This is the first day of the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations – the new year for our Muslim friends. In Malaysia, “open houses” are practiced and it is common for different races to mingle and socialize during festive occasions.
I visited a couple of houses this morning with a bunch of friends. I neglected to pace myself and ate too much at the first house, which resulted in me not being able to eat much at the latter houses. 🙂
This is what I had – pulut (glutenous rice), satay, beef rendang, curry chicken and ayam masak merah.
I also had some dessert after that – cakes and this confectionery made out of cornflakes that I really like. 🙂
Our group adjurned to the second house after that where there is ketupat (a traditional Hari Raya preparation made out of glutenous rice, but different from pulut).
This is what ketupat looks like – it’s made with pandan wrappings (a complicated procedure that traditionally lasts throughout the night) while pulut is cooked in bamboo over a slow BBQ fire.
I was presented this home made confectionery by the host and the following conversation proceeded:
Host: What does this remind you of, Huai Bin?
HB: Hmm…something that should be covered up. 😉
Host: You have a gutter mind la…it’s eyes.
HB: That’s what I meant, it should be covered up with sunglasses. What did you think I mean? Lingerie? 😉
It’s fun, with witty banter and general fellowship. I have missed Hari Raya for two years in a row so it’s great to be able to go visiting again. I love this water feature that I saw in one of the houses that we visited.
Selamat Hari Raya 2008 to all readers of sixthseal.com! 🙂
