Borneo Cultural Festival 2008

Get a sample of indigenous art at the Borneo Cultural Festival, which runs from 27th June to 5 July in the City Square Sibu, Sarawak. This signature annual event Sibu entry with a mixture of dance, songs, poems and dramas of different ethnic groups in Borneo.



Be prepared to see live performances with Aboriginal musical instruments such as drums and gongs, lively and even martial arts moves. Apart from the cultural extravaganza, your palate will also attempt by the local cuisine in the Messe Essen Borneo.An incredible variety of traditional foods of different clans in Sibu it will be for the collection.



Last year the artist received overwhelming response both locally and internationally, and this year we can expect the same or even better line-up of activities and entertainment. Be sure that the sights as the market Lembangan night, Sibu Civic Centre Museum, Rejang Esplanade, the beautiful seven-storey pagoda, offers a panoramic view of the town of Sibu, and the long-iban house where people welcome you with their warm hospitality.

Come the 27th June, at their way into the Borneo Cultural Festival 2008 to witness the celebration of the traditional art, food and dance.



Will be held on
Friday, 27 June - Saturday, 05 July, 2008
Sibu Town Square, Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia

Catch the Jazz Festival at 1Borneo on Saturday

The 2nd KK Jazz Festival will be held at the newly-opened 1Borneo Hypermall on Saturday.From 6pm to midnight that evening, audiences can look forward to a thrilling night with fantastic performances by a range of talented musicians, such as SIA Jazz Syndicate, Gravity, Ian Baxter and Friends, Jazzmatazz, Greg Lyons, the ASEANA Percussion Unit, Xion Gi, and Paul Ponnudurai.

The SIA Jazz Syndicate is made up of students from Sabah Institute of Art, who was the 2nd runner up in the Jimmy Boyle’s Young Jazz Band competition held in Penang back in 2007.

Ian Baxter and Friends are a veteran 5-piece band who delivers melodic sounds. A new generation of young musicians, Gravity, is an 8-piece band from Kota Kinabalu.

Jazzmatazz is the new band formed by Asif, the former Son-2-nos band leader who played at last year’s festival.

The ASEANA Percussion Unit will wow fans with their fusion of sounds created by various instruments from different cultures.

British born Greg Lyons will be serenading the crowd with his saxophone; Xion Gi will play his Brazilian-influenced music whereas Paul Ponnudurai is the one-man band.

The KK Jazz Festival is sponsored by 1Borneo and is organised by the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu and the Society for Performing Arts Kota Kinabalu Sabah (SPArKS), and supported by Dewan Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu (DBKK).

Organising Chairman, Frankie Fu of the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu explained that proceeds from the Jazz Fest will be used to finance the club’s various community projects, such as the Avoidable Blindness programme, a free medical camp in outlying villages, a 12km water gravity project at Kg Teringai Laut, Matunggong, and a $30,000 building extension for the Sabah Centre of the National Stroke Association of Malaysia at Mile 2, Jalan Tuaran.

Meanwhile, SPArks president and co-organising chairman, Datuk Adeline Leong said the KK Theatre Group will hold the Street Theatre show at 1Borneo from 1pm to 4pm on June 29.

Tickets to the festival are priced at $50 and $100 and can be obtained from all Coffee Bean outlets. For enquiries, call Sri Pelancongan at 088-232121. Tickets will also be on sale on Saturday at 1Borneo.

(Source: New Sabah Times, 18 Jun 2008)

Bigfoot In Daro Borneo

Villagers have no explanation for giant footprints but businessman says proof is in the pudding

Villagers here are reeling from the shock of discovering two extra large footprints near the fence of a nearby orchard.

They probably resembled those mentioned many times in foreign reports in claims of sightings of the mysterious ‘Bigfoot’.

The shocker has been spreading like wildfire in Daro district for the past few days and among those drawn to the phenomenon was local businessman Tan Soon Kuang.

(According to Wikipedia, Bigfoot is one of the more famous creatures in cryptozoology, and, like many cryptids around the world, there is a fierce debate as to whether the Bigfoot species exists or not. Cryptozoologist John Willison Green has postulated that Bigfoot is a worldwide phenomenon.)

Yesterday, Tan, 42, e-mailed the images of the mysterious creature’s footprints. He said he personally went to the village (which he refused to name out of respect for the wishes of the locals) to check on the truth of the story.

“The truth is in the photographs that I have taken with my camera,” he told The Borneo Post in a telephone interview yesterday.

According to him, each footprint measures 47 inches from heel to toe and 17 inches sideways “clearly too gigantic for any normal human being”.

Asked when and how he went to the village and took the photos, Tan answered: “I went there last Wednesday, June 11 after I heard about the news.

I drove about five minutes from Daro town to the village. Then, I walked on foot along a footpath for quite a few minutes to the place where I met many villagers who were gathered there.

“Then some villagers pointed to the big footprints.

I was shocked to see them and excited as I took those photographs.”

On his conversation with the villagers, he said: “When I asked the villagers the first time they discovered the two big footprints, they told me it was June 9.

“They also told me they now recall that before they came across the footprints, the villagers had, a few months ago felt uncomfortable and sick as if there was something ‘unclean’ in the air.

“They said they decided to look for a ‘bomoh’ (medicine man) who told them to go to an area, dig a small hole, then build a fence around it.

The bomoh further told them to make offerings outside the area fenced.

“And then last Monday morning the villagers saw the two big footprints outside the fenced up area.”

Tan further said: “When I asked the villagers if they were afraid or not they told me some were afraid; other just curious. But all of them apparently believe that the place was ‘unclean’.

“The villagers are now clearing up the footpath leading to the large footprints in anticipation of more people coming to have a look at the footprints.

“The villagers also told me that it was not the first time that they saw such mysterious big footprints in their village. In fact, the first time they saw such big footprints was about 50 years ago.”


Asked if there is any possibility that the footprints were man-made, Tan said it would be a tough act for a person to create such a mark on the hard ground.

Jemoreng assemblyman Abu Seman Jahwie when contacted yesterday said he heard about such discovery somewhere in a village in Daro area.

Asked if thinks it is real, he replied: “Sorry, I can’t say. It could be just rumours. I have not been to the place. I am now in Matu.”

The story has spread to Sibu where Abdul Aziz Pung, who is very familiar with Daro, said he had heard about the footprints from friends and relatives.

“Yes, they said it is true. Initially I laughed it off, but then some of my friends who came down to Sibu town convinced me that they are real. I may be going there soon to see them for myself.”

Meanwhile, a Daro villager who spoke on anonymity, said the villagers stumbled upon the footprints not far from the village that was once attacked by monkeys. This episode was reported by The Borneo Post some months ago.

According to him, many villagers believe that the monkeys had run out of their jungle habitat to escape from ‘Bigfoot’.

Tanjung Aru Beach

Located at the end of Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman and about 6 kilometres from KK City, this place is closest to the hearts of the locals, and just one visit to the beach will tell you why.

Taking its name from the casuarinas or aru trees that fringe the fine sands, this is where one might get a ringside seat to the greatest sunset on earth every evening when the crimson sun dips slowly into the horizon, leaving the vast skies a brilliant red..



Foodstalls serving local food and drinks are open till late at night. Enjoy coconut and sugarcane juice, chicken or beef satay and steamed peanuts and corn, or indulge in a full-course dinner at the seafood restaurant located there.

The Tanjung Aru beach is also home to Shangri-la's Tanjung Aru Resort, the Kinabalu Golf Club and the Kinabalu Yacht Club.

Getting There

From KK City Centre, take the No 16 bus towards Tanjung Aru from the bus stations in front of City Hall or Wawasan Plaza and let the driver know of your destination. Bus fare is RM1.50. You can also go by taxi, at RM15 per taxi (up to four persons).

Pesta Rumbia (Sago Fest)

A good way to spend your weekend getaway this 4th – 6th of July is by making your way to Kuala Penyu for the 18th Sago Palm Festival, also known as Pesta Rumbia.

It is during this two-day festivity that the local Kuala Penyu community pays homage to and celebrates the sago palm for its many uses – the sago palms have played an essential part in the lives of the locals for many generations. Here, visitors will get a sneak peek on how sago trees and the palms are processed and utilized creatively to serve many needs – as rooftops, handicrafts and local treats.

Sago palms can be found growing copiously in the southwestern coast of Sabah; specifically in the districts of Kuala Penyu, Beaufort and Papar. The sago palm is unique in terms of its versatility – its leaves can be made into house building and roofing materials, and its trunk can be processed into sago flour and made into a smorgasbord of delicacies. The ambuyat, which has a starch-like appearance is popular among the Dusun Tatana and Bisaya communities - it is normally eaten together with fish and vegetables. Apart from that, the sago trunk also acts as a host for the edible sago larvae which is locally known as the butod.

Visitors should also expect to enjoy a myriad other interesting events such as traditional games, singing contests, as well as the highlight of the Pesta Rumbia celebration – the crowning of the Pesta Rumbia Beauty Queen. For more enlightenment regarding the Pesta Rumbia, drop by the Rumbia Information Centre at Kampung Kasugira in Kuala Penyu. A visit to the Pesta Rumbia celebration will not only serve as an educational excursion, it also gives visitors the opportunity to savor the lavish array of tantalizing local foods and fruits.

Situated only two hours away by road from Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Penyu is just an hour’s boat ride away from Pulau Tiga – the famed Survivor island, the serenely beautiful Tempurung Resort, and the Klias Wetlands – home of some exotic species of monkeys as well as many other wildlife.

Visit Pesta Rumbia 2008

Gaya Street Kota Kinabalu

Earlier called Bond Street, Gaya Street situated in the Kota Kinabalu Central Business District has been the centre of business sector since over a hundred years. The wooden shops with nipah roofs are long lost but here is where generations-old family businesses is still thriving authorised down from father to son.

Every Sunday morning time, the distance of Gaya Street is closed down away to traffic to make way for the Fair. Shop at for any price under shady trees and outsized umbrellas, like batik sarongs, fruits and flowers, artistic production* and craft, footwear, antiques and souvenirs, cakes, even pets and herbs!. This makes up the best place to go through the cross-section of the local population once whole families enjoy a Sunday outing.

The Gaya Street Fair is on every Sunday from 6.30 am to 1.00 pm

Getting There

A short stroll from anywhere around the city or take public transport into town.

Pesta Gambus 2008

The gambus is a stringed musical instrument created by the Brunei-Malay community; this traditional lute is one of the oldest musical instruments of its kind. Witness how the significance of this age-old instrument is celebrated by the Brunei-Malay community in Papar, the ricebowl of Sabah (situated some 40-minutes drive away from Kota Kinabalu) on 25 - 27 July, 2008.

The annual Sago Fest is held to highlight the district of Kuala Penyu and the traditional use of sago palm. Look out for activities such as the colourful performances by the Dusun Tatana and Bisaya communities of Kuala Penyu, sample local fruits, witness the rumbia atap (roof) making demostration and competition, traditional sago processing display and many more.

Be entertained by gambus musical performances, silat (traditional Malay martial art) demonstration, see a captivating display of Brunei-Malay mock wedding, and get a chance to see the making of local cakes and cookies. Also, don’t forget to drop by the handicraft booth to view handicraft making demos by the locals.

Come by and experience the celebration of yet another facet of Sabah’s unique ethnic heritage on the Pesta Gambus Festival!

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