2007 Intensive Chi Kung & Kung Fu Courses in Sabah, Malaysia.

[Damian Kissey]

Dear All ,

Greetings from Borneo.

I am happy to announce that Sifu will be graciously conducting the following two intensive courses in Sabah , Malaysia soon :

1) Intensive Shaolin Cosmos Chi Kung Course : 1 st to 5 th March 2007 .
Please find details in this link http://shaolinwahnamsabah.com/courseCKsabah.htm

2) Intensive Shaolin Kung Fu Course : 6 th to 12 th March 2007 .
Please find details in this link http://shaolinwahnamsabah.com/courseKFsabah.htm


Course applications may be directed to me or to Sifu's Secretary at http://www.shaolin.org


With Shaolin salute ,

Damian Kissey
(Sabah Course Organiser).

[Mark Blohm]

To Sabah I go!

[Charles David]

Hmmm...

Very intriguing possibility...

Very enticing indeed...

[Mark Blohm]

Hmmm...

Very intriguing possibility...

Very enticing indeed...

Let's go, Siheng!

[Akemi]

I want to go! It's at the wrong time of the year, work-wise for me, though .

There's always Summer Camp (I'm coming for you, Claire! )

I wish all those who go ease in raising the necessary resources and safe and happy travel.

[Guest]

Dear Sihengs and family I am very interested in attending at least one of these courses...but I think I would gain greater benefit from the intensive CK course.
Then if Sifu accepts me for this course I can go to the KF course later in the year...now i'm getting ahead of myself


With love Shams.

[tekproxy]

I would like to go, if I'm accepted and if other conditions are permitting, but I'm quite the nervous novice when it comes to travel so I've a lot of questions and concerns, if you don't mind. Bear with me.

For me, living in Texas, the cheapest way to get to Malaysia would be to book a trip to New York, then book a trip to Malaysia via Singapore Airlines (link: http://www.singaporeair.com). Once in Singapore I assume the best way to get to Sabah would be by train. I'm not sure where to find train tickets for that.

Should I try to fly somewhere closer to Sabah? Does anyone know where to get train tickets? Does my plan sound OK or should I just go with a travel agent? Can anyone suggest a good travel agent?

The information page (link: http://shaolinwahnamsabah.com/courseKFsabah.htm) mentions the Perkasa Hotel is RM180 per day. I don't know what RM means and I don't want to take the chance of getting it wrong when I look it up. How do I convert RM to USD? Will I have to bring RM money or will US dollars suffice?

The above site also mentions that there is a Kinabalu Park conservation fee. How much does it cost?

The link to get information on visas, etc... (link: http://tourism.gov.my/destination/entry.htm) is broken. It seems they updated their page. This one still works: http://tourism.gov.my

If I went the route of the travel agent I wouldn't have to worry about this, but suppose that it's much cheaper for me to not do the travel agent, do I just e-mail or call the nearest local Malaysian embassy for a passport? From research it seems that people from the US that are staying less than 3 months don't need a visa and all I'd have to worry about is a passport. I'd really like to get a travel agent if anyone knows a good one so I don't have to worry about all the details.

I was so nervous traveling to just the Regional course in Florida which was only a 14 hour drive... on soil. Only had to worry about my feeble driving skills, hotel and food. With this it's multiple plane tickets, train tickets, passport, foreign lands and customs, airport security, etc... Even though I'm nervous, I'm genuinely thankful that it's so difficult for me to get there. I'd definitely show up for class even if it rained.


1 round-trip ticket from here to New York - 250$
1 round-trip ticket from New York to Singapore - 990$
1 round-trip train ticket from Singapore to Sabah - RM??? USD???
12 nights at hotel - RM2160
Kung Fu Course - 1500$
Learning authentic Shaolin Kung Fu from Sifu - Priceless

[Charles David]

Let's go, Siheng!

Thanks, Sidai. I am looking into the possibilities. It would be really nice to be able to meet you and train together.

Watch me work.

Still,

[Charles David]

Hi Tekproxy,

Congratulations on your decision to travel to Sabah. I tooks my first course with Sifu there and it was fantastic. The Kissey family is absolutely inspiring, and the landscape stunning. Don't worry too much about things. The Lonely Planet guidebooks are a good place to start. They even have an online resource, to help you get started. I hope that we can meet in Sabah.

With Shaolin Salutation,

[Guest]

Dear TekProxy you can do a simple search on google to find the information you need, I found for example:

http://www.sabahtourism.com/travelGuide.php?ID=99&lg=1

The above link has information on airlines that fly from other major airports in the region (asia pacific) to Sabah's airport - Kota Kinabalu.

warmest wishes Shams.

P.S. no need to worry

[Damian Kissey]

Travelling with an open heart

Dear Caleb ,

Congratulations on your achievement at the recent USA courses with Sifu .

Greetings from Sabah , Malaysia ( The state of Sabah is also known as the Land below the wind , because it's safe from the hurricane belt in South East Asia .....maybe there is a story for the Nether-land of Texas).Sabah in East Malaysia is on Borneo Island , separated from West Malaysia on the Asia mainland by the South China Sea , about 2 hour 30 minutes flight ( not by train) from Kuala Lumpur or Singapore .Our forum brothers Cha Muir ( Canada) ,Mark Blohm ( USA ) and Zhang Wuji ( Singapore ) have all been to and enjoyed the courses in Sabah : you may ask them about their experiences.

Your travel plan looks good .I have some suggestions and info :

1) Fly New York , USA > Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia Capital on mainland) > Kota Kinabalu in Sabah using Singapore or Malaysian Airlines.Your good local travel agent will help you .

2) USD 1 = RM 3.8 . RM is the Malaysian currency ( Ringgit Malaysia ).The one off park conservation fee is 2.5 USD ( US Dollars ).

3) An ordinary tourist visa and a smile will get you to Sabah.The visa and international passport can be obtained with the help of your travel agent.
I will contact you via e mail soonest with more info.
Others might find the above info helpful , hence my posting it here.

Enjoy your new found Chi Kungfu and see you in Borneo soon.
And don't forget to smile from the heart , it helps in traversing this small globe.

Best Regards and Shaolin Salute ,
damian .

[Mark Blohm]

Oh yeah. I understand where you're coming from. I was a bit bervous myself when I landed on the ground in Malaysian Borneo and it was pouring rain. But y'know what? The rain only lasted a day and I found all the people I encountered around Kota Kinabalu to be very helpful and genuinely nice people. Well, then I got to meet Sifu, the Kissey family and everybody else at the course

Dont' plan on taking a train from Sinapore to Sabah. They're separated by ocean

Check out Singapore Airlines or Malaysian Airlines. I would probably fly from New York, but you might consider flying out of Los Angeles.

I would suggest getting some Malaysian Ringits so that you can pay for the hotel room and meals and for other things if you stay in Kota Kinabalu City for a day or two. The park fee isn't much.

do I just e-mail or call the nearest local Malaysian embassy for a passport? From research it seems that people from the US that are staying less than 3 months don't need a visa and all I'd have to worry about is a passport.

http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/first/first_832.html

Send me a private message or an e-mail if you need any help with anything.

Mark

[Zhang Wuji]

Hi Tekproxy

This will have to be really quick, and I will be back with more details.

I suggest you fly to LA, and take a connecting flight across the Pacific to either Japan or Hong Kong. From there, if there is no connecting flight to Kota Kinabalu, transit in Kuala Lumpur the capital of Malaysia or better still, in Singapore (which is NOT in or part of Malaysia). You need to take another flight because Sabah is far away and is accessible only by plane from Malaysia and Singapore.

The rate is something like US$1 to 3RM.

Edit: Oops, I see the rest have already supplied you with better information.

[tekproxy]

Wow! Thank you all for the helpful information. I'm sure others will also find it helpful.

And I'll take the advice given in the forum and not worry.. I'll just be careful.

[drunken boxer]

I am applying for the Intensive Shaolin Kungfu Course and if I'm accepted it would be good to keep in contact with anyone else who is going.

Paul