TGV Cinemas Grand Opening on 12 March 2015

TGV Cinemas is well known throughout West Malaysia. It seems that it is about time that they started to spread their wings to the land of Borneo. That is what happened on 12 March 2015. TGV Cinemas finally comes to Miri, Sarawak. Now people in Miri and it surrounding areas has more choices to pick which cinemas to go to.

The grand opening was held at Permaisuri Imperial City Mall, Miri. The launch was officiated by Assistant Minister of Sports and Communications Sarawak  YB Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Mayor of Miri City Council Lawrence Lai, Chief Executive Director of Boulevard Group of Companies Ling Chion Sing, Chief Executive Officer of Boulevard Group of Companies Don Yew Hoon and Chief Executive Officer of TGV Cinemas Gerald V Dibbayawan. 

Right after the grand opening ceremony, we were invited for the press conference which was at hall 5 of TGV Cinemas and was also invited to the premiere of, Cinderella. Yes people, I watched Cinderella with my fellow bloggers! We sat at the beanie seat, which was a little uncomfortable, maybe because I was sitting next to my best-friend while watching Cinderella. Sorry for those that loved that chair, I just don't 'dig it'.

I did took some photos of the event but unfortunately all the photos are uploaded to my old laptop and now that laptop is basically dead. So, I am still try to find a way to retrieve all the photos and will upload all of them soon. For the time-being, here's a LINK for some of the photos I manage to get. 

Personal view on the cinemas? Well, they have 8 halls all together and I love the toilet pipe design. Sorry, just have to say that. The industrial look is awesome! Now back to the cinema, I haven't actually been to all of the halls but the sound quality is good but they need to work more on the soundproof of the halls. But it seems to be common amongst the cinemas here in Miri and people are not bothered about that. The seats are great, not the beanie-seat, but the individual seats. They are huge and more leg room so its easy for some customer to go in and out.

Ignore my awkward 'thumbs up' pose.

Before I forget, thank you again to the good people of TGV Cinemas, Ms. Nandini, PR Executive of TGV Cinemas and many others that are involve in this launch. Thanks again for the Air Force One complimentary passes, will put that to good use very soon. Just for the sake of sharing, here are some photos taken from my fellow bloggers.

Of course we must have this kind of shots!

 

Borneo Jazz Festival mark its 10 Year Anniversary this May 2015

SARAWAK, Malaysia – Year 2015 marks the tenth anniversary of the Borneo Jazz Festival in Sarawak. The two-day exciting festival of Jazz music will be celebrated on Friday, May 8 and Saturday, May 9 in the Resort City of Miri.   The organizer, Sarawak Tourism Board proudly presents the best performers’ lineup promising the festival to be a hit celebratory note by bringing back favorite performers from the past years from different countries to celebrate a decade of Jazz by the sea.
 
The performing bands will cover a wide range of jazz genre from all over the world. From the local scene, “All The Best”, a five-piece ensemble with Miri-born Syafiee Obe Hairunie, who is also the conductor of the Kuching SONS Jazz Orchestra to lead the local challenge. It parades contemporary jazz with a twist of Malaysian flavor with added Latin rhythms.  

Favorite international performers on stage this year will be one of the most on demand jazz pianists from the Spanish Blues scene, Lluis Coloma, boogie-woogie at its most inspired. Louis Coloma at the piano will dislodge all the keys with great big happy smile.  

The Dirty Dozen Brass Band from the United States of America, sparkly exhilarating and featuring exuberant traditional brass band from the rich jazz traditions of New Orleans. The Dirty Dozen revolutionized the New Orleans brass band style by incorporating funk and bebop into the traditional New Orleans jazz style.  

From Perth, Western Australia, Diamond Dave and The Doodaddies are a four-piece Chicago style Blues Band offering a solid selection of uplifting grooves covering swinging shuffles, soul, boogaloo, ‘cry in your beer’ blues and more.  

The Doodaddies proves not only that the roots of the blues are strong and far reaching, but the future of the blues is bright.  

Jump4Joy, the Swedish high energy entertainment with a strong New Orleans flavor brings their music kind of feel-good energetic toe-tapping sounds from the stage.   Mo’Blow from Berlin, Germany, is more towards energetic spicy groovy funk. After hearing Mo’ Blow you will think differently about their country of origin because Germany is not exactly known as the home of soul and funk jazz.  

Other popular jazz band listed for this decade of celebration is The Nylons, a cappella jazz group from Canada. They are well known for their dazzling harmonies and slick stage performances.  
And finally, Anthony Strong from United Kingdom, hailed as “England’s new jazz superstar” after Gregory Porter, Michael Bublé and Harry Connick Jr. raised to become the No.1 on iTunes and No.2 on the www.amazon.com jazz charts in the USA.  

For intending festivalgoers, they are encouraged to check out for attractive promotional offers and discount tickets to be announced on the festival website at www.jazzborneo.com for latest offers and discounts.  

To encourage visitors coming and to explore the destination, the organizer is also working with various tour agencies to package the festival with wide array of local product experiences.  

At the festival site, festival goers will be able to enjoy a variety of local and international cuisine, purchase of souvenirs as well as local handicrafts during the festival to help the local business community to integrate and be a part of the event and contribute to the local economy.  

The host city, Miri, the gateway to Northern Sarawak is also a destination that has lots to offer to visitors. From budget hotels to 5-star accommodations, from adventures at sea and to the mountains, it has all. Visitors who are at the Borneo Jazz are encouraged to extend their stay and explore the Mulu National Park - the only UNESCO World Heritage site in Sarawak.   

The event scheduled in May, in conjunction with celebration of the Miri City Day. It is a month-long of celebration and the best time to plan and visit the area.  

The Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) will continue to incorporate the tree planting campaign as part of the festival corporate social responsibility program and as a contribution to the city’s greening efforts. Other than the performing bands, various government organizations, Universities and Colleges will be invited to be part of the event for bigger and better impact. STB will take pride in incorporating the elements of greening at the venue.  

Borneo Jazz has grown steadily since its first edition in 2006, going from 3,000 spectators to nearly 8,000 in the last year. This growth is a reflection of the success of the festival and the growing appeal of jazz enthusiast around the region.  

Festival tickets is available online at www.jazzborneo.com. Fast updated information through Twitter account @SarawakTravel or Facebook at Sarawak   Travel.   Borneo Jazz is one of Major Event lineup for ‘Malaysia Year of Festival – MyFest 2015’.  

Organized by Sarawak Tourism Board, supported by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia and Ministry of Tourism Sarawak and endorsed by Tourism Malaysia.