All posts tagged: sabah

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 …

Rungus women keep tradition alive

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Away from urbanisation, the Rungus community in Kampung Bavanggazo, near Tinangol in the Kudat district, lead a simple lifestyle where the women rely on handicraft as a source of income. These women, mostly aged above 40, are known as the makers of inavol, which is a dying tradition. Monuraging Monzipal, 60, said inavol is a traditional woven sash with geometric motifs worn crosswise across the chest. It is also famous as a gift for tourists. She said it was normally worn by the Rungus men together with their traditional costume during rituals. “However, inavol-making is slowly dying out because the younger generation is not keen on learning the skill.

A noisy village not far from the Northern Tip of Borneo

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AS the clock strikes 8am, villagers of Kampung Sumangkap in Kudat district  never fail to rise to the continuous sound of metal smacking. This noisy small village is  about three hours drive from the State capital (Kota Kinabalu). For some, hearing the sound of metal smacking first thing in the morning can be unbearable and  a nuisance, but for  these  “disturbers of  peace”, who  are  gong makers from the Rungus community, they are eking out a living as well as keeping  the tradition of gong making alive.