Dalam Dingin Subuh

In 9 days time I'll be on my way to London. It's going to be for work, so I don't expect much fun and games though. After that I'm gonna go do a bit of travelling in Europe, my itinerary counts Barcelona, Paris and Venice as my future destinations. I'm still thinking of how am I going to be able to finance my travels, from my research Europe is definitely not for those with thin wallets (such as yours truly). But hey, I 'll worry about that when I return to good ole Malaysia. What better excuse to lose weight than not having enough money for dinner (since my Mastercard is creeping nearer to the limit after buying flight tickets and booking accomodations) right?

So Ramadhan will be spent several continents away, with a few friends for company and no ketupat or rendang in sight for Raya later too. By the way Raya will be spent in Paris, ooh la la. It would be nicer if we actually have the time to spend it with my friend T (she's residing in Paris with her hubby now), but tight schedule meant that my Raya will just be on the sidewalks of Paris. Care-bear said we could tie up some buns in leaves to substitute ketupat and use bolognese sauce as rendang, an idea which I'm filing away for use just in case I get in the Raya mood at Porte de Chatillon =D

I never really looked forward to Raya before this, but when I can't experience it as per norm (2nd year running, last Raya was also spent away from home) I kinda miss it a little bit. Human nature is crazy like that, sometimes. Maybe it's just my nature, but whose keeping score anyway? For the longest time, I've always loved the idea of Raya. The build up to it which starts around the same time as Ramadhan always gets me in the mood. Then you'll hear the evergreen Raya songs being played, and you'll start remembering childrood Raya celebrations which are always much better. You'll see certain fireworks being sold (illegally, of course I never bought any. Really!) and you'll start getting flashbacks of the time your sister poked your aunt on the arm with the sparkler, or rogue rocket mercuns going berserk in the dusun next to your grandma's place etc. You'll hear certain Raya songs and it'll have a special memory like Dari Jauh Ku Pohon Maaf would always take me back to schooldays when we would sing it at the assembly just before going back to our respective hometowns for the Raya break.

There's tonnes of things that makes waiting for Raya fun. Then it's already Raya, and for me the fun ends after the morning prayers. Raya has become anti-climactic. After that it's just a blur of food and handshakes and orange cordial. In a jiffy, Raya is a thing of the past. But since last Raya, I don't even get to feel the build-up. This will be another Raya spent like any other day of the year. Next year? There's a chance I might be in Hong Kong, so I can't even be looking forward for that one.

Excuse my rambling, I was hit by a sudden rush of nostalgic Raya moments.

P/S: I know you guys who studied overseas will think nothing of this, and I don't intend to compare. This is solely what I feel.