Jackie Miao

Every now and again, I come across a beautiful soul, and Indie singer-songwriter Jonathan Tse is one such person.

While most pop music focuses on selling desperation, materialism and sex, Jonathan writes his music using a different set of values; one that is divinely inspired by faith, love and hope.

Last Saturday, the talented pop-jazzer from Labuan launched his second album entitled “I’m Alive” at City Mall, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.

I only managed to catch the tail-end of the performance, enough to take a few pictures but not enough to report on the performance program. Nevertheless, I got there in time to buy a CD and t-shirt and have been enjoying the tunes all day.

Jonathan is and have always been incredibly supportive of locally-bred talents. In addition to the “My Story” showcase he organizes to give local musicians exposure, he uses his own media opportunities to let other musicians piggyback on the public exposure. For his album launch, he invited Atama and Alvin to perform with him.

WHY YOU SHOULD SUPPORT THE LOCAL MUSIC SCENE IN SABAH

Even though I’ve been blessed with global exposure, all my big dreams were nurtured right at home in Sabah. This is why I believe in supporting Sabahans doing great things! In spite of our humble roots, we can go much further when our own community supports us. Everybody wins when a Malaysian makes it to the International center stage and this is why you guys should buy Jonathan’s CD!

Moreover, Mia Palencia, better known as Malaysia’s Jazz crooning queen sings a duet with him on the last track of his album. You know it’s good stuff if Mia puts her name on a track!

WHERE TO GET THE ALBUM

The album can be purchased online from Amazon.com and iTunes. In Malaysia, it can be found at SPEEDY stores and most Christian bookstores in Kota Kinabalu.

THE I’M ALIVE MUSIC VIDEO
Check out the “I’m Alive” music video here!

For more information on Jonathan Tse, his upcoming shows, and to listen to sample tracks from his new album, visit jonathantse.com

Do you love the variety of things at ConsFood but can’t be bothered to deal with the parking problem in Damai? To all the foodies, bakers, housewives and expats of Kota Kinabalu, behold the spanking new ConsFood concept store at Jalan Tuaran!

Located just near the entrance to Taman Yakim Jaya (across the street from Tai Seng Supermarket, on the other side of Jalan Tuaran), the brand new 5-in-one ConsFood Concept Store features a Cold Storage, Baking Ingredients section, Chocolate and Patisseries section, Bread Bakery, and a Cafe that serves hot food.

I had a chat with the owner of the establishment two weeks ago and here’s an overview of what’s on offer.

Cold Storage
A selection of imported cheeses, cold cuts, milk, cream, nuts, dried fruits, a range of international condiments, fresh vegetables, imported frozen meats (Aussie beef and lamb), fresh poultry, frozen foods and more. This is a halal food market without pork.

Bakery Ingredients
Various types of flours, ingredients and cake decorations for commercial and domestic use just like the one in Damai.

Chocolate and Patisseries
The Chocolate and Patisseries section is a nice little place to escape from the scorching heat for some coffee and cakes. There’s wifi there, so it makes a great place for folks to have business meetings. You can get cakes to go and also order bespoke cakes for weddings and special occasions.

Bakery
The bread bakery section carries Asian-style breads, buns and European crusty breads that are baked fresh daily. I’ve yet to try their European breads, so the jury is still out on that one but it’s great for KK to have another alternative to the Hyatt bakery as far as Western breads go.

Cafe
At the corner, there’s a cafe that serves gourmet sandwiches, hot foods and ice cream. The owner mentioned that they will be serving their own brand of gourmet ice cream so keep an eye out for that.

ConsFood officially opened on 15th August 2010, so if you happen to pass by Mile 2 1/2 of Jalan Tuaran, do check them out. They are open from 9am to 9pm daily.

As much as there is so much to be fixed in Kota Kinabalu, I’m very proud to say that DBKK is going forward in the right direction by launching the ‘No Plastic Bag on Monday‘ Campaign.

Today is the official kick-off date, and participating stores which include Parkson, 7-Eleven, Tong Hing Supermarket, Giant hypermarket, Milimewa, Southern Bakery and Popular Bookstore will not be giving out free plastic bags to shoppers at the checkout counter for free.

If you are shopping today without your own bag or basket in any of the stores above, you will be charged 20 cents per plastic bag. Those proceeds will go to fund environmental and cleanliness projects by DBKK and the Enviromental Action Centre (EAC) around the city.

But why stop today? Say no to plastic bags everyday! I guarantee you it’s a much sexier look and you’ll be kind to the earth and all who inhabit it.

So bring your reusable bags to the supermarket today!

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!

This is the last part of Angelina Perete and Roger Wang’s set at KK Twestival 2010. Stay tuned as the videos of the sensational live performance of singer-songwriter Jonathan Tse will be released as they become available in the coming days!!