Sambutan Aidil Fitri Di Embassy

Let's view these photos (courtesy of Ija, since I forgot to bring my camera) taken at the Embassy for Eid Prayer and Majlis Sambutan Aidil Fitri soon after that.

The kids, right in front of the embassy before the prayer starts.

The prayer was led by Wak Jamal as he was fondly referred to. Don't know why he was called that, he looks nothing like a "wak" to me, but he is from Johor. The sound of takbir made me just want to cry, as always. There was one particular takbir by this man which was very very nice indeed and truly mendayu-dayu. I must remember to ask DH who he was.

The much awaited majlis makan2 was prepared on two different levels to accommodate the crowd. I was informed that the food must be prepared for 300 people. That many? I'm glad that I was not chosen to cook one of the main dish. I would be panicking... The reason I escaped from the cooking (bad of me huh..) was because they thought I would come back after raya!! But I do have this feeling that it will be my turn when its Aidil Adha... Mak tolong!!


While waiting for the preparation, sempat lagi budak2 ni berlari-lari..

Siap main "tag" lagi, butang pembuka pintu pagar pun jadi mangsa...

Thumb-wrestling...

Err..green and nature inspection girls?

Now, let's see some of the food prepared by Perwakilan Ladies and also by the guests...

There was ayam masak merah, rendang ayam, lontong or lodeh, kurma ayam and nasi beriani

Roti jala and kari ayam

Laksa johor especially cooked by Pak Mat and sambal bilis


Kuih-muih brought by some of the guests.


And, most unexpected was...


Lemang.... just arrived that morning from Malaysia, I heard.


Some of the guests eagerly queuing for the sumptuous food


There were a mix of nationalities attending the feast and prayer. The lady sitting next to me during the prayer was of African origin. Some Malaysian ladies who were married to Dutchmen also brought with them their MIL and FIL. There were also Malaysian Chinese and Indians, patiently waiting until the prayer ended. Some Arabic faces were also seen and not forgetting, our neighbours from Pattani, Selatan Thai.

This elderly lady in blue baju kurung and black tudung (above picture) is a Singaporean and had been living in the Netherlands for 25 years. She told DH that this was her first time coming to the feast and that she had enjoyed the food and meeting a lot of people so much.


It is heartening to see almost everybody turned up in baju kurung and baju melayu complete with sampin, even the Dutch (can anybody spot one with bright pink baju melayu?). The young Dutch/Malay jongens and meisjes looked especially lovely in them. Tapi, sudah tentunya anak-anak Melayu kita lagilah comel2 dan lawa2 belaka :))


More happy faces enjoying Aidil Fitri di perantauan.