Last night I had the pleasure of attending a reception for the 55th National Day of Malaysia. The reception was presented by Tourism Malaysia and was held at the Permanent Mission of Malaysia to the U.N. As I entered the event, I was excited to see that it was extremely crowded. The Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations Ambassador Hussein Haniff and Mrs. Sharifah Raguan Hussein were the gracious hosts and welcomed guests at the door. The energy in the room was contagious, and everyone was very friendly and warm; this is truly the nature of the Malaysian people.

I was delighted to find our friends from Tourism Malaysia and to be introduced to some new ones. The authentic Malaysian fashions were absolutely beautiful! I decided to go through the food line and taste Malaysian food for the second time in my life. Wow, the food was delicious, and I have to say that I haven’t seen that much food at an event in a long time. My favorites were the curried prawns and kailan in oyster sauce.

The highlight of the event for me was the dance synopsis. The dancers’ costumes were stunning, and the colors rich and eye-catching! There were several different dances performed by different groups. Dances included the contemporary Malay overture, Tatiana inang renek, tarian masri kerincing and Malaysia truly Asia.

I have always wanted to visit Malaysia; and after my experience last night, I am even more dedicated to making that visit happen soon!

— Christie Rhodes, advertising manager Eastern region