Raya season is fast approaching and I know many of us are looking forward to celebrating the festive holiday! Unfortunately, due to the pandemic this year, we are encouraged to conduct our celebrations at home.
Nevertheless, let’s not be down in the dumps!
Indeed, Raya is a little out of the norm this year but that shouldn’t derail us from keeping our beloved traditions! Here are some alternatives to the usual Raya traditions:
1) Homecooked Food
Let’s be real here, most of us are excited about Raya because of the many delicacies offered during the celebration, especially the dishes made by our loved ones!
Lucky for us, restaurants nationwide have come to our rescue. Their menus have been specially crafted to recreate the feeling of homecooked meals (i.e that nostalgic and comforting sensation), so flavours close to home are just a call away!
However, if you don’t want a mimicry, start cooking up a storm! Ring up your favourite relatives to get your hands on those sacred recipes. As a fun activity, appoint cooking responsibilities to others in the household – some can toil with the heavenly satays while others prepare the variety of kuih muihs. This would surely awaken the Raya spirit within you!
2) Raya Clothings
During any festive season, shopping malls would be packed like sardines in a can! However, this year is definitely not the best year to flock with other shoppers.
Thankfully, in the age of digital marketing, you won’t have to move an inch to get your Raya clothing! Fashion retailers such as Zalora have taken the pandemic in stride, showcasing their Raya collections online.
Itching to cybershop? No worries, I’ve got your back! To get you started, here are some of my favourite online shopping platforms for Raya clothing:
- Poplook
- Imaan Boutique
- Fashion Valet
- Bukit Ashura
- Delima Exclusive
3) Reconnecting with loved ones
Not being able to visit open houses can be a huge blow to those who have been anticipating meeting their loved ones! However, face-to-face meetings are not the only ways to reconnect.
Festive greeting cards and virtual visitings are great ways to bond with your loved ones. These alternatives hold more weight compared to a simple text message and indicate that you’ve made the extra effort to reconnect with them!
During this Raya season, post a festive greeting card or schedule a virtual visit with your beloved friends and family! If you’re a novice at virtual visiting, below is a list of video call apps available to ease your virtual visiting experience:
- Facetime
- Zoom
- Facebook Messenger
- Line
- Skype
- Google hangouts
4) Duit Raya
Hari Raya is also known as the season of giving. However, during this time where physical contact is highly frowned upon, it’s probably not a good idea to physically hand out Raya packets.
Fortunately, online transfer options and e-wallets are available! Both processes are contactless so you wouldn’t need to worry about possibly being in contact with a COVID-19 carrier.
Moreover, most e-wallets have added benefits, such as cashback and point redemptions. So without further ado, I present you a list of the most frequently used e-wallets:
- GrabPay
- Touch n Go eWallet
- Boost
- MaybankPay
These alternatives may not seem ideal but let’s make the best out of what we have! We, as Malaysian citizens should maintain social distancing and practise good hygiene so we could escape the shackles of COVID-19 and soon claim victory against it.
____
Get 50% off DNA Explorer Prime to start your celebrations off on the right foot and there will be no worry about the calories that you’re going to consume during the holiday!
