Three years on, Breeze magazine will throw their most exciting anniversary party to date, from 8pm onwards, 26th March 2011 at JUGS Sportsbar. Are you ready to have an amazing evening, mingling around secret agents and Malaysian celebrities? Moreover, you get a free drink with your cover charge of RM15.

The hip-hop label MoveMint’s Vandal and Nadhira will fly in from Kuala Lumpur to appear at the dress-up party. (Listen to Nadhira here).

For more information, visit their event page here.

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.

I was woken up by the roaring storm at 6:30am this morning in Kota Kinabalu, what is a milder version of the same system that brought the colossally damaging typhoon Parma turned Storm Parma (no, not the lovely ham or the place it’s from) that sank 80% of Manila last week. Almost three hours later, the worst of the sky’s weeping seems to be over as the rain is now showing some signs of relenting. However, the pit-a-patter can’t exactly be called a drizzle yet as it is definitely making its presence known.

This morning, I have put on hold a list of to-do items (before heading to Singapore tomorrow) to listen to the real Rhythm of the Falling Rain. Somehow, the hydro-aural therapy has brought about a sense of introspection that must be explored.

Even the dogs across the road have surrendered to its charm. With old-world jazz in the background playing as another layer, I can’t help but be grateful to be alive. As I type this, so many people are displaced in Samoa, Manila and Padang right now as you and I are building better dreams. If you can offer that bit of aid, you can help the recent victims here.

With dogs giving clues and my intuition as a cue, I’m going to breathe in the surplus of fresh oxygen in the air while I take a break from life’s labors to appreciate the simplicity of being. Easy-peasy is the order of the day!

Correction: The original post has been altered based on new information this evening.

Hello everyone! Apologies for not having been too active on my blog of late. I’ve been colossally busy with work, life and am traveling again in two days.

Anyhow, this short note is to notify all our customers that we will be closed at the present location (Pirates Bar) immediately, as we are moving Stone Bridge Galley to our own shop lot just further down the block toward the front of Asia City. After testing the market with our unique offering at a food court, we are now ready to provide our customers with a space to enjoy their breakfasts and beyond!

Stone Bridge Galley restaurant will reopen on 13th October 2009, where we will be serving our homemade pork bacon and pork sausages. I will be providing more details in the coming days, but the new place is on the same block as the Mercedes Benz dealer Hap Seng in Asia City, just next to the Muamalat Bank.

We apologize for another convenience caused. We know how important real bacon and sausages are to you Thanks for your patience and support as we work toward expanding our operations to give you a most satisfying experience. For more information please call +6.088.269.987. Have a fabulous day!

Three weeks ago, I decided to come out of the pot of hermetic stew that I’ve allowed myself to simmer in since I came back to Kota Kinabalu. I couldn’t find a better excuse to officiate my first night out clubbing in K.K. than by attending a friend’s repatriation spinning event at Blue Note.

DJ Fine China doing his thang!

DJ Fine China (Jonathan Ngu) is an international DJ who made himself a name in Western Australia’s night scene. Recently relocated back to Kota Kinabalu, Jon has also played in various cities around the world including Kuala Lumpur, Vancouver, Brisbane, and Melbourne. Recently nominated for the Best Breaks DJ at the PDMA’s (Perth Dance Music Awards), his own style of mixing breaks with a charm that inspires sideliners to take to the floor is every reason you should show up in dancing shoes!

DJ Fine China | Photo credits: Amie Stan

After an extended hiatus, I thought I’d be way too blasé and over the clubbing hill to enjoy the thumping, but Jon mixed some boxfresh beats with retro tunes and memories from my raving youth came rushing back to me. Now I wonder if I’m just too old to deal with systematic maltunes instead!?

Good to see friends!

What made the night even better was the fact that I bumped into quite a few friends!

I was really happy to see the spirited Ben Nair, a fellow British-repatriat who started the newly formed events company with Jon Ngu and Eric Wong called the Renaissance of Borneo (will tell you about their awesome plans in the next post!). I just had to get our good friend Mr. Drunken He-man to take a pic of us since we missed each other in the U.K. a few months back! (P/S: He-man was so drunk we had to drive his car home for him. He also hurled on the way home!)

I also bumped into other friends as well. For most of the night I was so busy catching up with people I barely took my cam out for the snappy-snaps. Thanks to the lovely Amie Stan, who was kind enough to take a few pictures for me (in addition to the official photos she was taking for the event). Get her for your event… she’s a great person to work with and an all around fabulous girl!

Amie Stan and Jackie Miao | Photo Credit: Amie Stan

Last but not least, what good would this post be if I didn’t have a photo op with the talented and very fine DJ Fine China at the end of the night?

Jackie and DJ Fine China

Right before we had to send He-man home, Amir Yussof came over and said something so unexpectedly uplifting to me that it changed the dynamics of how I will now use my Best Job in the World experience. One day I hope to be able to share with you what he said since there is no context in which a contrast can be observed at the present moment. For now, enjoy your Tuesday wherever in the world you are!

Would you believe me if I told you that you can get some wicked bacon rashers with layers of oozy eggs in between two slices of lightly toasted bread for 8 ringgit in Kota Kinabalu? Believe me, you!

As an introductory offer, our Home made Pork Bacon and Egg Sandwich is now available for 8 ringgit only at the Stone Bridge Galley if you dine in (Takeaway price is RM 9).

We are located next to the Cowbar Bar at Asia City!

We serve it for breakfast, lunch and even in the evening for those who prefer to enjoy their food slowly. Come on over, treat yourself and bring some friends along. You know you want it!