CNY celebration

As far as I can remember, the previous Barisan Nasional Penang government had never held the state-level Chinese New Year celebration on the mainland. This year, it was different: the Pakatan Rakyat state government took the CNY celebration to Bukit Mertajam with the venue practically just a stone's throw away from my doorstep.

So there wasn't any good reason for me not to visit the celebration and see what it was all about.

Tonight, my whole family drove to the Kampong Baru market and then walked to the Taman Maju area. My first observation: there were lots of people. The whole place was jam-packed like sardines.

However, I wasn't impressed. Don't get me wrong. It's a very fine gesture by the Penang government which was very much appreciated by the people of BM. But there was nothing much for me to see. Nothing to connect me to my grassroots. Nothing to get excited about. Except for the stall offering a free bone density scan, I would think the whole celebration was a waste of time. Especially in this hot weather. If the state government decides to move the CNY celebration back to the island next year, I would not miss it. Really....