Limited blooms and gifts sold along Jalan Tun Jugah during Valentine’s Day celebrated today.
KUCHING (Feb 14): Red roses remain the bloom of choice for those celebrating Valentine’s Day, despite the celebration seeing a decline on flower sales this year.
A survey by The Borneo Post made around Kuching city in the usual hotspots where Valentine’s Day flowers and gifts are normally sold such as Jalan Ban Hock, Padungan and Kuching Waterfront saw that no stalls had been set up around those areas,
However, a further survey found that a few stalls selling flowers, soft toys and other gifts had been erected along Jalan Tun Jugah.
A salesperson who declined to be named said that red roses, especially fresh ones, were still the most sought-after gift for this year’s Valentine’s Day, however it was more sombre as the supply of roses was very limited which led to fewer people buying flowers and gifts especially amidst the Chinese New Year celebrations as well as the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Our supplies are mostly from Cameron Highlands but because of the Movement Control Order (MCO) in West Malaysia, stocks have been very limited. Our first batch of roses were sold out in the morning and now awaiting for supplies that will reach us by 4pm today,” she said, adding that other items such as soft toys or other gifts were slow-moving sales as most buyers preferred to buy flowers.
Members of the public celebrating Valentine’s Day told The Borneo Post that they ‘accepted’ the current situation as it is.
For 53-year-old teacher Lilian William, this Valentine’s Day was a special one for her and family even though they were not being able to dine out such as in previous years.
Her husband and her mother are both cancer patients and are currently undergoing chemotherapy in the Sarawak General Hospital as outpatients.
“For me, it is as special as any other day despite having to care for both my husband and mother who were diagnosed with cancer. Perhaps it is more special as caring for them is love.
“In the past, my husband and I used to go for our dinner date in a nice restaurant but due to his illness, this Valentine’s Day and the current pandemic, we are staying indoors, and I will cook for my family since cooking is my passion, furthermore my family prefers home-cooked food,” Lilian said.
For corporate research analyst Anastasia Kuek, 29, Valentine’s Day would be more relaxed for her as this year’s celebration will be different compared to the norm of dining out with her partner.
She said they decided not to have the usual fancy dinner as there would be many people going out for dinner and there were so many restaurants promoting their Valentine’s Day dinner menu.
“We are avoiding the crowd even more so during this pandemic. This year, my partner and I have decided to celebrate this day of love a bit differently. Instead of flowers and fancy dinner, we have decided to start our day early to brunch at a nice local café that we have been wanting to try.
“Then we will head home and just have a relaxed day in at home, enjoying each other’s company with our two kittens and watching Netflix,” she said.
Meanwhile, 26-year-old Shahidan Kassim, an intern at a local TV station, said that despite being single, Valentine’s Day was a day to celebrate love itself.
He said, despite the arguments that love should be celebrated everyday, he feels that there is nothing wrong with having a one day out of the year to remind you of the special relationship that you built.
“It’s more of a celebration of each other. Valentine’s Day especially during MCO is a challenge. As some couples don’t have the privilege to see each other. To overcome this, couples can do a cute little dinner over video call or a virtual movie night over Discord. With technology anything is possible,” he said.
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