Offsite meeting in the "Land of Cats"

Some time ago, by a stroke of good fortune, it was decided that our team would hold this next offsite meeting in Kuching, Sarawak. The name of the city, Kuching, in the Malay language, literally meant Cat. That's right. The feline creature that is Garfield, Felix, Tom and famed catcher of mice.


I eagerly looked forward to the trip, as it would be my very first time to the state of Sarawak. I've been to East Malaysia before, on several occasions, but always to the other end (the one with the famous tall mountain, of which I have yet to successfully ascend to the summit).
As there wasn't yet a "functional" airport in the vicinity (that would really have made things much easier), our entourage left for the LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) where our flight via budget airlines (AirAsia) awaits. Our choice was the most "politically correct" in appearance - my experience was that the other local airline carrier could offer a competitively-priced package too....

 
L-R : Moey (standing), Chong SC (sitting), KT Kong, Dr G, Me, Thye and Chan

After arriving at the Kuching Airport, and going for a late lunch, we proceeded to the Sarawak Cultural Village for a short tour, and managed to catch the cultural show performance.

 
Steven at the entrance of the Sarawak cultural village

 
Thye about to cross a "bridge"

The next day, it was meeting time, as you might expect, the parts that were boring aren't worth mentioning here. While the parts that were exciting are *company confidential*, so I can't mention here either...! :)

 
L-R (standing) : KT Kong, Cheng, Law CK, Yeo EK, Chan, Clement, KS, Mr Wee, Thye, Dr G, Chong SC and NK
L-R (front row) : Vivien, CC Tan, Me, Moey

 
Vivien gazing off into the distance....

 
Group shot at night, with the multi-skilled crew of the cruise boat

 

Thankfully, at the end of the day, we went out for a river cruise along the Sarawak River. Managed to enjoy the peaceful and relaxing ride, and also a live performance by the crew of the river boat.

 
Happy birthday, tooo, yoooou!!!

On the last day of our offsite meeting, we brought in the birthday cake for our good friend and colleague, Jackson (what a coincidence!). Talk about combining events....

It was time to go home, but on the way, we stopped by a wet market to pick up some green souvenirs. I'm not really experience in marketing, so I passed on this time, while seasoned "aunties" like Chong SC took to the market like a duck to water...!

 
Purchasing or Marketing?

In my brief time on the streets of Kuching, I managed to pick up some t-shirts for my kids, as well as the famous black and white peppers that were the local produce. Also, famous here was the "Tebaloi" which is a Melanau biscuit / cracker. And finally, the Sarawak multi-layered cakes too. And of course, Sarawak coffee powder!

Too bad one of my good friends, Lo CT, wasn't around. Since she's FROM Kuching, I'm sure she could have taken me to try some Kuching Laksa, which somehow we missed during this 3 day trip. Ah, well....

At the end of the day, on AirAsia again, we arrived back at our rendezvous point, dead tired but happy to have achieved our company objectives. And, at the same time, grateful to have been able to enjoy the majestic beauty of that little city in East Malaysia, the "land of Cats", Kuching...! :)