Between 'balik kampung' (travelling back to hometown) travel expenditures, new clothes and home decorations, meals enough for large family get together, traditional Raya delicacies, the biggest dent in the finances of Muslims during Raya is ‘duit Raya’ may require for budget tightening for the next few months post celebrations.
With increasing costs, what will the families cut back this time?
Hanita Rosli, 32, says her family has to cut back on ‘pesanan’ or orders of traditional delicacies.
“Most of our relatives do not reside in Malaysia, so once a year during Hari Raya we would make our way back for a get together.
“We usually would take orders from our extended family members especially for traditional delicacies such as kuih gunting, kuih bahulu, kuih karas and serunding.
“It is very hard to find some of these items these days, and when we do find them, they are very expensive. I think a packet of kuih gunting now can cost up to RM16 or RM19,” says Hanita.
Not only do travellers on the road have to worry about paying much more since toll hikes, Hanita’s family has forked out almost RM800 for an individual two-way flight ticket back to Jakarta to meet their family.
With increasing costs, what will the families cut back this time?
Hanita Rosli, 32, says her family has to cut back on ‘pesanan’ or orders of traditional delicacies.
“Most of our relatives do not reside in Malaysia, so once a year during Hari Raya we would make our way back for a get together.
“We usually would take orders from our extended family members especially for traditional delicacies such as kuih gunting, kuih bahulu, kuih karas and serunding.
“It is very hard to find some of these items these days, and when we do find them, they are very expensive. I think a packet of kuih gunting now can cost up to RM16 or RM19,” says Hanita.
Not only do travellers on the road have to worry about paying much more since toll hikes, Hanita’s family has forked out almost RM800 for an individual two-way flight ticket back to Jakarta to meet their family.
“Our grandparents are there, so we have to go back. It would break their hearts if we can’t even make an effort to see them once a year and especially Hari Raya where families must come together,” she says.
As for Halim Razak, he has a different headache as it will be his first year celebrating Hari Raya as a husband.
“It’s our turn to give ‘duit Raya’ when we have been on the receiving end for the last 25 years.
“No matter what, we have to abide to traditions and it is also a sense of gratitude that we are expressing when we give back to our parents and also to the younger ones.
“Back in the day you can pass with RM1 or RM0.50, but today, I think the minimum amount that is acceptable is about RM5.
“We can cut back on the ingredients that we need to buy to prepare meals, but we cannot cut back on duit Raya. So, we have decided to recycle some of our Raya clothes, those that are still new which we’ve only worn less than three times. It’s alright, no one will notice,” says Halim.
He adds that his wife has also decided to learn how to make Raya cookies as it is too expensive to buy from shops although some of them are very popular choices.
“If you have a big family, the kuih Raya will never last. Now you see it, the next 10 minutes or so they’re gone.
“It’s almost like a cookie buffet, but that’s the joy of Raya. We enjoy each other’s company and food is the key ingredient to that.
“This year, it will be Raya cookies experiment for us because I just can’t afford to pay RM25 for 50 pieces of Raya cookies. The prices only go up as the cookies are made from more elaborate and premium ingredients,” says Halim.
Halim also shares that most of his budget has gone into allocation for toll and petrol expenses as they will be travelling to Penang to be with their extended family.
"One way toll is RM50, two way is RM100. One way petrol cost is about RM100, that is excluding the massive traffic we are anticipating.
"So for just the two of us, travel expenses would total to about RM300 to RM400. We have not added additional expenses for gifts and last minute shopping," he says. - http://www.theheatmalaysia.com/
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