It's Christmas Eve!
I'd like to wish my Christian friends, readers, and visitors A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS ... May the light of Christmas bring you all joy and happiness, and the world piece and prosperity.
This week and the next are very special time for everybody here. Christmas is tomorrow, and on Monday (Dec 29), Moslems all over the world will also celebrate the Islamic Hijra (Hegira) New Year. So, here too, I'd like to wish my Moslem brothers and sisters A VERY HAPPY HIJRA NEW YEAR! May the spirit of Hijra (migration) inspire in all of us a continuous effort to make the world a better place for everybody.
Then, only a couple of day later, of course, the world will also celebrate the international New Year: 2009 of C.E. calendar. So, HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you. May next year be a year of healing and of putting the world's economy back in track to prosperity.
Now about the picture today: Why the snowmen?
Of course, we don't have real snowmen. We don't even have winter, let alone snow and snowmen. But the snowmen are here. They are made of styrofoam and are here as one of the icons of Christmas. Other Christmas icons we normally find here (as I'm sure anywhere else in the world) are the Santa Claus (here called "Sinterklas"), his deer and sledge and Christmas trees, garland, and wreath.
I took this photo of these styrofoam snowmen in front of the store room of Ciwalk Shopping Arcade, on Jalan Cihampelas, Bandung. I guess they were meant to be part of the mall's decoration for the holiday season, but somehow they had not been (or would not be) installed this year. (The Santa Claus and his deer and the Chrismast trees and garlands were already put in place.)
