I was talking to my mom after I posted my blog about Christmas in Malaysia and she said my post sounded kinda sad. It wasn’t meant to be sad, just comparing the differences between Christmas in the US and Christmas in Malaysia. True, I was a bit homesick during Christmas because I’m used to being around my family, but I wasn’t miserable. Troy and I spent December 21-24 in Cambodia exploring Angkor Wat and Phnom Penh, so how could that not be amazing? We saw a Santa in the airport in Cambodia, too, which was pretty cool. We flew back to Malaysia on Christmas Eve and got to wake up on Christmas morning to our little makeshift tree:
and a few decorations:
Christmas decorations here are a little pricey and neither of us really saw a point in spending a lot of money on decorations we’d just have to throw away. I kinda wanted a tree and some lights, but once I saw the prices, I agreed that we would survive a Christmas without them. I have TONS of Christmas decorations in my storage unit, so I’ll just have to break them all out next year to make up for not having them this year. And if Troy and I aren’t married (or broken up) by next Christmas, I’ll just have to decorate his house for him, too. haha. He’s not really into decorations or holidays, but that’s okay. I don’t decorate much for other holidays, but I LOVE decorating for Christmas, so he’ll survive a few weeks of Christmas prettiness.
Even without having decorations at home, we still had a nice little Christmas. We opened our presents together and then both called our families. And since most places don’t close on Christmas day here, I was able to get a massage and spend some time at the mall enjoying the Christmas atmosphere. And eating ice cream. lol. I also got to spend part of the day messaging friends and family back home, so it wasn’t entirely like I was disconnected from them.
Yes, Christmas was different and not like I’m used to, but what is life about than to experience new things? I got to spend the days before Christmas in an amazing place (that I’d so go back to in a heartbeat) and then got to talk to my family on Christmas day while celebrating it with Troy. I feel like I was very blessed by being able to still be in contact with my family and not have to spend the day entirely apart from them. To me, that’s what Christmas is about: spending time with loved ones. And I got to do that, so it was a good Christmas. 🙂
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