dinner at midnight
So here's a few recent scenarios:
This afternoon when I was on the Metro (Cairo's subway system) I watched a man that was so absorbed in reading and mouthing the words of his pocket-sized Qur'an that he nearly missed his stop.
The local coffeeshops, usually packed all day long with men with shai (tea) in one hand and a sheesha pipe in another, have their chairs stacked up and locks on the doors during their busiest hours.
Last night, I almost stumbled over a man kneeling in the middle of the sidewalk, right outside of a busy corner shop. He had stretched out his prayer mat and was prostrating himself towards Mecca in the middle of a crowded neighborhood, impervious to anything or anybody else.
A three mile taxi ride in the afternoon takes me over 20 minutes in the Cairo swamp of traffic. If I return later around 5 or 6, the freeways are completely clear and I'm back in less than a quarter of the time. I used to call that rush hour.
Everybody and their brother own these little side restaurants that sell authentic Egyptian food and a side of french fries. I have a couple of favorite places...its always cheap and always good. I tried to get dinner a few nights ago and everywhere was closed. I really couldn't find any food and finally ended up buying a kilo of tiny pancakes only made on special occasions.
Cario is hot and dry. Staying hydrated is pretty important, and its pretty easy. You can buy like these 1.5 liter bottles to carry around and last you all day. Out of respect, I now hide this big honkin' bottle in my bag, because most people are choosing not to drink anything all day long...and me publicly chugging down water in the afternoon heat may cause them to stumble.
ok... why? Does any of this sound kinda strange, because that's how it seemed when it first started. You may not have noticed back home, but the Islamic month of Ramadan started a little over a week ago. And for Egypt, that means that life changes.
Ramadan is the holiest month for Muslims and marks the time for the most sincere demonstrations of their faith. In other words, people are extra-religious. Muslims believe that Satan is actually locked up for the whole month to make following Allah as natural as possible. They see it as a month to catch up in any area where they have been lacking—extra alms are given to the beggars, praying 5 times a day is actually a regular practice, and people are careful to keep themselves extra pure. The biggest part of Ramadan is the fasting...required as one of the 5 pillars of Islam. Everyday, from dawn until dusk, a complete fast is observed... meaning no food, drink, sex, or smoking (which may be the hardest one for some people). That also means that after the sun sets and the evening call to prayer breaks the fast, everyone is ready to go for the big party. The streets are lined with brightly colored lights and banners, mosques are elaborately decorated, people are dancing and singing and setting off fireworks until very...very early hours. Most families have their biggest meal around midnight, and eat enough to get full for both days at once.
"Breaking the fast" as its called, is a pretty big deal. I mean, obviously, right? I mean it would be for me if I hadn't eaten or drank anything or smoked my cigarettes or... those other things, all day long. That's why nobody is out around 6pm, they're all getting their first drink of water of the day or lighting up their sheesha. I'm usually excited about this time anyways, because I go out to find my dinner. But tonight is going to be especially outstanding...my friends Mahmoud and Ahmed invited me to their house tonight for their big meal. Its quite an honor. Isn't it cool that my time here falls during Ramadan and I get to experience the highlight of the year for Muslims?
It'll probably be a late night, which means I better stop blogging and write my paper on "Why are Sunnis and Shiites killing each other?" and then studying for my Arabic quiz tomorrow. Peace out...or as I now say to everyone I pass, Ramadan Kareem.
This afternoon when I was on the Metro (Cairo's subway system) I watched a man that was so absorbed in reading and mouthing the words of his pocket-sized Qur'an that he nearly missed his stop.
The local coffeeshops, usually packed all day long with men with shai (tea) in one hand and a sheesha pipe in another, have their chairs stacked up and locks on the doors during their busiest hours.
Last night, I almost stumbled over a man kneeling in the middle of the sidewalk, right outside of a busy corner shop. He had stretched out his prayer mat and was prostrating himself towards Mecca in the middle of a crowded neighborhood, impervious to anything or anybody else.
A three mile taxi ride in the afternoon takes me over 20 minutes in the Cairo swamp of traffic. If I return later around 5 or 6, the freeways are completely clear and I'm back in less than a quarter of the time. I used to call that rush hour.
Everybody and their brother own these little side restaurants that sell authentic Egyptian food and a side of french fries. I have a couple of favorite places...its always cheap and always good. I tried to get dinner a few nights ago and everywhere was closed. I really couldn't find any food and finally ended up buying a kilo of tiny pancakes only made on special occasions.
Cario is hot and dry. Staying hydrated is pretty important, and its pretty easy. You can buy like these 1.5 liter bottles to carry around and last you all day. Out of respect, I now hide this big honkin' bottle in my bag, because most people are choosing not to drink anything all day long...and me publicly chugging down water in the afternoon heat may cause them to stumble.
ok... why? Does any of this sound kinda strange, because that's how it seemed when it first started. You may not have noticed back home, but the Islamic month of Ramadan started a little over a week ago. And for Egypt, that means that life changes.
Ramadan is the holiest month for Muslims and marks the time for the most sincere demonstrations of their faith. In other words, people are extra-religious. Muslims believe that Satan is actually locked up for the whole month to make following Allah as natural as possible. They see it as a month to catch up in any area where they have been lacking—extra alms are given to the beggars, praying 5 times a day is actually a regular practice, and people are careful to keep themselves extra pure. The biggest part of Ramadan is the fasting...required as one of the 5 pillars of Islam. Everyday, from dawn until dusk, a complete fast is observed... meaning no food, drink, sex, or smoking (which may be the hardest one for some people). That also means that after the sun sets and the evening call to prayer breaks the fast, everyone is ready to go for the big party. The streets are lined with brightly colored lights and banners, mosques are elaborately decorated, people are dancing and singing and setting off fireworks until very...very early hours. Most families have their biggest meal around midnight, and eat enough to get full for both days at once.
"Breaking the fast" as its called, is a pretty big deal. I mean, obviously, right? I mean it would be for me if I hadn't eaten or drank anything or smoked my cigarettes or... those other things, all day long. That's why nobody is out around 6pm, they're all getting their first drink of water of the day or lighting up their sheesha. I'm usually excited about this time anyways, because I go out to find my dinner. But tonight is going to be especially outstanding...my friends Mahmoud and Ahmed invited me to their house tonight for their big meal. Its quite an honor. Isn't it cool that my time here falls during Ramadan and I get to experience the highlight of the year for Muslims?
It'll probably be a late night, which means I better stop blogging and write my paper on "Why are Sunnis and Shiites killing each other?" and then studying for my Arabic quiz tomorrow. Peace out...or as I now say to everyone I pass, Ramadan Kareem.
posted by matt at 6:55 AM
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