Kota Belud situated 70 km northeast of Kota Kinabalu is about an hour drive by car. Known as the "Land of the Cowboys of the East", it is one of Sabah's most scenic and culturally rich districts. A melting pot of cultures and customs with a blend of the largely Muslim Bajau community and the many tribes of the Kadazandusun and the Irranun, Kota Belud has played a significant role as the cultural hub of northern Borneo for many centuries. To this day, the Kota Belud tamu (Sunday open market) has continued to maintain its role as a venue for the people of the various communities to meet and trade.
The best time to view Kota Belud's striking cultural potpourri is during the grand Tamu Besar. It is Sabah's biggest open-air market where farmers, fishermen and vendors offer their best produce and wares for sale to the public. The grand Tamu Besar is an annual event.
The event showcases the unique customs and traditions of the Bajau community. During this auspicious occasion, all the tribes will come out fully donned in their respective traditional costumes for three days of cultural extravaganza. The Bajaus will stage a grand parade of ponies in resplendent costume dresses and perform a spirited display of their riding skills. Besides the normal buying and selling, other organized activities include a display of farm produce and animals.
Visitors will definitely find Kota Belud's diversity of traditional costume displayed, dance, music and ceremonies a unique cultural experience, which renders an excellent attraction for those who come from other communities or live in the fast lane of city life.
Kiulu 4M Challenge
Kiulu is located about 60 km from Kota Kinabalu and is the venue for this traditional sporting challenge. The Kiulu 4M Challenge consists of four traditional sports. The ‘M' in 4M stands for the four Kadazandusun sports comprising of managkus (running 6 km), mamangkar (bamboo rafting for 5 km), manampatau (swimming with bamboo for 1.3 lm) and mamarampanau (walking with bamboo stilts for 0.2 km). All four are indigenous, adventurous and thrilling events that will test your physical and mental skills.
Besides being a sport event, the K4MC is also a noble endeavor to protect and preserve nature, in particular the Kiulu River. Among the objectives of the challenge are to promote traditional sports as an eco-tourism product of Kiulu to create opportunities for active local participation in the tourism industry and instill environmental awareness among the community.
Organizer of the one-day event have also introduced a new category called X-treme 4KMC for men above 21 years old only which involves running and bamboo rafting over a distance of 13 km.
Kuala Penyu, approximately 2 hours drive from Kota Kinabalu city celebrates this special event every year. Rumbia or sago comes from the family of palmae. It is mostly found in Kuala Penyu and the surrounding districts of Beaufort and Papar. The starch or sago that is rich in carbohydrate is an alternative staple food for the Bisayas and Kadazan (Dusun Tatana) people and is locally known as "ambuyut".
No part of the sago palm is discarded. The locals use the leaves as roofing materials and the branches (known locally as kumbar) for making their house's walls. Floor mats and baskets are just some examples of things made entirely from the plant.
A rumbia information center is located at Kampung Kasugira in Kuala Penyu and it also provides displays of sago and its uses, handicrafts as well as demonstrations of sago delicacies.
