During some food shopping at the Alpha Market I noticed the Ramadan decorations – the tents, the colorful tin and glass lanterns, and all the dried fruits, nuts and dates. Ramadan is on the way; this year starting at the 1st of September at 12.44 pm. I looked it up, in order not to make embarrassing mistakes. (I already made some classical ones, since I lived here, but I will Blog this another day)
One whole month of praying, charity, staying away from anything sinful and fasting at daytime. This means no food, not even water, caffeine, chewing gum and sex.
Basically all the good things in life and people will give them up for 30 days from dusk till dawn, all of them at the same time. Could you imagine?
So yes, it is my first time living in a Muslim country, and I am not sure what to expect. Cairo has one of the largest Muslim population of any city in the world. In ‘The Cairo Guide’ published by the AUC Press it says: ‘Reliable estimates place the percentage of Egyptians who are Muslim at 94 percent (…)’. Egypt’s bustling capital with - including Giza – has more than 15 million inhabitants. A great deal of them all fasting. And I will right in the middle of that.
I have been told that during this fasting month basically the entire rhythm of the country changes. People are sleeping (in) at work, the working hours are shorter. And it all happens at night; eating, socializing and even doing business.. As soon as the sun goes down, people literally will stop whatever they were doing and EAT. Nearly all traffic nearly stops during the half hour after sunset. I must say that this country is already quite chaotic and the pace of life is already veeeery slow. Can it get any worst? I can picture for example the poor policemen at the cross points (Police are there on almost EVERY corner of the street, infrastructure has not been much developed since the past 30 years) sweating away in this burning sun, faint from not drinking and eating. Trying to cope with even more crazy traffic than usual (btw, crazy traffic in Cairo, another good Blog topic).
Manlio, my husband, will be at work with a team of fasting cooks who will have to prepare luscious lunches for the hotel guests. I wonder what that feels like…
============================================= Ramadan comes from the name of the ninth Islamic lunar month and the month Allah ordered the Muslims to fast since it was the month he revealed the Koran to Mohammed (the final Prophet of Allah). The month of Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, prayer, doing good deeds and spending time with family and friends. The fasting is intended to help teach Muslims self-discipline and generosity. It also reminds them of the suffering of the poor, who may rarely get to eat well. During Ramadan Muslims have to fast from the break of dawn until sunset throughout the whole month.
=============================================
One whole month of praying, charity, staying away from anything sinful and fasting at daytime. This means no food, not even water, caffeine, chewing gum and sex.
Basically all the good things in life and people will give them up for 30 days from dusk till dawn, all of them at the same time. Could you imagine?
So yes, it is my first time living in a Muslim country, and I am not sure what to expect. Cairo has one of the largest Muslim population of any city in the world. In ‘The Cairo Guide’ published by the AUC Press it says: ‘Reliable estimates place the percentage of Egyptians who are Muslim at 94 percent (…)’. Egypt’s bustling capital with - including Giza – has more than 15 million inhabitants. A great deal of them all fasting. And I will right in the middle of that.
I have been told that during this fasting month basically the entire rhythm of the country changes. People are sleeping (in) at work, the working hours are shorter. And it all happens at night; eating, socializing and even doing business.. As soon as the sun goes down, people literally will stop whatever they were doing and EAT. Nearly all traffic nearly stops during the half hour after sunset. I must say that this country is already quite chaotic and the pace of life is already veeeery slow. Can it get any worst? I can picture for example the poor policemen at the cross points (Police are there on almost EVERY corner of the street, infrastructure has not been much developed since the past 30 years) sweating away in this burning sun, faint from not drinking and eating. Trying to cope with even more crazy traffic than usual (btw, crazy traffic in Cairo, another good Blog topic).
Manlio, my husband, will be at work with a team of fasting cooks who will have to prepare luscious lunches for the hotel guests. I wonder what that feels like…
============================================= Ramadan comes from the name of the ninth Islamic lunar month and the month Allah ordered the Muslims to fast since it was the month he revealed the Koran to Mohammed (the final Prophet of Allah). The month of Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, prayer, doing good deeds and spending time with family and friends. The fasting is intended to help teach Muslims self-discipline and generosity. It also reminds them of the suffering of the poor, who may rarely get to eat well. During Ramadan Muslims have to fast from the break of dawn until sunset throughout the whole month.
=============================================
2 comments:
Hoi Margreet,
Nou succes ermee! Ik ben per ongeluk wel eens in Egypte geweest tijdens de Ramadan; dat was toen in december. Viel reuze mee, maar ja, ik vastte dan ook niet. Interessant vond ik dat er kanonnen afgeschoten werden om het officiele tijdstip van de zonsondergang aan te geven.
Groetjes,
Ine
Hoi Greet!
Tof man, je eigen blog! Kunnen we eindelijk een beetje bij houden wat je allemaal uit vreet daar in het Verre Oosten!
Ramadan is inderdaad een belevenis op zich. Overdag niks doen en afzien en 's avonds.... BUNKEREN!
Sterkte de komende ramdan!
Post a Comment