Breaking a decades-long tradition and not going home to Kuala Lumpur this Chinese New Year

An empty Petaling Street on the first day of MCO 2.0.

SINGAPORE (ANN): When the Year Of The Metal Ox rolls around next month, I will not be celebrating it with family and loved ones in Kuala Lumpur.

It will be a first for me. Many first experiences are far from unpleasant but this one, breaking a tradition of nearly six decades, is giving me a dose of the blues.