Author: A. Geraldine

Revisit Sandakan

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Yesterday, I flew to Sandakan – the second largest and developed town in Sabah, after Kota Kinabalu. I was flown here with my two colleagues to cover a kidnapping incident, which occurred at Sandakan’s well-known seafood eatery, Ocean King Seafood Restaurant. While in Sandakan, we took the opportunity to revisit Puu Jih Shih Temple – one of the finer Chinese temples in Sabah, according to Lonely Planet. We went there so my colleague, who is a photographer, could take an overall view of the restaurant overlooking the sea. It was a beautiful view.

Weekly photo challenge: Forces of nature

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Today, I decided to participate in a weekly photo challenge. When I read the theme for this week, I was not sure how to interpret forces of nature.  My understanding was that a natural force should leave a strong impact…an aftermath of a natural disaster such as the recent earthquake in Kathmandu or the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, which killed more than 200,000 people. So I did a basic research: what is a force of nature and what is considered a force of nature? Then I decided to stick to the simple force of nature – the sunset. On Saturday, I went to watch the sun set with two Danish friends, who flew to the Philippines the next day. We had drinks and great conversation. As the sun made its way into the horizon, there was a moment of silence. There were people taking pictures and there were those who just sat quietly and enjoyed the moment. It was a beautiful feeling. As we headed for dinner, Marina and Mette agreed watching the sunset was the perfect choice to end their two-week holiday in Sabah. And …

A visit to Mengalum

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After an hour of bumpy boat ride, I finally reached Mengalum Island. Two weeks ago, a friend from a Chinese newspaper company texted me about a planned media trip to Mengalum and whether I wanted in. I said yes and told my boss I needed two days off on May 4 and 5. I couldn’t say no to Mengalum because I needed to go there, because I had not been there. And because I needed to get away from the busy city and life. ### The island was beautiful. I had a dive, a swim, a walk in the bushes, great food, and drinks. I went on an island safari ride and saw the sun set and many more. So much stories to tell but for the time being, this is just a short update. I am now back to reality.

Something about Philipus Jani

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** Picture above taken from Yayasan Inovasi Last week, a Sabah-born saxophonist made it into Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s Facebook account after the PM snapped a picture of him playing a bamboo saxophone at the 26th Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur. The photo attracted a lot of comments and over 11,000 likes. Shortly after the photo was uploaded to Lee’s Facebook, Philipus made it into the news. Apparently the duo had a conversation where the musician asked the Prime Minister where he came from. This was however not the first time media picked up stories about Philipus. I do believe not many people have heard of him until recently. So, who is this saxophonist and why was he invited to serenade top leaders at the Asean Summit event? You may learn about him here. ### IT took Philipus Jani 13 years to fine-tune his  saxophone made from bamboo.  These days, he can make one  in five days. The 44-year-old multitalented Dusun from Tambunan has now sold 70 bamboo saxophones around the world and has made a profit of over RM100,000. “I only produce the instrument upon request and many have placed …

A souvenir kind of day

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I was feeling a little unproductive this morning. Maybe because I had to attend a boring assignment – Goods and Services Tax briefing by Sabah Customs Department … … And no, I am not going to talk about GST. So, I arrived office at 12.15pm, bringing in only one news. As I settled back in my seat, my colleague approached me. Olivia was holding a box of some things. As I looked closely, there were five or six fridge magnets, and five or six thin boards with pictures on them. There could be more than five and more than six too. My eyes were fixed on one of the thin boards. It was the one with two tiny holes and a rope attached to one of the holes. There was a red building painted on the board with caption written Office of the President, Republic of China (Taiwan). I was not sure what to do with it but I took it because it was unique. “How long were you in Taiwan?” I asked. I knew Olivia was on leave for the past few days. I just didn’t …