SUBANG JAYA, April 4 – For teacher Shuhada, 26, the wait to once again be with her parents and siblings during the fasting month of Ramadan had been quite long. She teaches in a school in Subang Jaya, while her parents were from Pasir Puteh in Kelantan.
“The last two years, I could not go back to be with them during the Ramadan and Hari Raya but this Ramadan, it is back to being with the family. At least my parents and sister are able to visit me here in Subang, and we have been doing a little a bit of shopping and will be breaking fast together.”
Speaking to Weekly Echo after some shopping at a shopping mall here on Sunday, she said for the first day of Ramadan, she broke the fast with her sister and mother at the shopping mall. She said it was something that they had missed, being out to break fast together again.
“We are really happy that we can once again be together this auspicious month and celebrate Hari Raya together.”
For the last two years, all Malaysians had to forego any grand celebration of their respective festivals as the Covid-19 pandemic that broke late November 2019 brought on intermittent lockdowns in the country beginning March 2020.
Those who had families outstation, had to miss visiting them, while those who were together had to keep their gatherings on small scale.
On April 1st, the country began its transition phase to the Covid-19 endemic period. The country’s international borders were once again opened to allow visitors back to the country with minimum conditions set, while Malaysians were generally also free to travel overseas.