Maulidur Rasul 2011

It was the second time I joined the Maulidur Rasul celebration at district level. The first time was last year. 

For those who are wondering what Maulidur Rasul celebration is, here is a quick glimpse. The Maulidur Rasul is an annual celebration, celebrated by Muslims, who observe it as the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad S. A. W.  There are many activities held during this celebration. The famous one is the parade. And that is just what I did not want to miss. In my country, the celebration is made an official public holiday, so that all government servants – like me – would have the opportunity to witness and take parts in it.

Not repeating the same mistake that I did last year, this year, I brought along my humble engine to capture some of the memorable moments that me and my colleagues had during the annual celebration. Enjoy!

THIS IS A FISHING BOAT, NOT A PASSENGER BOAT! I was a bit worried when I first saw this boat. The one that I usually use to cross this very river is more 'user-friendly', with walls, roof and of course, seats. But this one... Arrrghhhhh! But it was fun, though. It wasn't that bad after all. The fresh, soothing, unpolluted morning breeze that blew through my face just drifted me away as we cruise along.

The teachers who escorted the pupils of my school to be at the morning assembly at the mosque, just a few minutes walk across the river. We settled off as early as 6:30 in the morning then crossed the river by fishing boat, owned by a villager.The water was at low tide so we had to jump from the old jetty right into the boat. What an experience!

A beautiful nasyid performance by a local secondary school's students.

Our school wooden banner, hand-held by our cute heroes. The pupils took turns to hold up the banner in order to complete the parade, while the rest recited the selawat along the way, together with the other participants from nearby schools.

A section of the participants. A teacher from my school is walking hand-in-hand with two cute little girls from my school. I viewed the wonderful sight with astonishment.

The wind blew our banner down. Our heroes had to hand-hold it to finish the parade...

A mother and her daughter were among those who attended the parade. I happened to walk beside them and boy, their smiles were just so irresistible. Just look at them!

YEPS, THAT'S ME, wearing a Muslim scarf with four cute little siblings - daughters of a colleague of mine.

My colleagues laughed. But this is just me. Baju kurung paired with my favorite Nike sport shoes. I knew the parade was going to be long, and I did not want to take the risk of having sore feet for the rest of the week. So, walla!