The arrival of the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, is just around the corner and across the globe the Chinese community is gearing up for their annual new year celebrations.
In Kota Kinabalu and Sabah too, the buzz is spreading and the good people at Hyatt Regency Kinabalu invited SabahBah and others over to sample what Chef Tay and his team at The Chinese Restaurant has in store.
Chef Tay has prepared a generous menu of deliciousness with which to have a memorable family celebration.
Our taste safari kicked off with Yee Sang. Vital to any Chinese New Year celebrations, these long life noodles represents longevity and it is said the higher you toss the noodles, the more abundant your returns.
The dish arrives as separate ingredients and was quickly assembled in front of our eyes. Shredded vegetables, fruits, pickles, flour crisps and plum sauce are just a few of the ingredients, which make up this visually pleasing dish.
Chef Tay himself was at the table to add the final touches, before leading the group in the customary tossing of the Yee Sang.
The Yee Sang is available from 16 January onwards at The Chinese Restaurant in the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu.
After the flurry of activity around the Yee Sang, we were treated to fatt choi (black moss) with veggies and chicken, Chef Tay’s signature XO Fortune prawns, Pacific clam with sea asparagus and, my personal favourite, the sweet, salmony taste of crispy friend honey salmon.
Also on the table was soft shell crab. “The soft-shell crab isn’t part of the Chinese New Year menu,” said our host, PR Manager Julia Chan, “but it’s the best in Kota Kinabalu, so a must try.”
The collection of Chinese New Year menus have been designed to incorporate the ingredients which, according to Chinese beliefs, symbolises wealth, health and prosperity.
2 set menus will help you make the most of your reunion dinner, but an ala-carte menu offers you additional choices of scallops. abolone, Pacific clams and silver cod.
From 21 – 25 January Hyatt Regency Kinabalu’s The Chinese Restaurant will cater to dim sum fans with an all-you-can-eat Prosperity Dim Sum promo, which is on offer from 9am – 2:30pm.
Other than food, the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu has plenty else going on during the Chinese New Year for those looking for some entertainment in Kota Kinabalu.
From 21 – 25 January Master Calligrapher Huang Poh Lo will entertain with demonstrations of ancient art.
During the 1st 2 days of Chinese New Year Choi San Yeh, the God of Fortune, will spread good wishes amongst hotel guests.
On the 2nd day of Chinese New Year, 24 January, the hotel’s parking lot will be the venue for a grand lion dance showcase.
Starting at 8:30am, the Sabah champion troupe of lion dancers will put on a show, which guarantees to thrill, entertain and have you gasping for breath at their seemingly impossible acrobatics, all staged on tiny platforms between 1m – 2m above the ground.
For additional information about Hyatt Regency Kinabalu’s Chinese New Year offerings, or to book your dinner, please contact the hotel in Kota Kinabalu on 088 22 1234.
Gong Xi Fatt Chai!
If you’re wondering what IDC, IE or PADI stands for, then you’re obviously not a SCUBA diver about to achieve a professional diving qualification.
The PADI IDC Instructor Development Course is a big deal, because it’s just diving ends and teaching starts. Professional, as in do-it-for-a-living, because you will be transferring knowledge to others, it’s important you are held against stringent standards and achieve important objectives.
Taking part in a PADI IDC Instructor Development Course will teach you those standards and help you achieve those objectives and ultimately help you get certified as a PADI Open Water SCUBA Diving Instructor OWSI.
Asia’s next SCUBA diving PADI IDC Instructor Development Course is being held here in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia and will be conducted by the top PADI 5 Star IDC Dive Centre.
The PADI 5 Star DIVE Centre facilities include classrooms in the city, and a dive station tucked away in a secluded cove on one of the nearby islands, surrounded by pristine rainforest and the ever vibrant coral reefs of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, Sabah.
The PADI IDC Instructor Development Course in Sabah is usually immediately followed by the PADI Instructor Exam IE, a 2-day IDC evaluation conducted by PADI instructor examiners who fly in as needed from Sydney, Australia. Click through to the PADI IDC Instructor Development Course events page to see when the next one is coming up.
You can also choose to do the PADI IDC Instructor Development Course as part of an internship program with the PADI 5 Star IDC Dive Centre.
An internship program allows you to get to know every aspect of the dive industry from dealing with daily divers, through to replenishing the coffee, tea and biscuits. Oh yes, and diving. It also allows you to log the many and different dives that you require to achieve certain certifications.
All said, if going out to a beautiful tropical island every day where you are surrounded by nature above, below and to the sides of you, where you hang out with other people passionate about diving every day and you get to meet and teach diving to people from many different countries and cultures, if that is what you call work – then yes, a diving internship is lots of work.
SCUBA diving internships around Asia are plentiful. Where you ultimately decided to your diving internship will largely depend on how serious you are about becoming a dive instructor, how highly you value the quality of your instructor education and how focussed you want to be on your dive training.
Choosing to do your SCUBA diving internship in Sabah, Malaysia makes sense for the diver serious about becoming a quality instructor themselves, following tuition by those passionate about diving and maintaining high standards not just in their own business, but that of the diving industry in general.
If you choose Sabah, Malaysia for your SCUBA Diving Internship, you choose:
To find out more about Asian SCUBA Diving Internships in Sabah, Malaysia, simply fill out the contact form below. Or, if you’re interested in the SCUBA diving PADI IDC Instructor Development Course, surf on over to the PADI IDC Events Page.
Duchenne is one of those not-so-rare diseases that most of us have probably never heard about.
It’s a fatal muscle wasting disease that affects 1 in 3,500 boys across the globe. First it robs them of their ability to walk, and then before long they start struggling to speak, and eating and breathing becomes difficult.
Eventually it will take their lives, often before they reach the age of 20. The cruelest part of the disease is that it leaves their minds, and dreams, unaffected.
Cath Jayasuriya – a Sabahan of half Sri Lakan/Kadazan half English decent – is a mother of 3 and her son, 18 year old son Dusty, has Duchenne.
She lives in California, but has returned to Sabah to take on Mt. Kinabalu as a personal quest to reach its summit.
On 9 September, together with a team of 30 international climbers, Cath will climb Mt. Kinabalu to raise awareness of Duchenne and money for the foundation to help her son Dusty and the thousands of boys out there like him.
All the money raised will go directly to funding research that is promising for extending the lives and find a cure for those with Duchenne.
You can help make a difference by making a donation to Cath’s cause here.
Get to know Cath, her family and why she’s on this quest at her blog and find out more about Duchenne at www.CoalitionDuchenne.org.
Tonight SabahBah happily received news from Guinness that Arthur’s Day celebrations will return to Kota Kinabalu this year, bigger and bolder than the years before.
To mark the 3rd time that Arthur’s Day is observed in not just Malaysia, but Kota Kinabalu, Sabah and Borneo as well, Guinness is bringing exciting parties, thumping music and – of course – fabulous Guinness promotions to us in the run-up to the big day on 23 September.
Across Malaysia, including Kota Kinabalu, there will be more than 50 Guinness parties to attend for lovers of the famous black stout and, until further notice, Thursdays will now be known as arThursdays and proper protocol for sharing Guinness with your friends it to raise your glass and say “To Arhtur!”.
The Shamrock Irish Pub, The Loft, Cock & Bull and Jarrod & Rawlins, fine nightlife outlets in Kota Kinabalu, will be the choice venues for this year’s Arthur’s Day Guinness consumption.
Arthur’s Day celebrations in Kota Kinabalu takes place on 23 September and will kick of at 17:59, which represents the year in which the creator of awesome stout, Arthur Guinness, signed the 9,000 year lease for the brewery that brought us Guinness.
The celebrations in Malaysia are considered the largest Guinness celebrations outside of Ireland, which is no small achievement as it is observed in over 40 other countries.
Let’s get together to celebrate Arthur’s Day in Kota Kinabalu on the 23rd of September, raise our hearty pints of Guinness and make a toast To Arthur!
It’s easy to like El Centro, a new cafe and bar in Kota Kinabalu, where you can go have a bite to eat, indulge in delectable cocktails and have actual conversations with the people you’re with.
So Fresh it still smell of Wood
El Centro, opposite Wisma Merdeka on the block between Kinabalu Daya Hotel on the 1 side and Millemewa on the other, is a welcoming cafe and bar where the furniture are made of re-purposed drift wood, the decor is minimalist, and the emphasis is on people.
Possibly the first non smoking bar in Kota Kinabalu, there’s no smoking inside the restaurant, so if you have to puff, then off to the sidewalk for you.
But with the wide open storefront this is actually quite a social place to be, as you’re not cut-off from the restaurant or the vibe inside.
And now for something a little different
The food is unique amongst Kota Kinabalu’s restaurants. Katie, the owner, has been to interesting corners of the globe and have collected her favourite recipes from her travels, which she is now sharing at El Centro.
There’s tacos, salads and hummus, sandwiches, soups, various sides and desserts.
In her bag of tricks, Katie also has the skills of a bar tender. Bar tenders know cocktails, but Katie knows awesome cocktails.
In May, a delicious flood of tasty cocktails are coming to El Centro and Katie’s friends know what’s in store. Her Bloody Mary has a well established reputation, and already legend of her margarita is rising.
Sunday Brunch
The menu is still evolving to the tastes and feedback of customers, but a few mainstays are well worth having.
Anything with chips is a winner, because El Centro has the secret for the perfect french fry. From amongst the tacos, the Steak Taco is king, and the large Greek Grilled Chicken Foldover or Salad are the most value for money items on the menu.
On Sundays, you can wrap up the weekend with a tasty Sunday Brunch. Fresh, hot breakfast tacos to fill your stomach, and a spicy Bloody Mary to ease you off whatever hangover you might be having.
An easy end to the weekend, and a beautiful start to Sunday morning.
See you at El Centro!
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