More reasons to celebrate
Two years ago, the Muslim community nationwide celebrated Hari Raya Aidilfitri in moderation by adhering to the new norms.
However, this year’s Raya celebrations are expected to be lively after the country decides to move into endemic phase.
In the previous two years, Malaysians were not allowed to ‘balik kampung’ to visit their families and friends, but this time, the activities are allowed.
Of course, those who are far away would take this golden opportunity to return to their hometowns to celebrate Hari Raya, marking the return of ‘balik kampung’ exodus.
Various preparations were made to celebrate the festival this time, including shopping for goods.
In northern Sarawak, locals could only shop around Limbang area as the Brunei Darussalam border is still closed ever since the pandemic started.
According to Brahim Tapah, he only celebrated Hari Raya on a smaller scale during the previous two years, so, he feels that it is not wrong for him to spend more for this year’s celebration.
“In the past (before COVID-19), my family and I would shop outside Limbang a few days before Hari Raya as there were more selection of items at cheaper prices.
“However, this year we only bought goods in Limbang as the Brunei border has yet to re-open.
“Flight tickets are also quite expensive, so we had to cancel out the thought of going shopping outside (Limbang) for a while,” the 56-year-old told our reporter.
Traditionally, on the 26th night of Ramadan all the way to the seventh night of Syawal month (seventh day of Hari Raya), most houses would light ‘pelita raya’ (traditional oil lamps) or decorative lights to enliven the festive atmosphere.
The atmosphere can be experienced in full effect in village areas or the suburbs, where a close-knit community would often held a friendly-competition amongst themselves to decorate their lawns and houses.
For 57-year-old Mohd Hidayat Abdullah, lighting up the ‘pelita’ or decorative lamps has become a tradition for him every time Hari Raya arrives.
“It is sort of a mandatory thing that I do every year. A week before Hari Raya, I will go to the nearby forest to find bamboo to make the ‘pelita’. It is something that my family had done for generations,” he said.
Meanwhile, for food entrepreneurs, their most important Raya preparation is to fulfil their customers’ orders.
The festive seasons could be said to be an unexpected windfall for them because during this time, they would often receive more than double the number of orders than usual.
According to Kassim Adam, the demand for his satay this year is very encouraging compared to previous years.
“Alhamdulillah, this year I received so many bookings for Hari Raya that I had to close the bookings earlier, for fear of not being able to complete all the orders. I had to close the bookings only after two weeks of Ramadan. Alhamdulillah, this Ramadan has been a blessing.
“Unlike others, my Hari Raya preparation is to buy and prepare raw materials like meat, chicken and so on to make satay. So, I need to get my meat supplies early to avoid last minute rush,” said the 47-year-old.
