The Brunei December Festival is back again, promising twice the number of events as last year, with movie nights under the stars, magical light shows and bustling bazaars that will surely keep you busy during the year-end holidays.
A continuation of last year’s month-long festival, this year’s edition will see over 60 events, including three announced on Wednesday:
Jerudong Park Playground
For the December school holidays, Jerudong Park Playground (JP) has prepared a number of activities.
Starting with JP’s Animals in the Park, animal lovers will get the chance to come face to face with parrots, birds of prey, fancy rabbits and reptiles.
Initially planned only for the month of November, the park has decided to extend the event until the end of the year due to its popularity.
“This December we can expect it [Animals in the Park] to have more varieties of animals which is something everyone can look forward to,” said Pg Mohd Fa’iq Izzuddin Pg Mohd Hj Airuddin, JP’s media and public relations representative.
The second activity is JP’s “Story of Lights”, an outdoor exhibition of light sculptures that will bring to life all the best children’s stories we grew up with.
Pg Faiq said that details of the activity will be revealed closer to the date, adding that the Story of Lights will be “a special way for everyone to experience JP at night”.
And for the third activity, JP’s Movie Nights are here again, giving visitors a chance to enjoy a movie while they lounge under the stars. Visitors can bring along their own blankets, cushions or bean bags to make the experience a comfortable one.
Movie nights will be held every Saturday during December and will begin from 7.45 pm. Some of the movies that will be showing include: Ratatouille, Up, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and many more.
JP will also be extending its opening hours next month, and will operate from Wednesday to Sunday, from 4 pm to 11 pm.
Weekend Charity Bazaar in the City
If you’re an avid market-goer, you can look forward to “The Weekend Charity Bazaar in the City” will be kicking off on November 17 and will run for seven weekends until December 30.
Located at the parking area on Jalan Bendahara, opposite the Royal Regalia Building, the bazaar will feature over 72 vendors and weekly cultural performances.
Opening hours will be from 5.30pm – 11pm on Saturday and from 6am – 11pm on Sunday.
Organiser Nur Badi’ah Event Management said the bazaar was aimed at enlivening the sultanate’s sleepy capital.
“With the cultural performances that will be happening throughout the event, we hope that it would help expose more of our Bruneian culture to tourists that happen to attend the bazaar,” said manager Site Fatmah Hj Jair.
A percentage of the booth rental will also be donated to orphans of Kg Kiulap.
Charity Fruit Festival
As December approaches, so does the fruit season.
The Charity Fruit Festival will see 26 participating vendors hawking the season’s best produce, including the highly-coveted Musang King durian.
Those with iron stomachs can compete in a durian-eating contest which will take place on December 26. But you better arrive early to secure your spot — only 30 participants will be allowed to compete.
Organised by Fadhzunnisa Event Management, the festival will run from December 26 until January 1, near the staircase of Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium.
Like the capital’s weekend bazaar, 15 percent of booth rental will be donated to an orphans charity.