M A G A Z I N E F O R C E B U P A C I F I C • N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 4

One more night in BangkokWHAT'S NEW AND WHAT'S COOL

IN THE THAI CAPITAL

Saigon to marketRETAIL MANIA IN

VIETNAM'S BIGGEST CITY

One more night in BangkokWHAT'S NEW AND WHAT'S COOL

IN THE THAI CAPITAL

Saigon to marketRETAIL MANIA IN

VIETNAM'S BIGGEST CITY

OU

R IS CO

MPLIM

ENTA

RY • NO

VEMBER 2014

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Our crew this issue

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

KRISTINE FONACIERWriter

The editor of travel mag GRID and Entrepreneur knows an urban movement when she sees it — and for this issue it’s all

about boomtown Bangkok

LESTER LEDESMAWriter and photographer

Follow Lester on a shopping adventure across fi ve of Saigon’s markets

RUBEN V. NEPALESWriter

For this issue our Hollywood correspondent talks to multi-talented

Neil Patrick Harris

Shaira LunaPhotographerFor this issue shot our cover and cover feature (in between

meals!)

Manila-based Shaira has shot magazine covers, numerous fashion

editorials and lifestyle photography for most publications in

Metro Manila and various brand campaigns. She is self-taught

and is booked mostly for fashion editorials, magazine covers and

food photography. Her spare time is devoted to dreaming up,

producing and shooting her own little cinematic stories with her

brother Von. 

Navin Kala and Luisa DorrPhotographersFor this issue took photos of people taking photos (of

themselves)

Luisa is based in São Paulo, Brazil; Navin stays in Varanasi

in northern India. Luisa branched into photography from

the design world three years ago while Navin, from the art

world, began shooting professionally fi ve years ago.

Dave TaconWriter and photographerFor this issue walks us through a hairy (crab) situation

Based in Shanghai, Dave has worked with some of the most

prestigious publications in the world, including Rolling Stone,

Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Stern, GEO, Der Spiegel

and ELLE. Some of his photos appear in the permanent

collections of the National Portrait Gallery of Australia.

Simon OstheimerWriterFor this issue makes a quick getaway to Sabah

Simon is a former editor at The Phuket News, Bangkok

101, Vision KL and Time Out Hong Kong. He regularly

contributes travel stories to a number of publications

including Condé Nast Traveler China, Condé Nast Traveller

India, DestinAsian and Dwell Asia.

David TerrazasPhotographerFor this issue captures the essence of trendy Bangkok

David, who is based in Bangkok, regularly shoots fashion

portraits and travel coverage for magazines including Fah

Thai, Jetstar and Dusit Thani’s Eight.

Now that's a loving gaze from

a cat to her human

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This month in Smile

Enjoy a drink at The

Alchemist

Street regalFind out what makes Bangkok a top

destination for travelers from

around the world

Life’s a breezeLearn about the history and

legends of Sabah,

the Land Below the Wind

Siem Reap delights

Discover why the city has

become a favorite foodie spot

p90

p100p35

p40

NEIL PATRICK HARRIS

TALKS

ABOUT

GONE GIRL,

THE MEDIA

AND HIS

MARRIAGE

hong kong

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www.cebusmile.com / 11

Wait, there's more...

If you can't beat them, join them!

Heading for any of the

28 international or 33

Philippine destinations

on the Cebu Pacific

network? Get some

recommendations from

the locals.

Read the latest news

from the airline and get

updates on destinations

and routes. Plus: find

out the latest seat

promotions and score

great deals.

Check out the onboard

menu for the latest food-

and-beverage offerings.

Trip journal, p131

Airline news, p183

Hungry?, p188

Pride of plateWe make our way to the heart of

Bicolandia and into the province of

Albay for a culinary tour

p58

All things big and stallScour fi ve of Ho Chi Minh City’s

best markets for bargain hunters

Autumn harvestShanghai’s hairy crab season has begun.

Find out why some are willing to shell out

big money for this delicacy

Selfie syndromePeople of all ages head to Hong Kong’s Avenue

of the Stars to take photos — of themselves

p113

p80 p70

ong

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LIFE’S A BREEZEOn a quick tour of Kota Kinabalu by train, in a speedboat and on foot, Simon N. Ostheimer discovers the life and legends of

Sabah, the “Land Below the Wind”

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Amazing escapes

Clockwise: Speeding past a fl oating village; seafood at the market; steamboat dinner; inter-island transport

Whoever came up with the phrase “the Land Below the Wind” must have been a

genius — the wording conjures up a magical, tropical idyll, a serene place where palm trees sway in the barely-there breeze, and exotic smells and spices tease you from the beach. The evocative description is most commonly attributed to ancient seafarers, who were referring to the territory that lay beneath the typhoon belt, and so was safe from the terrible storms that assault much of the rest of South-East Asia. For a long time this place was called North Borneo; today it’s better known as Sabah, the easternmost state in Malaysia.

On our fi rst morning in the capital of Sabah, Kota Kinabalu, we joined a cultural tour with local Grace Leong, a third-generation Chinese who is the founder of KK Heritage Walk (www.kkheritagewalk.com). Grace is on a mission is to educate tourists about the colonial history of the city and that morning we were happy to trail her around here.

“You’re probably wondering why we were meeting here,” she asks rhetorically as we stand under the shade of a large tree, while people in sports clothes stand close by

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Amazing escapes

and eat them on the go. After a stroll down the street — pausing to pop our heads in the colonial-era Jesselton Hotel (69 Jln Gaya; tel: +60 88 223 333; jesseltonhotel.com), where the door is manned by a slight, helmeted bellboy, and the bartender Aji has been pouring Bloody Marys since 1959 — we head back to Yee Fung (127 Jln Gaya; tel: +60 88 312 042) for a bowl of their famous Sarawak laksa.

Almost every part of Malaysia has its own take on laksa, from the creamy coconut Nyonya variety found in historical Malacca to the sour Assam style most popular on the island of Penang. Malaysian Borneo — which includes Sabah, Sarawak to the west and the tiny island territory of Labuan — shares one style, the Sarawak laksa, which consists of a laksa soup base covered in bee hoon egg noodles, hard-

stretching on a small fi eld. “Well, this is where Sabah declared the end of colonial rule!” In one of the quirks of history that dot the region, the British North Borneo company ran this corner of Borneo as a corporate possession from the late 19th century up until the Japanese arrived in 1942 to occupy the island. Reclaimed by Britain, it became a colony in 1946 before joining up with a newly independent Malaysia in 1963.

As Grace explains, due to waves of Chinese immigration encouraged by the British, there is a preponderance of Sino-style cuisine in KK, as locals call it. Amazing steamed dumplings are to be found at Keng Wan Hing (80 Gaya St; tel: +60 16 849 4708), including the Hainanese Polo Bun made with pineapple marmalade, and the sang nyuk pau, a fi lling, rich blend of pork and egg. We order takeaway

Clockwise from top left: Urban graffi ti; the famous pau with pork and egg fi lling;

a local coff ee shop

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Amazing escapes

boiled egg, shredded chicken, a handful of bean sprouts, a sprinkling of cilantro and locally caught prawns. Once your steaming bowl is served, squeeze half a lime over it, and add a spoonful of sambal belacan (shrimp paste) for taste. It tastes excellent, especially when washed down with a hot glass of their signature drink, teh madras — layers of evaporated milk, black tea and foam.

The next day, we make our way down sleepily to the lobby of The Pacifi c Sutera Hotel (1 Sutera Harbour Blvd; tel: +60 88 318 888; suteraharbour.com), a sprawling 384-acre property, with two onsite hotels (the other is The Magellan Sutera Resort), a 27-hole golf course, and a marina from where you can explore the surrounding islands. The sound of a bell ringing across the marble interior snaps us awake. The source of the commotion is a shy young man wearing khaki shorts, a starched white shirt and a pith helmet adorned with the logo of the North Borneo Railway (www.northborneorailway.com). It is

From top: Diners pack

the local laksa restaurant;

Sarawak laksa; cooking big

batches of noodles. At

right: Downtown KK

Sarawak laksa tastes excellent, especially when washed down with a hot glass of their signature localtea, teh madras

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time to take the tropical express.With fi ve carriages, each named

after one of the stops, the train is hauled by a British Vulcan steam locomotive fuelled not by coal, but by wood. While the carriages were actually built in the 1970s, they have been renovated to re-create a train journey in the early 1900s, when the line provided a vital link between the interior and Jesselton — now Kota Kinabalu — transporting goods such as rice, tobacco, sugar, silk, and pineapples for export. Now almost 120 years old, the North Borneo Railway, a collaboration between the state government and the Sutera Harbour Resort, provides a nostalgic experience for tourists.

After an amazing train trip through stunning scenery, we are on the move again, this time aboard a speedboat heading north-west to Gaya Island. This small isle 15 minutes off the coast

of KK had housed the fi rst settlement of the British North Borneo company, before it was razed to the ground in 1897 by a local folk hero by the name of Mat Salleh and the British set up shop on the mainland instead. As Kota Kinabalu thrived and expanded, the villagers on Gaya Island maintained a simple life, until it was declared a national park in 1974. These days, Gaya is a central part of the state’s eco-tourism push, and is home to the Gaya Island Resort (tel: +60 18 939 1100; www.gayaislandresort.com), where luxury villas peek out between lush jungle, and tropical fi sh swim in abundance right off the hotel jetty. Looking around, it’s easy to understand the importance of preserving the area’s natural beauty. It’s a green message that’s further driven home the next day by the resort’s resident naturalist Justin Juhun.

“I was raised in the jungle,” says

From top: Experiencing the romance of 1900s train travel; onboard food in tin cups

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Cebu Pacifi c fl ies to Kota

Kinabalu from Manila.

www.cebupacifi cair.com

pointing out wildlife, swapping photography tips, and sweating in the jungle’s sweltering heat. A few hours later, after a refreshing swim, we make our way along the beach, where a young Australian couple strike up a conversation with Justin . “I was having a drink at the pool, when I saw something in the water — a python!” the tourist tells us.

They whip out photos of snake fi ve feet long, swimming in the water we’d only just left. Just then, a wild pig emerges from the bushes. Justin seemes unfazed, and the rest of us can only laugh at just how much normal life in Kota Kinabalu seems intertwined with the wilderness that surrounds it. This Land Below the Wind truly is a magical place.

Justin, when I ask where his passion for the wilderness comes from. “My dad worked on a plantation some 60km outside of Tawau, a small town on the south coast of Sabah,” he tells me. “As a young boy I remember seeing injured animals and wanting to help them. Soon, people were bringing me all sorts of creatures — hornbills, monkeys, squirrels, wild pigs — and our home became like my own personal zoo!” We’re walking along a narrow track through deep bush in the hills above the Gaya Island Resort, part of a series of tracks that Justin himself created. “I spent two weeks up here by myself looking for the best routes. I’d hack through the jungle during the day, and camp at night.” What’s meant to be a 45-minute walk becomes a two-hour odyssey as Justin pauses to point out wildlife we would have otherwise have missed. “Thankfully no cobra or python today,” he says.

Our guide’s knowledge and passion are infectious, and soon we’re all

Clockwise from top: Sunset views from Gaya Island; one of the restaurant

attendants; the island jetty; and one of the more colorful residents

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