Cina Pakai Baju Kurung

Two weeks ago, me and Michelle pakat wearing baju kurung to class...which illicited some interesting response.

The first person who saw me in a baju kurung is my neighbour, Syafzwana...she asked why was I wearing a baju kurung...

Syaf: Presentation? Or saje?

Me: Saje... *Grins*

Syaf: That's good~

(Thanks Syaf for giving me the word saje~ I was going to say "for fun", but saje-saje is a much better word =D)

Went to Calculus class and Mr.Chan asked why we were wearing baju kurung...
Michelle: Presentation...

Michelle (whispers to me): 'Presentation' for you...LOL!

Really, it was just a whim~ Last week Michelle said that her aunt had bought her a baju kurung and she was looking forward to wear it, so I said why don't one day we wear baju kurung together, and it was quickly decided that it would be Monday coz Michelle wanted to wear the baju kurung to her Malaysian Studies class.

It was pretty embarassing at first, when some friends and strangers look surprised and/or stared at me =.="

But once I got used to answering the question as to why were we wearing baju kurung I must say it is pleasant to get so much attention hear many people say it looks nice =D Yeah, both my Chinese and Malay friends XD XD

(Haven't you noticed that I'm a private narcissist+attention seeker?)

Well, other than the ego-boosting comments, there were some...erm..rather unexpected response:

Wafi, a friendly Malay guy, said "Wah...Malay girl ah?"

O_O (. . .)

But The Blast was from Diderot.

Michelle and I were going to the library when we met Diderot, a friendly Catholic African guy from Cameroon. He looked so surprised and bewildered when he saw us "Why are you wearing that? Muslim?" and made the sign of the cross, and patted his chest saying he was a Christian.

O.O

=.="

I feel Indignant. But we forgive him because he's not from Malaysia. It's quite natural for him to assume that Baju Kurung = Malay attire = Muslim attire, when very rarely you can see Chinese wearing baju kurung at chinese-dominated-INTI.

Of course, if you go to civil service departments, Orang Cina wearing baju kurung is quite common. Eg. Chinese teachers in National Schools (i'm not sure abot other states, but yes in Kelantan) must wear dresses that adequately cover the body (mind you, no pants), so they usually choose to wear baju kurung for convenience. My friends at Matrikulasi, esp the one in Pahang, also wear the baju kurung regularly (also for convenience, mainly because of the regulations there).

I don't think it's exactly fair to enforce Muslim regulations of modesty on non-Muslims, and make non-Muslims wear the baju kurung. But even though initially reluctant, those who wear the baju kurung can begin to realize the merits of the baju kurung. (1. It's simple yet elegant. ^_^ though you have to be careful not to trip over the skirt when walking up the stairs. 2. It's comfy and so cooling that you'll freeze to death in INTI's classrooms. (Of course you have to choose the correct material and cloth that suits you lar. Mami says fair skinned people should wear brighter colors.)

What I want to say is, my wearing the baju kurung on my own free will does not mean I want to become a Malay or a Muslim. It's because I want to wear it, and I like it. =D

I mean, a Chinese can look good in baju kurung as well as a Malay, and I think Malays would look great in oriental style too (though sexy-tight-fitting cheongsams are of course, out of limits~). It shouldn't be strange for Chinese or Indians to wear baju kurung; just as it shouldn't be strange for Malays to wear the cheongsam or kurta. The variety of traditional attires is our national cultural heritage, not exclusive to any particular nationality or religion. This wealth is unique to Malaysia.

I believe many designers have, and are still designing clothes in a fusion of Malaysian styles: the kebaya cheongsam, batik samfu, etc. which are really cool!

Let's wear the Baju Kurung (untuk gadis-gadis saje la :P) and our other beautiful traditional attires of Malaysia!

p.s. I wonder why it's even rarer to see chinese guys in baju melayu. hmm. actually malay guys don't wear their baju melayu as often as malay girls wear baju kurung. i guess coz it takes time to wear the baju melayu properly. :P

p.s.2 Everybody can wear the Sarong. ^V^~