ZestAir Brings Us To Amazing Kota Kinabalu! (Part 1)

I am part of history!

I was invited to be part of the few who got to take part in the inaugural flight of ZestAir to an amazing place called Kota Kinabalu.I've always heard about this since I was a kid because some of my relatives have already been there. It was early morning and I just spent the last 18 hours for a shift, but that didn't dampen my spirits because I was so excited to see what Sabah, Malaysia had in store for me. I reached the airport quite late but the festivities were just starting. It looked like everybody was waiting for this moment where Filipinos will touch boundaries again via this airline. ZestAir and Air Asia used to have this done from Clark International Airport and now they're doing it from Manila's NAIA4. In my books, that's just totally amazing!

They even got this wall where everyone who's part of the flight are to send their wishes for ZestAir, this is just a momentous occassion!

These noble men and women took care of us during the flight. Then after a couple of hours, we got on board our cozy aircraft. They even got my carry on bags and put them on the storage bins on top. Mind you I didn't ask them to help but they did!

Then we went on and took flight to Kota Kinabalu! The guy I had a chat with earlier that morning was the first to book the flight online, and for that he won a trip to any destination of his choice through ZestAir! Amazing!

It took us around 2 hours to get there. The landing was quite smooth too (thanks to the pilot!). And when we went down the plane, a huge welcome party was waiting for us!

Arriving In Kota Kinabalu

The airport was huge, very modern and reminiscent of Manila's NAIA3 Airport. They say the one in Kuala Lumpur is even bigger. It was so clean and orderly inside and we were surprised when we went down from the plane.

Clad in uber colorful costumes, these gentle smiles greeted us at the airport's tarmac and we were individually given some bead necklaces which is part of their custom. These gorgeous people clad in native clothes actually represent the 32 tribes of Sabah, Malaysia; and getting to see this first hand was awesome! I loved how intricate the details of their costumes are and how they made our arrival extra warm + special.

It was so nice to have been received that well in foreign soil. I have never been to Sabah; and these people from both the Sabah Tourism Board (Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment Sabah) and Malaysian Tourism Board served as our hosts in this part of the country. They will show us around the capital Kota Kinabalu and nearby tourist spots which you should definitely watch out for! They were so warm and accommodating; I really felt right at home. Check out this video we watched on the tourist bus and all the places in Sabah we went to. It'll tell you something you probably didn't know about the place.

I was surprised, impressed and excited to find out more about the place. Sabah, Malaysian Borneo has yet to be discovered by travelers, adventurers, tourists and people like you. They've got more things in store for us on this trip. I'll tell you on the next part of my Kota Kinabalu series. Honestly, this whole experience on how we were welcomed makes me want to go back to Kota Kinabalu... Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. I fervently hope that it will be soon!

/*By the way, Zest Air flies regularly to the City of Kota Kinabalu every Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sunday. Make sure you book a flight now through them or Air Asia. Now it's easier to go to Sabah, Malaysian Borneo on the freshest airline there is from the Philippines!

For more information about ZestAir and Kota Kinabalu


Visit their websites!

http://www.flyzest.com/
http://www.sabahtourism.com/
http://www.airasia.com/

Or follow them on Twitter

@flyzest

Or Contact them

Sabah Tourism Board
51 Gaya Street, 88000 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah Malaysia
Tel:   +6088 212121
Fax:  +6088 212075
Email: info@sabahtourism.com

Sarah Jessica Parker at the opening of The SM Store at SM Aura Premier

Sarah Jessica Parker (Photo by FANPOP.COM and not mine)

CONFIRMED! Hollywood A List and Fashion Icon Sarah Jessica Parker is now in Manila for the Grand Opening of the huge mall recently built in Bonifacio Global City called SM Aura. It's the iconic structure built on the grounds of Taguig managed by SM Supermalls. The Sex and the City star is the perfect person to represent the new mall that's got the greatest brands, shops and establishments from all over the world because the management believes she can wear anything from affordable to pricey signature ones and still keep it fashionable. I'll be there on Friday to stalk her lol so make sure you also come and visit the new mall if you're not doing anything in the afternoon. I still can't breathe from just hearing the news.

Make sure you check out The SM Store at The SM Aura Premier Facebook page and website for more details! I can't wait! 

Taters Snack League: New Burgers + More Snacks On Their Menu!

You might have passed this counter countless times and never even bother checking out what they had to offer. I'm bringin out my guns and tell you point blank, there's more to this awesome spot than your favorite Popcorns and Sodas. I sat down and took time out a few of their products which I hope you'll eventually try and get to know too. Listen up! Step right up and play ball! This place is called Taters!

The Interiors

 The tables and chairs are simple. Nothing fancy, and they have banquettes for those who want a more cozy spot. Colors are all red-orange with trims of black and silver. It's reminiscent of a 50's or 60's cafe without the usual pancakes and coffee in the mix. 

Prices are still affordable but more on the medium range. I understand the owner probably chose quality over anything else because Ana Tanchangco, the lady owns business says her philosophy is not to serve anything that she wouldn't feed to her family. I totally agree on this! Taters Enterprises says most of the stores are franchised but they have percentage of ownership and have plans of expanding. They want to venture out of cinemas. So if you see a branch like the one in Bacolod Northpoint,  it is more of a fast food rather than a grab and go place like the ones in Manila. They also have full sandwiches with "supreme" tag and when they open more stores soon, it will probably follow this concept.

The Food

This particular branch I visited didn't have popcorns on the counter. They actually have other items on the menu and that's what I wanted to see in this particular instance. I wasn't disappointed =)

Upon ordering I saw this small game kiosk which is part of their GameON Summer Olympics promo where they give out prizes and food items on top of what you order.

Churkey Quarter Pounder - It's a quarter pound of Chicken and Turkey meat made into a patty on top of tomatoes, lettuce and smothered with mustard and ketchup. I immediately took a bite because I was really hungry. The bun was soft and the patty was juicy. The deal is, this one's pretty healthy because its got none of those saturated fat that most beef patties have.

Tater chips with White Cheese - Not your ordinary potato chips, this one can get so crispy which I absolutely love. Plus, you can opt for 4 other different flavors that they have in store. Barbecue is a close second, but really who doesn't love white cheese? :) They also have Tortilla, tofu chips and more tater chips if you prefer that.

Tuna Mushroom Burger - I can't seem to pinpoint which meat this was from but was totally surprised that it's made from Tuna and Mushrooms. I guess the mushrooms made the patty a tad more meaty. They also have tomatoes and lettuce under the patty but have a couple of tablespoons of barbecue sauce on top.

They also have plans of releasing ALL BEEF Hotdogs which will come out in June. All flavors will be inspired by American states like New York, Philly etc. which in my books is a smart choice. This Filipino owned store (since 1994 when they opened their Glorietta branch) wants to keep you and your movie watching habit + mall time a pretty pleasurable one. I also got a surprise from the crew because they gave out huge chocolate coins on top of what I ordered.

And it tastes pretty good!

You can also choose how big or small your drinks are so you can mix and match with your favorite burger or sandwich. So the next thing to do is just drag your family and friends to one of their branches. They've got two in Eastwood so just take your pick. Weather lunch or dinner, it's all good in Tater's. You should take a second look next time you drop by the store and think of buying just the popcorn... they definitely have more!

For more information about the brand and the burgers

Like them on Facebook!

Taters

Or follow them on Twitter

http://twitter.com/TatersOnline

The Nokia Asha Platform

Developers would have a grand time playing again with what Nokia has come out with on their Asha Smartphones. They would be able to utilize this Asha platform without having to re-write code which is good news once Nokia unleashes a 100 million of these new generation Asha smartphones in the coming years. They have recently done just that by releasing the Nokia Asha 501.

The Nokia Asha 501, it's got fun colors available!

Marco Argenti, the current head of Developer Experiences at Nokia says they've seen remarkable increase in demand for Asha smart phones as they have found this out in the number of downloads through the Nokia Store. The need for consumer apps at different price points is needed and now they've got incentives for developers to deliver those quality applications needed in the market.To date, they now have CNN, eBuddy, ESPN, Facebook, Foursquare, Line, LinkedIn, Nimbuzz, Pictelligent, The Weather Channel, Twitter, WeChat, World of Red Bulland games from EA, Gameloft, Indiagames, Namco-Bandai, Reliance Games and popular WhatsApp. Soon there will be more from other partners as they continue to grow on the Asha series.

Nokia will also have a beta release of an in app payment facility (www.developer.nokia.com/inapppayment) in the coming weeks and developers can apply for it soon. They will also have the Nokia Asha Software Development Kit 1.0 which is a suite of tools that can hasten development,testing, packaging and deployment of Java apps for the Asha platform. There will be more applications available for the series and the Philippine Nokia App developers should definitely take advantage of what Nokia offers as part of an emerging market for small-medium priced smart phones. 

For more information about Nokia

Please visit their website

http://www.nokia.com.ph

Follow them on Facebook at 

Nokia Philippines

Or follow them on Twitter at 

https://www.twitter.com/NokiaPilipinas