Nak Bercuti? Pusing Dulu Selangor during Recovery Movement Control Order

By Laura Lee, Pixs by Anthony Tan

Food trails is one of Sepang's promotions. This Lokal dragon fruit juice is a must try at HL Restaurant

During the last few weeks, I had the opportunity to update myself on the happenings in various parts of Selangor while the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) was on. Thanks to the various organisations or parties who were eager to show us how the tourism sector is gradually reviving itself having been adversely impacted by the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

This deadly virus has not only hit Malaysia’s key gateway but also the world at large, shutting down many hotels, restaurants, airlines, airports and diverse businesses.

Through a technical visit programme from 23-24 July organised by the Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association (MITA) and Tourism Selangor to Sepang, travel agents and a few media were updated on this district.

After a brief message from Sepang Municipal Council or Majlis Perbandaran Sepang (MPSepang) president Mohd Fauzi Mod Yatim, a slide presentation by one of its staff followed. We were informed while the council was forced to cancel its Visit Sepang Year 2020 campaign due to the MCO, it will continue to promote the district’s many attractions.

MITA technical visit to Sepang launch outside MPSepang office in Cyberjaya: Mint Leong on far right and MPSepang president in the centre

MPSepang recently launched its domestic tourism campaign with the tagline, Sepang Dihati, Jom Bercuti@Sepang, where it hopes to generate local economic activities which will develop the district as a shopping destination among other things.  

The council is now looking at 80% domestic tourist arrivals for 2020 with the remaining balance from foreign tourists while its targeted revised total arrivals will be three million tourists and a revenue of RM1 billion.  

An article in The Star last October had given a targeted arrival figure of five million tourists from an estimated income of RM5 billion.

It will be interesting to know if MPSepang will be following through with its calender of events that was shown to us. The council is supposed to have a Pesta Pantai Bagan Lalang@Sepang in August Sepang Flower Show in September, Explore Banghuris Homestay Festival in October and MotoGP in November.

It has also created several trails focusing on family entertainment, culture and heritage, food as well as small- and medium-scale enterprises located in Banghuris besides encouraging the development of more domestic packages, which MITA agents are keen to do, especially after visiting some of its tourism products during our recent technical programme.

A group pix to commemorate our Banghuris Homestay visit after touring its agro activities

They included Sirip Biru in Sungai Pelek, HL Restaurant and Dragon Fruit Eco Farm,  Banghuris Homestay and MAEPS Agro Tourism Park.

The river cruise ride along Sungai Pelek passes through mangrove swamps after leaving the jetty

MITA deputy president Mint Leong, who is also Sunflower Holidays Sdn Bhd managing director, is spearheading the development of packages for Sepang. “Selangor is the first state we are working closely with. As the gateway for international tourists, it has three airports.”

Similar technical visit programmes will be organised until 2021 to seek out new and unique products in the other eight districts in Selangor, she adds.

It’s Dragon Fruit Festival @ Sepang in May!

By Laura Lee

The Dragon Fruit Festival @ Sepang, one of the major annual events in Selangor, is held this year in May but it will be on in June for 2020 and 2021. I just love this fruit, especially when made into a fresh juice and recently discovered that there’s more ways to eat and cook with this fruit.

Ahead of Visit Sepang Year or Tahun Melawat Sepang (TMS) 2020 which was soft launched at the recent ITB show in Berlin, Tourism Selangor jointly organised with Movenpick Hotel and Convention Centre KLIA a two-day/one-night media trip from 9-10 April 2019 to visit some of its attractions here. 

Among them was a visit to the HL Restaurant & Café, whose operators are also involved in HL Nursery Trading and HL Dragon Fruit Supply. 

They wowed us with their food and beverage presentation first, fed us with good local dishes whipped up by their Indonesian staff before they took us on a walking tour of its HL Farm planted of course with dragon fruits.

Upon arrival at its restaurant, we were served its Lokal dragon fruit juice, a must try “smouldering” beverage using dry ice to create the effect. 

Our cameras and handphones continued to flash and click as its Sepang HL Jumbo Buns were brought out for photography and sample tasting. I tried only a morsel of it as everyone was milling around it.

Surprise, surprise! We were given one each to take home when we left the place. 

Although there was a halal certification placed outside the glass shelves where these buns are placed to say that the chicken used for the curry are certified halal, I learnt recently from one of my Malay travel mates that she was wary to taking this delicious bun made of dragon fruit which is filled inside with chicken curry as it was prepared by Indonesians.

I would gladly have taken hers home if I had known that day. We were advised to eat the bun immediately that day itself and at best not later than the next day.

It’s a huge bun and we have been stuffing ourselves during this trip, including our last stop at Mitsui Outlet Park's LeTen, a Chinese Muslim Restaurant that serves Asian cuisine, including dim sum. I just couldn’t take it for dinner when we returned home. 

We ate my colleague’s jumbo bun first the next day in the office and kept mine in the fridge for almost a week. After steaming it, mine was as good as newly prepared. Love its spicy curry where you can dip the bun into it. The bun is pinkish hue due to the dark red colour of the dragon fruit used.

How the bun looks like when it's opened and how our dragon fruit juice is topped with an appetising dragon fruit salad 

After our delicious lunch at the restaurant, which I had posted earlier in my Facebook, we walked around its farm, where they had a close-up building that houses swiftlets inside. That’s to produce bird’s nest, and another story.

Owing to the farm’s proximity to the KL International Airport, we could see airplanes flying above us every now and then. 

Noted for their anti-oxidant properties and a good source of vitamins C and E, the dragon fruits with the red flesh variety grown here are exported to Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong. The red variety is more expensive and sweeter than the white variety. 

Just outside the farm is a stall that sells these fruits to the public according to their grades and sizes.

We bought two higher grades ones at RM7 each but forgot to remove them from the plastic bag due to our hectic schedule. One of them spoiled after a few days. It’s a safer bet to keep them in your fridge.