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Tourism Malaysia

What’s Great About Beer?

August 25, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Asians have a mixed opinion about beer, owing to its intoxicating effects. Although the region is known for being religious, there are probably as many Asians who enjoy beer as there are those who avoid it due to religious tenets. International beer brands like Carlsberg, Tiger, and Heineken are well known and is widely available in Malaysia.

Arguably the oldest alcoholic beverage in the history of mankind – beer

While some of us may share the same partiality to beer as Westerners, most of us have a low regard for beer as a beverage, perceiving it as, well, nothing more than beer. It does not exude a touch of class like a bottle of wine, nor does it match up to a bottle of hard liquor. For some, beer is for ‘lightweights’ and beginners, while hard liquor are for the ‘big boys’. After all, beer is beer is beer. Or is it?

The shots of beer for the tasting

We recently had the pleasure of learning more about beers when we were hosted at Craft Brews. Located at Mutiara Damansara, just near the Curve, this brewhouse restaurant gave us a sneak preview of some of its newest beers that are set to be launched this 13th of September. Craft Brews is set to bring in 8 beers from the renowned Rogue Brewery, a microbrewery in Oregon, United States. Craft Brews’ Benjamin Chong was kind enough to teach us the finer points in appreciating the world’s most widely consumed alcoholic beverage as we sat down to two of Rogue Brewery’s finest ales. The beer tasting (yes, there is such a thing as beer tasting) went well, and we gained a better understanding and a new found respect for beers, especially those painstakingly produced by microbreweries worldwide.

A bottle of beer from the Rogue Brewery of Oregon

Most ‘mainstream’ beers are often made with lower quality ingredients, and manufacturers use additives and certain advertising gimmicks to mask the beverage’s inherent limitations. One such gimmick is the emphasis on drinking mainstream beers ice cold as the low quality becomes apparent at warmer temperatures, affecting the taste of the beer. Some of the beers offered at Craft Brews, including one of the two that we sampled, taste better warm.

Craft Brews’ soon to be launched beer line from Rogue Brewery

As mentioned, Craft Brews will be offering 8 new beers selected from Rogue Brewery, starting from 14th September. These beers can only be exclusively found at Craft Brews, never having been available in Malaysia previously, and are an ideal introduction to the many variety of beers, such as pale ales, stouts and porters. We at Malaysia.com will be bringing you a detailed look at all the 8 beers during the official launch at Craft Brews come this 13th September.

So don’t forget. Craft Brews. 8 Great Beers. September 14 onwards. Every day. Every night.

Take a seat and unwind with a beer in hand at Craft Brews

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Tourism Malaysia

Aidilfitri in Semenchu Village Fiest (Kenduri Sekampung)

Kenduri Sekampung for celebrating aidilfitri, which is the main celebration of the Muslim Malay who were the main race in Malaysia. Real experience of aidilfitri preparation and celebrations by people of Semenchu may be experienced.

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Tourism Malaysia

Georgetown Festival

August 16, 2011 at 3:00 pm

There is always something about culture related events that never fails to catch my attention. Maybe it is the anticipation of discovering new things about our diverse culture… or maybe it is the colourful costumes and lively music that never fails to capture my attention. When I saw an article on the upcoming cultural events that will be taking place from the 7th till 9th July, I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to catch some of the interesting events that were scheduled to happen during that time.

The Georgetown Festival 2011 was a month-long celebration that showcased our cultural and living heritage. Georgetown was formally inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 7th July 2008, together with Malacca. This year’s celebration marked its third anniversary of its inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The theme that was chosen for this year is according to the three criteria cited for its listing. Each day of the festival is devoted to one of the criteria, which is the tangible and intangible heritage, multicultural exchanges and architectural landscape.

Georgetown Festival 2011

All is quiet for now at Khoo Kongsi during the day. Come evening time, this place will be packed with visitors who are here for the Georgetown Cultural Show

7th July – Testimony to Multicultural Tangible and Intangible Heritage
All events held on the 7th July revolves around the expression of the city’s living heritage. There will be art and music, food and language exhibitions and performances highlighting the cultural heritage of the various ethnic groups living in Penang.

8th July – Trading Town Forged from Multicultural Exchanges
Georgetown has long been a melting pot of various cultures. On this day, there will be various talks and forums on topics related to the introduction to Georgetown’s multi-faceted history.

9th July – Outstanding Multicultural Architectural Landscape
Georgetown’s unique architectural townscape is a result of a mixture of influences from the many different cultures that live within the city. Activities scheduled for today allows the participants to experience culture from another perspective; through shophouse trails and open houses of heritage buildings where its stories are being told by its living residents.

Georgetown Festival 2011

Some of the participants practising their ‘khat’ writing skills as part of the Heritage Celebration at Acheen Street Malay Mosque

Many of the events which were listed on the schedule during the three days that caught my fancy. In fact, I could safely say that 60% of the activities that was listed on the information booklet sounded so interesting! There were so many exhibitions, talks and forums, cultural dances and performances as well as food and craft bazaar! One down side to everything is the fact that it will all be held around the same time and in different locations. The challenge now is to find a way to see most of the events without missing the interesting bits. I sound a little bit greedy now, don’t I?

Whenever a person looks at a brochure that is filled with all sorts of activities, it is always a difficult thing to whittle the list down to a manageable chunk. So many to choose from, but so little time! There were the Malay and Chinese cultural performances going on in different locations at almost the same time, an open day entitled ‘Meng Eng Soo Open Day: The Path that Our Sage Predecessors Walked‘, a violin street performance by a Japanese violin prodigy and traditional food and craft bazaar. Unless I possessed the powers of being able to run (or walk) faster than a speeding bullet, I doubt that I could catch all of it at the same time.

Georgetown Festival 2011

The Lion Dance Performance happening in front of Kapitan Kling Mosque was absolutely fascinating to watch!

Playing the part of a tourist when one is actually not can be fun at times. When I visited the George Town World Heritage Inc. for more information, the person in charge gave me some pointers as to which performances that I should not miss. One of the recommended shows was the George Town Cultural Show, held at the Khoo Kongsi. I decided to take up on that person’s advice and planned my other activities around the show. On my way there, I came across a lion dance performance with stilts in front of the Kapitan Kling Mosque. Shutterbugs were already in position with their ultra sophisticated cameras and lenses, all ready to capture the lion’s every movement. The stilts have different heights, with the tallest stilt measuring a good six to eight feet tall. As the two performers move underneath the lion’s cape, they jump and lift each other up to mimic the lion climbing and frolicking between the stilts. Each move requires precision and trust – trust that your partner will not falter in his steps and that he will not drop you in the middle of the stunt. The applause that the two performers received at the end of the show is a statement to their success.

I decided to take a little detour and headed towards Cheah Kongsi, which was located at Armenian Street. Stepping past the entrance, I could already hear lively music played with Chinese musical instruments in the air. I have visited Cheah Kongsi prior to this festival, and it always looked a little bit quiet compared to the other clan houses. But the atmosphere today was so gay and lively, it really does not seem the same. There was a group of young men playing the Erhu, Pipa, Guzheng and Yangqin. The place was decorated with lights all over the clanhouse and the whole place felt like it was Chinese New Year. Further down the road there was a shophouse that was selling all sorts of trinkets, t-shirts, note pads and bracelets. There was also a stack of interesting looking postcards up for sale.

Georgetown Festival 2011

Khoo Kongsi comes alive at night, with its facade all brightly lit

As the time drew nearer to the cultural performance, I made my way back towards Khoo Kongsi. As expected, the place was packed with tourists and locals alike, all of them eagerly waiting for the show to start. After some announcements made by the management the show finally began. It started off with a contemporary dance piece entitled ‘12 Monkeys and More‘. This dance piece consisted of the work of three individuals – Zubin Mohamad from Malaysia, Ghaffar Pourazar from China and Jitti Compee from Thailand. The one thing about contemporary dances is that sometimes it is hard to actually ‘understand’ the message that the dance is trying to convey to the audience. I have learnt that under such situation, it is best to just enjoy the performance. There were also dance routines by both young and old Thai girls. Though it would have been wonderful to stay till the end of the show, I opted for an early night on the first day of the Georgetown Festival…

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Tourism Malaysia

Ramadan Television Ad Issue

August 19, 2011 at 4:10 pm

We are nearing the end of this year’s Ramadan month, and those who have been observing this holy Muslim month are anticipating Hari Raya. Like every other year, Ramadan in Malaysia is marked by a number of activities – fasting, the Ramadan bazaars, the daily prayers, and Kampung Baru’s bubur lambuk. This year’s Ramadan, however, will always be a bit more unique all because of an incident that occurred at the start of this holy month. Ramadan and Hari Raya is a big thing for Malaysians in general, quite akin to Christmas for Americans, so corporations will usually prepare special ads to mark these two occasions. Some of these ads have been well received by Malaysians as they struck a chord in the society’s psyche.

A Ramadan bazaar at Kampung Baru Kuala Lumpur

This year though, we feel that one particular media entity’s ‘public service reminders’ form a perfect example to illustrate how relevant a holy month actually is for the entire human race. Ramadan is dedicated to contemplation and prayer, in hopes that humanity will focus on constructive and communal efforts instead of thinking of ways and reasons to butcher one another. We feel that this is actually a good thing, as it actually promotes thought and a greater understanding, which in time will lead to wisdom and enlightenment, as opposed to foolish efforts that gain nothing but the scorn of your own community, not to mention public ridicule worldwide, thanks to the invention of the Internet and YouTube.

A volunteer cook preparing a Ramadan speciality, bubur lambok at Kampung Baru mosque

So it is with a touch of sarcasm and in the spirit of service that we highlight this entire episode. We do this not because we are outraged or want to court controversy, but because we feel we learn from our mistakes, or better yet, others’ mistakes. If we seek to cover up our mistakes, then we will never learn nor progress, which we feel, is are the values that Ramadan promotes.

Like it or not, this ad issue, for better or worse, has become something the world remembers about Malaysia. Let us all hope that with the passing of this year’s Ramadan, everyone of us has gained at least a bit of understanding and wisdom from this and that the next time the world hears about Malaysia, it will not be about an ill-conceived series of ads.

Oh yes, and let us also hope next year’s Ramadan and Hari Raya ads are less controversial and as equally, if not, more entertaining. Although the ads are no longer available for viewing in YouTube, a news story about the entire thing is available. Feel free to watch it and learn from someone else’s mistake.

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Tourism Malaysia

ToyRebels: Toys with a Twist

August 20, 2011 at 8:36 pm

Having long been a stopover between East and West, Malaysia has always been open to influence from both regions. Malaysian thrive by embracing these various influences, and many of the things we do, say and eat often have roots in faraway lands. In Malaysia, even children learn about different places and cultures at a young age, although they might not realise it. How? Through what they watch on television.

A full sized Iron Man costume, with a ToyRebels exclusive painting

The fun thing about growing up in a country like Malaysia, especially in the last 30 years has to be the variety of television entertainment, especially for children. Not having a booming film or animation industry during that time, Malaysia resorted to bringing in cartoons from abroad. Generations of children have grown up with the antics of the Bugs Bunny and the rest of the Loony Toons courtesy of Warner Bros., the entire cast of Hannah Barbara cartoons, and of course, the lovely fairy tales of Disney. But Malaysia did not only look West for entertainment, and so people here are also fond fans of Japanese anime and characters such as Doraemon and Ultraman are so popular that they are used in merchandising of various everyday products.

The downside of growing up here though, was some of the toys of the cartoons shown were not as readily available as they were in their native lands. Toys were indeed available here in Malaysia, but children had to rely on relatives or friends who holidayed abroad to get their hands on a rare collectible or something really special. Then in the 1980s, hobby shops sprung up, but most required customers to pre order and the selection of toys on offer was limited to what network the shop had. It was rather unfortunate that most of these hobby shops are no longer operating.

A replica of Magneto’s helmet

So what’s a Malaysian to do when you want to get your hands on some toys these days? The answer is simple. Talk to the ToyRebels. With a tagline of Fiction Meets Reality, this online retail store offers a mindboggling range of collectibles and action figures. And if you want that hard to get item, just contact them with your request and if it is out there, they will be able to get it for you. One of the more interesting things about ToyRebels is the really exclusive items that appeal to adult collectors, such as replicas of items used in major movies. These range from the weapons and armour used in Lord of the Rings trilogy, the deadly but cool gadgets used by the Predator in its hunt for humans and aliens, and of course, Star Wars stuff, artefacts from a galaxy far, far away. Items such as these are not your typical Toys R Us products and usually cost several thousands of ringgit.

A painting done by ToyRebels of Captain America that poses an intriguing question

But ToyRebels are not just about toys it seems, the people behind ToyRebels are also firm believers that comics and cartoons are part of the art world. ToyRebels have also initiated a fledgling art project that combines toys and traditional art to form specialty mix media works of art. These works serve as a way of provoking debate about the role of toys in our society and are quite eyecatching too!

ToyRebels can be found at www.toyrebels.com

An exclusive painting done by ToyRebels incorporating an exclusive replica of the palladium core reactor

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