Jul 11, 2011

Putrajaya Flower and Garden Festival 2011

The Putrajaya Flower and Garden Festival 2011 is the place to go if you want to see all kinds of flowers on display including floats and parade. If you got the enthusiasm and energy you can stay till late night to view the fireworks display.

My aunt had a great time there despite being a senior. Her son was kind enough to drop her at Putrajaya for the day and later pick her up again for dinner. The distance from Puchong to Putrajaya takes about an hour's drive. She had great time admiring the flowers on display. If she had stay later she might get to see the fireworks too!

Air Asia Float Parade



Show of lights come to an end
By Zuhrin Azam Ahmad
Tuesday July 19, 2011


The nine-day 1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade and Floria Putrajaya 2011 which ended on Sunday recorded more than one million visitors.

Tourism Malaysia has vowed to bring in more participants to next year’s event from June 30 to July 8.

The night parade of colourful and creatively decorated boats at the Putrajaya Lake was the main draw and the public can expect more floats next year.

Colourful: Various interesting elements are at play on the Putrajaya Corporation’s float.
Colourful: Various interesting elements are at play on the Putrajaya Corporation’s float.

Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen said efforts to get more boats would start immediately.

“We hope boats from other countries will join this event next year,” she said at the parade’s closing and prize-giving ceremony.

The parade, themed “Magic of the Night” featuring 13 floats from Brunei, Malacca, Perlis, Terengganu, Perak, Johor, Pahang, Putrajaya, i-City, Tourism Malaysia, Resort World Genting, AirAsia and YTL Hotel.

Terengganu bagged the first place for the Overall Best Boat while Tourism Malaysia and Putrajaya were second and third respectively.

The boat by I-Berhad, the developer of i-City in Shah Alam in collaboration with MasterCard Worldwide won the “Best Lighted” category in the Floral Parade.

Themed “Fire & Ice”, the boat is a representation of the unique showcase of LED lights and snow attraction in i-City.

The array of LED lights is the “fire” that turns night into day, and “ice” is the attraction at Snowalk that turns summer into winter.

Fiery flamingos are displayed in the front part of the boat in synchronised moving motion and the icy arctic with penguins has snowfall at the other end.

The presentation showcased the latest of i-City’s LED lights made of crystal giving it the dazzling luminous and 3D effect.

The entry is on behalf of Selangor and will be displayed in i-City.

List of winners:
·Overall Best Boat - Terengganu, Tourism Malaysia, Putrajaya and i-City;
·Most Creative - YTL Hotel, Resort World Genting and AirAsia;
·Best Lighted - i-City, Resort World Genting and YTL Hotel;
·Most Popular (Public Sector) - Tourism Ministry, Johor and Terengganu; and
·Most Popular (Private Sector) - AirAsia, i-City and YTL Hotel.

-- The Star Metro



Terengganu floats away with top prize
By Zuhrin Azam Ahmad
Monday July 18, 2011


PUTRAJAYA: Terengganu's flotilla bags the first place for the Overall Best Boat at the 1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade which draws its curtain last night.

The float beat 12 other participants including from Perlis, Perak, Malacca, Johor, Resort World Genting, AirAsia, YTL Hotel, i-City, Putrajaya, Tourism Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam.

Star of the show: The Terengganu flotilla shining bright at the 1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade 2011 in Putrajaya Sunday. — Darran Tan / The Star
Star of the show: The Terengganu flotilla shining bright at the 1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade 2011 in Putrajaya Sunday. — Darran Tan / The Star

Four other categories were won by YTL Hotel (Most Creative), i-City (Best Lighted), Tourism Malaysia (Most Popular-Public Sector) and AirAsia (Most Popular-Private Sector).

Prizes were presented by Tourism Minister Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen.

She said feedback showed that the nine-day parade had been very successful and was well-received by the public.

Dr Ng added that the event had attracted an estimated one million visitors and some said it was even better than the boat display at the Suzhou River in Shanghai. -- The Star News



Floral arrangements from 13 countries take centre stage
By Oh Ing Yeen and Tho Xin Yi
Monday July 11, 2011


THE Putrajaya Flower and Garden Festival (Floria 2011) kicked off on Friday at the Precinct 2, Putrajaya. It presents more than 60 species of roses at the outdoor gardens and the Floral Pavilion.

Themed “Roses are Forever”, visitors can look forward to floral arrangements from 13 countries — New Zealand, Britain, the United States, Hong Kong, Canada, South Korea, Taiwan, Pakistan, Japan, Kenya, Indonesia, Macao and Thailand.

New Zealand’s Franca Logan said her design was based on the concept of clouds and landsape because New Zealand is Aoteaora in Maori, which means “Land of the Long White Cloud”.

“European settlers to New Zealand brought roses with them and which grow along the seashores of New Zealand. It’s a fusion of different cultures,” she said of her designs.

In full bloom: Trader Rohani Bujang (left) talking to Putrajaya Corporation president Tan Sri Samsudin Osman and Landscape and Parks director Mohamad A. Shukor.
In full bloom: Trader Rohani Bujang (left) talking to Putrajaya Corporation president Tan Sri Samsudin Osman and Landscape and Parks director Mohamad A. Shukor.


Indonesian Andy Djati Utomo’s creation “Embrace of Love” is a modern interpretation of a Javanese traditional floral arrangement used in many traditional ceremonies.

“The shape of the umbrella symbolises protection. I used dried banana leaves but I’ve coloured it to make it look like fresh ones,” he said.

Canadian Joel Marc Frappier used almost 1,300 roses for his creation “Floral Princess”, created using different techniques such as “flagging”, “beading”, and “blushing”.

“I made the same design using maple leaves for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge during their visit to Canada for Canada Day,” he said.

All three have participated in the previous Floria and are part of the panel of judges for this year’s floral arrangement competition.

Ethereal: Logan’s design is based on the concept of clouds and landscape because New Zealand is Aoteaora in Maori, which means “Land of the Long White Cloud”.
Ethereal: Logan’s design is based on the concept of clouds and landscape because New Zealand is Aoteaora in Maori, which means “Land of the Long White Cloud”.

When asked what they were looking for in the floral arrangements, all three said “creativity”.

Joel added that they were also looking at techniques and elements of design.

“The bar is higher this year, I’m quite impressed with the entries, This may be due to the floral schools.

“I’m a bit concerned about some students who, without formal training, refer to magazines and copy and mix too many styles,” he said.

While previous Floria events only took place during the day, visitors have a reason to stay on till night as the 1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade 2011 will be held every night during Floria.

Themed “Magic of the Night”, it is organised by the Tourism Ministry and will showcase boats decorated with colourful lights and designs based on flora and fauna.

There are 13 participants from Asean countries, representatives of different states, government agencies and corporations and companies.

The boat parade starts at 8.30pm, followed by a five-minute fireworks display at 9.30pm and a display of boats.

With more than 200 activities lined up such as gardening workshops, talks, performances, photography and water-colour contests, there is bound to be something of interest for both adults and children.

The exhibition also featured several animals, such as several snakes and a handsome parrot prancing on a stool.

Most kids were terrified at the sight of the menacing-looking bird, but several brave ones attempted to approach it only to be stopped by their protective parents.

For those interested in horticulture, there are workshops on how to tend to gardens and talks with topics such as “Sustainable practices in the contemporary garden today” and “A life in garden design”.

Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin said Floria Putrajaya would put Malaysia, and specifically Putrajaya, on the world flower show map.

“It is carefully designed in a such a way that it develops and progresses at an accelerating rate to promote tropical flowers, parks and gardens aggressively.

“It is an effective living classroom for students to learn about creating and designing gardens, as well as good gardening practices,” he said during the launching ceremony on Saturday morning.

Putrajaya Corporation president Tan Sri Samsudin Osman said rose was picked as the theme because it symbolises love and affection.

“We have about 12,000 of 60 rose species and hybrids, as well as 400,000 plants arranged in various designs,” he said.

Floria Putrajaya will be held till July 17.

Opening hours are 9am to 10pm (Mon to Thu) and 9am - midnight (Friday - Sunday).

Admission is free.

For a full list of programmes, visit http://www.ppj.gov.my/putrajayafloria/floria.html. -- Star Metro

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