Planning to visit Sabah in the coming future? The information in this entry probably can help you to understand Sabah more.
1. Local Time
The local time in Sabah is standardized similar to the local time in West Malaysia. The current offset for Malaysia time zone is GMT +8. However, the sunrise and sunset time in West Malaysia and East Malaysia differ by 1 hour. Because of this, the prayer time for Muslim in Sabah is 1 hour earlier than those in West Malaysia.
2. Temperature
The temperature in Sabah is also similar to the temperature in West Malaysia. Urban areas such as Kota Kinabalu city, Tawau, and Sandakan have the temperature ranging from 28 to 35 degree celcius. However, highland territory like Kundasang or forest reserve areas like Danum Valley, Maliau Basin, and Tabin Valley have lower temperature ranging from 24 to 30 degree celcius.
Similar to the other tropical countries and West Malaysia, the weather in Sabah is summer throughout the year. Its either a normal summer day or a typical raining day. Just get your sunblock cream and umbrella ready to face the weather. In my case as local citizen - just some tips for you - I always bring my mini chargeable fan everywhere because of the hot weather.
Since the national language of Malaysia is Malay language, everyone in the state are able to communicate in Malay. The local people also can communicate in English language (mostly are able to) because English is a compulsory secondary language taught from pre-school kindergarten up to university level. There are hundred of ethnics in Sabah and each have their own language and dialects. But worry not, as long as you can speak English or Malay, you won't have hard time communicating with the local people here.
Sabah is using Ringgit Malaysia as currency which is abbreviated as RM. The local people usually answer price questions by adding Ringgit at the end of the amount. For instance, RM5.00 is pronounce as 5 Ringgits.
Sabah is probably one of the safest places to visit in Malaysia. Now, I'm not trying to put a bad impression on Sabah safety, but lets take the cases I included here as a reminder. Pick-pocketing, theft, or any other crimes that normally occur in a city environment also can be seen here in Kota Kinabalu.
Hit by Car - Few years ago, a tourist from China was hit by car in Kota Kinabalu when she was trying to cross the road. Somewhat there is no proper walkway or flyover or crossing-road line for the pedestrian. The local pedestrian does not follow the traffic light. As long as there is no car on the road, they will cross the road even if the pedestrian light still showing red color.
Kidnapping Issue - There has been a lot of kidnapping issue happen particularly in east part of Sabah. Along the East Sabah border is few well-known tourism island that visited by thousands every year. Some to mention such as Pulau Bohey Dulang, Pulau Mantanani, Pulau Sipadan and many more. Ever since the case of instrusion in Lahad Datu, the new marine units known as ESSCOM have been situated to monitor East Sabah water.
Western food, Arabic food, Korean food, Japanese food, traditional food, Malay food, and many more type of cuisines are available here in Sabah. Seafood is probably the most famous choice for those visitors from West Malaysia because of the cheap price. The varieties of drinks in Sabah is also quite similar to West Malaysia, except for 'Air Kahwin' which I can't find here in Sabah although I can make it myself.
Non-Halal Food - Since half of the population in Sabah are non-Muslim, non-halal food can be found anywhere around the state. But worry not, the non-Muslim here is ready to warn you of the halal status. Some food and drinks to note are sinalau bakas (pork), lihing (a type of liquor), and mentakoh (also a type of liquor).
The most common transportation means in Sabah are buses and taxi. Some cities like Tawau, Sandakan, Kudat and Lahad Datu have airplane access from Kota Kinabalu daily. There is also an old-style train connecting Kota Kinabalu and Beaufort. Ferry service is available from Kota Kinabalu to Labuan and Brunei Darussalam.
This sector is quite busy in the state. Just last year, 2016, Sabah break its own record with 3.43 millions visitors from around the world. The booming of tourism activities in Sabah causes the hotel industry to have high demand, which also result in more hotel accommodation available in the states. Hence, getting a place to stay in Sabah is quite easy.
10. Religion
Probably one of the issues every Sabahan proud of is the local tolerance over religion differences. The case of discrimination due to one religious belief in Sabah is quite rare. Whether you are Christians, Muslim, Hindus or Buddhist, no one treat you differently because you belong to any of the beliefs. You are free to practice your religion as long your actions are not on the expense of others. The simple rule is "Respect in order to be respected". In Sabah, both Muslims and Christians are the majority religion. Hence, mosque and church are available almost everywhere in the state while Buddhist temples are available in some areas in Kota Kinabalu.
1. Local Time
The temperature in Sabah is also similar to the temperature in West Malaysia. Urban areas such as Kota Kinabalu city, Tawau, and Sandakan have the temperature ranging from 28 to 35 degree celcius. However, highland territory like Kundasang or forest reserve areas like Danum Valley, Maliau Basin, and Tabin Valley have lower temperature ranging from 24 to 30 degree celcius.
3. Weather
Similar to the other tropical countries and West Malaysia, the weather in Sabah is summer throughout the year. Its either a normal summer day or a typical raining day. Just get your sunblock cream and umbrella ready to face the weather. In my case as local citizen - just some tips for you - I always bring my mini chargeable fan everywhere because of the hot weather.
4. Language
Since the national language of Malaysia is Malay language, everyone in the state are able to communicate in Malay. The local people also can communicate in English language (mostly are able to) because English is a compulsory secondary language taught from pre-school kindergarten up to university level. There are hundred of ethnics in Sabah and each have their own language and dialects. But worry not, as long as you can speak English or Malay, you won't have hard time communicating with the local people here.
5. Currency
Sabah is using Ringgit Malaysia as currency which is abbreviated as RM. The local people usually answer price questions by adding Ringgit at the end of the amount. For instance, RM5.00 is pronounce as 5 Ringgits.
6. Safety
Sabah is probably one of the safest places to visit in Malaysia. Now, I'm not trying to put a bad impression on Sabah safety, but lets take the cases I included here as a reminder. Pick-pocketing, theft, or any other crimes that normally occur in a city environment also can be seen here in Kota Kinabalu.
Hit by Car - Few years ago, a tourist from China was hit by car in Kota Kinabalu when she was trying to cross the road. Somewhat there is no proper walkway or flyover or crossing-road line for the pedestrian. The local pedestrian does not follow the traffic light. As long as there is no car on the road, they will cross the road even if the pedestrian light still showing red color.
Kidnapping Issue - There has been a lot of kidnapping issue happen particularly in east part of Sabah. Along the East Sabah border is few well-known tourism island that visited by thousands every year. Some to mention such as Pulau Bohey Dulang, Pulau Mantanani, Pulau Sipadan and many more. Ever since the case of instrusion in Lahad Datu, the new marine units known as ESSCOM have been situated to monitor East Sabah water.
7. Drinks and Food
Western food, Arabic food, Korean food, Japanese food, traditional food, Malay food, and many more type of cuisines are available here in Sabah. Seafood is probably the most famous choice for those visitors from West Malaysia because of the cheap price. The varieties of drinks in Sabah is also quite similar to West Malaysia, except for 'Air Kahwin' which I can't find here in Sabah although I can make it myself.
Non-Halal Food - Since half of the population in Sabah are non-Muslim, non-halal food can be found anywhere around the state. But worry not, the non-Muslim here is ready to warn you of the halal status. Some food and drinks to note are sinalau bakas (pork), lihing (a type of liquor), and mentakoh (also a type of liquor).
8. Transportation
The most common transportation means in Sabah are buses and taxi. Some cities like Tawau, Sandakan, Kudat and Lahad Datu have airplane access from Kota Kinabalu daily. There is also an old-style train connecting Kota Kinabalu and Beaufort. Ferry service is available from Kota Kinabalu to Labuan and Brunei Darussalam.
9. Hotel and Homestay
This sector is quite busy in the state. Just last year, 2016, Sabah break its own record with 3.43 millions visitors from around the world. The booming of tourism activities in Sabah causes the hotel industry to have high demand, which also result in more hotel accommodation available in the states. Hence, getting a place to stay in Sabah is quite easy.
10. Religion
Probably one of the issues every Sabahan proud of is the local tolerance over religion differences. The case of discrimination due to one religious belief in Sabah is quite rare. Whether you are Christians, Muslim, Hindus or Buddhist, no one treat you differently because you belong to any of the beliefs. You are free to practice your religion as long your actions are not on the expense of others. The simple rule is "Respect in order to be respected". In Sabah, both Muslims and Christians are the majority religion. Hence, mosque and church are available almost everywhere in the state while Buddhist temples are available in some areas in Kota Kinabalu.
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