Chinese New Year

The chinese year of the Rabbit is supposed to be a good year of opportunities for everyone. And if you are familiar with chinese tradition and culture you will know that this is a time of special rememberance and celebration and here in Malaysia almost all that can make it will try their best to travel back to their respective hometowns and to celebrate the festive season with their families and friends.

Unfortunately,I was unable to go back to Singapore due to various reasons but it is still wonderful to be able to celebrate the chinese new year with my families and friends here in Sabah which has been my home now for more than 30 years !

The Sabahan tradition of celebration festive seasons with the concept of "Open Houses" means that during such ocassions like chinese new year, many families invite their friends and families to a grand party at their respective homes and this is creating wonderful fellowships and goodwill among the various ethnic groups and races in our country.

If you are a visitor to Sabah at this time you may be also able to witness many fireworks and lion dances performed by the various chinese associations. It s also a time for fun and partying for the young who look forward to receiving generous "Ang Pow" ( Cash Gifts in little red packets ) which are usually given to unmarried family members by their parents and elders.

Always a colorful and often noisy celebration, the chinese new year season marks a break from the routine and allows many to reflect on life and their nostalgic memories of the good old days..

Many chinese people in Sabah have intermarried with the local ethnic groups and so you will find a beautiful tapestry of inter racial and inter cultural people living in harmony here in Sabah.

Learn how to cook Chinese Vegetarian Cooking for fun and profit

The food you can enjoy during the chinese New Year season are also very special and usually has a blend of recipes from all the various chinese communities as well !

Satellite Direct Television

We always knew it would happen one day !

Well our old boat anchor of a TV set finally decided to rest and no matter how many times we sent it in for repairs at the local TV Repairs Shop, the unit just developed some kind of intermittent problems. So what do you do when that happens ?

We can do without Television of course but thats not so convenient these days . We don't watch much Television but its nice to have it for a number of reasons which are obvious in our urban setting. Anyway the question was what kind of TV types, brands, models and features are we going to have as the replacement unit ?

After a day of family brainstorming.. we finally decided on a 42 inch LG LCD type Television unit which is supposed to have it all for what we need ! And it is now sitting nicely where we had the old one which had been sitting there for years !

To make it even more interesting, we opted for the upgraded subscription from our local Satellite Channel Provider , ASTRO, and signed up for their High Definition HD Beyond package ! And wow that is an overall worthwhile upgrade as we can now watch several additional channels in High Definition format..

We have also since downloaded a very interesting Satellite Direct computer based program that offers a wide variety of global Channels which we can feed into the HDMI interface on the LG Monitor ! And what a show.. it makes one wonder how much technology has advanced these days..

The Satellite Direct Program is actually designed to offer TV viewing on your Laptop or personal computers so you can have access to global Television programming even when you are on the move. It offers some 3,500 channels ! But not all are active all the time . But for what it does it is a useful program to have on your laptop if you are monitoring global or local news and events.

LINK to Satellite Direct Program

Happy Valentine's Day

Its that time of year again.. And I wish you all Happy Valentine's Day. In spite of all the ongoing global challenges, the natural disasters and the human conflicts, it is wonderful to see that love is that enduring concept that will never grow old ! I spent a quiet day with my own best friend and hubby of so many years.. as all of our children are away overseas pursuing their studies.

The years have flown by so fast it seems just like yesterday when we all gathered together for a family dinner at valentines day. But such is life..

Growing old is one fact we cannot escape from but approaching retirement is an art it seems that we can all learn to manage. As you would expect, there are a thousand and one ideas that are being shared to help slow down the aging process. Some offer herbal alternatives while others come from scientific research.

Like everyone else out there, I have collected a lot of materials which I find very interesting. A friend suggested I look at studies done on Stem Cells . Apparently a lot of research has been done and there is an interesting ebook related to the Natural Stem Cell Nutrition Therapy. I think it contains a lot of good information related to understanding how we can manage the aging process and I would love to share this with anyone that is interested.

If you are interested, just click on the link below and I will be happy to send you a free copy of the ebook.

Natural Stem Cell Nutrition Therapy

I was looking for a beautiful Valentine song and came across the version by Olivia Newton-John and Jim Brickman below. They are truly a great pair.. so talented and natural. Again.. I hope you have a beautiful and happy Valentine's day !

Atie's SAFETY PIN BROOCHES (HANDMADE)

Every country has its own local creative handicrafts and the hard working people who run small cottage businesses. And here in Sabah Malaysia it is very much the same situation. The abundance of local raw materials such as wood and bamboo as well as other base materials makes it convenient for locals to produce some of the most beautiful artwork and creative items which tourists find fascinating to take home as souvenirs of their memorable visit to Malaysia!

A good example of creativity is the making of handmade safety pin brooches. This is an art that requires fine skills as well as dedicated hands to produce very attractive and decorative items.

A very good friend Zainal and his beautiful wife Atie has a passion for creative artwork and together they have now set up a nice little cottage business where they produce and sell safety pin brooches which are very popular items for malaysian women. But the market may be larger than what they anticipate as more women become aware of this hand crafted beauty accessory.

So on your next visit to Malaysia and especially Sabah, why not check out the local handicrafts stalls and outlets so you can learn more about the many different handicrafts that are on offer. Zainal and his wife are also very happy to entertain online orders for their beautiful and colorful creations.

If you are already in Sabah,there are also many other handicrafts available at the philippines market along the water front in Kota Kinabalu. So visitors usually stop by and check out the attractive displays of wooden and bamboo crafts as well as enjoy bargaining with the vendors there.

Are you the creative type ?

Here is a way to create beautiful jewelry you can be proud to show your friends !

Personalised Jewelry you can make at home

Trying out the Good Life in Sabah

Many years back there was a very interesting program called The Good Life It was a hilarious but most entertaining TV series (see The Good Life (1971 TV series)and captured the imagination of many city dwellers who wanted to experience the simple lifestyle, a term usually associated with living in the countryside and being self sufficient in many ways.

My own family is very much into the simple things in life and we have decided to put our ideas into action on our little "hobby farm" we now call Eagle Plateau ! Yes you guessed it right ! The journey to being self sufficient and living the good life is not quite the easy path as some would have you believe.. it is tough and often full of frustrating events and situation.. certainly not for some people..

But the rewards are so wonderful and so fulfilling that we have kept on going inspite of all the challenges. And these can be chronic challenges that irritates and discourages you and are designed to make you give up on all your dreams of living the good life !

To all those who are in the same boat, we say.. hang in there and keep at it because the lessons and the skills you will learn from this lifestyle is priceless. We have learned to work with nature in ways we never thought possible before and we have tasted the beautiful and delicious fruits of our labour as we watch our little garden yield fresh avocados, pineapples, mangoes, guavas and so many other fresh tropical fruits.

We grow herbs too.. both for kitchen and healing needs and we are still learning about other herbal plants as we exchange ideas and experiences with likeminded friends from all over.Our dreams for this lifestyle; to be able to create a place for our family in a manner that the land and home will be able to look after us in a natural way without the complicated and crowded system that we so often face in our pursuit of happiness.

Our greatest advantage is our own passion and desire to pursue our dreams of living the good life and sharing it with our family and friends. We try to make our transition to this lifestyle as practical and comfortable as we can without giving up on home comforts ;) So for electric power we use the abundant radiant solar energy from the sun. Our water supply is thankfully available in abundance from our clear spring water source. And we try to use recycled materials as often as we can. Used vehicle tyres are a primary and free material that are readily available and that we use extensively in many situations, from construction use to decorative applications !

The short video clips below was a wonderful series that is still relevant in this ever challenging world of pursuing our dreams. I hope it gives you an insight into great humour and fun as you embark on this journey towards being self sufficient.

Does Life Begin at 40 after all ?

We hope you enjoyed the show ;)

If you are interested in this lifestyle it can really be a lot of fun learning to be self sufficient especially in this modern times. There are many to-do-list before you get started of course but the most obvious is your own desire to pursue your dreams ;) We are always very keen to network with likeminded friends and families who enjoy this lifestyle. So if you are interested please feel free to contact me.

How to get started in the self sufficiency lifestyle.

Edible Mushrooms in Sabah

If you love edible mushrooms, you will enjoy a visit to this little place where they prepare and wholesale DIY packs all ready for small scale home mushroom growing and production.

Mushrooms are popular in most restaurants in Malaysia especially so with the great varieties of delicious chinese dishes that use an equally large variety of mushrooms. Some popular mushrooms include truffles, enoki, chanterelle, portabella, shiitake, and oyster.

Here in Sabah, different mushroom varieties are mostly grown along the highlands where the temperature favours the healthy growth of these fungis and provides a supplementary income for local growers. On a recent visit to one of the wholesalers who supply the prepared mushroom packs to growers I found very fascinating information about the health benefits of eating mushrooms as well.

I met Mr. Hong who is an expert in growing mushrooms and apparently loves the cool temperatures in Kundasang, Sabah . And after some interesting tour of his production facility we ended up purchasing some of the mushroom packs for our own little garden. The packs are all set to produce .. all you need is to take the cotton stopper on the top opening, place them in a nice and cool shaded location, preferable placed on a convenient rack. You will need to spray the battery of mushroom packs with water in the morning and evening and then just wait patiently as you get the first batch of delicious mushrooms coming out of the top opening ! Sounds easy.. and it is !

I must admit I have more mushrooms than I can handle now so have been giving fresh mushrooms to friends whenever I can ! So if any of you are interested.. Just let me know !

The Vanilla Shop

In Sabah, every now and then something comes up that is quite interesting to write about.

Such is the case with my recent visit to the popular tourist destination for both local sabahans as well as visitors from all over. Of course the big attraction here is nothing less than majestic Mount Kinabalu standing as the tallest mountain in South East Asia.

However, that was not the only reason for me to visit this beautiful and cool tourist playground in Sabah. There are many small but cosy family cottages as well as numerous new hotels and chalets that can caters for a wide range of tourist budgets.

But my focus was on a slightly different kind of attraction as we drive past the main kundasang temperate vegetable bazzars and roadside stalls selling anything from freshly cut fruits and cabbages to handicrafts for the bustling tourist market.

I was invited to check out a new venture and a creative new addition to the wide range of products and services available in the Kundasang area. Yes I was going to visit The Vanilla Shop!

Owned and operated by Mr. Robin Ng, The Vanilla Shop is a brand new concept in selling an idea.. The main product is Vanilla of course and hence the name of the shop! But as you walk in to this creative little shop by the roadside along the Kundasang- Ranau highway, you will soon realise that Mr. Robin Ng is not your average businessman. Inside are all the passion he has for this thing called vanilla.. He has live vanilla plants, vanilla perfumes,vanilla cigarretes,vanilla sugar and a wide range of other vanilla related products ! Truly this man qualifies for the title of Mr. Vanilla. Spell this word backwords and you will see that it is the name of the business he runs this shop under !

The shop sells cute souvenirs of vanilla related too and these are specially packed for the tourists who wants to bring back an aroma of memories for friends and relatives. Ask Robin anything about vanilla and if you dont stop him he is likely to take up your whole day visit to this very fascinating vanilla outlet.

I was very fortunate to be able to learn more about what you can do with this very versatile product. You can of course use vanilla for cooking as well. And what about cake making.. ? Vanilla Ice Cream anyone ??

Anyway, if you are planning your next visit to Kundasang, you really should drive the extra kilometer to visit The Vanilla Shop for both as an educational trip as well as a memory trip.. Vanilla is a much taken for granted thing but Robin has it all for real !