Malaysia, true to its slogan ‘Malaysia a land full of diversity’ is a surely a unique country which is home to many ethnicities, languages and faiths. Throughout the year there are numerous observances of festivities of different religions and ethnic groups celebrated by everyone, and Christmas is no different. I recently held a poll on my Instagram that whether Christmas is still considered a religious event or it has become a cultural norm globally, and as expected most of the people voted for the later one. As an expat, it is always a pleasure to watch how Malaysians celebrate such events to the fullest. Throughout the month of December, I roamed around different locations of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Selangor State to photograph the Christmas and New Year décor. The amazing thing is that with every location decorated aesthetically it seemed that there is a competition that who has done this best as compare to other. This article is the first part of the series #ChristmasInMyCity observed in Kuala Lumpur and cities nearby.
Traditionally, much of the Christmas décor is inspired by many folktales of 18th and 19th century. Metaphors like Nutcrackers, Gingerbread man, Santa Claus, Elves were seen at many locations, however, some malls did it uniquely.
For any globetrotter coming to Malaysia, the first wishlist is to visit the twin towers Suria KLCC. The mall is famous for its decor and larger than life kind of observances when it comes to festivities. Apart from beautifully decorated center court with Express train, Santa’s hut and other clickable places, the venue features the largest Christmas tree in Malaysia, i.e. 100 feet. Location: https://g.page/SuriaKLCCMall
Although Malaysia is land of eternal summer, but that doesnt stop Malaysians to love winter season. MyTown shopping center decorated their mall with artficially created iced-environment and also featuring lots of snowmen. Though the decorated place wasnt that big, still it was quite interesting. Location: https://g.page/MyTOWNKL
Curve Mall featured an amalgamation of European and Middle Eastern touch for its decor. The place featured human-sized nutcrackers, santa claus and other metaphoors and also had clickable corners of old Britian. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/dJgvkknvoqiKzVnP7
IOI Mall had a unique theme of aqua life and Christmas with the title "Under the Sea’. The place featured numerous references of coral reefs, oyesters, fishs, sea horses. Location: https://g.page/ioi-city-mall-putrajaya
Publika in Jalan Dutamas, also had a magical fantasy themed decor with wooden flying ships, artificially created clouds and ofcourse the tradtional Christmas Tree. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/r1oKmiyszybCLRVJ7
Unlike previous years when Sunway Velocity used to feature amazing Christmas and New Year Decor, this year it was quite simple featuring brands. However, still many corners had is clickable appeal. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/r1oKmiyszybCLRVJ7
IPC Mall neighbouring IKEA Damansara also had a unique way of reminding our Pre-COVID19 days when we used to love travelling. The place was decorated as an airport with artificial security checkpoints, baggage checkpoint, and even a wall feauting the interior of a plane. Though not a big mall as compared to rest of the mentioned malls but still the venue had plenty of visual appeal. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/8ytE1yr2NhzDfawT6
Berjaya Times Square is another most visited place for the tourists and globetrotters like me, This mall is also famous for its decor and plenty of events. The decor was inspired by the traditional Chirstmas metaphors. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/7X1dE3Ms1aysfN3r8
Tropicana Mall was the most uniqe venue I visited in terms of Christmas observations. The very first thing which anyone notices is the Golden Tree in the middle of the center court beautifully surrounded by reindeers. However, the most catchy thing which I didnt observed at anyother location was the giant-sized statues reminding of great Renaissance era at the start of the main entrance. Location: https://goo.gl/maps/ZvCjVjAHCii87fNu5
There are still more places to talk about which I clicked during the month of december. However, the part 2 of this series will feature the depiction of Medieval cultural references used by Malaysian artists for Christmas and New Year decor.
#ChistmasInMyCity2021 #Malaysia #KualaLumpur #NewYear2022
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