Test drive the Audi Q5 this weekend

After a successful media preview last week, TCY Motors Sdn Bhd will organize a two-day launch for the 2018 Audi Q5 at its showroom in Kiarong.

Taking place on Friday 2nd and Saturday 3rd February at Audi Kiarong, invited guests and the public can experience Audi’s most successful premium mid-sized XUV with a 3 stage product demonstration including a guided test-drive, driver’s assistance systems and B&O 3D sound experience.

The new Audi Q5 boast many improvements- a stronger Q design identity, better driving experience with new quattro technology coupled with a new 7-speed dual clutch gearbox and maximum everyday usability. A quieter car thanks to improved aero-acoustics and best in-class drag co efficiency (0.30). Standard for Brunei will be 19” wheels.

All test-drive participants will also enter a lucky draw to win a Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay A1 Bluetooth speaker.

Stand a chance to win a BeoPlay A1 when you test drive the latest Audi Q5

The Embassy of Japan in Brunei, together with the Japan Foundation and Times Square, will be co-organising “Japanese Language and Culture Week” from Friday 2 to Sunday 4 February 2018 at Times Square.

The event aims to introduce traditional Japanese culture and promote the Japanese language, whilst also highlighting opportunities for studying in Japan. There will be exhibition booths and on-stage demonstrations including a live showcase of new Japanese music, graffiti-art workshops, Japanese Martial Arts demonstrations, exhibitions of traditional Japanese toys, Japanese cooking, a Yoyo and Kendama showcase and Yukata (Japanese casual summer kimonos) dressing up with a commemorative photo service.

The new Japanese music showcases will be led by the musician group, named the” Ryoma Quartet “ from Japan.The band is a fusion of west meets east and old meets new. They will conduct a live performance with a violin and three traditional Japanese musical instruments; three-stringed shamisen, shinobue flute and tsuzumi hand drum. The musicians have been performing together as well as undertaken solo projects, developing music as a band and as individuals. The band is known for the members’ professional performance skills and stage presence, as well as their uniform, Montsuki Hakama (a traditional Japanese costume for men) which represents their determination to perform professionally.

Time table:
–          8.00pm on Friday, 2nd February
–          4.45pm – 5.30pm on Sunday, 4th February
–          8.00pm – 9.00pm on Sunday, 4th February

A musician group, named the” Ryoma Quartet “ from Japan

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Partners and sponsors of the 20th Consumer Fair with D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd Adviser Pengiran Salleh Abdul Rahaman Pengiran Haji Damit and D’Sunlit’s Operations Manager, Mr. Ngu Tiing Siang last weekend

A decade into its inception, the most highly anticipated and popular consumer event is back and celebrating its 20th edition! The Event Organiser and Manager, D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd, held a Signing Ceremony for the Official Event and Activity Partners for the upcoming 20th Consumer Fair that is set to celebrate its milestone from the 24th – 28th January 2018 at the International Convention Centre (ICC), Berakas.

The Signing Ceremony took place yesterday afternoon at Starbucks Beribi and was attended by representatives of the Official Event and Activity Partners. On hand during the ceremony to sign on behalf of D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd was the Company Adviser Pengiran Salleh Abdul Rahaman Pengiran Haji Damit who was accompanied by D’Sunlit’s Operations Manager, Mr. Ngu Tiing Siang.

Other than shopping, we also have highly anticipated and exciting activities to make our 20th installment of the Consumer Fair series an enjoyable event for all. Aligning with the theme of Remembering the Past, Celebrating the Present, and Envisioning the Future, the main activity highlight for the event is the After Glow Neon Gallery where several local mural artists from ARTTRALIA were brought in to create unique masterpieces in relation to the theme for this installment.

In addition, there is be a 90s-inspired Vintage Shop which will bring consumers back to past as the reminisce on their childhood through games such as tamagotchi, candies that we popular back in the 90s, fun activities such as sand art, and so much more!

You may have also heard about The Missing Endangered Campaign which is the first ever international collaboration established between WWF Malaysia and D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd. The final pit-stop will be held at the 20th Consumer Fair where 2000 mini ceramic elephant figurines will be on display and are available for purchase. All proceeds made will go to WWF Malaysia. 400 uncolored will also be available at the fair for the general public to purchase and try their hand on colouring the elephants. What more, prizes will be given away to the ‘Wildlife Heroes’ who have successfully completed the scavenger hunt adventure that commenced last October 2017. Come by and support this campaign and don’t miss out the opportunity to be a wildlife hero!

D’Sunlit Adviser Pengiran Salleh Abdul Rahaman Pengiran Haji Damit handing over t-shirt to representative of Starbucks Brunei last weekend

The second signing ceremony with partners and representatives from D’Sunlit

Furthermore there will be plenty of eating competitions brought to you by Olive Tree Corporation, Hui Huang Enterprise, and more! DST will having special promotions, free giveaways, and other fabulous prizes, while Starbucks will also be having promotional offers during the event. To add on to the hype for this 20th instalment or our Consumer Fair series, corporates such as AEC Sdn Bhd and Cuckoo International (B) Sdn Bhd and will also be conducting their own grand draws. Nothing says “New Year” like an unforgettable getaway – that’s why Cuckoo International (B) Sdn Bhd are giving out a pair of flight tickets to join their CUCKOO Media Trip to South Korea! Sign up and get a chance to win a pair of flight tickets now! Terms and Conditions Apply.

Moreover, the most highly favoured and anticipated 20th Consumer Fair Grand Lucky Draw will see one lucky winner to walk away with a brand new Toyota Vios, while others stand a chance to win Royal Brunei Airlines tickets to long haul destinations! Additionally, Royal Brunei Airlines will be offering discounted fares exclusively for the 20th Consumer Fair.

Brett McDougall, Executive General Manager – Sales & Marketing of Royal Brunei Airlines hinted of good discounted rates for RB during the 20th Consumer Fair. The fair will be announced one day prior to the actual 20th Consumer Fair

Speaking of Royal Brunei Airlines, they are happy to announce that there will be a special discounted prices exclusively during the 20th Consumer Fair itself. Brett McDougall, Executive General Manager – Sales & Marketing of Royal Brunei Airlines, hinted that the discounted prices will be announced one day prior to the 5-day event. Currently RB has already given special offers in January. So do expect a better one and it will be on selected destinations based on the market demand. Apart from that, you will still a chance to win short haul and long haul destinations as part of the 20th Consumer Fair Grand Lucky Draw sponsored by D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd.

Jackson Ting, Managing Diretor of D’Sunlit exchanging documents with Dona Eldeyana Johan, Acting Senior Manager Group Marketing, DST 

As for DST, do expect special bundles on the iPhone and Samsung contracts for its customers. If you missed out the December bundle launch for iPhones, fret not 😀 They will be readily available registration and payment service for their customers. There will be activities hosted by DST and do look forward to their current Augmented Reality competition for iPhone users and guess what? the one with the highest points will win an iPhone X. Who’s up for that? Maybe I can own another iPhone x

The 20th Consumer Fair is Organised and Managed by D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd and will be held at the International Convention Centre (ICC), Berakas from the 24th – 28th January 2018 from 10am – 10pm daily except on Friday where doors will temporarily be closed from 12pm – 2pm due to the Friday prayers.

For further inquiries regarding the 20th Consumer Fair, please do not hesitate to contact the Event Organiser, D’Sunlit Sdn Bhd at 2453 666. Don’t forget to like them on Facebook at “Brunei Consumer Fair” and follow their on Instagram @consumerfair.bn for more regular event updates! Use the hashtag #consumerfairbn and #consumerfair20 to share your Consumer Fair experiences with us as we celebrate a milestone event.

I’m glad to be part of the Consumer Fair for the 20th time 😀

When it first started back in 2008, it was called Consumer Food Fair. Image courtesy of anakbrunei.org

The Minister of Home Affairs then graced the first Consumer Fair back in 2008. Image courtesy of anakbrunei.org

One of the vendors during the first consumer fair. Image courtesy of anakbrunei.org

One of the activities during the first consumer fair. Image courtesy of Kulimpapat.

Before @gameon.bn, there was the first Brunei Cyber Game where it all happened. Image courtesy of Kulimpapat.

The original group of Brunei Cyber Game. Really appreciated the team that helped me back then. Now Amar (2nd from left) has built a better team and growth of the gaming industry in Brunei Darussalam. Image courtesy of Kulimpapat.

Happy new year, ladies and gentlemen. It’s only the third day of 2018 and I bet everyone’s trying to be in second gear. It has been a fruitful 2017 for myself and many moments those were my highlights. I shall just recapped them in no particular order. For the record, I hardly do any resolutions or milestones. It only works when you really set your intention and you mean it. Don’t just simply make resolutions that you will commit halfway or only in the first week of the year. Yea, I’ve been there and done that.

Business wise, it has been slightly turbulent but it has been encouraging at the same time. It has reminded me how it was when I started my blog as a business entity. 10 years ago, I changed the direction of my blog and now with the emergence of social media, the blog scene has demoted in favour of social media. The great thing is my social media presence has made my blog sustainable thanks to the power of Instagram. Sometimes I would ask myself what if instagram becomes less relevant or even Facebook per se in the next few years. We shall see what happens but it’s always important to keep up with the social trends to be relevant.

A shot with the members of the Royal Family. This was taken at the Royale Chulan Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia during the SEA Games in August 2017.

The Royal Shot. This was unexpected in terms of the number of likes I received for this photo alone. My average likes are normally from 200 to 300 likes. But this image caught so much attention that I hit the 10,000 likes barrier. Something I can never reached on a normal day. This shows how influential @tmski is on social media, locally and internationally. Sometimes I wonder how does he feel being in the limelight and being bombarded by his fans to take selfies. He is definitely a sporting person who is able to accommodate the wishes of his fans.

My separation with Maggi since October 2017. The struggle is real. So real. This was taken on Day 61 without consuming maggi curry.

The Divorce with Maggi? It’s getting there. Now it’s Day 92 with out having to eat my favourite maggi curry or any instant noodles. This was my mini resolution in October because of my health scare where my blood pressure hit its highest (almost 160). The doctor has advised me to cut down on salt and I finally realised that my daily consumption on maggi curry has done the damage. Yes, it has high sodium content and packed with MSG. So how do I deal with it? With difficulty because it has been 30 years and running that I ate maggi curry. It came to a point that my body has reached its toll. The health scare happened before I boarded a flight in October. In the end, I canceled my trip for the love of my health which also means to sacrifice what I craved for. I created a 100 day challenge and now with a few days left, what would I do? Let’s wait and see. At least, I know that my BP is back to normal. Phew!!!

Finally, it’s surreal that I’m back in the holy land of Makkah and Madinah. Sometimes it’s hard to describe the feeling. You have to be there to experience and you will know what I mean. This was taken in December 2017.

Umrah with At-Taqwa. One of the best memories and highlight for me in 2017 and a huge thanks for At-Taqwa Travel and Tours for making this trip possible for me. I was a bit scared in the beginning because of my health condition (BP). It was a good thing that I remained positive to counter those negative thoughts and Alhamdulillah, that I managed to complete my umrah trip in good health. I also loved the service and hospitality provided by At-Taqwa Travel & Tours and many have shared the same sentiments. Of course, I really missed the holy lands especially Madinah. I hope to be there one day again. InsyaAllah.

Coldplay concert “Pocket full of dreams” was so liiiitttttttt!!!!!!! Both Jolene and I had a great time at the gig.

My first taste of Coldplay. I have been wanting to catch Coldplay for a long, long time. I missed the first two concerts in Singapore until this year in March 2017. This was the best concert I’ve been to because of a different experience delivered by Coldplay. It’s not just the music but the atmosphere, the confetti, the wristband lights, the set up, the huge ass balloons. It was just a phenomenal experience. I have seen many concerts and gigs and Coldplay’s concert was by far the best I’ve experienced as a concert goer. I want more!!!!

TO BE CONTINUED

The Arabian decoration and display in conjunction with the Wafa Hotel & Apartment’s Arabic Food Festival 2017

Wafa Hotel & Apartment inaugurates the first Arabic Food Festival 2017 last weekend at Annajat Complex. The partner for The Arabic Food Festival is Gwad Basha Arabian Restaurant & Catering (one of my favourite Arabian cuisine in Brunei). I just came back from Saudi Arabia and it makes me crave for the Arabian food more.

The food promotion aims to enthrall the patrons and diners with a myriad of enchanting flavours from the Arabic lands and this also gives Wafa Hotel & Apartment’s guests and customers to enjoy and indulge in the food and fantasies of an Arabian feast located on the 3rd floor of Wafa Hotel & Apartment.

You will also get to see a Middle Eastern ambience and decorations to feel the ambience of Middle Eastern.

The Arabian food promotion will run from 23rd December until 6th January 2018. Now with payday and bonus season, I would highly recommend you to check their food.

For further information, you can contact Wafa Hotel & Apartment at 242 5889. The hotel is located at Annajat Complex, the newly opened building near the Beribi Roundabout.

The promotional poster

Pg Md Khairuddin Pg Abu Bakar, the Assistant Manager of Wafa Hotel & Apartment giving his welcoming remarks

Guest of honour Hjh Aidah bte Hj Mohd Hanifah, Director of Agriculture and Agrifood

Members of media with representatives from Brunei Shell Marketing Co. Sdn Bhd during the shortlisting of the draw last week

#BELIHELIX (Buy Helix) promotion has garnered loads of interest. Not just because the Shell Helix Ultra products are of high quality. Because there are monthly draws and the grand prize will be BMW 118i, Dubai package tours for two and BND 2,500 cash card.

Tomorrow (27th December) will be the first monthly draw and Brunei Shell Marketing the organizer of the promotion mentioned that they have more than 5,000 entries for the month of November alone. The draw was done last week by media representatives and witnessed by Brunei Shell Marketing management.

Those who purchased Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40, HX-7 10W-40 and HX5 15W-40 will be eligible for the draw. They will have to purchase a pack of four liters of Shell Helix Motor Oil and fill in the lucky draw entry form.

There are 190 participating outlets (car dealers, independent workshops, high streets and petrol stations) across the Sultanate. The current promotion ends on January 2018 and the next consolation draw will be held in January 2018 while the grand draw will be February 2018.

Shell Helix Ultra with PurePlus Technology is a next-generation, fully synthetic premium motor oil made from natural gas making it stronger and less volatile at the molecular level than those made from traditional crude. Key benefits include performance through engine stress, superior protection against wear, protecting the engine in extreme temperatures and it is designed for ultimate power and performance. Engine manufacturer partners including BMW Motorsport, Hyundai Motorsport, Maserati and Scuderia Ferrari use and trust Shell Helix Ultra. The Shell Helix portfolio is suitable for both diesel and gasoline engines.

Waqiuddin of Motor Sport BN doing one of the draws for the month of November

Let it roll

Wu Chun being featured on Vogue magazine

December is said to be the busiest month for China. Holidays are on the side, and preparations for the coming year. One the most cited activities is the awarding ceremonies organised by the top media companies in the country and to no surprise, our very own superstar from Brunei, Wu Chun.

International Superstar, Endorser and Philanthropist, Wu Chun a Bruneian pride bagged 3 three notable awards:

• The 2017 Best Achievement Male Role Model Award at the “China Women Media Award” organised by United Nation Women.
• 2017 MAN OF THE YEAR Award at the BAZAAR Men China in Beijing.
• 2017 Most Influential Male Artiste Award at the NetEase award ceremony
•
Aside from being a busy bee with numerous endorsements and being ambassador for numerous international brands this year alone (namely, GAP, Skechers, Safeguard, Nutrilon, Cosatto, Milka, Lancome, Fisher Price) and while running numerous businesses, Wu Chun’s year has also been fruitful making films for his avid supporters and fans.

 This year he filmed Martial Universe (A mythology martial arts romance) alongside with Yang Yang and Zhang Tian Ai. “Daddy, where are you going?”, a TV reality show with a 6 billion online viewers alone in China featuring his daughter Nei – Nei and first broad cast TV appearance of his son, Max.

One of the highlights for Wu Chun is his recent appearance on the cover of VOGUE magazine. Very few male artistes has the opportunity to appear on the cover of this very top female fashion magazine and on top of this, Wu Chun, on a number of occasions, has been ranked number 1 in China’s online celebrities influential power list and this year has certainly push Wu Chun to another level in his showbiz career.

This year, he also promoted and released My Other Home ( “A New Yorker in Beijing”) an inspiring true story about Basketball and friendship directed by Zang Yi  casting alongside with Stephon Marbury and Allen Iverson. He is also currently the ambassador for charity organisation IFAW or Internantional Fund for Animal Welfare, which is one of the largest animal welfare and conservation charities in the world. He has been chosen to be an ambassador for Brunei Anti Narcotic Drug Association in 2012. Since 2014, he became the international brand ambassador of Royal Brunei Airlines.

As a young idol and super-dad, Chun is a progressive young entrepreneur and a social welfare advocate. Not only he is constantly breaking records in performing arts, but he also advocates gender equality, taking care of his children and family, and accompanying them to grow happily.

Wu Chun’s contribution to the country has been massive all these years and has literally put Brunei on the map among the chinese around the world. It has been noted that recognition and acknowledgement and being active in the community is not something new for the actor. To name a few,  Wu Chun has received the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards (APEA) Young Entrepreneur of The Year (2008), CQE Geneva QC Total Quality Management Model Award (2012), APEA Corporate Social Responsibility Award (2013). In 2015, Wu Chun was one of the recipients for Brunei’s Excellent Youth Award.

Officiating the newly revamped and upgraded Sky Lounge and also the new Business Class Lounge at Brunei International Airport. Guest of Honour Yang Mulia Dr Hj Abdul Manaf Bin Hj Metussin, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Primary Resource and Tourism, & RB Board Director, and Karam Chand, RB’s CEO.

Royal Brunei Airlines has launched its newly refreshed and upgraded Sky Lounge and introduced the new flagship Business Class Lounge at Brunei International Airport on 06 December 2017.

The launch of the new lounges were officiated by Guest of Honour Yang Mulia Dr Hj Abdul Manaf Bin Hj Metussin, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Primary Resource and Tourism, & RB Board Director, and Karam Chand, RB’s CEO. The launch was also attended by RB’s Board of Directors, officials from the Department of Civil Aviation, various Government Agencies, RB’s corporate partners and Royal Skies elite members.

The RB Business Class Lounge takes on board the needs of the sophisticated and frequent travelers that is RB’s business class guests and Royal Skies gold members. Features that take care of guest comfort, relaxation, fine dining and entertainment has been provided for in the new lounge. With a capacity of 72, the new Business class Lounge has plush, comfortable décor and furnishings designed to make the guests feel at home and for them to relax and enjoy the warm hospitality of RB. Guests at the Business Class Lounge have access to executive meeting rooms and all the facilities offered at the Sky Lounge in addition to the coffee bar for those guests who are squeezed for time.

RB upgraded sky lounge is open to Royal Skies Silver members, corporate guests, customer airline guests and for the first time in Brunei, to walk-in guests. RB is pleased to welcome Priority Pass customers to its lounge and is in discussions with other corporates who have shown interest in getting access to the lounge. These will be announced in due course.

Karam Chand delivering his welcoming remarks

Members of the guests during the launch

The Business Class lounge

Surau

The kids play area

The dining area

Accommodating up to 120 guests, the upgraded Sky Lounge features buffet dining, all the existing facilities including the prayer room. However RB felt the guests deserve more and thus have added exciting facilities such as a movie room, kids’ room, family zone, gaming area featuring PS4 and Xbox Kinect as well as a Virtual Reality station highlighting places of interest in Brunei and other RB destinations giving our visitors an immersive experience of the various attractions on offer. This is work in progress and more destinations and RB products will be added over time. We hope through this innovation we can entice more transit guests to consider taking a stop-over holiday in Brunei on their return journey. There are no extra charges for the air content for stop-over guests when booked via our online booking portal.

With a ceiling to floor glass exterior, the lounges overlooks the departure hall and features the warm and refreshing colours that is now synonymous to the RB brand. The lounge glass exterior also maintains previous design elements like the Brunei iconic Ayer Muleh design and a unique brass art piece depicting Kampung Ayer in keeping with our Bruneian identity.

“At RB, we believe the service experience right from research for the holiday options, bookings, service at the airport and inflight is our key strength and we continuously strive to innovate and improve the guest experience at every touch point. We are pleased to offer our guests the best Bruneian hospitality and positively position Brunei International Airport (BIA) to international travelers. With the peak holiday season on the horizon, we are excited to introduce the walk-in product, a first for Brunei which we believe will be very attractive to the long haul economy guests who have been asking for such a facility at BIA for some time. With the expanded facilities and top quality food and beverages on offer, we trust the new lounges will be exceed guest expectations and help us achieve four star airline ranking. ” said Karam Chand, RB’s CEO.

RB is pleased to introduce its business partner Savy’s Brasserie. Savy’s has partnered with RB as the caterer and service provider and has designed the menu to suit all taste buds. Today they launched the full product offering for RB guests including fine dining in the business class lounge.

There’s a playroom for gamers too.

Frozen anyone? #playstation #xbox

There’s a movie theatre room

Some of the invited guests

Some of the invited guests

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I came across a venue that provides a banquet hall, a meeting conference and also a place for corporate and private events. If you happened to be in KB town (Kuala Belait), then this is one of those choices that you can consider.

If you look at the banquet hall, it’s surprisingly huge where it can accommodate 800 to 1,300 guests. For those who are keen, you can refer to the meetings & events factsheet below for the price range.

The banquet hall is inclusive of:

• Projector & screen
• PA System
• Wifi
• Tables and chairs arrangements
• Food & beverages
• Audio video lighting
• Podium with goose neck microphone
• Basic sound system and lightings
• Side projector and screens

For the Meeting Conference, it is inclusive of:

Projector & screen
• PA System
• Wifi
• Tables and chairs arrangements
• Two 2in1 flip chart whiteboard stands with one paper & two markers
• Sets of stationaries
• Mineral water 600ml
• Complimentary candy
• Food and beverages (an additional charged based on menu selection)

For Corporate & Private Events, it is inclusive of:

• 4 hours maximum with minimum 10 person
• All prices are subject to 10% service charge
• 50% deposit is required once confirmed
• Final guest count and pre-payment of function due 1 week prior to event
• Cash, cheque or credit card term only.

These facilities are now available at Garden Sentral Hotel, Kuala Belait. The meeting/conference room is located on 3rd floor while the banquet hall is located on the 6th floor of the Garden Sentral Hotel.

For more information, you can call 333 8333 or you can email inquiry at reservations@gardensentralhotel.com You can also follow them on Facebook and Instagram @gardensentralhotel for updates.

The banquet hall area at Garden Sentral Hotel

The meeting and conference area

It can be arranged in this setting for corporate events

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