Hari Raya
Aidilfitri is the Eid al-Fitr in Brunei, Singapore and Malaysia. It is a Muslim
Festival that is celebrated at the end of Ramadan or what they called the Month
of Holy Fasting. They do the "open-house" and most of them go back to their
respective homestead to celebrate the Season - Malay people call it "balik
kampung" which is literally translated as "back to the village."
Istana Nurul Iman Open-House During Hari Raya
Hari Raya
Aidilfitri holiday in Brunei is the best
season to have a tour because in the first place, this is the time when the
Istana Nurul Iman, the official residence and of course the palace of the
Sultan of Brunei, is open for public.
The open-house in
the palace often lasts for three days, and it only happens once a year.
During this time,
the foods and drinks are free and you are also free take pictures in some areas
inside the palace (some areas are restricted) plus a chance to shake hands with
the Sultan of Brunei, His Majesty himself, along with the other members of the
Royal family.
In addition to that,
there are also gifts that are given to the visitors, but usually, inside the
gifts pack for normal people like us are snacks.
When you visit Brunei
in other months, you cannot enter even in the garden of the Istana Nurul Iman
unless of course if you are invited guest, a diplomat or a VIP. On regular
days, you are free to have a sight-seeing outside the gate and have a chance to
talk with the security guard and have a photograph with them – if you’re lucky
enough.
Nationwide Hari Raya Sale
For the people of
Negara Brunei Darussalam, Hari Aifilfitri is the most awaited time of the year
not only because this is the time when the their Holy Fasting ends but because
there are lots of exciting activities happens during this holiday.
One of these
exciting activities is the Hari Raya Sale which they can shop for less. Last
time, the Brunei Grand Sale was done during the season, but later on, the Hari
Raya Sale became known during the season.
Aside from, having
a time to visit the palace of the Sultan, Brunei-wide sale or popularly known
as Hari Raya Sale is also one of the highlight of the season. This sale often
runs for one month and lots of new products imported from different countries
are available in cheaper prices.
According to the
stories I have heard, few years ago, Bruneians loves to have something new in
their respective homes like new appliances, new set couch, furniture and other
home furnishing items, but lately, they become wiser on spending their money.
Beautiful Hari Raya Display
How people
celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitriri holiday in Brunei is like how people in US celebrate Christmas. Hari
Raya is an extravagant celebration in Brunei Darusslalam. The originally known
Christmas lights are also used during this very popular Muslim festival.
You will see large
ketupats and different Hari Raya decorations being display in different places
of Brunei. Most large business in Brunei spends enough budget to set up large
beautiful display to attract both foreign and local tourist to visit their
place.
Two of the known
businesses in Brunei that do that are the Hua Ho Department Store and the
Toyota (NBT) Brunei. Hua Ho sets up its displays indoor while NBT showcases its
display outdoor.
Though electricity
is not expensive in the country, the different types of colored lights, ranging
from small LED light to large flood lights which add glamour to the display,
are being turned off after 12:00 midnight to save energy.
More Things to Do
Aside from those
things above which you can only experience during Hari Raya, you also do other
exciting acting activities in Brunei which can be done on regular days like the
following:
·
Tour around the
Kampung Ayer (Water Village) while riding on a public utility boat which they
call "water taxi";
·
Visit the Billionth
Barrel Monument and the nodding donkey in Seria;
·
Experience the
canopy walk Temburong National Park;
·
View the
glow-in-the-dark Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque; and
·
More if you in the
country.
I look hope you like this post. Stay tune for
more.
¹Bonggatious is a Filipino
slang language which comes from the the Tagalog word “bongga” which means
extravagant. It is a word being used by some Filipinoes who are trying hard to
speak English yet do not know the real English equivalent of the word, so
instead of using the English equevalent, they use the tagalog word then add it
with English prefix or suffix to make the word sounds like English.
No comments:
Post a Comment