MOST of the shops and stalls that line both sides of Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman in Kuala Lumpur sell almost identical things and finding a particular one among the many is akin to looking for a needle in a haystack.
Khalid Soldi had been walking up and down the narrow half-kilometre lane for an hour and a half, in search of the shop where he had bought a baju kurung for his wife the day before.
“Not all the vendors have opened for business yet, and there are so many that I can’t really be sure from whom I had bought it,” Khalid said, adding that his family had already completed their Raya shopping much earlier and made their own kuih.
Though he was not shopping for anything, Khalid said if something caught his fancy, he would buy it, like the baju kurung that turned out to be too small. He was back, he said, because he wanted to exchange it before he made the trip back to his kampung.
Government servant Shakirah Mohd Noh, 34, said she was in the area to buy a few items to complete her Raya shopping.
“The bulk of my shopping is done. I don’t do last-minute shopping because of time constraint,” Shakirah said as she selected some decorative flowers for her home.
Meanwhile, student Aina Sarah Aminuddin, 15, was there with her family shopping for accessories to complement her Raya clothing.
“Everything becomes cheaper as Raya approaches and people can get the best bargains here on the eve of Raya itself,” Aina said.
Pensioner Said Omar Ismail, 66, was at his friend’s stall helping to sell packets of nuts and kerepek by enticing passing customers with bargains.
“We will be open until about 2am on the first day of Raya.
“On the eve, we usually lower our prices so that we can sell off everything,” Said Omar said.
He said he would be returning to his hometown of Alor Setar on the night of the first day of Raya.
Rozniza Abdul Rahim, 36, a sales assistant manning an accessories stall, said the stall would be closed on the eve of Raya.
“These stalls are actually for the night market vendors and we just use them during the day.
“Since today is the last day, we are selling our goods at the wholesale price to entice more customers,” Rozniza said.
Student Rusyidi Mohd Sadri, 16, was helping out at a stall selling clothes as his holiday had already started.
“People should buy their things early, especially clothes, because if they wait until it’s very late, they may not be able to get the right size,” Rusyidi said.
Meanwhile, in Shah Alam, shoppers were making a beeline for Kompleks PKNS.
“I was here about 9am, even before the shops opened, just to make sure that I would get what I wanted.
“Parking is a problem here and I’m glad I came early.
“I usually wait until the last minute because everything is cheaper,” said Ruhaiza Hanafi.
The mother of four, who lives in Puncak Alam, had gone to the complex with her two daughters to buy baju raya and some kuih raya, which were being sold at discounts of up to half price.
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