World tour cyclist stops in his tracks for durian

Chang Chiao enjoying his Balik Pulau durian.

GEORGE TOWN: The lure of the famed Balik Pulau durian has proven to be so irresistible that a Taiwanese cyclist has temporarily put the brakes on his current world tour.

Chang Chiao-Chung has arrived in Balik Pulau to enjoy the delicious Malaysian 'king of fruits'. The 28-year-old, from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, said the aroma of the durian had lured him here and he wants to try some durians, especially the branded ones.

"I just arrived here last Friday and have put durians on my must-try list of fruits in Penang. "I tasted the frozen durian fruit in Thailand a few months ago, but the fresh durians here are totally different...and I like the yellowish-coloured durian," he told Bernama when met at the 1818 Durian and Fruit dealer store on Tuesday.

Chang said he loved the creamy and smooth texture of the durian and was seen buying a few durians from the store. "Malaysia is my fifth stop after China, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. After this, I will head for Australia to work for a few months to earn pocket money before continuing my journey to New Zealand, European countries, United States and South America before returning to Taiwan," he said.

Chang recalled that the plan to cycle around the world came after he felt bored with his working environment as maintenance officer in a communications company in Taipei, Taiwan, where he had worked for six years.

"I want to explore and learn new things, and that is my reason to cycle around the world. I have found Malaysia to be a very unique multiracial and multicultural country where the people live in peace and harmony," he said.

Chang said, while he enjoyed the food here, the only dish he would truly miss when he left Malaysia this Sunday, would be the glutinous rice dumpling.

Besides being synonymous for its Laksa Balik Pulau, the place is also famous for its durian plantations which include 'Musang King' or 'Mau Shan Wang', Little Red or 'Xiao Hong', Water Gourd or 'Hor Lor' and Red Prawn or 'Ang Heh'. A kilogramme of these durians could reach up to RM50.

-Bernama/thestar online.

KL among top 10 on global destination cities index

KUALA LUMPUR ranks eighth among 132 destination cities in the world based on total international overnight visitor arrivals, according to MasterCard’s third annual Global Destination Cities Index.

MasterCard global economic adviser Dr Yuwa Hedrick-Wong said, for this year, overnight visitor arrivals is forecasted to be 9.2 million, a 3.9% increase from 8.86 million in last year.

Total international overnight visitor spending is forecast to be US$7.8bil (RM24mil) this year, up 18% from US$6.4bil, which puts Kuala Lumpur in 13th place relative to the other global destination cities and seventh within Asia Pacific.

Moving up two spots from last year, Yuwa said Kuala Lumpur is in a strong position to sustain a very robust level of growth. “It has its advantage due to its connection with countries in the Middle East, which is quite unique for asian destination cities.

“Obviously, there are many issues that Middle East countries find comfortable in Malaysia on the basis of religion and shared practices, apart from other interesting factors and this will definitely continue to boost the number of international visitors,” said Yuwa after a media briefing and launching of the third annual MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index 2013 at the St. Regis Bangkok, Thailand recently.

On how the city can further boost and promote investment, Yuwa said this can be brought about with public and private sector partnership. “The public sector has to increase investments in public infrastructure, facilities and local transport system to ensure traffic jam is reduced and the environment is protected.

“However, private businesses have their roles to play, too, by investing in better restaurants and hotels, among other things. “When this partnership is sustained, we can have a virtual circle, which sees an improvement in the quality of life contributing towards more visitor arrivals,” he said.

Among countries in Asia, Kuala Lumpur came in third, outranking developed cities such as Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai, Tokyo, Taipei, Beijing and Guangzhou.

The index also revealed Kuala Lumpur’s five most important feeder cities, which are Singapore, Jakarta, Bangkok, Melbourne and Manila. Earlier during the launch, Bangkok was announced as the No.1 city for travel this year, beating London, which was in the top spot for last year.

While surpassing London by a slim margin, Bangkok demonstrated growth rates of better than 18% in 2011 and last year, with further 9.8% growth this year.
The study looked at the highest international visitor numbers in 2013, with London, Paris, Singapore and New York rounding the top five.

A noticeable trend in this year’s report was the dominance of the Asia Pacific region. Of the 132 cities ranked, 42 are Asian countries. Bangkok is followed by Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai, Tokyo and five of the top 10 in 2013 are in the Greater China region.

The MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities ranks cities in terms of the number of their total international visitor arrivals and the cross-border spending by these same visitors in the destination cities, and gives visitors and passenger growth forecasts for this year.
-thestar online.

Malindo Air to start flights to India and Singapore after August

Going places: Capt Zokri Abd Manaf (right) posing with Malindo Air crew before the inaugural flight from the SkyPark Terminal in Subang to Kota Baru, Kelantan. The hybrid airline will have four ATR72-600 propeller aircraft and 10 B737-900ER planes by the end of the year.

KOTA BARU: More than two months after starting its operations, Malindo Air is already talking about expansion to India and Singapore.

After August, the hybrid airline will start operating flights to India and Singapore. It will fly to three destinations in India New Delhi, Trichy and Cochin.
To support its expansion, it will add aircraft to its fleet and by year-end, its fleet will consist of 14 aircraft, four ATR72-600 propeller aircraft and 10 B737-900ER planes.

Head of corporate sales and governmental relations Raja Sa'adi Raja Amrin said that Malindo planned to add four new ATR72-600 planes from Toulouse, France next year, bringing its total short-haul fleet to eight planes.

“We are using the latest of the ATR series to service destinations in Peninsular Malaysia where jet operations are not that practical,” he said after the inaugural flight from SkyPark Terminal in Subang to Kota Baru, Kelantan yesterday.

Malindo started operations in Malaysia on March 23. With the ATR72-600 propeller planes, it currently flies to Penang and Kota Baru. Meanwhile, the two B747-900ER planes it has, service flights to Kota Kinabalu and Kuching.

Raja Sa'adi said that by the end of this month, Malindo would operate flights to Johor, Sibu, Miri and Tawau. The airline is also looking to add Langkawi and Terengganu to its destinations list.

“Our emergence from Subang SkyPark has been well received by the public. The great response since the launch of our ATR72-600 ticket sales on May 17 is so encouraging, and we are very pleased with a 100% passenger capacity from Kota Baru to Subang,” chief executive officer Chandran Rama Muthy said in a statement.

Raja Sa'adi said Malindo was a hybrid airline because its services were akin to full-serviced airlines while the fares it offered were lower than budget airlines.
Its all-inclusive fares include in-flight entertainment, food as well as baggage allowance. In August, the airline will offer in-flight WiFi services to passengers for a small fee, Raja Sa'adi said.

He added that it was possible for the airline to reach the million-passengers mark by year end, following addition of aircraft as well as upcoming Hari Raya celebrations.

In May, the airline recorded 100,000 passengers, double the number of passengers in the previous month. The airline will induct 100 aircraft in the next 10 years and will initially serve routes with distances of up to five hours from Malaysia. Malindo is a 51:49 joint venture between Malaysia's National Aerospace and Defence Industries Sdn Bhd and Indonesian's PT Lion Group, which owns Lion Air and Wings Air.
-thestar online.

Dino Island @ Legoland Malaysia

-PelanconganKini.

Malindo dangles cash incentive for travel consultants

Malindo Air has launched a two-month long incentive programme in the hopes of growing its 700-strong base of travel consultants by threefold.
 
Between June 1 and July 31, travel consultants who issue tickets for FITs via the airline’s B2B system will receive a cash reward. Consultants will earn RM8 (US$2.60) per passenger for meeting monthly sales targets of 100-250 passengers per segment, RM10 per passenger for 251-500 passengers, RM12 per passenger for more than 501 passengers.
 
Consultants also stand to earn RM50 per passenger per segment for business class tickets. Commissions will be calculated at the end of June and July, and the incentive paid out by the 15th of the following month.
 
Malindo Air CEO, Chandran Rama Muthy, said: “We are a (consultant) friendly airline and we wish to reward (those) who help us fly with high loads…Our services between Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu, Kuching registered average loads of 80 per cent.
 
“The scheme is timely as we are about to launch new turboprop services out of Subang Skypark to Johor Bahru, Kota Bharu and Penang on Monday (June 3) and commence new jet services from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Sibu (June 11), Miri (June 14) and Tawau (June 26)”.
-TTG Asia.

FLORIA 2013 - Putrajaya Flower & Garden Festival (22~30 June 2013)

FLORIA, Putrajaya Flower & Garden Festival is set to stir up a storm once again over 9 days from 22^nd June 2013.

The annual flower show is now an iconic event for Putrajaya - being its biggest event thus far with more than a million visitors recorded at last year’s event that featured 16 international participants and more than 100,000 bougainvillea plants of varied species and cultivar showcased in 82 landscaped garden plots. This year, the ever popular Orchid makes a comeback at FLORIA 2013 themed Orchid – Tropical Treasure.

Putrajaya Flower & Garden Festival 2013
Date: 22-30 June 2013
Venue: Waterfront, Precinct 2, Putrajaya
Theme: Orchid - Tropical Treasure

Opening Hours:
9.00 a.m - 10.00 pm (Mon - Thurs)
9.00 a.m- 12.00 midnight (Fri - Sun)

Festival Highlight

Flowers Galore, The Grand Flower Bed as the centrepiece of the event has become an annual draw for visitors, a spectacular display of colour with flowers in full bloom.  In addition to exceptional displays of the theme flower - orchid, expect to see roses, heliconia, hibiscus, bonsai, herbs and much more.

Showcase Gardens by various associations, organizations, schools, and commercial gardeners will afford visitors a glimpse of exhibitors’ green fingers and garden design talents.

Royal Garden, a resplendent tropical garden aglow in royal yellow will certainly be a sight to behold.

Tea Party Garden affords visitors a welcome respite in the form of a cafe in a garden setting offering various flavours of tea served with scones, cup cakes, muffins, cookies and fried bananas (pisang goreng).  

Floral Pavilion is the ever popular air-conditioned indoor space for floral displays by international and local exhibitors that never fails to wow! visitors.

Petting Zoo: With adorable animals and interesting creatures, petting zoos are a hit with the kids and parents alike. Nothing draws attention like cute little animals around you.  Experience the thrill of petting animals that include rabbits, snakes, birds, iguanas, hamsters and more. Get the chance to feed the animals and take memorable pictures with your favourite animal at the Petting Zoo.

Orchid Competition will see the best orchids on display at FLORIA 2013 vying for the prestigious award(s).

Garden Bazaar is a horticultural market where visitors can buy plants, garden products, outdoor furniture, play equipment, biotech products, landscaping services and more.

Laman Seni or 'Art Square' is an exhibition and retail space for arts and crafts inspired by nature.

Longest Landscaped Vertical Wall, as its name suggests will be an iconic 300m landscaped wall that may just find its way into the Malaysia Book of Records.

Designer Gardens, 5 local landscape architects/designers and 4 international designers will put their best design on display at the flower and garden show.

Activities include flower arranging contests, gardening demonstrations, cooking workshops, nature themed photography and watercolour competitions.

Entertainment is accorded by street entertainers, brass bands, cheer leading and fireworks displays while parents welcome a respite with the ‘kiddyland’ that keeps children occupied.

Food is aplenty and visitors are spoilt for choice with the variety available from food retailers and fruit sellers with souvenir shops also offering items at affordable prices.

Nightly Floral Parade, The 1 Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade 2013 which runs simultaneously with FLORIA 2013 will feature brightly illuminated floats cruising upon Putrajaya Lake in nightly splendour.

 -Perbadanan Putrajaya.
http://www.ppj.gov.my/putrajayafloria/floria.html

Makan angin berbasikal

Putrajaya: Sebanyak 184 pakej berbasikal Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia (CC1M) disediakan Tourism Malaysia di seluruh negara selaras dengan usaha mempromosi pelancongan berbasikal di kalangan pelancong tempatan dan luar negara.

Ketua Pengarah Tourism Malaysia Datuk Mirza Mohammad Taiyab berkata, pakej itu dibangunkan dengan kerjasama 91 agensi pelancongan tempatan dan turut mendapat sokongan Tourism Malaysia peringkat negeri.
“Pakej ini mula diperkenalkan pada Disember 2011 bermula di Putrajaya iaitu Pakej Berbasikal Menjelajah Putrajaya dan terbaru Pakej Istimewa Tersang di Raub, Pahang pada 24 Mac lalu.

“Sepanjang 2012, nilai keseluruhan pakej berbasikal yang sudah terjual di seluruh negara adalah RM411,180 dan ini menunjukkan ia mendapat sambutan menggalakkan daripada peminat sukan ini, sekali gus membolehkan mereka terus berbasikal walaupun sedang bercuti bersama keluarga,” katanya pada sidang media selepas menyertai kayuhan kategori VVIP pada acara Harian Metro Mountain Bike Grand Prix Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia 2013 di sini, semalam.

Peserta wanita dibantu petugas kejohanan mengangkat basikal.

Turut hadir, Pengarang Kumpulan Harian Metro Datuk Mustapa Omar, Timbalan Pengarang Kumpulan, Abdul Ghafar Ismail, Pengarah Perkhidmatan Korporat Perbadanan Putrajaya (PPj) Datuk Muhamad Haitamin Ishak dan Timbalan Presiden Persekutuan Kebangsaan Berbasikal Malaysia (PKBM) Datuk Naim Mohamad.
-myMetro online.

Langkawi in the spotlight

LANGKAWI: A 13.35ha eco-theme park and an exclusive island resort will be built here over the next four years to increase tourist arrivals and tourism receipts.

The RM700mil park will be an “eco-expansion” of the Oriental Village, an outdoor lifestyle and shopping mall with a boutique hotel located at the foothills of Mount Machincang on the north-western part of the island. The main attraction there is currently the Langkawi Cable Car.

A key attraction in the theme park will be an immersive Omnidome 3D flight to be created in partnership with National Geographic and named Flight Over Langkawi. The omnidome is a 3D-theatre which will showcase the beauty of the island. It will be built in the 4ha first phase of the park which is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2015.

Other components of this phase include a bio-dome which will showcase the flora and fauna of Langkawi, a cultural village with an amphitheatre and a 250-room hotel. The second phase will include tree-top walks, rope bridges, a wilderness adventure park, a VIP tree-top resort and more hotels.

The RM500mil exclusive resort, to be known as The Sultan’s Palace, will be built over 9ha on Pulau Intan Besar which is a 1.6km boat ride southwest from the main Langkawi island. It will, among others, have 100 luxury suites and 17 high-end villas within a natural paradise.

The resort is scheduled to be built at the same time as the second phase of the eco-theme park, with both scheduled to be completed in 2017.
A Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to implement the two projects was signed between Pekan Artisan Sdn Bhd and the Langkawi Development Authority (Lada) at a hotel here yesterday. Lada will provide the land for the projects while Pekan Artisan, which is a tourism resort and high impact attraction developer, will build them.

Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir, who witnessed the signing of the MoA, said the eco-theme park would help achieve the targeted RM3.8bil tourism receipts for Langkawi by 2015 compared to RM2.6bil last year.

Lada chief executive officer Tan Sri Khalid Ramli said Langkawi recorded more than three million tourist arrivals last year, surpassing Lada’s target of three million for 2015. Khalid also said Lada had set a target of RM5bil in private sector investments in various tourism products by 2015.

Pekan Artisan chief executive officer Robert Wyatt said the first phase attractions of the eco-theme park were scheduled to be open in time for the Asean Summit 2015 which is slated to be held in Langkawi in April that year.
He expected the park to attract 1.2 million visitors annually by 2017.
-thestar online.

Pakej melancong Bonanza 3

Ab. Rahman (kanan sekali) serta wakil syarikat penerbangan semasa pelancaran Pakej Melancong Bonanza 3 di Kuala Lumpur baru-baru ini.

HEBAT! Sekali lagi POTO Travel & Tours Sdn Bhd melancarkan Pakej Melancong Bonanza 3 selepas mencapai kejayaan yang cemerlang sebelum ini. Syarikat pelancongan milik bumiputera ini menawarkan pakej pelancongan baru antaranya Menerokai Dua Negara Sarajevo - Istanbul, Menghayati Keindahan Bumi Balkan dan Kembara ke Amerika Selatan.

Tawaran bersempena Pakej Melancong Bonanza 3 bermula pada musim luruh iaitu 1 September hingga 31 Oktober 2013 dan pelanggan boleh mula menempah sekarang sehingga 31 Julai 2013.

Ketua Pegawai Eksekutifnya, Ab. Rahman Mohd. Ali berkata, pelbagai destinasi baru diperkenalkan pada pakej kali ini dengan harga tawaran murah dan menarik.

“Walaupun pelanggan membeli dengan harga murah tetapi jangan risau kerana perkhidmatan yang disediakan pasti memuaskan hati dan berkualiti.
“Kami sentiasa meningkatkan taraf perkhidmatan dengan menaikkan taraf kualiti hotel dari tiga ke empat bintang, bas yang digunakan kurang lima tahun, pemilihan restoran halal bertaraf lebih tiga bintang serta pemilihan ketua pelancong yang bertanggungjawab dan berpengetahuan dan telah mengikuti kursus ketua pelancongan," katanya semasa melancarkan Pakej Melancong Bonanza 3 di Kuala Lumpur baru-baru ini.

“Selain itu, kami turut mendapat rakan pengurusan darat di luar negara yang memahami budaya dan kehendak pelanggan POTO Travel," katanya yang akan menambahkan tiga lagi cawangan di Kuantan, Seremban dan Kuching dalam masa terdekat.

Ab. Rahman menambah pihaknya mensasarkan 3,500 tempat duduk bagi Pakej Bonanza 3 dan berharap akan mendapat melebihi 85 peratus sama seperti Pakej Bonanza 1 dan 2 sebelum ini. “Lebih istimewa selain pakej menarik dan mampu milik, kami berbesar hati menawarkan harga istimewa bagi warga emas berusia 55 tahun ke atas," katanya.

Untuk maklumat lanjut mengenai promosi itu boleh hubungi POTO Travel & Tours di talian 03-92006640 (ibu pejabat); 03-88888640 (cawangan Putrajaya); 07-9326640 (cawangan Segamat) atau 07-2346640 (cawangan Johor Bahru atau layari laman web www.pototravel.com.my.
-utusan online.

Kedah focuses on attracting over three million tourist a year, says Mukhriz

Mukhriz giving a speech at the signing of a memorandum of agreement between the Langkawi Development Authority (Lada) and Pekan Artisan Sdn Bhd.

LANGKAWI: The Kedah government's main focus will be on attracting more than three million tourists a year to Langkawi, with a projected annual tourism-related gross income of RM3.8bil by 2015.

Mentri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Tun Mahathir said that last year, revenue receipts from the approximately three million recorded tourist arrivals in Langkawi amounted to about RM2.6bil. "We have to push harder to realise our goal. It's not easy to achieve the target for Langkawi because of the stiff competition within the region from Bali and Phuket.

"In order to be two or three steps ahead of them, we must act out of the box," he said on Sunday after witnessing the signing of a memorandum of agreement between the Langkawi Development Authority (Lada) andPekan Artisan Sdn Bhd which will see two exclusive and innovative development projects in Langkawi.

The memorandum was signed by Lada chief executive officer Tan Sri Khalid Ramli and Pekan Artisan chief operating officer, Saifful Azhar Sabaruddin. Pekan Artisan is a tourism resort and high-impact attraction developer.

In another development, Mukhriz said the state government had officially issued orders to temporarily stop two projects involving land clearing activities implemented by the previous PAS-led state administration, in Pedu and Gunung Inas, Baling. He said the orders were issued against an agro-tourism project near the Pedu dam as well as the Ladang Rakyat rubber plantation initiative in Gunung Inas.

Last month, Mukhriz announced that the Kedah government would suspend all logging activities in the state, pending a study on their impact on the environment and the people's livelihood. He said this followed complaints from villagers that logging activities in their areas had affected the supply and quality of water.

-Bernama/thestar online.

Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix 2013 (11~13 October 2013)

By popular demand, Sepang International Circuit (SIC), promoter and organizer of the 2013 Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix, will be extending its MotoGP Early Bird promotions until the end of July.

“Fans can still get enjoy our discounts until end of the month. So fans, get your tickets now as there'll be no more extension after this,” SIC Chief Executive Officer Datuk Razlan Razali announced today.

With the promotional rates, fans can get their Main Grandstand tickets at only RM103 as compared to RM153; and K1 Grandstand tickets to RM63 against a normal price of RM103 for a full weekend.

“F Grandstand tickets would be RM43 each if you purchase them now,” said Razlan adding that open Hillstand tickets at B and K2 seating areas would be selling at normal prices at RM21 per day per entry for Saturday and Sunday.

Entry for Friday on October 13 at the 2013 Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix would be free. 

Malaysia hosts Round 15 of the 18-leg MotoGP World Championship from October 11 to 13, 2013, which looks sets to be an exciting affair especially after a thrilling season-opener in Qatar last weekend.

Returning to Yamaha after an unsuccessful two-year stint with Ducati, Valentino Rossi produced some of his old magic to finish second behind his Factory Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo; with sensational MotoGP rookie Marc Marques taking third place.

Spain's Pol Espargaro took first place in Moto2. But, it was the Japanese Takaaki Nakagami, who caught the attention of many after a commanding performance in the opening leg; finishing third behind Britain's Scott Redding.

Moto3 was topped by Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Luis Salom with his Malaysian team-mate Zulfahmi Khairuddin finishing a commendable sixth.

“The championship can only get more exciting as the season progresses. So, my advice to all MotoGP fans is to immediately pick up this offer and make a date with us in October.

“No MotoGP fan would want to miss the event this year and see your idols live at the circuit,” Razlan said.

-www.AirAsiaRedtix.com

Festival in full bloom with orchids, bonsais

GEORGE TOWN: Everything is coming up roses for the annual Penang Floral Festival where the “stars” of the show are the orchid, bonsai and adenium.

About 50,000 visitors are expected to attend the eight-day festival at the Penang Botanic Gardens’ car park area in Jalan Kebun Bunga from now till June 9. With the theme “Penang Floral Paradise”, the festival will feature, among others, 57 classes of orchids.

“In total, we have about 900 orchid plants of various species and hybrids, brought in by orchid growers and enthusiasts from all over the country,” said Federation of Malaya Orchid Society vice-president Tony Tan.

“There will also be orchid shows on certain days of the festival and talks by our experts on how to grow and manage the plants,” he said at the Gardens yesterday.

The Friends of the Penang Botanic Gardens will hold a Nature Education Programme daily during the festival from 9am to noon at the Gardens’ car park, hawkers’ complex and Botanika Outreach.

The activities include canvas shopping bag printing, T-shirt printing and a children’s programme. There will also be talks on plants as well as methods to regrow plants and composting techniques.

T-shirts, canvas bags, fertilisers, leaf crafts, quilled cards and painted glass bottles will also be on sale.

The Penang Floral Festival 2013 is open from 9am to 7pm daily. Admission is free. The festival is jointly organised by the state Tourism Office, Penang Art Society (Bonsai and Suiseki Division), Federation of Malaya Orchid Society and the Penang Botanic Gardens.

-thestar online.

Class acts at George Town Festival

Sutra’s 17 Shaolin monks in an intense dance piece.

Immerse yourself in arts and culture for a whole month at the George Town Festival (GTF) 2013 beginning June 7. Now in its fourth year, GTF offers an array of art, music and the performing arts.

Parading acts from both the international and local scenes, this annual festival has inadvertently transformed George Town, and by extension the island of Penang itself, into a melting pot of arts and culture.

This year, expect to be marvelled by more than 80 events, all ready to transport you into a world of beauty, music and hope. Renowned Italian chamber music group I Musici will surely delight your ears with their contemplative interpretation of classical pieces.

If fusion is your thing, then you will not want to miss Sutra, a novel dance work inspired by the skill, strength and spirituality of the Shaolin monks. In what promises to be an enthralling visual spectacle and a heart-pumping experience, Sutra will feature 17 monks directly from the original Shaolin Temple in China.

For a hearty laugh, don’t miss Singapore comedian, the extraordinary Kumar with his rapid-fire and no hold barred jokes of, well, everybody.

But if you reckon the GTF is going to run your pockets dry, fret not! This time around, the festival’s goal is to make arts and the international performances accessible to everyone. This means affordable tickets, starting as low as RM20; some shows are even free! “We want to emphasise on accessibility and interaction, so to make it accessible, we have priced international performances like Sutra at only RM20 so that everyone can enjoy it,” shared festival director Joe Sidek.

Catch these class acts and many more at the 2013 George Town Festival which runs from June 7 to July 7.

> For more information, contact (04)-261 6308 or info@georgetownfestival.com and get the full list of the programmes on georgetownfestival.com.

-thestar online.

Malaysia Airlines Increase Frequency to Phuket

Subang, 31 May 2013: Malaysia Airlines is increasing its weekly frequency from Kuala Lumpur into Phuket to 26 times weekly with the introduction of one new daily service. This service will begin on 1 June 2013.

In conjunction with the introduction of this new frequency, Malaysia Airlines is offering all-in return economy class promotional fares of only RM222 for travel from Kuala Lumpur to Phuket. Booking for these fares are from now till 10^th June 2013, valid for travel from 1 June 2013 - 31 July 2013. This promotional fare is valid on MH798, MH799 and MH794 only.

The additional service, MH798 will depart daily from Kuala Lumpur at 4.55am and arrive Phuket at 5.10am while the return flight MH799 will depart Phuket at 6.15am and arrive Kuala Lumpur at 8.45am. This addition was incorporated following greater demand from the market.

Meanwhile, the existing MH794 depart from Kuala Lumpur at 1.05pm and arrive Phuket at 1.20pm.

A two-class configured Boeing 737-800 aircraft with 144 economy class seats and 16 business class seats will be used for this service.

Malaysia Airlines Senior Regional Vice President, Malaysia, Muzammil Mohamad said, "Phuket is a great tourist attraction and it is one of the few places where there is always something to do, rain or shine. Malaysians have always had Phuket in their must go places. The beautiful islands, the unique blend of colonial and Chinese architecture and the beautiful temples such as Wat Chalong are all a definite crowd puller, he added.

Tourist from around the world also flock Phuket for its delicious food varieties. Thai cuisine is world-famous for its blend of exotic flavours.

Book your travels on Malaysia Airlines through all distribution channels mainly www.malaysiaairlines.com, Malaysia Airlines 24 hours toll free number 1-300-88-3000,Malaysia Airlines ticket offices and appointed agents throughout Malaysia.

-Malaysia Airlines.

Second installment of Kuantan Century

All set: Mohd Sharkar (second from right), Idros (second from left) and Ishak (extreme right) showing the cyclists jerseys to be worn in the coming Kuantan Century Ride.

KUANTAN: Up to 1,839 cyclists, both local and international, will be taking part in the 160km Kuantan Century Ride on June 2.

State Culture and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Sharkar Shamsuddin said the ride, which was in its second consecutive year would comprise both professional and amateur riders.

“They are either cyclists who will make the ride as their endurance test or take it as a family outing,” he said after launching the Kuantan CenturyRide 2013 here recently.

He said 534 of them were cyclists from Italy, Holland, Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia and China. Singaporeans make up the most number with 432 cyclists. Some 1,305 of them are locals from all over the country with 389 cyclists from Selangor.

“Cycling has become a tourist attraction in Pahang with several events organised and more to be held in the near future. The thousands of them visiting Pahang will definitely contribute to an economic spillover in the state as they will be spending on accommodation, food and other neccessities.

“The benefits that we will gain would not end just like that because they will return to the state in their following visits not only for cycling activities as Pahang has many other attractions for holiday makers,” Mohd Sharkar said.

Also present were Tourism & Culture Ministry Office general manager Idros Yahya and State Tourism Agency Bukit Fraser Development Corporation deputy manager Ishak Mokhtar.

Mohd Sharkar, who was recently appointed as the Culture and Tourism Committee chairman said despite reaching the middle of the year, he was optimistic of meeting the target of 10.5 million tourist arrivals in Pahang. He said this was because Pahang is a peaceful and harmonious state and the government had been emphasing on continuous development to benefit the people at all levels.

He also said that after the general election, Pahang was looking forward to becoming a prosperous state and since the tourism industry was the second biggest source of state revenue, the government is committed to provide further facilities for the industry to continue developing.

“There will be further additional attractions in the tourism aspect apart from the present ones. Our education facilities of international standard for example has been contributing much to the continuous visit by foreigners while at the same time we will provide for the betterment of the products available,” he said.

During the ceremony, Mohd Sharkar also received sponsorships from more than 10 companies to support the cycling event.

-thestar online.

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.