Life In Borneo

Posted by Xander on April 23rd, 2009 in Events

Freedom of Entry Ceremony

18th of April marked another historical day for Sabah where this illustrious event takes place here in Kota Kinabalu city at the Segama Waterfront. The ‘Freedom of Entry Ceremony’ is an old Naval tradition that began since the medieval era, where the City or town council confers the right to the Navy to march with ‘Swords drawn, drums beating, band playing, Colors flying and bayonets fixed’. And staying true to that tradition was what transpired that day with a congregation of multifarious colors and flags of participating countries.

This right to march through is usually conferred with a ‘Key’ by the Lord Mayor and in this event the honour goes to Mayor Datuk Iliyas Ibrahim passing the Key to Royal Malaysian Navy’s’ Region 2 Commander, First Admiral Syed Zahiruddin Putra Bin Syed Osman. This represents the city allowing the Navy to exercise its newly conferred right to march through the city.

Among those attended the ceremony were Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Masidi Manjun and Sabah Tourism Board Chairman Datuk Seri Tengku Zainal Adlin which was also there to witness the passing of a memento by the First Admiral Syed Zahiruddin Putra Bin Syed Osman to the Mayor Datuk Iliyas Ibrahim in commemoration of this event.

Marching Through The City

With over 10 contingents joining this year the march was more than a spectacular performance of uniformity and conduct. The parade started off with the Royal Malaysian Navy which was followed by other detachments from the Indonesian Navy, Royal Brunei Navy, Indian Navy and United States Navy to name a few.

The crowd was in jovial spirits as the parade marched through as onlookers were in awe of the participating contingents which was making their way to the center of the Segama Waterfront where the dignitaries and VIPs were seated. Each participating navy was resplendent in their march as well as their uniform, executing  their drill with flawless perfection as shown here by the Indonesian Navy, some were in their unique attires representing mascots for their detachment.

The Segama Waterfront was used as the location for this years’ event and dotted along the stretch are booths of various government and non-governmental societies and departments were set up. Among them were the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), Royal Brunei Navy and Indonesion Navy also known as  Tentera Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Laut (TNI-AL).

The Battleships

After the ceremonies at the Segama Waterfront the lifeinborneo.com crew headed out to the Sabah Ports Authority to witness the ships docked for this very event. Some ships were docked at the Kota Kinabalu Naval Base but those that were open to public was never short of visitors. The Indian Navy had two ships docked which is also their first time being here in Sabah. The Royal Brunei Navy was also here with two ships and also the Royal Malaysian Navy has a patrol class cruiser docked.

We were given a tour by an officer of the Royal Malaysian Navy of the ship KD Kedah. It was indeed an exhilarating as it is a learning experience to enter this Malaysian freigh docked here at the Sabah Ports Authority as well as the ships from the Royal Brunei Navy.

This event was  jointly organized by the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN), and Kota Kinabalu City Hall. We hope next year this event would be bigger and more countries would join this ostentatious of ceremonies by the navy.

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Posted by Daniel on December 15th, 2008 in Events, Sports

The F2 World Cup Powerboat Race 2008 was held at the Kota Kinabalu Waterfront from 12th to 14th of December 2008. It was the final race of this year’s World Cup Powerboat series, and also the event’s second consecutive time being held on the shores of Sabah.

The fastest Powerboat on the South China Sea

There were 18 participants in the F2000 World Cup Powerboat Race, but the spotlight was mainly on two racers – the reigning world champion Colin Jelf and the rising star from Italy, Alex Carella. There was no doubt that Colin had already won the F2 World Cup title from the points accumulated, so all eyes were on who was going to win the Malaysian leg of the F2000 World Cup Series race.

The talented young Italian clocked impressive lap times through the Free Practice and Timed Trials. He continued on to win both the Speed Record and Match Race on the second day of the race.

Colin and Alex met in the final match race on Sunday, but Alex powered through to the finish line just slightly ahead of the Briton to win the Grand Prix race. Colin Jelf won Second place, while Jean Baptiste Thomas won Third.

Here is the race result for the Sabah 2008 F2000 World Cup Powerboat Race:

For more race results, head to http://www.powersportevents.com.my.

Congratulations to Alex Carella and the Steeltrade Racing Team for a superb win, and to Colin Jelf and his team Jelf Racing for winning the overall F2 World Cup Series. We give our hands to the organizers of the event, Powersports Events Sdn. Bhd. for succesfully hosting the F2 World Cup Powerboat Race for the second consecutive year.

Overall Standing Championship Points :

45 points – Colin Jelf
29 points – Jonas Andersson
27 points – Owen Jelf
21 points – Ugis Gross
20 points – Alex Carella
20 points – Jean Baptiste Thomas
19 points – Rick Haakonsen
16 points – Yousef Al Robayan
12 points – Michael Nylund
10 points – Johan Coenradi
06 points – Sven Janson
05 points – Nick Bisterfeld
03 points – Gianni Manici
01 points – Maritns Bergholcs

Information Sources:
http://www.formula2boat.com/index.html
http://www.powersportevents.com.my/
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=61493

Photos by Eshark and Zie

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Posted by Xander on June 30th, 2008 in Destinations, Hot Spots, Travels

Located along the streets of Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman and the Main Bazaar, the Kuching Waterfront is situated along the river banks of Sarawak River. Kuching being the state capital of Sarawak, it is also a focal point or gateway for many travelers visiting the Land of the Hornbills. Upon reaching the waterfront, one could already expect the breath-taking scene and anticipating a relaxed and interesting stroll.

The whole stretch of the waterfront are dotted with multifarious choices of stalls to visit. Starting from Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, various food stalls could be found selling local dishes and pastries. Keep walking and you could find other numerous kiosks of food and beverages variegated in their menu as well.

Taking a stroll along the walkway there are more interesting places to visit like the handicraft stalls. Various kinds of mementos are sold from necklaces and/or wrist-bands made of pearls, beads, aventurine and even jade. Souvenirs of key chains or letter-openers made from ceramic, stainless steel and wood are also present to name a few.

For more choices of souvenirs, make your way to the Main Bazaar Handicraft Market which can be found near the Visitor’s Information Center and National Park Booking Office. The handicraft building could easily be identified by being the only two-storey building to grace the waterfront along the street. The towers located facing the river can be visited to get a wider view of the scenic Sarawak River and the Kuching Waterfront.

Finding your way around is made easier with the Tourist information center located near the Waterfront Security building upon the waterfront walkway. Nearby you could find a small hall that has locals performing cultural dances and playing variegated instruments from different ethnic origins within Sarawak.

The Sarawak River is alive somehow with so many boats servicing the entire river, ready to shuttle visitors from one end of the waterfront all the way to the Main Bazaar Market. For a fare you could also make your way across the river and visit the Fort Margherita. Larger vessels are also present to cater to your traveling needs along the river.

The path along the waterfront has many remarkable sights, sound and smell to entice your every need as a traveler to this exceptional location within Kuching City. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself coming back here when the sun sets and when it does, it is a whole new ambiance and experience altogether. To have glimpse of this place at night time go here.

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Posted by Raz on June 19th, 2008 in Events, Hot Spots, Night Life

Chivas held a party for 2 nights (29-30 May) at the boardwalk of Waterfront Kota Kinabalu. The nights were fun filled with entertaining performances like breakdancing, fire breathers, local cultural Magunatip Dance, street magician and funny antiques from a very tall clown (on stilts)

Breakdancing by the Chivas International Dance Team. They consist of dancers from The United States, Belgium and France. Awesome performance by them dancing, head spinning, hand stands etc.

The guy above is not part of the professional dancers, he is one of our local “b-boys” who was called up to join on the spot. Not bad huh?

The Magunatip is a local traditional dance where bamboos are clapped together and the dancers must step between them but avoid their feet from being caught. The tempo goes faster and faster and it becomes more difficult to step through.

Finally, the Body Care “Fire Eaters” group performed a modern tribal dance. Also featured in this dance, is spectacular fire-spitting performances.

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