Jackie Miao

If you want a reason to get off your couch, now is the time. The Sutera Harbour 7k Sunset Charity Run is just around the corner. Whether you are going to do it for charity, health and/or fun, this is the hottest active event to go to in Kota Kinabalu! With 10,000 people expected to participate, it’s the ideal event to show off your muscles to a band of screaming kids or prove to yourself that you can hit the distance with the grannies!

The best part of all is that you’ll help raise funds for the Sabah Thalassaemia Society and Special Olympics Sabah.

The run will be held on Saturday 10th July 2010. Registration costs RM25 for adults and  RM 15 for children (comes with a t-shirt). For more details on the run and where to register, visit the Sutera Harbour website. See you there!

Sometimes it takes a clear sky and a mountain to remind us of why in spite of many inconveniences, we still choose to come back to Sabah. Here’s a photo meme of Mt. Kinabalu from yesterday and today….

Taken from Tanjung Aru

It all started on Facebook when Phyllis woke up to this view from her bedroom.

Mount Kinabalu from Jalan Tuaran

Then I looked out my bedroom window, headed downstairs and took this shot. (I was actually closer than Phyllis to Mt. Kinabalu but my camera was crappier.)

Mt Kinabalu from where Bob is. Yea, with his toy heli.

Bob flew his toy heli in front of his view and took this one. The helicopter almost looks real doesn’t it?

Cornelius took this from Pekan Nabalu from his mobile

Last but not least, here’s a shot of Mt. Kinabalu this morning from Cornelius Chua. Isn’t that just breathtaking? Thank you for sharing your beautiful photos with me.

P/S: If you would like to share your Mt. Kinabalu shot with me, email your picture to me with the time, date and location of where it was taken to jackiemiao.my(at)gmail.com. Remember to let me know how to credit you.

I thought I’d take a break from the last two posts about my Hong Kong trip and tell you that my dad’s restaurant Stone Bridge Galley now serves Bangers and Mash! Come on over to Asia City(same block as Mercedes dealer Hap Seng Auto) for a yummy and affordable treat this December!

Did you know that there’s a deep house music scene brewing in Kota Kinabalu? Last Saturday night, I was invited by Amir Yusoff to attend the Moondance “Groove Your Mind” event at Luna Rossa.

Crowd consisted of local socialites and expats

Surprisingly, the turn out of the crowd was pretty good. When I moved back to Kota Kinabalu in 2002, the city just wasn’t ready to embrace deep house music back then. Today it is a different story as K.K. has grown tremendously and the city is now home to many more expatriates and repatriates. It wasn’t the right time then but it looks like it may be the right time now.

It was a pretty good turnout

Luna Rossa is just a beautiful space for this purpose, spotting a fusion of Indomalay ethnic wood carvings, statues, tactile fixtures and great mood lighting. It has the right ambiance for the delivery of tasteful beats into the bloodstreams of its visitors, a big factor to why people flocked to the dance floor with nothing but funky tunes as their cue.

Deep house lovers getting their groove on

In fact, I heard someone say the event had the vibe of Ku De Ta in Bali, while another person said it felt like he was chilling in a trendy lounge bar in Jakarta. Judging from the success of that night, I wouldn’t be surprised if people are hoping Amir Yusoff will continue to bring high quality groove parties to K.K.

People sitting at the garden area

Here are some more pictures from that night. I couldn’t resist posting the cutest pose yet from Mel C making the Asian peace sign(lower left photo), while she proudly displays the bag she ordered from TheBagBar.com.

Picture of and with people

It takes a special person to be able to pull off a parody of the sacred sign without offending those who swear by it. She kind of just whipped her finger up to her face really fast, half-ashamed of her dorkiness, as if to say she only means it if nobody’s looking (because she actually means it). Haha. This is why I love Mel… she’s such a beautiful person! Meanwhile, Sue was just giving me a hard time with the faces. She left me no choice but to use this shot of her where she’s kind of pulling a dodo face, but it’s better than scaring the children and furry animals away!

Pictures of and with people

Last but not least, here’s a shot of Amir and his partner getting some freestyle acoustic action in as additional layers to compliment the electronic tracks. The percussion just blended so well, and that isn’t always true everytime you see a set of bongos come out at clubs. In addition to being good and having a great track selection, what really sets a perfect routine apart from an “almost” great one is knowing just how much to give the crowd (no more, no less) and this level of groovy can only come from a combination of talent for rhythm and extensive experience in entertaining live, which is where Amir truly shines.

The multi-talented Amir on the bongo

To sum it up, the bad news is Luna Rossa isn’t a permanent lounge bar that offers house music on a weekly basis yet. When there aren’t any special events they operate strictly as a restaurant and wine bar. The good news however, is that Amir works with the most sought-after DJs in the region, and has plans to organize more of these parties in Kota Kinabalu as long as there is a demand for them.

If you missed this great event and are interested in attending the next one, follow Amir’s updates at FreestyleAvenue.com.

First of all, I’d like to thank our regular customers for your patience over the past two weeks, as we worked to get the new place ready for your enjoyment. We know a “bacon-and-sausage-less” existence is no light matter as we’ve been made aware from some of your despondent cries to bring the bacon back ASAP! I thought I’d share with you the monster we had to transform (what was the former Big J coffee shop at Asia City).

The former Big J at Asia City

And here’s what it looks like now a few short weeks later. Wait for it, wait for it… Taaaadaaaa!

The new and improved Stone Bridge Galley

Behold! I present to you the brand new Stone Bridge Galley. Kudos to a job well done from everybody, from the contractors to our staff, but most of all to my dad whose propensity to get the job done never ceases to amaze me. Maybe a small pat on my own back for the time spent being a “pain in the ass” where it’s due.

As you can see, we wasted no time at all and I am happy to announce that Stone Bridge Galley reopened for business at the new location starting from yesterday October 13th, 2009. The new restaurant is spotting a big and bright sunshiny sign (like a glass of orange cordial) next to Bank Muamalat, which is on the same block as the Mercedes Benz showroom (Hap Seng Auto) at Asia City.

The new Stone Bridge Galley at Asia City

Apart from our signature Homemade Bacon and Pork Sausages, we have expanded our menu to include Charcoal Oven-Roasted Rosemary Lamb, and very soon we will be offering English Slow-Roasted Pork with Apple Sauce for dinner.

We have kept most of our Asian favorites like Ngiu Lam Mee, Chicken Mushroom Noodles and African Pepper Stew on the menu and added traditional Hakka dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Here’s a picture of one of our daytime signature Hakka creation, the savory Moi Choy Pork Noodles (Konlaumein).

Moi Choy Pork Noodles

In the coming days I’ll be sharing more food photos. Come and say hello and try some of our dishes!

Stone Bridge Galley is open daily from 7:00am – 3:00pm for breakfast and lunch, 3:00pm – 6:00pm for tea, and 6:00pm – 10:00pm for dinner.