Miss Tourism Intercontinental 2010 Held in Miri

All the 33 finalists of Miss Tourism Intercontinental 2010 were yesterday exposed to the local culture and lifestyle of Mirians, Sarawak Malaysia.

The exposure was made through their visit to Tamu Lama or Tamu Kedayan and Central Market in the city centre and San Ching Tian — the largest Taoist temple in South East Asia.

Their visits were part of their programme prior to the grand final of the pageant to be held at Miri Indoor Stadium on May 20. The pageant, hosted by Miri, is part of activities and programmes organised in conjunction with its fifth anniversary as a city.

Their presence at Central Market captivated both the public and stall operators where they took the opportunity to take photographs with the beauties. At the market, the tourism beauties were given insight into local eating habits and local cuisines. After the visit to both markets they proceeded to the largest Taoist temple in South East Asia located in Krokop here.

They were briefed by the temple officers on the history of the temple which is one of the tourist attractions in Miri. The majestic and elegant building is full of oriental characteristics in its architectural design. Meanwhile, management of Imperial Hotel hosted them to a luncheon at the hotel before the preview show at the concourse of Imperial Mall and

Court before making a brief appearance at Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Job Expo at Miri Indoor Stadium. Later in the evening, they joined Miri City Day Parade and Miri International Jazz Festival.

Tickets priced at RM10 for the grand final of the pageant are now on sale at the One-Stop-Centre on the ground floor of the city council’s multi-storey car park building.

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Gunung Mulu National Park

Gunung Mulu National Park is one of Nature's most spectacular achievements and the 'jewel in the crown' of Sarawak's expanding network of national parks. It is also the largest national park, covering 52,865 hectares of primary rainforest, which is criss-crossed by fast flowing rivers and clear jungle streams. Mulu is dominated by three mountains - Gunung Mulu (2,376 m), Gunung Api (1,750 m) and Gunung Benarat (1,585 m). Yet many of Mulu's greatest attractions lie deep below the surface. Hidden underneath the forested slopes of these mountains is one of the largest limestone cave systems in the world.

This system, a breath-taking natural wonder, contains a number of record breaking caves. With the world's largest cave passage (Deer Cave), the world's largest natural chamber (Sarawak Chamber), and the longest cave in Southeast Asia (Clearwater Cave), it is not surprising that Mulu is now world-famous. Over 200 km of cave passages have been surveyed but this is thought to represent just 30-40% of the actual total.

The oldest of Mulu's caves started to form about 5 million years ago when sideways earth movements resulted in the formation of both limestone and sandstone mountains, lying side by side. Millions of years of heavy rain and the action of rivers and running water carved out the vast subterranean system that exists today. The weathering process still continues; dripping water creates new rock features, limestone is slowly worn away, and underground rivers carve and sculpt the caves, transporting limestone debris to the cave mouth or redistributing it within the system.

Although Mulu is synonymous with caves, the 'Mulu experience' is not limited to underground attractions; above ground there is plenty to see and do. The park is covered in rich primary rainforest and offers a whole range of nature-based activities. There are some excellent jungle treks and mountain hikes, including the challenging trek to view the Pinnacles - 45 metre high, razor sharp limestone spikes that sit majestically on the slopes of Gunung Api.

With it's rich bio-diversity, and world-famous caves, Mulu offers the adventurous traveller an exhilarating cave and rainforest experience, possibly unmatched anywhere else on Earth.

Mulu's four Show Caves were selected for their uniqueness or sheer beauty. They can all be visited as day trips from the park HQ and are accessible by plankwalks and well-lit concrete paths. Strategically positioned spotlights highlight the unique features of the individual caves. A plankwalk leads through the forest to Deer and Lang's Cave whilst Clearwater Cave and Wind Cave are reached by taking a longboat up the Melinau River, or by following a 4 km nature trail. The more adventurous can do Adventure Caving.

Treks and Trails
Mulu has three adventure treks, all of which require a certain level of physical fitness. Basic camping gear is useful as overnight stays in jungle base camps are required. Trekkers must be accompanied by offical park guides. Most tour operators can assist with travel arrangements for these treks and can also supply any necessary equipment and food.

* The Pinnacles
* The Headhunter's Trail
* Gunung Mulu Summit Trek

Bio-Diversity
Ever since the 1930's the rich rainforest of the Mulu area has attracted scientists. Every expedition seems to discover something new - a plant or animal species previously unknown to man, animal behaviour patterns, a rainforest remedy, etc. Although these studies and expeditions have unearthed a mountain of scientific facts, they have barely 'scratched the surface' of Mulu's bio-diversity. However, this 'barely scratched surface' includes an impressive array of plants and animals.

The park contains 8 different types of forest - including peat swamp, health and mixed dipterocarp, moss forest and stunted upper monane vegetation - 4,000 species of fungi, 1,500 species of flowering plants. 1,700 species of moses & liverworts and estimated 3,500 species of plants.

Mulu's wildlife is equally impressive and includes 75 species of mammals, 262 species of birds (including the eight species of hornbill found in Sarawak), 74 species of frogs, 47 species of fish, 281 species of butterflies, 52 species of reptiles, 458 species of ants and 20,000 species of invertebrates. Mulu National Park

How to get there?
Miri, in Northeast Sarawak, serves as the main gateway for Gunung Mulu National Park. Malaysian Airlines operates scheduled services from Miri and Limbang to Mulu using 19 seater Twin Otter aircraft. The flight takes approximately 45 minutes. Phone MAS (082-246622) for further details.

The park can also be reached by boat (via Marudi). However, there is no regular boat service on the last section of the trip so longboats must be chartered. This is best done in a group to save cost. Tour operators are able to arrange boat passage to Mulu if required.

Accommodation facilities
Accommodation facilities consist of chalets units, hostel-style rooms and a camping ground. Kitchen facilities are provided so that visitors can prepare their own meals. Please contact the Sarawak Tourism Board for the latest room tariff rates.

In addition to the park accommodation, the Royal Mulu Resort, an international class hotel, and a number of guesthouses are situated along the Melinau River, adjacent to the park.

Accommodation & Other Charges

Facilities
Upon arrival visitors are required to register at the Park HQ. Next to the registration counter there is a good information centre. The Park HQ also has a canteen which sells drinks and light meals.

Pre-book your accommodation, bring a raincoat, torch and camera flash (tripods are not allowed in the caves). Non slip shoes are essential as the trails are slippery. Plan for at least 2 days' stay in the park to see the cave system.

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Miri International Jazz Festival 2008 (9-10 May)

Several counters will be open in Miri in the next few days and during weekends to cater for the anticipated rush for the Miri International Jazz Festival tickets.

A counter will be open at the Coffee Bean Shell Lutong on April 22 and 24 and at Piasau Boat Club on April 25 while another counter will be open at Boulevard Hypermarket on May 1. The counters will be open from 9.30am onward.

All these counters are open for the convenience of festival goers who wish to buy their ticket at an outlet nearest to them.

Similar counters were opened last weekend at Piasau Boat Club and at the Imperial Mall. Ticket sales at both outlets were very encouraging.

Currently, the tickets are available at Visitors Information Centre in Miri, Café Miri and Pak Cik Wan Café in Lutong. Apart from counter sales, the tickets are also available online at www.TicketCharge.com.my.

The online sales are meant for those outside Miri especially from overseas, Peninsula Malaysia, Singapore and Sabah while the counter sales are for locals as well as visitors from Brunei Darussalam.

Tickets are priced at RM60 each for a night pass to the concert which will be held at the Pavilion at Parkcity Everly Hotel in Miri. Children between three and 12 years old are charged half rate each.

A total of nine groups will be entertaining the guests at the festival which is held for the third consecutive year. They are Amar Sundy from Algeria, Borneo Jazz Quartet (Sarawak), Charmaine Clamor (Philippines), Diamond Dave and the Doodaddies (Australia), T'Inventielke (Holland), Mood Indigo (UK), Oma Sound (Japan), Rumba Calzada (Canada) and Habana Sax (Cuba).

Habana Sax, the crowd's favourite at last year's festival, was voted to make a come-back show while T'Inventielke will be providing a difference to this year's festival programme. The 16-member T'Inventielke is a street jazz band and it will be performing around the festival ground in between act for the bands in the Pavilion. Their performances on the festival ground will give true meaning to the tag-line of enjoying jazz music under the star.

Apart from music, the festival will also be liven-up with good food and company. There will also be wide selection of food and drinks served at the stalls set up around the festival ground.

Organised by Sarawak Tourism Board (STB), the MIJF is presented by Celcom and supported by Shell, MASWings, Astro, Heineken, Water Genesis. HSBC is the official bank while Parkcity Everly Hotel is the official hotel.

Endorsed by Tourism Malaysia, the festival also has the support of Ministry of Tourism Malaysia and Ministry of Urban Development and Tourism, Sarawak.

Free Passes to Miri International Jazz Festival 2008 (9-10 May)

Dig this daddy-o! Masswings are giving away free passes to the Miri International Jazz Festival 2008 in Sarawak for the first 50 lucky customers to book their flight to Miri online!

All you cool cats need to do is book your flight to Miri at a funky RM39 and you could be groovin' to the soothing sounds of jazz with MASwings!

So take five now and get down to maswings.com.my because this Groovy Online Offer is only valid until 2 May 2008.

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Miri City

Miri, the second City of Sarawak, is situated in northern Sarawak, close to the Sarawak-Brunei border on the legendary island of Borneo. The City has grown phenomenally since oil was first discovered in the early 1900s, burgeoning into the modern and dynamic business, commercial and educational centre it is today. It is also the stepping-off point to many of Sarawak's world-famous national parks such as the Mulu National Park, Niah National Park, Lambir Hills National Park and Loagan Bunut National Park, as well as other major tourist attractions.

Situated at the northern end of the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo and adjacent to the Sultanate of Brunei Darussalam. Miri have 977 sq. kilometres sizes.

Set along the north-eastern coast of Sarawak, Miri is propelling purposefully towards becoming a Resort City by 2005. Miri is just a flight away from Kuala Lumpur, serviced daily by major airlines in Malaysia i.e. Malaysian Airlines and Air Asia.

Miri is situated at 4° 23’ North latitude and 113°55’ East longitude, on the banks of Miri River. It has a long coastline from Bakam to Kuala Baram, the distance of which is about 40 km. Miri is the gateway to northern Sarawak region and is easily accessible by air, land and sea. Miri shares a common border with Brunei and Indonesia and a greater part of it comprises the basin of Sarawak's second longest river, Sungei Baram and its many tributaries including Melinau, Tuboh, Bakong, Tinjar, Liang, Pau, Terawan, Aju, Liang, Lanai, Palutan and many others.

Miri is the first oil-producing town in Malaysia. Therefore, it is aptly called "The Oil Town". The initial commercial activities in Miri mainly rely upon the petroleum and timber industries. With the concerted effort from the state Government, many timber companies have ventured into oil palm plantations and downstream wood-based industry.

Tourism has also become one of the major contributors to the local economy. For the tourist who likes natural beauty and jungle adventure, Miri is the place to be. By land, tourist could go to the Niah Caves, Lambir National Park and Loagan Bunut National Park. By air (which is about 20-45 minutes from Miri Airport) Gunung Mulu National Park (one of the only two world heritage sites in Malaysia), Bario Highlands and Long San. Off the coast of Miri, the Coral Reefs are an ideal place for diving and fishing.

How to get there?

By Air
Miri modern airport, capable of handling A330 Airbuses, Boeing 737s and 747s, is well served with flights to many domestic and international destinations soon. There are 3 major airlines which service Sarawak are the MASWings,Malaysia Airlines ( MAS) and Air Asia. Flight flies direct to Miri from Kuala Lumpur, Johore Baru (just across the border from Singapore, and cheaper because it is a domestic flight), and from Kota Kinabalu in Sabah. By Using Brunei Airlines(Which is about two hours drive to Miri), also has direct flights from Perth in Shanghai, Manila, Darwin, Brisbane (->Aucland), Sydeny, Perth, Bali, Surabaya, Jakarta, Singapore, Sharjah(->Jeddah), Dubai(->London), Bangkok(->Frankfurt) & Hong Kong. Royal Brunei often has some special deals. Airport tax is charged upon departure and costs RM5 for domestic flights and RM40 for international flights.

Please refer to the MAS, Air Asia and Royal Brunei Airlines websites for current schedules, fares and booking details.

By Road
Miri is accessible by road from Bandar Seri Begawan (Brunei) and all major towns in Sarawak. Connected to major towns in Sarawak and to Brunei and Sabah by the Pan-Borneo Highway. There is no pay-toll along these highway as the road are contructed by the local goverment.

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