Well, not exactly. Although the attempt is impressive.This display is over the entrance to the major shopping area of Orchard Road. It takes some getting used to seeing people in summer attire, getting their picture taken in front of artificial Christmas trees, that have been place next to real palm trees, with wild parrots flying overhead.
Folks in Florida, California, and Hawaii may not find this so unusual. However, if you've lived in Ohio, Chicago, and Boston, the scene is remarkable.
Since there is no Thanksgiving here to act as a speed bump, as soon as Halloween was over, the Christmas decorations began to appear. Almost overnight.And in case you're wondering, the color choice of the elves to the right, this is not a carry-over from 31-October. They were promoting cell phone service from M1, and orange is the corporate colour. Red belongs to Singtel; Green to Starhub (as in the billboard in the background).
Of the 4.8 million people here, over 85% of them are not Christians. Buddhists are the largest single group at about 43%. Muslims are the next largest group at about 15%. So no token menorahs here (nor "Chinese tops" for that matter).
The seasonal promotions are inventive. And some, like the Tanglin Mall "Snow and Avalanche" are annual favorites. (Local friends have told us this is a not-to-be-missed experience.)The 'snow' is a type of soap foam that is blown from a half-dozen boxes that circle an outside patio with a 5 meter tall Christmas tree in the middle. One one side, there is a somewhat larger box that collects the foam and then blows it out all at once. This is presumably the 'avalanche'. I say presumably because they were still setting it up when we walked by on Sunday.
There are many temporary stores set up on the sidewalks selling toys, costume jewelry, even tree trimming supplies. (No real pine or fir trees sighted yet, although I'm fully expecting to see some here in a few weeks.)
Only two months ago, there were different seasonal stores set up in the exact same places selling mooncakes for the mid-autumn festival.And just as fast as these decorations were set up, around December 24, they will all disappear - quickly replaced with decorations for Chinese New Year that takes place one month and one day after December 25.
That's the next major shopping season.
2 comments:
Of the 4.8 million people here, fully 80% of them are not Christians. Buddhists are the largest single group at about 43%. Muslims are the next largest group at about 15%.
I think your math may be off--if 80% of the population is not Christian, then 20% of the pop IS Christian? If so, they would be the second largest group, not Muslims.
So no token menorahs here (nor "Chinese tops" for that matter).
I guess you don't need token religious diversity when you have actual religious diversity. :)
i like the center elf--the one without the orange!
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