In Malaysia, Christmas celebration starts with a bang when people start indulging in shopping sprees as it is rightly called the Shopper’s Paradise. A couple of weeks before the Christmas Day, people plant Christmas trees in front of their houses. People keeping potted Christmas plants within houses is also commonplace. The multi-ethnic nature of Malaysia brings people together in celebrating all festivals with equal verve and poise. The spirit of cultural and racial harmony in Malaysia is looked at with surprise and reverence, especially during important festivals like Christmas.
Come mid-December, Christmas Carolers walk from house to house singing typical Christmas hymns to welcome Christ’s Day in merriment. Santa Claus distributes sweets and chocolates to children in houses and playing in the streets. Partaking in Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve is considered important by Christians. They wear new clothes and visit the church to participate in church services and prayers on the Christmas Eve. After celebrating the Christmas Eve, is also a customary practice in Malaysian culture to start the Day of Christmas with a short prayer. Family members and friends decorating Christmas trees with adoration is a nice eye-catcher at Malaysia during the Christmas season.
Typically, Malaysians prefer shopping during holidays. Hence, during Christmas, it is even more a vigorous traffic at shopping malls that pamper people with discount sales and tax relief for Christmas expenditure. Visiting extended families and friends and having dinner together forms an important part of Christmas celebrations. Inviting friends and families and exchange of gifts with them is a part and parcel of the Christmas season in Malaysia. The Chinese tradition of giving “Ang-pow” has become popular among all cultures in Malaysia and shopping malls are packed with “Ang-pow” packets for convenience of the tourists to gift their near and dear ones.
Christmas in Malaysian Shopping Malls
In Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, the main shopping attractions are Merdeka Square, Petronas Twin Towers, KLCC Park, and Chinatown. The malls are lit up with electrical lamps exhibiting various themes for the Christmas and delicately decorated with small toys. These shopping malls put up "Mega Sales" that lasts for around two months during Christmas festive. Some shops provide up to 90% discounts on the products during the "Mega Sales" season. On the day of Christmas, the streets are filled with people as everyone eagerly awaits midnight to celebrate Christmas. Restaurants offer the traditional Turkey dinners. Themed lunches and dinners on Christmas are also quite common.
New Year Countdown after Christmas in Malaysian Malls
Fireworks for New Year Eve are popular in Petronas Towers and KLCC Park, which are at the center of Kuala Lumpur. The shopping malls like Pavillion Mall at Bukit Bintang area, Sunway Pyramid, and Damansara Mutiara also display fireworks to cope with the Petrona Towers’ extravaganza. New Year count-down fireworks is a pompous celebration at Dataran Merdeka, the Independence Square. Restaurants host grand parties on the New Year’s Eve.