Bohemia Bunny

I’m not feeling the tong-tong-chang

February 16th, 2007 by lynn under My Life

Ahem. “Tong-tong-chang” is the typical sound of a Chinese drum topped off with a cymbal crash. You hear this sound a lot during the Chinese New Year period, when lorries laden with lion dance troupes go trundling around the city, banners flapping in the wind. My dog hates this sound, but then he’s generally afraid of loud sounds anyway.

So yes, I’m not feeling the Chinese New Year mood this year. Perhaps it’s different back home - my sister warned me that my house looks like a gold paint explosion - but it’s really quiet here in hall. IHG just ended, Dance Production is tonight, and those 2 things involve like 70% of the hall population, so everyone’s been dealing with that. And the remaining 30% have midterm exams and term papers to worry about. Who has time for tong-tong-chang when the good ol’ Sword of Damocles called Continual Assessment is dangling over one’s head?

I probably won’t be feeling very excited until I’m within the boundaries of Kuala Lumpur City once more. Immigration isn’t a good place to be excited, I kena luggage check twice already - probably due to my slightly insane demeanour and insanely large suitcase. The highway isn’t very festive either - unless you count the traffic policemen carrying out Ops Sikap XII or whichever iteration the road safety campaign is on now. Gosh, I hope my bus won’t get delayed by police checks. No, it’ll be on the deserted streets of the capital city that tong-tong-chang will really hit me. It’s not a festival unless the city is empty, y’all!

And it’s not that I have no kampung to balik to. My family are 3rd-generation KLites, KL is our kampung. Oh, we might go visit relatives situated in other places, but that’s about it. I don’t understand people who look at me pitifully when I say I’m spending Chinese New Year in KL, as if I had to return to some backwater ancestral village to certify it as a real festival. Doesn’t the fact that I’m leaving Singapore count as balik kampung, anyway?

So yes, tomorrow, the prodigal KLite returns. And maybe the tong-tong-chang will be in full swing.