KARACHI: Christmas Eve in the city on Saturday seemed to lack the festive spirit associated with this day since time immemorial.

It was great that so many discount sales announcing up to 30 per cent or even 70pc off, coincided with Christmas and the New Year, but were members of the Christian community buying anything? As seen throughout the past week, there were hardly any Christian shoppers anywhere in the malls of Karachi, not even for last-minute shopping.

In Saddar, little Johnny refused to get onto his father’s motorbike with him until he bought him a new toy. “You have plenty of toys. You can play with them,” the father told the six-year-old, who didn’t seem to quite understand why his father wouldn’t get him something for Christmas.

“He is young, he doesn’t understand. Times are hard. His mother got him a new cardigan and shoes for school. I’m afraid that’s pretty much all that we can afford to get him right now. Toys? Well, he has his old toys to play with. And his mother is making a cake, toffee and chicken,” the man smiled before getting onto his bike and lifting his grumpy boy up before heading home.

Shopkeepers of party decoration shops at Bohri Bazaar were also found to be sulking. “The Chinese Christmas trees can be reused for several years. They are washable, too, so are as good as new after a rinse. We didn’t get too many customers this year,” said one shopkeeper there, adding that the trees could be bought for as little as Rs100 to as expensive as Rs10,000.

“Those who got a snow-white Christmas tree earlier came to buy a dark green one now and those who had a green one earlier wanted a snow-white one,” he said. “Otherwise people only came for tree and other decorations here.”

Other than the usual glass balls, stars and bells, there were also tiny glittery plastic socks, little bass drums and red and white balloons with ‘Merry Christmas’ printed on them. The decorations cost from Rs20 to Rs200. There were also decorated wreaths to put outside doors of homes for Rs1,000 each. But wreaths are also made from fresh flowers, available at flower shops for much cheaper than that.

In the malls of Karachi, one could spot many decorated Christmas trees at the shop entrances but no Santa, reindeer or elves. And the foreign brand shops surprisingly didn’t even have Christmas trees.

Still, it was heartening to see the Christmas parade with everyone wearing red Santa caps, riding camels and camel carts on city streets on Dec 21, although its timing was slightly off as this would have added charm to Christmas Eve. The Xmas Peace Train that left Peshawar on Dec 22 will also reach Karachi on Dec 31.

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2016