Categories
Tourism Malaysia

“Malaysia, Your New Art Tourism Destination”

“Malaysia, Your New Art Tourism Destination”

The Minister of Tourism Malaysia, YB Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, is unveiling yet another exciting and innovative tourism product today, the “1Malaysia Contemporary Art Tourism 2011” (MCAT 2011) Festival at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. Organised for the second consecutive year, the festival will see many art-related events being held from July to September 2011 with the support of private organisations including shopping malls, hotels, art galleries and cultural and convention centres.

A total of 17 events have been identified this year, doubled as compared to the previous year. For the first time, eight shopping complexes are participating, namely Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, Fahrenheit 88, Starhill Gallery, Publika Shopping Mall, Sungai Wang, Plaza Low Yatt,  KL City Walk, and Sunway Pyramid. An exhibition by the society of people with learning disabilities will be held at the Malaysia Tourism Information Center (MaTIC) in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur beginning July.

This year sees several state-level participation as well, i.e. Johor, Kedah, Melaka, Pahang, Penang, Sabah, Sarawak and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. Activities being organised include the MCAT exhibition during the World Rainforest Music Festival in July in Sarawak and exhibitions at the Sabah Terminal Airport, the Monsopiad Cultural Village, Artists Corner and many other galleries in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Over 100 galleries nationwide will be participating in the MCAT 2011 supported by more than 300 artists nationwide. Some of the artists to be featured are Yusuf Ghani, Raduan Man, Fauzul Yusri, Gan Chin Lee, Ting Cho Chien, Eston Tan, (Starhill Gallery) Adrian Ho (Sabah Art Hunt), Juhari Said, Stephen Menon, Chin Kong Yee, Ivan Lam, Choy Chun Wei Yau Bee Ling, Hamidi Hadi, Nor Azizan Paiman, Bayu Utomo, Clement Ooi, Nadiah Abdul Jalil (United Voices Kuala Lumpur), and Hasnul Jamal Saidon (Penang). Emerging artists include Haslin Ismail, Samsuddin, Dhavinder Singh, Cheng Yen Pheng and Yim Yen Sum.

The northern region too will boast a strong representation especially from Penang with the support of both Tuanku Fauziah Museum and Gallery and art galleries in Penang. Langkawi will hold several art exhibitions organised by the Langkawi Art and Visual Association (LAVAA) with Tanjung Rhu Hotel, Sri Perdana Galleria and Underwater World participation. Both Alor Star and Kulim will also organise a Saturday Art Market to showcase MCAT activities.

Meanwhile, Resorts World Genting will have a month-long art festival in August to attract art collectors and enthusiasts to the resort. There will also be an art contest and a two-day festival to be held at the Taman Tasek Raub, Pahang.

At Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC), the 1Malaysia Artists, represented by the major races in Malaysia, will create a large canvas mural (3ft x 30ft). KLCC will also exhibit the works of the 1Malaysia Plate Project whereby 80 artists will paint and display their artwork at the main foyer (piece is to fit a wall of 8ft x48ft).

An idea mooted by YB Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng, the MCAT Festival hopes to position Malaysia as a reputable destination for art enthusiasts in the region to enjoy and acquire contemporary art, with museum-quality pieces, in line with the theme “Malaysia, Your New Art Tourism Destination.” It is also a platform for art enthusiasts, gallery owners, artists as well as the new generation of collectors to forge business alliances, acquire new contemporary art works, share ideas and exchange information about the new contemporary art of Malaysia. The festival is expected to attract more high-yield tourists which in turn will increase the tourism industry’s contribution towards the economy.

LAUNCHING OF 1MALAYSIA CONTEMPORARY ART TOURISM FESTIVAL 2011 (1MCAT)

Date      :  14th JULY 2011

Venue :  Banquet Hall, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre

10 : 30 am :           Arrival of Guests and Distinguished Guests

10 : 45 am  :          Arrival of Y.B. Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, Minister of Tourism Malaysia

11 : 00 am  :          Welcome Speech by Y.B. Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen, Minister of Tourism Malaysia

Official Launch 1MALAYSIA CONTEMPORARY ART TOURISM FESTIVAL 2011

Opening Gambit

11 : 30 am  :          Group Photo

(Guest may proceed for refreshment)

11 : 45  am  :          Visit Art Display

12 : 00 pm  :          Refreshment for VIP and Guests

End

Enjoy this article?

Consider subscribing to our rss feed!

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Result for 1Malaysia International Tourism Floral Night Parade Contest

Result for 1Malaysia International Tourism Floral Night Parade Contest

Here are the results for the contest:
Most Creative Float : YTL Hotels Float
Best Lighted FLoat : I-City Shah Alam Float

Most Popular Private Sector Float : AirAsia Float
Most Popular Government Agency : Tourism Malaysia Float
Overall Best Float : Terengganu Float

See you guys next year!!!

Enjoy this article?

Consider subscribing to our rss feed!

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Rainforest World Music Festival

Rainforest World Music Festival

It was a blast!

Wonderful music, entertaining crowd, vibrant activities and much more at the recent 14th Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) in Sarawak held from 8 – 10 July.

Organised by the Sarawak Tourism Board, the RWMF is held at the Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV), a beautiful 17 acres setting by the Santubong Peninsula with the gorgeous backdrop of the famous Mount Santubong, it is a 45 minutes’ journey from Kuching city, the capital of Sarawak.

SCV, a living museum showcasing several ethnic communities of Sarawak, is ideal with its breathtaking vistas at the foothills of Mount Santubong, tranquil lake, gorgeous flora, well-maintained walkways and especially an upgraded venue for the music festival.

It is the perfect setting for the Rainforest World Music festival, listed as one of the top 25 Best International Festivals by renowned world music magazine, Songlines. This makes the RWMF on par with international music festivals such as the WOMADA Adelaide, Australia; Chicago World Music Festival, USA; Forde Folk Festival, Norway and the Essaouira Gnawa World Music Festival held in Morocco.

The music festival was tailored to showcase a diverse range of music genres, with acts from local and international groups such as Agungbeat from Sabah, Malaysia, Startijen from France, Pacific Curls from New Zealand, Mamak Khadem from Iran, The Blue Canyon Boys from USA, Lisa Haley Zydecats from USA, The Shin from Georgia, Eastern Europe, Ikswew from Canada, Frigg from Finland and Malick Pathe Sow from Senegal.

Other groups that performed were Victor Valdez Trio from Mexico, Duoud from Tunisia/Algeria, Ilgi from Latvia, Kissmet from India/UK, Paddy Keenan Trio from Ireland, Leweton Women’s Water Music from Vanuatu, Joaquin Daz from Dominican Republic, Kamernga from Australia, Kamafei from Italy, Kenge Kenge from Kenya and Warsaw Village Band from Poland.

The eclectic mix of musicians created beautiful music that resonated throughout SCV during the concert performances and workshops.

The workshops were musical sessions by the various groups held at several venues at SCV such as at the Iban longhouse, Dewan Lagenda, Theatre and Lakeside. It showcased groups coming together in a performance through jamming sessions, where audiences could interact up close with the performers.

An area surrounding the lake was also designated to showcase local food, souvenirs such as T-shirts, key chains, bangles as well as locally made handicrafts. There were even stalls set up for those wishing to get tattoos adorned with local motifs. The laid-back setting was a hit with revellers to the RWMF.

Near the entrance of the Sarawak Cultural Village was also a booth selling RWMF official merchandise which was a hit with music-goers who thronged the stalls after each musical performance to get copies of CDs, T-shirts and souvenir books of groups that performed at the event.

Many were seen buying CDs of the groups, and rushing to the workshops to get signatures from their favourite groups, as well as a portrait or two.
The diversity of the festival, with its musicians and instruments used culminated in an energetic concert where music-lovers from all ages converged by the foothills of Mount Santubong to listen to the musical performances by the bands.

Performances started from 7.00 pm onwards till midnight. The first night, the musical festival kicked off with a local favourite, Masters of the Sape from Malaysia that performed on the side stage.

The main performance of the night started with Agungbeat a group of women gamelan players from Sabah, performing their music to a raptured audience. Other groups performing on the first night were Iskwew (Canada), Kamerunga (Australia), Victor Valdez (Mexico), Kamafei (Italy) and Frigg (Finland).

It was the second night that a group from New Zealand, Pacific Curls, performing on the second stage captured the audience’s attention with their vibrant and lively music. With traditional Maori musical instruments accompanying their music, Kim Halliday, Sarah Beattie and Ora Barlow, delighted the audience with music evoking Pacific rhythms.

Their music, interspersed with jazz, Scottish tunes, resounding vocals and songs in a mixture of Maori and English had the audience on their feet and swaying to the beat. The surprising energy of the trio further escalated into frenzy and got the crowd raving to the free-spirited beats. The most surprising revelation was that Sarah Beattie, playing the violin, is pregnant and due in October but she was playing the musical instrument like there was no tomorrow! Such was the energy of this amazing and talented group from New Zealand.

During the final night of the RWMF, an thrilling performance came from the Kenyan group calling themselves Kenge Kenge Orutu System with their traditional Kenyan music and stage antics, they rocked the stage.

As guardians and masters of ancient tradition, the Kenge Kenge performed the Opogore, a song which harks back to their musical roots, Luo music, first popularised in the 1960s. They use benga, a handmade musical instrument akin to the guitar to produce music that is both refreshing and foreign to the local ears. Despite the language barrier, the group managed to get the crowd dancing frenetically with their upbeat tunes.

The highlight of the event surely must be Kissmet, the spellbinding group rocking SCV with their fusion of Bhangra and rock music effortlessly. Their infectious music captured the audience that gyrated wildly to the beat of the music. Singing both in English and Punjabi, followed by the beats of the bhangra music, audiences joined in the action. They definitely shocked with their colourful costumes and turban, but mesmerised with their infectious rhythms.

This incredible musical show culminated in a grand finale, where all the groups performed on the stage. This brought many music lovers to dance wildly to the beats. Though it was an exhausting night, it certainly is one of the best performances the festival has seen.

The Rainforest World Music Festival running for over 10 years now, is not an event to be missed. It has firmly put Sarawak on the world tourism map and elevated the status of the festival as an internationally acclaimed music festival.

Enjoy this article?

Consider subscribing to our rss feed!

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

MATTA FAIR IS BACK!!!

MATTA FAIR IS BACK!!!

Organised by the Malaysian Association of Tour Travel Agents (MATTA), the fair is held from 12 – 14 August from 10 am – 9 pm at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.

This 32nd edition of the MATTA fair, showcases 945 booths promoting travel related products and services. This year’s event is also participated by several national tourism organisations (NTOs) from Indonesia, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Australia, the Philippines and several other countries.

The launch of the fair was officiated by the Acting Director General of Tourism Malaysia, Dato’ Haji Azizan Nordin representing the Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board Chairman, Dato’ Dr. Victor Wee.

Guests were also entertained with performances from Indonesia (introducing Solo batik), Taiwan (introducing traditional Taiwanese and Chinese music) as well as the first Malaysian Indian, Suresh Subramaniam, to perform the popular art of ‘face-mask’ changing act.

The 32nd MATTA Fair involves tour operators, travel agencies, NTOs, state tourism organisations, airlines, cruises, hotels resorts. There is also a designated section featuring bridal companies and related travel packages. Tourism Malaysia also promotes domestic travel by showcasing 30 travel agencies (24 booths) throughout the country.

The fair offers avid travellers the chance to explore the best travel bargains and value for money on tour packages, air tickets and other travel related packages. Families can also look forward to entertainment and exciting activities, while on the lookout for travel packages.

For those visiting the fair, remember to participate in the MATTA Fair’s Buyers’ Contest with the main draw a grand prize of RM 20,000 worth of travel vouchers (with minimum purchase of RM 500 payment for any travel packages).

Enjoy this article?

Consider subscribing to our rss feed!

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Striking Oil And Spilling Attractions

Striking Oil And Spilling Attractions


A lone oil well sits atop Bukit Telaga Minyak in Miri, Sarawak, an icon of the city’s present-day tourist attraction and an important landmark that sparked Malaysia’s entire history in oil and gas. Ironically, it almost never got built if not for the perseverance of a young college dropout from England.

Choosing cadetship over completing his studies at Jesus College, Cambridge, had brought Charles Hose to Borneo in 1886, where he subsequently played an instrumental role in shaping the geographical landscape and history of Miri.

Apparently, it took some 20 years – with many obstacles in between – for Hose to convince various parties of the treasures that lay beneath their feet. Hose, who became Resident of Baram (a district near Miri) in 1890, when he was only 27, had even put up a proposal for oil explorations in Miri; it was, however, rejected by a British consultant geologist on the grounds of rural Miri’s poor logistics at the time.

Even upon retirement, he continued thinking about the oil seepages that he had mapped out in Miri. As many as 18 hand-dug oils were recorded at one time many of which had been found by the locals long before Hose even set foot on Borneo. They called it minyak tanah, or kerosene, and used it mainly to light lamps and for waterproofing their boats. Hose’s predecessor, Claude Champion de Crespigny, had made these observations and envisioned the value of the oil. His two recommendations, however, one in 1882 and another in 1884, for the Brooke administration governing Sarawak at the time to explore the lead further, also fell upon deaf ears.

Eventually, in 1907 in fact, while he was in England that Hose finally managed to pique the curiosity of those in power – a previously uninterested Rajah of Sarawak and the oil explorers at Shell (known as the Anglo Saxon Petroleum Company at the time). He also won over the locals who previously feared that onshore drilling works would invoke the wrath of evil tigers lurking underground.

Finally, on 10 August 1910, proper drilling works began. The chosen site was on a crest of a hill some 150 metres above sea level. Just days before Christmas of that year, the well struck oil and Malaysia was on the way to filling its first barrel in Miri.

Intrepid explorer or opportunist, Hose is partially credited for the rapid change and development that has since elevated Miri from a sleepy fishing village to the city that oil built.

Today, the first well to strike oil still stands atop Canada Hill – a name given in honour of the Canadian, Mr. McAlpine, who had engineered the oil rig (The hill was later renamed Bukit Telaga Minyak in 2005). Affectionately called the Grand Old Lady, the 30-metre high Miri Well No. 1, faithfully produced 660,000 barrels of oil over a period of 62 years, outlasting many of the other 624 oil wells in the Miri Division. While its days of oil production are over – it was shut down on 31 October 1972 due to urbanization rather than dwindling oil supply – Miri continues its oil explorations offshore.

Almost a century after the oil boom in Miri, the little town experienced a second boom, this time in tourism. Attractions like the site of the Grand Old Lady, with its historic significance (now documented in the nearby Petroleum Museum) and pretty scenery, as well as newly discovered diving locations off its coast, made Miri a destination to be re-explored, this time in the interest of culture, history and adventure.

The Miri-Sibuti Reef Marine Park has dive sites of various depths and attractions – wrecks worthy of exploration, carpets of soft coral such as leather corals, elephant’s ears and dead man’s fingers, and exciting drop-off reefs with vertical walls where schools of jacks, barracudas and napoleon wrasses often play.

Around town, one can explore the old Miri quarters with its beautiful architecture. A visit to Tamu Muhibbah is a sensorial experience for the eyes, nose and ears as local traders ply their wares for business at the bustling market – fragrant rice from the highlands of Bario, wild fruits and honey straight from the jungles, forest ferns and other unusual but edible plants, and home-made concoctions of rice wine and other less dizzying potions.

In recent years, Miri has been attracting a new wave of foreign interest to its shores with the annual Miri Jazz Festival, recently rebranded as Borneo Jazz. It may not be black gold, but judging from the increasing crowd it pulls yearly – in terms of audience numbers and heavyweight performers – the music has an allure as strong as the oil deposits found here over a century ago. Over four days in the second week of May, Miri is transformed into a fever pitch of syncopated, improvised, rhythmic arena for the convergence of some of the world’s most talented and experimental musicians, and their sweaty, gyrating fans.

Besides its fascinating history and newly-branded blues and jazz appeal, Miri has always been an important jump-off point to the northeast region, sometimes to its own detriment! Here, the scenic Kelabit Highlands, a series of mountains and valleys, is home to the peaceful Kelabit and Lun Bawang people, famed wet-rice farmers in Borneo. Some say that the best way to truly appreciate the beauty of Borneo is by doing a four-day trek through this remote region, that takes you from the expanse of green rice fields through various traditional longhouse settlements, virgin rainforest, over ridges and valleys before emerging into a an idyllic village in Ba Kelalan.

The Gunung Mulu National Park, which is Malaysia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site and Sarawak’s largest national park, is also a main item on the traveller’s itinerary. Its spectacular show caves, longboat river travels, and the mass exodus of wrinkled-lip bats (about three million at last count) in the evenings have lured witnesses from all corners of the world. If the synchronized flight performance by the bats doesn’t thrill you enough, then braving the daunting Pinnacles trail will leave you literally breathless.

Another important park on this side of Sarawak is the Niah National Park where previous excavations have revealed artifacts and paintings believed to be more than 40,000 years old. Pre-historic man once lived here, as evidenced by the tools, earthenware and cemetery found in the Great Cave. Today, the caves at Niah provide an important source of income for the locals who gather bird’s nests from the swiftlet population here. Valued for their medicinal properties, these nests are found in the high crevices of the cave roof where it is infinitely dark. Nest gatherers risk life and limb to scale seemingly flimsy ironwood poles in a display of fine acrobatic skill to collect these highly prized treasures.

Miri may have started off with inland oil explorations in the past, but now, this little town, and the surrounding area, has certainly struck something with tourism as well.

Getting there:
Frequent flights by Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia are available, connecting Miri and Peninsular Malaysia, as well as all major destinations in Malaysian Borneo, including Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.

About Borneo Jazz:
This annual event sees jazz groups from around the world converging in Miri. Around 7,000 spectators and participants, comprising of locals, expatriates and visitors, are expected to turn up for this year’s edition, which is from 12 to 15 May. The event is organized by Sarawak Tourism Board. For more details, visit www.jazzborneo.com.

For more details about Sarawak, visit the Sarawak Tourism Board website at www.sarawaktourism.com

Enjoy this article?

Consider subscribing to our rss feed!