Cooking and contests
AIRBNB is giving visitors the chance to cook with local families with the listing of culinary experiences on its platform – including uniquely Malaysian dishes. As part of the Airbnb Experiences initiative, guests can choose from 3,000 unique recipes in over 75 countries.
The company said in a statement that it is offering travellers a new way to understand culture through their stomachs.
“Hosted by families, farmers, pastry cooks and more, local hosts can now highlight the deeper meaning behind the food you eat, teaching traditional recipes and sharing stories in intimate settings around the world,” Airbnb said.
If you’re worried about the cooking classes being inauthentic, Airbnb assures that each recipe has been vetted against guidelines by Slow Food, a grassroots organisation set on preventing the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions.
“Through this vetting process, we have verified that each host of an Airbnb Experience communicates the unique essence of every dish through their personal stories and has proven a deep knowledge of the heritage of the cuisine that they share.
In Malaysia, some notable culinary experiences include making Nyonya kueh in Melaka and a traditional Malaysian cooking at a pre-war house in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.
As part of the launch, Airbnb is calling for travellers to nominate their favourite home cooks. The top 100 applicants will get to study alongside experts at Slow Food’s University of Gastronomic Sciences in northern Italy.
The cooking scholarship closes on Dec 23. Another contest worth checking out is the Global Travel Giveaway campaign from Luxury Escapes. Travellers will get the chance to stay at some of the best hotels and resorts around the world.
Participants stand a chance to win a luxury holiday packed with VIP inclusions by answering a simple question.
The month-long contest runs across nine markets – Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, India, United States and Britain – until Dec 13.
For more information on Airbnb’s cooking scholarship and Luxury Escapes contest, visit airbnb.com/d/100cooks and luxuryescapes. com respectively. –