Christmas cheer: A number of USM students from Sarawak will be celebrating Christmas on campus this year. — LIM BENG TATT/The Star
GEORGE TOWN: For the third straight year now, Sarawakian Kartinie Kunyi, 21, has to celebrate Christmas away from home.
The 21-year-old from Kapit, Sarawak, is a student in Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) here.
“In 2020 and 2021, it was Covid-19 that kept me from going home for Christmas and this year, it’s the flight ticket prices,” she said.
The science and mathematics degree third-year student said flight tickets that used to cost RM200 to RM300 were now between RM700 and RM900.
“There are promotional tickets at about RM100, but these are difficult to get. So, since I have exams coming, it’s better I stay in Penang and focus on my studies while having a small celebration with friends,” she said at the Makan Malam Anak Sarawak event at the university campus on Friday night.
Although Kartinie admitted to feeling sad about not going home for Christmas, she said she consoled herself with the fact that she could celebrate with her many campus mates.
“We already plan to go to the church together. We will have a get-together at our hostel.”
Fellow Sarawakian Jennifer Thien, 22, said although she felt a bit frustrated about not being able to celebrate the festival with her family in Saratok, she would be celebrating with her friends in the university.
“Celebrating Christmas with family is not the same as with friends,” said the third-year science and mathematics student.
But she has resolved not to shy away from celebrating the annual Yuletide and has planned many activities with her campus mates, including a small Christmas Eve feast.
“It’s only a small gathering, but at least we can celebrate it with our friends here,” she added.
Masing Anak Beti, 22, said celebrating Christmas away from his family opened opportunities for him to share his culture with friends from other states.
“It enhances our understanding of each other. We learn to appreciate other cultures too,” he said.
Masing, who is in his third year in the university, said he learnt a lot from his Malay and Malaysian-Indian friends on campus about their cultures and being able to celebrate Christmas in the university was a valuable experience for him.
First-year student Wong Kian Seng from Betong, Sarawak, said he was looking forward to celebrating Christmas on the campus this year.
“Normally, we would visit friends’ homes during Christmas back home. This year will be very different for me,” he said.
The 20-year-old economics student said he even expected to learn more about other cultures come Chinese New Year when he would celebrate it in Penang as well.
Noorul Azzalea Mohd Azli, 19, said she had already planned on going to shopping malls with her friends during Christmas.
“Every year in Sarawak, we would visit friends’ homes during Christmas, and then they would visit my house for Hari Raya Puasa.
“So, in university I think I am going to practise the same – celebrating festivities with those who are celebrating it,” she said.
Noorul Azzalea said celebrating other cultures’ festivals in Sarawak was quite normal, especially Christmas.
About 150 students aged 19-25, mostly Sarawakian, attended the dinner event at USM Dewan Utama Desa Siswa.
The event was organised by Perkumpulan Anak-Anak Sarawak, an NGO of Sarawakian students in USM.
Deputy Minister in the Sarawak Premier’s Department (Integrity and Ombudsman) Datuk Dr Juanda Jaya also attended the event.
