Hari Raya
ByAfter six months of travelling through South East Asia on local buses and staying in guest houses it was nice to stop for a while. We found a decent furnished apartment in Melaka in Malaysia that we could rent on a flexible month by month basis. With two bedrooms, a big lounge and a good kitchen, complete with pots and pans, crockery and cutlery it made life very convenient. The automatic washing machine was also a welcome bonus. One advantage is that we had an address again. So people could send us forms to be completed, signed and returned. It surprises us that even in this electronic age some organisations still use only snail mail. This pause also gave us the opportunity to look through all our travel journals and sort out the notes, maybe even look for publishing opportunities.
Travelling around we met interesting and colourful characters. Usually there were stories, information, jokes and then, inevitably, goodbyes. But staying in one place for more than a few weeks we started to recognise people and get recognised. So conversations developed and invitations resulted.
Over September and early October it was the holy month of Ramadan. From sun up to sun down the faithful neither eats nor drinks. But in the evening families enjoy special meals, especially sweets and sweet pastries and other such delicacies. During shopping in Kuala Lumpur we were given complimentary boxes of chocolates to help us enjoy the festive season. All the shops and buildings were decked out in colourful decorations, ribbons and flags. The big feast at the end of Ramadan here is called Hari Raya or the great day. Actually it’s three or four days of holiday, family reunions, festivities and socialising.
During one of our many conversations we chatted to Daus, a local businessman. He invited us to a Hari Raya parties at his house. It was a really nice low key meal with his other friends and acquaintances. The guests were a microcosm of Malaysian society. Daus and his charming wife, Yasha, were Malay Muslims. Another couple were of Chinese descent, they had three factories producing instant coffee with added milk powder and sugar, fortified with essential vitamins. Another nice couple were Malaysians of Indian descent, again with businesses in Melaka. Daus particularly wanted us to meet a fascinating couple. She was a Malay petrochemical engineering lecturer helping to develop new techniques. She was married to David, an Australian travel writer. Spinning off from this party we’ve had invitations to other social gatherings.
The next big do here is Divali, the Hindu festival of light. It’s called Deepavali here and is held at the end of October. We’ve already had Indian music and processions past our apartment on preparation.
The longer we stay in Melaka of course, the more people we meet and the more comfortable life becomes. We can easily get up to Kuala Lumpur by bus in a couple of hours for orchestral concerts and a wide range of other entertainments. Singapore is only five hours away by bus. Five hours in the other direction takes us to the tropical islands off the east coast. Naturally, we will move on, but maybe in another month or so. Perhaps we’ll wait till Christmas.
