The Uniqueness of Ramadan in Malaysia

Breaking Fast With Family
(Bernama Photo)

We have come to the fifth day of Ramadan in Malaysia, a special month of the year for over one billion Muslims throughout the world. It is also a time for inner reflection, devotion to Allah and self-control.

For Malaysia, Ramadan is unique in the sense that it is not just about abstaining from food and water for Muslims, it is also a celebration, with the Bazaar Ramadan a common feature during this month.

It is during this month in the Muslim calendar that Muslims and non-Muslims in Malaysia flood the Bazaar Ramadan, held in the evenings, with several mouth-watering dishes available.

And it is during this time that your favourite traditional delicacies, which are not commonly sold daily, are making their way into these hawker stalls, which are only in business (and brisk too!) during Ramadan.

In what is seen as a sign of difficult times for the people as a result of the steep fuel and food price hike, the number of stalls and the crowds at some of these Bazaars have somewhat diminished, as can be seen in Ulu Kelang area.

At Bukit Antarabangsa where I live, there is also a drop in the number of stalls, with little or no choice for the residents who have to find alternative locations, either in jalan Enggang or Taman Melawati.

For instance, a mamak stall selling popiah (mini spring rolls) at the jalan Enggang Bazaar Ramadan, which used to reject customers who come at 7 pm, now accepts orders, with only a handful of people in the queue.

I was one of these latecomers who had wanted this popiah so badly during the last Ramadan and every time I went there, I got a ‘sold out’ reply. Alas, I got my popiah on Tuesday, and I must say it was really worth it!

Ramadan is also a social networking for companies and organisations, with the media’s schedule packed with breaking fast invitations.

For these companies and organisations, the breaking fast do is a token of appreciation to the media for their support in promoting their past events, and some took the opportunity to treat and present Ramadan contributions to Muslim orphans.

Among others who have organised breaking fast events for the media are AmBank, Tesco, Samsung and MSC Malaysia. Malaysia Airports is having its gathering with the media today, while Petronas, Nestle, Bank Rakyat and Air Asia have lined up theirs next week.

Personally, I would rather be with my family when I can enjoy home cooked food, with extras like the murtabak, popiah, kuih badak berendam, tepung talam, roti jala, caramel pudding, etc, etc, etc, etc, from the Bazaar Ramadan.