Culture & Leisure

Kota Kinabalu City Tour
The City of Kota Kinabalu is the capital of Sabah. Located on the west coast of “the Land Below the Wind”, under the watchful eye of majestic Mount Kinabalu, and on the fringes of the South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu is the bustling and colourful gateway to Sabah. Here you find the international airport, world class hotels, innumerable restaurants and café shops, shopping malls and business districts. We call our fast developing and modern city with some 350,000 inhabitants simply and affectionately KK!

The state capital has many places of interest. It is a city popular with foreigners and locals alike, Other places of interest include the Signal Hill Observatory, offering a bird’s view of the city; the Sabah Foundation Building - a unique 30-storey building (it is a circular structure supported by high tensile steel rods, an architectural and engineering marvel, and there are only four such buildings in the world; it is Sabah’s highest tower); the State Mosque, resplendent with its majestic domes and golden motifs is the central place of worship for KK's Muslim population; the new Likas Mosque, the largest in the state; and the Likas Bird Sanctuary.

The State Museum - based on the architecture of Murut and Rungus longhouses has several galleries exhibiting, among others, a cluster of human skulls from Sabah’s headhunting past, totemic figures, old photographs, valuable ancient pottery from all over South East Asia and antique Korans. In the Heritage Village of the museum you find numerous life-size replicas of the traditional houses of the many ethnic entities in Sabah.
 
Major shopping malls are located along the main artery of Kota Kinabalu, and you find just about anything from branded goods to local handicraft.
 

Monsopiad Cultural Village
The Monsopiad Cultural Village is a historical site in the heartland of the Kadazandusun people. The Monsopiad Cultural Village opened on the 1st of May 1996, in memory of the great and legendary Kadazan Warrior Monsopiad. The traditional village has been built on historical ground: on the very land where Monsopiad lived and roamed some three centuries ago.

The Monsopiad Cultural Village is the only cultural village in Sabah, and a unique feature throughout Borneo in so far as it relates directly to a historical person: Monsopiad. The direct descendants of Monsopiad, his 6th and 7th generations have built, and presently manage, the village to remember their forefathers, and to give you an extraordinary insight into their ancient and rich culture. The Monsopiad Cultural Village is a private initiative that does not receive any grants from the Malaysian Government, but relies solely on the support of visitors. Visiting the village, you contribute directly to the conservation of one of Malaysia's rich cultural heritages!

Let yourself be taken on a journey back into the past, to the days of head hunting and spirit worship, to the days when the Bobohizan, the female high priestess of the Kadazan and Dusun, ruled the villages and took care of the health and spiritual well-being of their people.
 

Kota Belud Tamu Sunday Market
It used to take a couple of hours to drive from Kota Kinabalu to Kota Belud, but with the newly completed highway from KK to Tuaran and Kota Belud the distance has been shortened dramatically. You can reach Kota Belud from KK in just a little over an hour. Kota Belud is a quaint rural town full of life, and renowned for its people, the Bajau "cowboys" who are Sabah’s only horsemen and famed for their rearing and handling of horses. Kota Belud is also home to one of Sabah's most famous and colourful weekly 'tamu' every Sunday Morning. The word 'tamu' actually means "meeting place", and even today it is as much a market as a local gathering where traders from the surrounding areas come together to discuss the latest events. Visitors will find many of Sabah's handicrafts here, muddled up with betel nut stalls, exotic fruits and vegetables and Live Buffalo market among others.
 

The Sabah Railway - North Borneo Railway
The North Borneo Railway features a British Vulcan steam locomotive, designed and built by the Vulcan Foundry in Newton-le-Willows, England in 1954 as part of the last order before the factory converted to diesel and electric locomotive construction. The Vulcan 6-015, a 2-6-2 carrying a green livery with polished boiler bands and red edging to the running plate and tender frame, was de-commissioned for general use in the early 1970’s by the Sabah State Railway Department. It was proudly re-launched on January 22nd, 2000, in honour of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah’s capital, achieving City-Status. Not only does this steam engine represent the last of a fleet of steam engines that have plied the tracks through northern Borneo since the late 1800’s, it is also one of the very few functional wood-burners left in the world.

The North Borneo Railway features six carriages that have been meticulously restored and renovated to reflect the era of the steam train. The exterior utilises the traditional deep green and cream of the original North Borneo Railway, with carved brass logos featuring the original British seal. The interior, highlighting the natural woods of Sabah, has comfortable seating and dining facilities. Every carriage provides the amenity of a modern washroom onboard. Seating accommodates 36 passengers per carriage, with a total train capacity of 180 passengers. An exotic bar car and observation deck accompanies the train, providing a comfortable lounge area to heighten the overall journey experience.

Windows remain open throughout the journey, and high-powered fans line the ceilings to ensure maximum comfort along the route. A provision has been made for air-conditioning, though the open windows enhance the entire heritage experience, as passengers are able to lean out the windows and doors to interact with the countryside, rather than merely be observers.

The North Borneo Railway is built and operated to the highest of international standards and is fully compliant with modern safety standards.
 
The North Borneo Railway runs two weekly return departures from Kota Kinabalu / Papar, year round. Lasting approximately 4 hours, passengers experience the lush landscape of the coastal and rural regions of Sabah. A typical colonial lunch is served on board.

Schedule: Departures on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10:00 am (returning at approximately 2:00pm).
 

Kudat - Rungus Natives' Long Houses
Kudat played an important role in Sabah’s early colonial history. As a matter of fact, it was the first capital of Sabah, and once held high hopes of playing a major part in the China-Europe trade. Recently Kudat has received again more attention and a major tourist infrastructure has been put in place. However, the town remains much of its rural and laid-back charm, and it is arguably the cleanest town in the whole of Sabah!

The most interesting aspect of the Kudat area is its local people, the Rungus, a sub group of the Kadazandusun family. Many still live in longhouses and hold on to their traditional lifestyle, and some adhere to their own, ancient spiritual and animistic beliefs. The Rungus have generally managed to retain more of their traditional ways than most other tribes in Sabah. Of course, their longhouses with their typical, outward slanted walls tend to be come more modern, but in Kampung Bavanggazo you can find an authentic, palm-thatched longhouse where visitors can spend an unforgettable night. In Bavanggazo you can meet and mingle with the local people and admire their elaborate traditional costumes. In the not too distant past, the Rungus women used to wear brass coils around their arms, legs and neck, and many strings of colourful glass beads and semi-precious stones Chinese traders brought to the area hundreds of years ago. Their costumes are intricately woven from home-spun cotton, and the men wear an elaborate turban-like headgear. Although it is nowadays rare to find people who still don a complete set of the traditional outfit outside festive days, it is quite common to find ladies who still wear their heavy arm coils, and elder men with their colourful headgear.

The Rungus are renown for their skilled basketry, fine bead work and weaving, and many local souvenirs on offer throughout Sabah are manufactured by the Rungus in Kudat.
 

SABAH TEA GARDEN
Sabah Tea Plantation, nestled into the lush tropical wilderness of Malaysia’s first ever World Heritage Site, Mount Kinabalu, sits on a 6,200-acre land at 2,272 feet above sea level and about 2 hours drive from the main capital Kota Kinabalu. It is surrounded by the world’s oldest rainforest of about 130 million years.

Sabah Tea Plantation is the largest single commercial tea plantation in Borneo with approximated area of 1,000 acres endowed with an interesting plant and agriculture resources, Camellia Sinensis. It is also one of the very few tea plantations in the world that certified to produce organic tea. Sabah Tea Plantation is known to produce the finest grades of tea.
Sabah Tea now welcomes visitors. Facilities like accommodations ranging from longhouses, bungalows, and guest house is now ready for bookings. Activities like Factory and plant visit can be arrange. Jungle trekking in the surrounding rainforest in search of the Largest flower “The Rafflesia” and other wildlife and outstanding flora can also be arrange. Also it’s great for students and family to visit for an Educational Holidays

The Origin Of Tea
The legendary origin of tea drinking has been traced back to the Chinese Emperor Chen Nung of 2737BC, who was also a scholar and herbalist, who discovered this detectable drink when he was sitting beneath a tree while his servant was boiling a pot of water. A few leaves from a tea plant (Camellia Sinensis) dropped into the pot of water, gave an excellent aroma and he found it tasted as good when sipped.