Tawau to hold international cultural festival

TAWAU: The second Tawau International Cultural Festival is expected to attract between 50,000 to 70,000 visitors, and tourist and tourism players are called to play their role and promote the many places of interest in the district.

Tawau Municipal Council (TMC) president Datuk Ismail Mayakob when confirming the festival date on February 11, said this year’s festival would showcase the traditional wedding ceremony of each ethnic group apart from their unique traditional dance that would be performed by the villagers themselves and not by performers.

“There are a lot of changes this year and 25 ethnic groups have already confirmed their participation,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

Ismail said apart from the many ethnic groups in Tawau, Johore Bahru and Sarawak had also confirmed their participation, while Indonesia and Brunei had given a positive response to the invitation,” he said.

He said in the morning, there would be a showcase and sales of traditional food and the highlights would be at night in front of the TMC building.

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Feature Borneo Hotel: Promenade Hotel Tawau

Located at Kuhara, Promenade Hotel Tawau features business-class accommodation in the center of Tawau Division in Sabah. The hotel is the only 4-star business class hotel in Tawau. Besides being the tallest hotel in Sabah (standing at 16 storey high) and having the largest ballroom in the state (with a maximum seating capacity of 1,300 persons), Promenade Hotel Tawau also houses the biggest and only comprehensive gymnasium at its Leisure Centre on the 5th Floor. The hotel is located adjacent to Eastern Plaza Shopping Centre, the biggest shopping center in Tawau. The hotel, close to the town center, features rooms and suites with four-star amenities that cater to both leisure and business travelers. Guests staying here can enjoy great accessibility to places like Tawau Hill Park, Shan Sui Golf & Country Club, as well as world-class diving sites like Sipadan and Mabul Islands.

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Picture perfect day with Sea Gypsies in Semporna

Bajau children playing in a boat

Coral and sea creatures can be seen through the crystal clear waters

Tall coconut trees provide shade from the bright sunlight

Diving homestay where we stayed at Mabul Island

Bajau family relaxing during sunset on Maiga Island

Photos courtesy of and Copyright to Azrol Azmi and Brunei Press Sdn Bhd.

By Azrol Azmi

If you are planning an island resort getaway this coming school holidays in March, look no further than Semporna and its surrounding islands, which offer stunning white sandy beaches and picturesque views.

Imagine crystal clear waters, long stretches of white sandy beaches, cool breeze blowing from the sea and tall coconut trees providing shade from the bright tropical sun as you unwind on one of the islands.

Semporna, a town located in Tawau division on Sabah's east coast, is inhabited mainly by ethnic Bajau Laut, also known as Sea Gypsies, many of whom live in sprawling stilt villages above the water or in traditional Lepa boats.

Semporna is a gateway to the some of the best dive sites in the world which are situated about an hour's boat ride away.

Among the islands that can be visited are Mabul, Kapalai and of course, Sipadan surrounded by the Sulawesi Sea which needs no introduction to avid divers from around the world.

There are other islands with equally fascinating dive sites. Tourism Malaysia is working hard to promote the lesser-known but equally beautiful dive sites in Sabah such as Si Amil, Mantabuan, Sibuan and Bohey Dulang.

As many as 101 dive spots have been identified by a team of divers who hope to bring greater attention to Sabah's other dive site jewels. These sites are listed in the Sabah 101 Dive Treasures brochure.

I recently went on a photo expedition with a group of friends with the same interest to capture the beautiful scenery at some of these islands.

We started our journey driving from Brunei Darussalam to Kota Kinabalu before catching a flight from Kota Kinabalu International Airport to Tawau Airport, (which is the nearest airport to Semporna) before proceeding on an hour's drive to Semporna town in a tour bus. Enquiries at the airport revealed that public buses and taxis are available to transport people from Tawau to Semporna at a reasonable fee.

In Semporna, we made our way to the public jetty where our friend from Tawau, Muslianshah, who oversaw our stay during our photo expedition, awaited with a boat ready to take us to our first island, Maiga.

We made a quick stop at Bohey Dulang island to take a closer look at the Bajau or Sea Gypsies. We learnt that the Bajau community made their living from fishing and farming seaweed which they sell in Semporna.

Maiga is not well-equipped to receive tourists as the island does not have the basic amenities of running water and electricity. We were told that we would be "camping out" but we actually slept in a makeshift hall built by the Bajau.

We visited other islands before finally staying in Scubajeff-Sipadan diving homestay at Mabul Island, which is one of the more popular islands among diving tourists and beachcombers.

Mabul is well-equipped to receive tourists and even has a resort as well as several diving homestays to cater for "budget" divers.

Mabul is situated just 25 minutes from Sipadan. Running water and electricity are available on Mabul and a few shops selling everyday items can be seen in a small village populated by the Bajau.

More photos can be seen at www.flickr.com/photos/azrolazmi and look for Semporna set.

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin Weekend
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Tawau Cultural Fest on Jan 14-15

Tawau: This border town with Indonesia will come alive with the inaugural Tawau Cultural Festival to be staged from Jan. 14-15.

Tawau Municipal Council (MPT) President Ismail Mayakob said, Thursday, it is going to be grand, being a regional event involving neighbouring countries.

"Brunei and Indonesia have agreed to take part, while Singapore and the Philippines will send representatives," he said. Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Panglima Musa Hj Aman would be invited to officiate it on Jan. 15.

"At least 20 communities will showcase their culture at the Festival which will also feature telematches, lego competition, cultural exhibition, food camp and so on.

During the parade from the town padang to the MPT compound which is the highlight, each of the 20 ethnic groups comprising 100 people each will be dressed in their respective traditional costumes.

Ismail urged those turning up to witness the event to also come in traditional dress to make the occasion more memorable.

The festival, themed "Culture for Regional Peace" will also feature popular local artistes.

Ismail said participants from outside Tawau will arrive on Jan 13 and will be brought to visit local places of interest on the morning of Jan 14.

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Pulau Sebatik in Sabah another tourism attraction

TAWAU: Pulau Sebatik, an island known for being bisected by the Indonesia-Malaysia border, is being considered for development as one of Tawau’s main tourism destinations.

Sebatik Member of Parliament, Abdul Muis Picho said the island has many tourism potentials and is already a popular destination for anglers due to its rich marine life.

Its multi-cultural community is also an attraction for visitors who want a taste of the unique Sabahan lifestyle.

“The island is also a habitat for proboscis monkeys,” he pointed out saying that he will be working together with the local authorities as well as other agencies to develop the island’s tourism potentials.

Homestay programmes will be developed as a way to increase the residents’ income, he said after attending the New Year 2011 Celebration with 1,000 Kg Bergosong residents at Pulau Sebatik.

“We will ensure that the island’s community will be able to improve their economy through business, agriculture and fishery.

“In fact, a private palm oil factory is due to start operations on the island, which will give a positive impact by providing job opportunities,” he added.

Muis also hoped that the Pulau Sebatik community will continue to give their full support to the government in order to carry out more plans this year.

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Festival to promote Tawau

TAWAU: A festival will be held here on January 13, next year to attract more visitors to Tawau.

Municipal Council president Ismail Mayakob urged all the departments to cooperate and get ready to promote Tawau.

He said various activities would be held on that day to promote the uniqueness of the district.

“The facilities in the district should also be maintained and upgraded immediately to give tourists a positive image.

“It is important to promote Tawau to other countries. For instance, when someone asks about the products in Tawau, most of the people here will say there is ‘nothing in Tawau’. This gives a negative perception of Tawau to outsiders,” he said at the full council meeting here yesterday.

Ismail pointed out Tawau has various products to offer to visitors such as the tallest tropical trees, cocoa and fresh seafood. Tourism promoters should also focus on the products in Tawau instead of only the tourist spots in Semporna.

He urged the private sector to promote Tawau to the tourists while the government would provide the infrastructure facilities.

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