo Mejia (2006 Mt. Kinabalu witness various mountain races or International Men’s Open Champion)!” sports at high altitude which make up Albert added that he was impressed the Skyrunner World Series. Mt. with the performance of local runners Kinabalu is proud to be part of this considering that they were up against prestigious world series and one of only professional mountain runners. “The two Asian countries to hold the honour. European runners have more exposure The other is Mt. Ontake in Otaki, Japan. and many of them are professional Runners gather points by athletes, which mean they can train all competing in various mountain races in year round. However, for your local the 7-series circuit, culminating in runners, they only have time to train Zegama, Spain this year. closer to the event and yet they perform This year, the TM 21st Mt. Kinabalu as well as, if not better than, the world- International Climbathon took place on class runners. This proves that they August 25 and 26, setting the stage for have the potential given the right top world mountain runners to training and exposure,” he commented. challenge each other in what is His advice for budding mountain dubbed the World’s Toughest runners? “You must be in the game for Mountain Race. Top runners such many years, which means start as as Spain’s Agusti Roc Amador young as possible. You must have the and Italy’s Dapit Fulvio are among drive and motivation to succeed. the famous faces who participate Exposure and proper training are also each year without fail, bringing a vital,” he said. competitive edge to the race. The Sabah runners were not the With each visit, Albert never only thing that impressed Albert. He ceases to be amazed with the admits he is smitten by Sabah’s charm. grandeur of Mt. Kinabalu. “Mount “Every year, Sabah is the one leg in the Kinabalu is the highest mountain circuit that I always look forward to! in the race circuit at the moment Although I’m at work, it’s also like a at 4,095.2 metres.