10 observations on Ramadan

1. Ramadan started August 22nd. For those not familiar with it, Ramadan is a holy month in the Islamic calendar where all Moslems fast during the day......they fast from eating, drinking, and sexual contact from dawn to dusk and devote these energies to spiritual reflection. It's one of the five pillars of Islam along with the confession of faith, praying towards Mecca five times a day, giving alms, and a pilgrimage to Mecca.

2. So they get up before the early morning prayer at 4 AM to eat and drink, then come together with friends and family for iftar which is the meal after sundown...around 6:30 pm. Actually, sunset was 7:30 but Egypt has instituted Daylight Savings time for Ramadan so people don't have to wait so long to eat. :) (Correction: David just told me that actually they've temporarily suspended Daylight Savings Time until after Ramadan....I always forget whether we're in DST or not. The point is that sunset occurs an hour earlier. :)

3. August is a particularly tough time for Ramadan.....imagine not drinking water during the hottest month of the year!! Children, pregnant women, and the elderly are exempt and I guess you can use disgression if you're sick. Last week, Laila, who's the secretary for David's team, had the flu and was talking about how tough it was to recover when she can't drink to keep herself hydrated, but then a few days ago, Samia wasn't feeling well and asked for some juice during our Arabic lesson. She said God would understand. :)

4. I just read an article in today's paper about 155 Egyptians who were just arrested for eating and drinking on purpose during the day. They were arrested as part of a campaign in the Aswan governate,which started at the beginning of Ramadan, to target the disobedient among "those who profess". Human rights activists have complained, stating that there is no law against non-fasting Moslems. Apparently, in more conservative countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, you can be arrested for not fasting and thrown in jail for a month.

5. Last week, we were driving into Cairo right around 6:15 pm, almost sunset, and we saw vendors getting ready at medians in the middle of roads with little sandwich bags filled with sugar water, fruit juice, or soda so drivers can buy a little sugar rush as they drive home to iftar. That's one thing we were warned about by those who've lived here for years: watch out on the roads during Ramadan. There are lots of sleepy and cranky drivers out there!

6. I don't know how common this is, but the Egyptians who work on the compound here as well as those David works with have been working shortened hours,, so there's more time to spend with family and at home. The meal of iftar is a time to eat well and celebrate with family; actually Samia told me that they don't get a whole lot of sleep because they stay up and eat throughout the night (this is also why they don't lose as much weight as one might expect!).

7. Not only do they stay up all night eating but apparently it's a Ramadan tradition to be glued to the boob tube. There are sitcoms, soap operas, and miniseries which only show during the month of Ramadan. Tony, the bartender, said that all Egyptian women are addicted to these shows. :) We went to a outdoor cafe and they had set up projectors and large screens in order to broadcast the television lineup.

8. There's also a tradition of hospitality in Ramadan. Wealthy people offer meals for the poor and you can find banquets set up in the streets or in tents in Cairo with free iftar meals. Many of the hotels have set up tents as well, so I imagine it's conducive to a party atmosphere.

9. From what I've gathered, as oftentimes happens with holidays and traditions, the original intent of Ramadan can get lost in the culture which has risen around it. I've noticed Ramadan sales in stores and I read some criticism in one of the Egyptian newspapers of how commercialized Ramadan has become as well as disapproval of some of the immoral themes featured in Ramadan television shows.

10. It's also a tradition to hang lanterns, like the one in the photo above, from your business or house, though I've mainly seen them perched on the porches of wealthy houses. We were staying the night at the crashpad in Cairo and I couldn't sleep so I went out to the balcony, hoping to see thousands of lit lanterns, but really didn't see any at all. I did see plenty of lights turn on around 4 AM....I'd be up early to eat too!! :)