In a play on the old Deanna Durbin song “Love is Where You Find it”….as you travel around the world, Christmas is also where you find it.
Definitely, one expects to find Christmas in countries with a Christian tradition. As Christmas has become more and more of a secular holiday, you’ll even find celebrations and blockbuster holiday decorations in countries with other religious traditions.
Malaysia – A Kuala Lumpur Christmas
I was in Kuala Lumpur a few weeks ago and saw no sign of Christmas (nor did I expect to see it). Suddenly, on December 1st, Christmas decorations went up in malls stores and streets all over the city, transforming it into a Christmas fairyland.
Here is a very elaborate Christmas display that I saw at the Pavilion KL shopping centre across the street from my hotel. It was so spectacular that I had to capture it on film.
As a Jamaican, I found it kind of cool that they included a traditional Jamaican Christmas carol in the musical mix.
I chatted with a number of Malaysians who told me that many Malaysians are going all out and decorating stores, homes and lawns with elaborate Christmas displays. This has been a recent trend and it is growing. Two years ago, one mall delighted oshoppers by making is snow. Take a peek.
When I was at Pavilion KL, I ran into a visitor from Australia. He asked ”Have you seen the Gingerbread House at the Grand Millenium Hotel yet?” I headed over there and found this life-size gingerbread house straight out of Hansel and Gretel. Yes, that’s real gingerbread.
Now I’ve never seen that in Toronto…but wait, more surprises are in store.
Christmas in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Last Wednesday (December 14, 2011), when I checked into the Mayden Hotel in Dubai, there was an even bigger surprise. Yes an even bigger gingerbread house, also with real gingerbread.
My stay was too short to visit any malls but there were Christmas decorations and a number of elaborate Christmas trees at the airport.
Fortunately, others captured Christmas the magic at Dubai malls for your viewing pleasure including what has got to be the tallest Christmas tree in the world.
Toyko, Japan (Ginza)
Another country with a religious tradition other than Christian has a number of Christmas celebrations including German Christmas markets. This year, a store in the heart of Ginza has gone all out this year with a golden Christmas tree…pure gold that is.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Finally, also in the United Arab Emirates, in Abu Dhabi, the Emirates Palace Hotel had the world’s most expensive Christmas tree last year trimmed with over $11 Million worth of jewelry.
Talk about going all out for Christmas. I guess that’s what happens when Christmas becomes a secular holiday.
So next year, if you’re looking for a special place to take your team for a pre-Christmas incentive trip, you’ll find Christmas in more places than you can imagine.
In 2008 & 2009, many companies put their incentive travel programmes on hold due to “optics” or a decline in corporate performance. Some companies are not ready to re-instate their foreign incentive travel programmes. Instead, they are on the lookout for memorable and unique experiences closer to home to reward their team and build customer loyalty.
Inspired by the day I spent with BMW Canada at their Toronto Advanced Driver Training Programme and my recent visit to Montreal during the Formula 1 (F1) Montreal Grand Prix in June, I decided to showcase luxury driving experiences around the world. Luxury driving incentives offer great possibilities as an alternative to foreign incentive travel.
Remember, if you do want to offer any of these incentives for your team, it’s important to make your plans early as all of these experiences sell out quickly.
This blog entry is light on text and heavy on incredible, fast action videos. Pick a location close to you:
This experience was great fun and a sure-fire strategy for improving the driving skills of your sales teams and the other members of your team who are on the road.
It’s a combination of classroom instruction and exercises in a BMW training vehicle on their closed track.
When? July
Full Day: 20 People
Half Day: Two Groups of 16
This is the video of the oversteering exercise that I shot during the day I spent with BMW Canada. I learned a lot . The instructors were very supportive but I must admit that I was too much of a “fraidy cat” to make may car spinout when it was my turn to try it. Oh well, next time.
Every October, adrenaline junkies get to experience the thrill of racing like stunt drivers down one of Malaysia’s tallest hills. Take a peek at what happens.
Sepang International Circuit
BMW Advanced Driver Training
Kuala Lumpur
Formula 1 (F1) – Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix
When? April
Other Destinations
BMW Advanced Driver Training
Also Available in Japan, Sweden, Singapore, Malaysia, South Carolina
When You’re Ready to Go
Whether you decide to stay home in 2010 and 2011 or you’re ready to venture further afield, we’ll take you there. Executive Oasis International would be pleased to arrange:
a day excursion to a local adventure with time for your business meeting
a full package bundling a luxury driving experience with transfers, hotel, transportation to and from the track, meeting facilities, business facilitation, tours, excursions, gala awards dinner
Contact Executive Oasis International for more information about any of these luxury driving exeriences for corporate events and incentives:
Corporate Incentive Travel: Giving Your Team a Sense of the Local Culture
by Anne Thornley-Brown, President,
Executive Oasis International
Specializing in escorted Incentive Travel and sales incentive trips.We provide one stop shopping and will help you plan and organize your next incentive trip to any of our featured destinations.
Anne is @executiveoasis on twitter.
Stop: Even if you don’t have the budget for international travel this year, here is how you can still give your team an international experience without getting on a plane:
I’ve often wondered why companies fly their sales and executive teams halfway across the world just to lie on the beach and get drunk at the bar. Particularly in these challenging economic times, companies can do that at home at a fraction of the cost. A foreign incentive trip or retreats provides an opportunity to give your team a rich, unique and memorable experience. All you have to do is build a few experiences into your itinerary that provide a glimpse of the local history and culture of your incentive travel destinations.This is easier to do than you may think and it doesn’t have to take a lot of time.
Before your trip, you can use social media to provide an orientation to the destination. During your sales incentive trip, visit one of the many cultural centres, heritage villages and museums that are designed to give visitors a glimpse into the history and culture of your chosen destiation. Here are a few ideas:
Take a 2 night trip to Kuching in Malaysian Borneo. Spend an afternoon at the Sarawak Cultural Village. You’ll explore the 7 major ethinic groups that have influenced Malysia’s culture and visit traditional homesteads.
Take a day or overnight trip to Malacca, a virtual time capsule into Malaysia history with traditional Malay, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, British, and Japanese influences. There is even a full size replica of a historical Sultan’s Palace.
Explore the Edo-Tokyo Museum with replicas of traditional buildings and interactive exhibits that provide insights into Tokyo’s rich culture and history.
Stay at a traditional Ryokan for 1 or 2 nights.
Be mesmerzied as you take in a traditional Kabuki performance at the Kubuki-za in Tokyo
Contact the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto and arrange for a cultural showcase and a cultural officer to familiarize your group with the history and cultures of Canada’s First Nations people.
Visit one of Canada’s oldest Black communities at the Buxton Settlement.
Even if you have to extend your sales incentive trip by half a day or a full day to make time to build a cultural excursion into your itinerary, it will be time well spent. You’ll broaden their horizons and provide your team with a truly memorable and meaningful experience of a lifetime that they would never be able to have back home.
The first time I went to Malaysia was January, 2000. I have never shared this before but I missed my connection. It’s a bit of a long story but suffice it to say that between de-icing on the runway in Toronto and other delays, I arrived at LAX too late to catch my Singapore Airlines flight. I was put up in a hotel for my unexpected layover. By the time I got on board I was exhausted. It was the first time I had an opportunity to travel on Singapore Airlines. It was business class. I was blown away. The service was excellent and the food was phenomenol. That’s quite the compliment coming from a former flight attendant. I was so tired that I just couldn’t sleep. So, I put on some Chinese music and slept like a baby. That’s how I discovered the music of Fong Fei Fei.
To tell you the truth, it was my first trip to Asia, and I didn’t know what to expect. Upon landing at KLIA, I discovered a large, bright and airy, state of the art airport complete with gardens and monorails. After I wheeled my cart out, jam packed with all of the paraphanalia I needed for the seminars I was offering in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, there were a number of surprises. The car that was waiting for me had a Bob Marley and the Wailers decal on the windshield. We passed a club called Marley’s with a statue of Bob Marley in the front. The vegetation was similar to my Jamaican homeland and I was soon to discover that the food was just as spicey.
First Glimpses of Malaysia
It was a few days before Chinese New Year so there were red lanterns everywhere. It created an enchanting setting at night. When I arrived at the Regency, check in was not at the front desk. Instead I was taken up to my room an served tea while the required documentation was filled in. I was most impressed. My session, which took place at the same hotel, was a success and there were 65 delegates from banks, airlines, IT companies, and more. They loved the fact that I played reggae music during breaks and taught them how to dance reggae. I had a blast. It almost didn’t seem like work.
During that trip, I didn’t even have to take any city tours. My hosts took me to a fantastic Indian restaurant and my Malaysian landlord’s friend took me to Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown, Bangsar’s night market and a restaurant that had a buffet and a cultural show. As we approached the restaurant, I saw 2 ornately dressed men approaching. One held an umbrella that was ornately decorated in gold and silver over the head of the first gentleman. I asked “Is he a prince or something?” My companion laughed and said “No, it’s part of the show”. The show depicted a typical Malaysian wedding and it was very entertaining.
On that trip, spent a relaxing morning on my own at Templer’s Park in Selangor. I was thrilled to see the tiny monkies playing on the beach.
I have never seen so many waterfalls in my life. In fact, I climbed higher and higher and never ran out of waterfalls before I had to return to the taxi. It was a truly relaxing experience.
If you want to build some of these experiences into your group’s itinerary, it’s really quite simple, just arrange a day or night city tour in KL and you’ll visit Chinatown, the restaurant with the cultural show and many other attractions. I recommend a 5 night stay in Malaysia as there is so much to see and do.
What appeals to me most about Malaysia is the variety. Without leaving the country, you can:
explore a cosmopolitan city like Kuala Lumpur
see incredible historical sites in Melaka
experience the hospitality of the 7 largest ethnic groups in Malaysia at the Sarawak Cultural Village near Kuching
explore jungles and rainforests in Teman Negara and Endau Rompin
relax on the beach in Penang, Langkawi, or Pulau Perhentian
discover aboriginal culture through a visit to an Orang Asli village
enjoy stunning mountain views in Cameron Highlands
soar above the clouds in a cable car to Genting Highlands where you find a theme park, restaurants and casino
Where else in the world would you be able to do all of this during one trip? The real value is that you can do all of this for a fraction of what it would cost to do an incentive trip, executive retreat or team building session at home. For this reason Malaysia is a highly desireable destination for companies in the Middle East, Europe, the UK, and North America.
Anne Thornley-Brown is the President of Executive Oasis International, a Toronto based company specializing in incentive travel, executive retreats and team building. Anne has toured Asia 16 times and offered sessions for over 2000 executives, managers and professionals in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and India. Companies that have sent delegates to her sessions have included Petronas, Digi, Mobil/Exxon, Dell Computers, Malaysian Airlines, Maybank, Samsung. She has conducted private in-company sessions for a number of companies including OCBC Bank, Permodalan Nasional Berhad, and Penang Port.
Kuala Lumpur
Places to see in Kuala Lumpur
KL Tower
Get a panoramic view of Kuala Lumpur. Be sure to reserve dinner at KL Tower well in advance of your trip for a truly enchanting experience.
Bangsar
In the words of my Malaysian hosts, Bangsar is a happening area. You’ll find nightclubs, fanastic eateries and chic boutiques. Once a week, there is a night market.
Chinatown
Visit traditional shop houses, enjoy tasty dishes and treat yourself to traditional Chinese treatments like reflexology and cupping.
Bukkit Nanas
Bukkit means hill in Malay. You’ll find this word coming up over and over gain. Bukkit Nanas is a nature preserve in the heart of the city near KL Tower
Lake Gardens
A peaceful oasis where you’ll find deer, bird and butterfly parks.
Royal Selangor Polo Club
You can arrange riding lessons and polo clinics for your group there and, if your timing is right, you’ll have a chance to see a polo tournament. When I was there, polo teams from all over Malaysia were participating in a tournament. One of the members, Beh Chun Chuan of BP Polo invited me to stay and enjoy the BBQ with his family.
Mines Resort City
Mines Resort City is located on the site of an old tin mine. It has a beach resort, the Palace of the Golden Horses, and the Mines Wonderland theme park. In a previous blog entry, I already described the afternoon I spent exploring the Palace of the Golden Horses and the wonderful afternoon tea I enjoyed there. When I finished exploring, I went down to the water and hoppped on a ferry that took me across to Mines Wonderland. It’s well worth working into your group’s schedule.
You’ll gain access through the only shopping centre in the world that you can enter by boat. There is a theme park with all kinds of rides and a number of attractions. When I visited, there was an exhibit featuring some of the Terra Cotta Warriors from China.
There is even a snow house to give people who have never experienced winter a chance to see snow and ice. Yes, they provide winter clothes. The Dancing Fountain is the perfect way to top off a visit to the Mines Wonderland. Mines Resort City is not far from the airport so, if you have a night flight, you can arrange for your group to spend their last afternoon in Malaysia there before heading off to the airport.
Where to go Shopping in Kuala Lumpur
You’ve probably heard that Kuala Lumpur is a shopper’s paradise. It’s true. Here here are my favourite places to go shopping:
Of course, not to be missed is the KLCC complex. The Petronas Twin Towers were at one time the tallest towers in the world. . The shopping is incredible and there is often alarge park with man made lake that is perfect for walking or jogging in KL’s early morning cool. Suria KLCC Video in French
Mid-Valley
This is the largest discount shopping mall on the Asian complex. Be sure that your wallet is full as you’ll find a lot of bargains. Don’t forget to go to the lowest level near the car park and book a Thai massage for the end of your shopping trip. It’s the perfect way to revive tired feet and sore back and shoulder muscles after a full day of shopping.
Sunei Wong
Whether it is a fashion show or a performance by a local band, there is always something happening at this busy mall. You’ll will bargains galore particularly for clothing, electronics and shoes.
In a play on the old Deanna Durbin song “Love is Where You Find it”….as you travel around the world, Christmas is also where you find it.
