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Tourism Malaysia

Bright beacon

The paintings at the Trick Art Museum at i-City are two-dimensional, butpainted in a way that gives an impression of depth where there is none.The paintings at the Trick Art Museum at i-City are two-dimensional, but
painted in a way that gives an impression of depth where there is none.

AS NIGHT falls, i-City Shah Alam is transformed into a magical world of lights. The city of digital lights comes alive, illuminated by a multitude of coloured LED lights.

A little gem tucked away in a corner of this fairytale land is the Trick Art Museum, which showcases the ancient art of trompe l’oeil (French for “to deceive the eye”). Often employed in murals, this technique gives the illusion of realistic imagery.

All the paintings at the museum are two-dimensional, but painted in a way that gives an impression of depth and volume where there is none. The illusory paintings in this museum are divided into five themes: masterpieces, Egyptian, marine life, animal kingdom and modern classics.

A visit here makes for a lot of fun especially as visitors are encouraged to be part of the scene.

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Tourism Malaysia

Tracing history

The Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque is the country’s largest mosqueand the second largest in South-East Asia after Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta,Indonesia. — ROUWEN LIN/The StarThe Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque is the country’s largest mosque
and the second largest in South-East Asia after Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta,
Indonesia. — ROUWEN LIN/The Star

THE day started bright and early; perhaps a little too early for the United Federation of Travel Agents’ Association (UFTAA) congress delegates.

The four-day congress was organised by Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta). More than half of those who ended up joining the Tourism Selangor-hosted familiarisation tour were senior citizens from abroad, who gamely participated in bumpy tractor rides, padi harvesting and boating activities.

It was past midnight by the time they returned to their hotel.

The morning kicked off with a quick photo session, with the Masjid Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah serving as backdrop as the visitors headed for the Sultan Abdul Aziz Royal Gallery (Galeri Diraja Sultan Abdul Aziz) in Klang, Selangor.

The state mosque of Selangor, the largest in the country, stands by the Raja Lumu Lake in Shah Alam. It boasts four minarets and its blue and silver dome is the largest religious dome in the world.

As the bus drew to a stop outside the Royal Gallery, the classic colonial building loomed over us. The Sultan Suleiman Building is one building that has many tales to tell.

Built in 1909 by British architect A.B. Hubback, it served as the Brits’ land and administration office during the colonial era. During World War II, the Japanese utilised it as their war headquarters, and after that several local authorities occupied the building until its restoration and transformation into the Royal Gallery.

Bruce Chittock from New Zealand was blown away by what the gallery had to offer.

“I’ve been to Kuala Lumpur and its surrounding areas many times in recent years, (but) why has no one told me about this gallery before? It is absolutely brilliant,” he asked.

Chittock said that the charting of the royal family lineage, its heritage and culture was “tremendously interesting” and added that he particularly liked the rank insignia on display.

First commissioned in 2002, the gallery was officially launched in October 2007 by the present Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah.

The gallery is dedicated to his late father, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, who ruled from 1960 for four decades.

Most of the exhibits at the gallery revolve around the late Sultan’s childhood, his early years as a crown prince, and his career in military and public offices. Numerous items from his personal collection of artefacts and gifts have been put in the care of the gallery, including replicas of Selangor’s crown jewels.

“Having the gallery in such a historical building is significant and meaningful. What is astonishing to me is that the Sultan is still serving but he is giving up his family’s valuables so that tourists and locals alike can see and learn. I think that is really great,” said Sonam Dorji from Bhutan, who applauded the decision to set up this gallery.

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Cruise travel grows in Asia

A Princess Cruises ship in Alaska. The company will operate from Singapore next yearto provide short-haul leisure tripsA Princess Cruises ship in Alaska. The company will operate from Singapore next year
to provide short-haul leisure trips

The region will have more cruise travel options next year with the coming of a mega-cruise company.

CARNIVAL, the world’s largest cruise group, unveiled its Asian expansion plans, predicting the regional market for leisure voyages will grow dramatically within the decade.

South-East Asia in particular will be a key focus, the company said as it announced that one of its brands, Princess Cruises, will operate from Singapore by next year to provide short-haul leisure trips.

“Carnival is really investing a lot in Asia. We are trying to stimulate the demand of the market. Today, it’s a bit quiet as cruising is not well known,” Pier Luigi Foschi, chairman and chief executive of Carnival Asia, said.

“South-East Asia is a key market to develop cruising because it is a year-round experience. The seas are typically calm and the surroundings are beautiful, particularly for short-haul cruises.”

Carnival’s brands include Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Ibero Cruises, PO Cruises in Australia and PO Cruises in Britain.

Foschi, speaking on the sidelines of a press conference, cited industry forecasts that cruise liners will see a total of seven million passengers a year by 2020 in Asia, up from just above one million now.

The Sapphire Princess will be deployed to Singapore from November 2014 to February 2015. The luxury liner, which can carry 2,670 passengers, will bring travellers from Singapore to cities and exotic destinations in countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. Carnival already has a presence in China through its Costa Cruises brand, while Princess Cruises is setting up shop in Japan this month.

“As cruise lines are being deployed into the market, the market starts to develop. Slowly at first, but then they reach a critical mass,” said Alan Buckelew, chief executive and president of Princess Cruises.

“Our ships move to where we believe the demand is strongest.”

Singapore, a regional aviation hub, has also taken steps to gain a bigger slice of the growing cruise travel market. In October last year, it opened a new cruise terminal capable of berthing the world’s biggest luxury liners. – AFP

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Grammy-themed cruise

Grammy-themed cruisesare set to launch next year.Grammy-themed cruises
are set to launch next year.

MUSIC lovers are being wooed to sail the seas with Norwegian Cruise Line, which announced plans to launch a Grammy-themed ship next year.

The Grammy Experience will be located on Deck 8 of the latest addition to their fleet, the Norwegian Getaway. In addition to housing artifacts curated from the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, the ship will also feature live performances by past Grammy winners and nominees.

Construction on the 4,000-passenger Norwegian Getaway is
currently underway in Germany. It will be the largest ship to homeport year-round in Miami when it sets sail in February next year.

Highlights of the ship’s features include an open-air boardwalk, three decks to optimise oceanside viewing, and a seafood restaurant developed by US Food Network celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian.

Are you a fan of the music-themed cruise idea?

Here’s a sampling while you wait for the Grammy-themed one to set sail.

American rock band, Matchbox Twenty, will be taking to the seas on the Carnival Imagination in December, sailing between Miami and Nassau, offering their fans nightly concerts, QA and photo sessions.

Norwegian Pearl is also offering a KISS-themed cruise trip for Halloween this year, inviting fans to don their best KISS paraphernalia and sail the Caribbean. – AFP RelaxNews

Categories
Tourism Malaysia

Beachside escapade

Paradise indeed: Aview of Boracay fromthe island’s highestpoint in Mt Luho.Paradise indeed: A
view of Boracay from
the island’s highest
point in Mt Luho.

With its great beaches, Boracay
in the Philippines
is hard to beat, and the Ambassador
In Paradise is the resort of choice.

BORACAY in the Philippines seems perpetually to be in one list or another of the best beaches in the world. Well, the accolades are certainly well-deserved, for its white sandy beaches are exceptional.

Boracay also has the reputation for being “party central� – everyone here seems to be partying from 6pm to noon. It’s the Ibiza of Asia, so to speak.

I was there during the tail-end
of the crazy summer holidays so there was a swarm of college- and university-going Filipinos about. You could say this vacation was something I had been looking forward to for a long time, it being my first time there.

Unfortunately, the airline I had booked for the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Clark Terminal, and then onwards to Boracay almost soured the experience. To cut a long story short, I ended up spending eight hours at the airport in Clark, one of the worst airports to be stuck in.

If I was lucky enough to get a boat to Boracay from Caticlan after my connecting flight, I might be able to check into my resort hotel, the Ambassador In Paradise, past midnight after my 10am flight from KL!

Thank goodness, the resort (recommended by the trusty Agoda.com) managed to make pickup arrangements for me. From Kalibo airport, the resort driver got me to Caticlan within ONE hour instead of the customary two – all while being a safe driver as he braved terrible road conditions and the dark of night. Impressive!

I managed to catch the last “official� scheduled boat and arrived at the resort at 10.30pm, where I promptly crashed for the night, having been up for close to 21 hours. But before that I was floored by my Premier Ocean View room. It was huge, and had a king-sized bed and two divans.

But it was the bathroom that had me gawping – it was big enough to accomodate a beach party. Later on, I found out that the extra space was utilised in higher-grade rooms for an en-suite Jacuzzi!

Guests at Ambassador In Paradise are greeted by a palm-fringed beach view.Guests at Ambassador In Paradise are greeted by a palm-fringed beach view.

They have four other types of rooms and a presidential suite. Their two-floor family suites can cater to seven.

Next morning, I found the view from my bed to be astonishing. From the balcony windows (I was on the ground floor), I could see the five-star resort’s only restaurant. On the right was the amazing beach with the requisite swaying palm trees and the blue ocean beyond. And on my left was the resort swimming pool.

Paradise indeed!

Breakfast was the first thing on my to-do list. They keep it simple here with a choice of five – American, Continental, Filipino, plus Spanish Omelette and Dutch Omelette.

Paraw boating is one of the water activities available in Boracay.Paraw boating is one of the water activities available in Boracay.

I opted for the last, which was fried eggs with smoked ham, sliced cheese and crispy bacon bits. Nice. If you’re wondering about this option, the owner is Dutch and has two other hotel properties in Haarlem, the Netherlands.

I had the Filipino set the next day, which was basically garlic rice, beef tapa (diced), pickled papaya, pork sausages and superb crunchy anchovies. It’s like the Filipino version of nasi lemak. It was so good that I had it again the next day.

For lunch, I had their set meal, which commenced with a cream of roasted prawn saffron – flavourful but a tad heavy on the saffron. The appetiser of salmon gravlax bruschetta was very good, while the mains of oven-baked tanguigue fish in lemon garlic sauce was not too bad. And to wash it all down was the delicious dalandan (sweet orange drink).

Dinner at the resort did not disappoint either. The cream of pumpkin was divine, the pork adobo was out of this world as the chef had tweaked it to be spicy and even thrown in some eggplant; desserts were limited but tasty (including the local leche flan – creme caramel basically); and the cocktails hit the spot.

The food is good, but the service needs to be improved. Surely one doesn’t need to remind staff about cutlery, condiments and such? But it helps that despite the shortcomings, they do their jobs with a smile.

Now what’s a beach vacation without a massage?

You can opt to have it in your room or by the beachside. I had mine in the room, and it was pure bliss. A combination of shiatsu and Swedish techniques kneaded away my aches and stress.

The resort is at Station 1 of the famous White Beach, with Stations 2 and 3 to the left of the resort. Despite a bum foot and doctor’s orders to rest it and not get the wound wet, I couldn’t resist taking a walk on the beach.

Station 1 is not as crowded as Station 2 where most of the night life is concentrated. AXN was having a party that evening (open to anyone above 21), and it started at 6pm. And there was yet another party the next evening organised by some other group.

All kinds of water activities were on offer (the resort can arrange them for you, too). These included banana boating, paraw boating and parasailing. What I found unique here was the way the locals use surfing boards for paddling on – with an oar in hand while standing on the board!

Besides White Beach, there are other beaches like the relatively uncrowded Puka Beach. For a scenic view of the island, you’ll want to head on up to Mt Luho, the island’s highest point.

Off the beach, one can opt for ATV rides, buggy rides and bicycling.

The best way to get around Bora (as the locals call the place) is via the many electric tricycles that run till late. Hop on and off one for 20 to 60 pesos (RM1.50 to RM4.50).

If you’re into shopping, then the place to go is DMall – it’s a one-stop centre for souvenirs, fresh produce and restaurants. There are loads of boutiques and shops to browse to your heart’s content. And while Filipino food is no great shakes, there are many other options on offer.

If there’s one thing I couldn’t understand about the resort, it was the imposition of corkage on guests. If guests wanted to bring outside food, liquor or soft drinks into the hotel, a fee was imposed. They made an exception for water and snacks.

Never in all my years of staying in hotels and resorts have I seen corkage being imposed. Perhaps they should reconsider this, as it’s not very endearing to guests.

But one thing’s for sure, I will go back to beautiful Bora.

AMBASSADOR IN PARADISE

Station 1, Sitio Pinaongon,

Barangay Balabag,

Boracay Island Malay Aklan

Philippines

Tel: +63 36 288-1541

Email: info@ambassadorinparadise.com

www.ambassadorinparadise.com