Expats, students to rejuvenate Sabah tourism industry

 

Tourism Malaysia Sabah deputy director Trecey J Tojuka says Sabah is targeting expats and students in its continued efforts to revitalised the state’s tourism. - NSTP/ PAUL MU

KOTA KINABALU: Tourism Malaysia Sabah in collaboration with Sabah Tourism Board is embarking on a week-long promotional tour to Peninsular Malaysia to continue the rejuvenation effort of the tourism sector.

Its deputy director Trecey J Tojuka said the 'Bah! Mari Pigi Sabah & Labuan Roadshow 2023'  programme is scheduled to take place from May 22 to 27.

She said the roadshow will cover Selangor, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur.

"This time we are targeting the expatriates and students, particularly the Millennial, Generation X, Y, Z, and Alpha demographics in the three destinations being visited," said Trecey.

A total of 36 participants, including Sabah Tourism Board, Federation of Rural Tourism Association Sabah, Malaysia Aviation Group, tour agents, handicraft demonstrators, cultural troupe, a media representative and food vendors will be part of the roadshow.

She said tour operators from Sabah as well as Malaysia Airlines and MASwings, will be offering tour packages to travellers during the roadshow, she said.

The roadshow will be focusing on B2B (business-to-business) and business-to-consumer(B2C) interactions, along with  talks on sustainable tourism and updates on Sabah's wonderful destinations, said Trecey.

Unlike last year's event which emphasised travel trade, B2B and seminar, she added.

In line with the theme 'Sustaining Tourism For Our Future', chief executive officer of Future Forest International Sdn Bhd, Safina Yaakob has been invited to present a talk on the subject.

The Sabah Tourism Board will be highlighting the community-based and rural tourism initiatives carried out in the state, which have now become a leading example in Malaysia, she said.

The roadshow aims to raise awareness about the significance of sustainable practices in preserving and conserving Sabah's tourist destinations for the future generations, she said.

The allure of Sabah and Labuan will be showcased during a 'Get Together Dinner' which is expected to be attended by a representative from the German Embassy in Malaysia, Tourism Malaysia director of Package Development  Shahrin Mokhtar and Sabah Tourism Board chief executive officer Noredah Othman as well as dignitaries, expats and corporates.

-nst online.

Program MM2H terima sambutan menggalakkan

 

PUTRAJAYA: Sebanyak 111 permohonan bagi Program Malaysia Rumah Keduaku (MM2H) diterima daripada warga asing selepas dibuka sejak November tahun lalu sehingga bulan ini.

Menteri Dalam Negeri, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin berkata, program berkenaan dilancarkan pada Ogos tahun lalu dan ia sekali gus membuktikan mendapat sambutan menggalakkan daripada rakyat negara luar. 

“Dalam tempoh dua bulan selepas permohonan dibuka, sebanyak 15 peserta yang terdiri daripada pemegang pas ‘prinsipal’ dan ‘tanggungan’ diluluskan, malah tiga daripada mereka kini sudah pun menetap di Malaysia.

“Bakinya masih dalam proses melengkapkan dokumen serta ada yang sedang dalam penelitian pihak kementerian menerusi Jabatan Imigresen Malaysia (JIM),” katanya dalam sidang akhbar selepas melancarkan Executive Lounge MM2H di Ibu Pejabat JIM, di sini hari ini.

Hamzah berkata, permohonan menyertai program tersebut yang dibuat secara dalam talian dimulakan semula selepas diambil alih daripada Kementerian Pelancongan, Seni dan Budaya.

Beliau menjelaskan, hanya peserta yang memenuhi syarat diterima untuk menyertai MM2H iaitu mesti membawa sekurang-kurangnya RM1 juta setiap seorang berbanding dulu hanya disyaratkan RM300,000 saja.

Secara purata, jika kita luluskan 1,000 permohonan setiap tahun, dengan itu kita membawa masuk RM1 bilion, berbeza jika kita bandingkan dengan dahulu yang mana kita hanya mampu membawa RM300 juta,” ujar beliau.

Mengulas lanjut, Hamzah berkata, kerajaan menyasarkan peserta yang berkualiti, berkemampuan serta berpendapatan tinggi untuk menyertai program berkenaan sekali gus menafikan dakwaan negatif sesetengah pihak terhadap program itu.

“Kita bermula dengan Program Silver Hair pada 1996, dan sehingga sekarang iaitu sudah 25 tahun, hanya 27,285 pemegang pas prinsipal dan 27,725 pemegang pas tanggungan yang aktif.

“Program ini menunjukkan bahawa dalam tempoh 25 tahun ini hanya lebih kurang 1,000 pemegang pas yang aktif setahun, jadi tidak perlu diperbesarkan seolah-olah ia membawa banyak kerugian kepada negara dan sebagainya,” jelas beliau.

Tambah beliau, program berkenaan juga akan ditambah baik secara berperingkat dengan kerjasama Kementerian Pelancongan, Seni dan Budaya, Bank Negara dan ejen-ejen pengendali MM2H sebelum ini bagi memastikan ia lebih berjaya di masa hadapan.

-utusan online.

Foreign envoys explore Sabah’s tourist attractions

The visitors getting a feel of Sabah’s ethnic Kadazandusun Sumazau dance during the tour.

SANDAKAN: Malaysia’s ambassador to Thailand, Datuk Jojie Samuel, led a group of Bangkok-based foreign envoys to Sabah as part of efforts to draw tourists in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2020.

The ambassadors Dr Phil Hager Eva (Austria), Fransico Patto Vaz Cunha E Morais (Portugal), Fernando Julio Antonio Quiros Campos (Peru), Joseph Anthony Cotter (Ireland), Stansilav Opoela (Slovakia), Jean-Paul Ernest Senniger (Luxemborg) and Kees Pieter Rade (the Netherlands) together with their spouses spent four days, three nights exploring Sabah.

The envoys familiarisation tour also saw over a dozen entrepreneurs from Thailand joining in the trip with a 31-member delegation.

The visit was part of an initiative by Samuel, with assistance from Tourism Malaysia in Bangkok and Dynamic Tours Travel & Incentive Sdn Bhd.

The aim of the trip was in line with Tourism Malaysia’s Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign and generate more traffic flow from Thailand to Sabah.

Air Asia provides direct flights between Bangkok and Kota Kinabalu three times weekly.

During their visit, the group was taken to see Mount Kinabalu Park, the War Memorial in Kundasang, Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary and Sunbear Conservation Centre in Sandakan.

The group also visited the war memorials in Sandakan and Ranau

for soldiers who died at the tail end of World War 2, when the allied forces liberated Sabah from the Japanese occupation.

The march from Sandakan and Ranau by the allied prisoners of war is infamously known as the Sandakan Death March.

-thestar online.

Foreigners love our food and weather, says MATTA

PETALING JAYA: Sunny skies, good food and affordable living.

This complete package was why foreigners favoured living in Malaysia, said the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) president Datuk Hamzah Rahmat.

“The tropical weather, beaches and shopping are definite attractions,” he said when asked to comment on Malaysia being listed sixth in International Living’s “The World’s Best Places to Retire in 2017”.

Hamzah said he had many friends from the West who had second homes in Malaysia just to escape the winter.

The US-based International Living is a monthly magazine that informs about global retirement and relocation options.

“Malaysian cities are clean and modern, its public transport unrivalled, and its people the friend­liest in Asia.

“And while other Asian countries offer great bud­get holidays, and some offer first-class vacations, Malaysia mana­ges to cater extraordinarily well to both,” it said on its website.

It named Mexico, Panama and Ecuador as the top three countries to retire in.

Among the foreigners who now call Malaysia home is Cana­dian R.J. Boocock, in his 60s.

Originally from Calgary, Boo­cock, his wife and their 16-year-old son have been living in the country for the last eight years.

Semi-retired from the oil and gas industry, Boocock said they also liked that English was widely spoken here.

“It has every food you would want and a good selection of accommodation which is chea­per than in Singapore,” he said.

Retiree Takikawa Tsutomu, 82, fell in love with Penang 13 years ago when he went holidaying there with his wife.

“We decided to participate in the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme and move here.

“The climate is incredible and the people here are lovely. It is an affordable place to live,” he said.

Although he goes back to Japan twice a year, Takikawa, who was involved in the import and export business, and his wife felt that Penang was home.

“The healthcare and food are superb too,” he added.

For Singapore-born R. Jayaram, 69, who previously lived in Britain for 35 years, it was the great weather that lured him to Penang.

He moved there 11 years ago with his wife.

“After I retired, I wanted to settle down in a more laid-back environment.

“Friends then recommended that I enrol in the MM2H programme,” said the former airline catering company manager.

Malaysia’s multicultural aspect also appeals to Jayaram.

“I enjoy going for Thaipusam and gathering with friends du­­ring Chinese New Year,” he said.

He also observed that there were many shopping malls catering to the needs of expatriates in Malaysia.

-thestar online.
http://www.mm2h.gov.my/index.php/en/
http://mm2honline.motac.gov.my/

Kota Kinabalu among cheapest places to live for expatriates

A beautiful sunset at Tanjung Aru beach in Kota Kinabalu. - Filepic

PETALING JAYA: Kota Kinabalu is one of the cheapest cities in the world for expatriates to live in, says Forbes. 

Live and Invest Overseas founder Kathleen Peddicord rated Kota Kinabalu as among her top choice for cheapest places worldwide for expatriates to live, in a list published by Forbes on Jan 11. 

Kota Kinabalu was also the cheapest among eight places on the list described as "so cheap that you barely need to work - if at all?"  

"This laid-back and quiet city is one of the most pleasant places to live in Asia and is incredibly welcoming. Its biggest practical advantages are the low cost of living and the high standard (and low cost) of health care," it said.

  

The city was also described as small and walkable, while “life revolves around the water and is lived out-of-doors”. 

Kota Kinabalu has an emerging expatriate community and offers a mix of adventure and exotic as well as a “serene, close-to-nature lifestyle at a cost that’s a global bargain", it said. 

Peddicord estimated the monthly cost of living in Kota Kinabalu at US$850 (RM3,794) per person. 

This is inclusive of rent (RM2,500), transportation (RM100), gas (RM20), electricity (RM200), water (RM20), telephone (RM50), Internet (RM60), cable TV (RM70), entertainment (RM253) and groceries (RM550).  

It is based on monthly living cost of a single person and includes the cost of renting a two-bedroom apartment in a neighbourhood where “an American would be comfortable living”. 

The other cities on the list are Chiang Mai, Thailand (US$1,000); Carvoeiro, Algarve, Portugal (US$1,150); Santa Familia, Cayo, Belize (US$1,200); Granada, Nicaragua (US$1,225); Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic (US$1,250); Barcelona, Spain (US$1,600), and El Poblado, Medellin, Colombia (US$1,650). 

These budgets do not include travel, clothes, health insurance and other costs.

-thestar online.

Malaysia among top 3 countries where expats feel at home

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia ranks among the top three countries where expatriates adjust quickly and feel at home, a survey commissioned by HSBC Group shows.

According to data from last year’s Expat Explorer survey, the countries where more expats felt at home in less than a year are Bahrain (66 per cent), India (63 per cent) and Malaysia (61 per cent).

This compares to 48 per cent of all expats surveyed globally, HSBC said in a statement. Expats looking to settle in even quicker can consider moving to Mexico, where 42 per cent said the country felt like home instantly or in less than six months, just behind Bahrain (47 per cent) and Malaysia (43 per cent). 

The Expat Explorer survey is commissioned by HSBC Expat and conducted by YouGov. The last Expat Explorer survey was completed by 21,950 expats from 198 countries through an online questionnaire in March, April and May 2015. Singapore was ranked the top country for expats overall.

According to these findings, expats experience different milestones on their path to feeling like locals. Making friends or developing their social life and starting to understand the local culture and etiquette have played the greatest part in making a strong connection with their host country.

“In Malaysia, 53 per cent expats said making friends was an important milestone on the way to feeling at home, while 22 per cent said knowing their family were enjoying life in their new country,” the statement added. Fifteen per cent of expats said successfully learning to use the local language was an important milestone for Malaysia to feel like home. Finally, 43 per cent expats in Malaysia say understanding the local culture helped in feeling a stronger connection with the country.

Older expats find it easier to settle in: 35 per cent of those over 55 years old said their host country felt like home within their first six months, which compares to 33 per cent of 18 to 34 year olds and only 29 per cent of 35 to 54 year olds. “If you’re living or working abroad and are 18 or over, we want to hear about your experience to help other expats navigate the opportunities and challenges of life abroad,” HSBC said in the statement.

The 2016 Expat Explorer survey is open to all expats from now until 17 April. The findings of the 2016 survey will be released in the autumn and available online via the interactive Expat Explorer tool, where people can compare different countries using a broad set of criteria covering the main areas of expat life.
-nst online.

Malaysia truly a second home

Quay to happiness: Yamazaki taking a stroll along Straits Quay Marina in Penang.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s ranking as being among the top retirement destinations came as no surprise for expatriates who have settled here.

For Karen Palko, who arrived with the Peace Corps in 1979, Malaysia is perfect because it offered Westerners a foot in both worlds.

She said Malaysia was no third-world country and there was efficiency, culture and natural beauty.

“I would say the weather is number one. You have to have lived in the cold to appreciate the heat,” said the 57-year-old California native.

She said those seeking to settle here would also find Malaysia affordable.

Malaysia had been ranked fifth in the 2016 Global Retirement Index, issued by International Living publication, which rated 23 countries. The top four are Panama, Ecuador, Mexico and Costa Rica.

International Living, which claimed it has been helping people to retire overseas for the past 30 years, said the criteria was based on factors such as buying and renting of real estate, ease of visas, cost of living, entertainment and amenities, infrastructure and climate.

Among others, it noted that Malaysia scored strongly due to the great-value rentals and the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) visa, which lasts for 10 years.

It also said that Malaysia had excellent hospitals, highly-trained doctors and affordable healthcare.

American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce past president Datuk Nicholas Zefferys, 75, said Westerners, particularly Americans, knew little about Malaysia.

“They are pleasantly surprised at the living standards and good government,” said Zefferys, who arrived 25 years ago.

Zefferys, who is from Seattle, said he had learnt more about the world through living in Malaysia because many cultures were represented here.

“This makes Malaysia an exciting place to be,” he said.

He also said that food here was superior to anywhere else in the world.

Monem Salem, who is originaly from Texas, said: “The biggest appeal is the attitude of the people who have made us feel very welcomed.”

Monem, 43, who is the president of investment firm Saturna Sdn Bhd, moved here five years ago.

The father of three children aged between 10 and 16 said the MM2H programme was gaining popularity.

“Many in the US are interested and have asked me about it,” he said. Japanese mother of three Emi Yamazaki, 48, has been calling Penang “home” for 14 years.

“I lived in various cities in the past including London, Hong Kong and Singapore,” she said, professing her fondness for Penang.

“It is nice and compact,” said Yamazaki, who had worked in the media industry.

-thestar online.

British expat's passion for Ipoh

Ian Anderson sharing the rich history of Ipoh with the Swiss tourism students
in Jalan Panglima. Pic by Farhan Najib

IPOH: A group of Swiss students, who were here on a five-day tourism exposure of the city, was mildly surprised to learn that the person guiding them on the tour was himself an expatriate.

For Ian Anderson, a 75-year-old retired navy commander, the chance to show the heritage of the city to the students was one not to be missed. Having lived in Ipoh for 15 years, Anderson said the city was an interesting place to visit as it was rich with history rooted in the vast tin-mining legacy.

He, however, lamented that not much was being done by those given the charge to promote tourism in Ipoh, especially the state-related tourism agencies.

"People often ask me why I speak to people about the beauty of the city? Why do I take pains to narrate its rich past? "My simple answer, and it is the truth, is that no one else is doing it. Not the authorities certainly," he said, after ending his 90-minute session with the Swiss students.

Anderson, who has carved a name as a heritage conservationist of Ipoh in the last decade, spends much of his time collecting and conserving heritage items such as old photographs, restoring heritage buildings and holding exhibitions on Ipoh.

He made his mark in literature on the city by compiling and editing a book entitled Ipoh, My Home Town which is sold in bookshops for RM100. Anderson also runs www.ipohworld.org, which is an outlet for him and his team to preserve the city's history online.

With the tag Saving Yesterday For Tomorrow, Anderson said he hoped not only to record Ipoh's past but also to create interest in the younger generation to love the city. His passion for the city's past was demonstrated when he spoke to the Swiss students as he showed them around Han Chin Pet Soo, a Hakka tin miners club. The club was set up in 1893, while the clubhouse was built in 1929.

Anderson also took them to the nearby Concubine Lane (now known as Lorong Panglima) where he spoke of the Chinese tin mining tycoons of yore and their activities. Swiss student Vanessa Zimmermann said she was impressed with Anderson's knowledge of the city.

"We learnt a lot about the city from Anderson. "His narration of the rich past of Ipoh's tin mining industry and how it was built since the 1870s is excellent. "And, knowing that Anderson is an expatriate makes it more inspiring for us to learn more about the city.

"My observation of Ipoh is that while it is a nice place to visit and live, it is quite hard to go from place to place because there are no proper signboards," she said, adding that the authorities needed to focus on how to make Ipoh attractive to young people.

-nst online.

Tourism Malaysia Launches VISIT MALAYSIA YEAR 2014 Sticker Photo Contest

KUALA LUMPUR, 19 December 2013 – Tourism Malaysia launched the “Visit Malaysia Year 2014 (VMY 2014) Sticker Photo Contest” today to raise awareness of the celebration of VMY 2014 among Malaysians and expatriates.

The contest will be held for a period of three months beginning 1 January until 31 March 2014. Each month, 30 lucky winners will get to bring home attractive prizes, including domestic travel packages.

“Through this contest, Malaysians and expatriates will get to join us and assist us in promoting VMY 2014. At the same time, it will also prepare them to be the host during the celebration of this much-anticipated event,” said the Director General of Tourism Malaysia Dato’ Mirza Mohammad Taiyab, during the launching of the VMY 2014 Sticker Photo Contest at the Sungai Besi PLUS Toll, where a total of 150,000 stickers were distributed to road users around the country. The event was also attended by the Senior General Manager of PLUS Ir. Mohd. Zulastri Mohd. Amin.

The VMY 2014 stickers, depicting the proboscis monkey (the mascot of VMY 2014), were distributed at 15 locations – seven toll plazas and one PLUS R & R outlet – Sungai Besi Toll in Selangor, Skudai Toll in Johor, Ayer Keroh Toll in Melaka, Pulau Pinang Bridge Toll, Senawang Toll in Seremban, Batu Tiga Toll in Shah Alam, Hutan Kampung Toll in Kedah, and Tapah R&R in Perak.

Besides that, the stickers were also distributed in states that are not connected via the PLUS Highway, such as Jabor Toll in Terengganu, Tun Salahudin Bridge Toll in Sarawak, Kuala Perlis Jetty, KB Mall in Kelantan, Kota Kinabalu Airport in Sabah, Kuantan Sentral and Urban Transformation Centre in Bentong, Pahang.

Aside from highway locations, stickers for the VMY 2014 Sticker Photo Contest can also be obtained at Tourism Malaysia state offices and Tourist Information Centres (TIC) around the country.

This contest is also expected to increase the number of followers on Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia Facebook (FB CC1M) at http://www.facebook.com/CutiCuti1Malaysia. To date, the page has approximately 1.8 million followers. To participate in the contest, participants are required to place the sticker on their vehicles and take a creative picture of the vehicle against the background of any tourist attraction in Malaysia. Contest entries can be submitted via CC1M FB.

The participants also need to “Like” the CC1M FB page before uploading their photos on the VMY 2014 Car Sticker Photo Contest app. The photo also needs to be shared with 10 friends. Unsuccessful entries for the first month will be carried forward to the second month’s draw and so forth.
-Tourism Malaysia.

Indian national a big fan of local hospitality and food

Animesh: I love Malaysia because of its greenery, vibrant culture and energy.

Fate led Animesh Mukher-jee to Malaysia and there has been no turning back since he set foot here. Being an expat for a third of his life, the New Delhi-native always knew what it was like to live away from home and make his host country a real home.

When work brought him to Kuala Lumpur in mid-2011, he decided that he would stay grounded and that was when his fondness for Malaysia grew.

“I started my career in a specialist consulting company when I was 20. By the time I was 24, I had moved to Singapore to pursue my masters degree in the National University of Singa-pore. “After completing my Master’s degree, I returned to the consulting company and started to work my way up,” said Animesh.

He was working on a project for a client in Thailand and was soon transferred to Bangkok where he was based for two years. “I felt like it was meant to be and wanted to settle down there but my boss called me up one night and told me that I would be posted to work in Malaysia for a new project. “I only had a day to decide and thought — why not? There may be more opportunities there!” said the 32-year-old.

Animesh, who lives in Mont Kiara, is no stranger to Malaysia as his work brought him here on several occasions.

He is happy staying here for many reasons — one definitely being the food. “I love Malaysia because of its greenery, vibrant culture and energy. The food is definitely something that I can’t live without and my regular haunts include banana leaf rice and curries in Bangsar. “I’m a big fan of Chinese Malaysian and Malay food, especially roti canaiand roti jala.

“But, I still can’t eat durian no matter how hard I try and I don’t think I’ll be able to appreciate it at all, unfortunately,” he said. While understanding that indulging in such rich foods can also affect his waistline, Animesh finds a good balance and maintains his weight by trekking and running.

“I like to find green areas to trek through and I’m now preparing for a marathon. “When I have even more free time, I like to laze around on the beaches of Langkawi,” said the self-confessed beach bum.

Animesh initially had to get used to some aspects of the unique Malaysian culture.

“The countries I’ve worked in are “next-door” neighbours to Malaysia and one would assume that there will be cultural similarities, but they are actually very different.

“In Singapore and Thailand, they will immediately get down to business when they have meetings.

“But Malaysians generally don’t get to that point directly, because they tend to first talk about the latest happenings in the country or elsewhere, and then only it is business.

“Malaysians are very personable people who like to share insights about certain events or issues. “But that is what makes Malaysians such warm people because building relationships and trusting others often comes first before everyone is comfortable discussing work,” he explained.

He believed that these are fundamental values that create trust and rapport and help him build his clientele. “I feel that this is a more genuine and wholesome way to interact and deal with people because we’re all human beings after all,” he expounded.

He has also adapted to the way Malaysians talk with the occassional lahat the end of some statements as well as joining in heated discussions about sports and, more predominantly, the life of Datuk Lee Chong Wei.

He added that one amusing trait of Malaysians was that they love to talk about Bollywood actors.

“Some of them think that because I am from New Delhi, I am either an actor or am related to one, but sadly I am not,” he quipped.

In the long run, Animesh sees Malaysia as the place where he wants to settle down. Although he felt the same about Thailand, Malaysia has captured his heart for the meantime.

“My stay here will also be determined by my employer because I do tend to get moved around every few years. But Malaysia as a whole has mesmerised me because of its promising future. “If the right decisions are made and actions are taken, then it can become one of the star performers in Asia.

“I personally want to see Malaysian companies become global heavyweights and there is potential for that to happen,” he said.

-thestar online.

Making Malaysia the middle point

Convenient place to stay: For Kenyon, the only setback to living in Kuala Lumpur is the traffic.

Hailing from the northeast of England, Linda Kenyon is no stranger to living far away from home. She has been in Malaysia for almost seven years, accompanying her husband who works in Kuala Lumpur for an oil company, after having lived in several other countries, including Australia and Brunei.

“Prior to Malaysia, we lived in Brunei for three years, so it’s really not that different in terms of weather. “When we were in Brunei, we used to travel to Malaysia quite often. So, we are actually quite comfortable with Malaysia,” she said.

“Here, you can do a lot more and Malaysia is an easy place to live. “We also feel quite safe compared to other countries.”

On Malaysian culture, Kenyon said: “The country is also more multi-cultural than other countries. We find Malaysians are much more relaxed and they embrace people like us foreigners well and welcome us to their country,” she said, adding that language was also not a problem as she felt that many Malaysians were well-versed in English.

Kenyon said Malaysia was also a convenient place to stay because her son lived in Australia. “We have one son in Australia and the other one is back in England, so Malaysia is like somewhere in the middle. We travel several times a year to visit both of them and it is easy for them to visit us as well,” she said.

Kenyon enjoys Malaysian food and travelling around the country. “My favourite stall is not far from where I live in Ampang,” she said.

Her favourite local destinations are Penang, Malacca and Pulau Langkawi. “Jonker Street in Malacca is one of the best places to visit.” she said, adding that one of her favourite pastimes was shopping.

“Shopping here is very convenient. It is not difficult to find whatever you want, even when it comes to ingredients that we use back in England,” she said, adding that living in Malaysia had taught her to bargain before buying something. “I’m really good at bargaining and here in Malaysia, we can still get good bargains,” she said.

“Back then, we used to have to go to cities like Bangkok and Singapore to shop for clothes. Now, it’s so convenient just to shop here. You can practically find everything you need.”

For Kenyon, the only setback to living in Kuala Lumpur is the traffic. “You could get stuck in traffic for hours if you do not know the right time. The trick is to learn when to take to the roads,” she said.

When asked about her future plans, Kenyon said it was not impossible for her and her husband to stay in Malaysia after their retirement. “I think yes, though our hearts are still in England. But, right now, we are looking at the My Second Home Programme as everything is good here — the weather, too. So, you never know.”

-thestar online.

www.mm2h.gov.my