Ramadan

On Saturday evening, Ramadan started. A moment the locals have been waiting for with excitement for some time already.

Ramadan means no food, no drinking (not even water), no sex, no smoking from dawn till dusk.

They try to convince me to do the same, but I tell them it is not healthy to not drink water during the day. They claim it is. I should start like the children, they say. From 8 or 9 in the morning and not every day. I eat and drink at home. And the people that know me very well give me food and drinks when nobody else is around.

For some Ramadan is easy, for some it is not. Some work the whole day to forget they are hungry and thirsty, while others try to sleep all day.

The funny thing about Ramadan is, that food is now the main topic of all conversations and women spend hours in the kitchen preparing the breakfast for somewhat before 6 o’clock at night. They plan days ahead and serve rich meals for that one special moment the whole family is waiting for.

Often friends and next of kin are invited to join the breakfast. This is why I can live these moments with them.

A few days ago, I received an invitation by phone. I was proud to have my first conversation in Arabic by this limited means of communication (no sign language !).

It was one of Mohamed’s sisters, Nadima. Just to be sure I understood correctly, she phoned him on his mobile to repeat the invitation.

She has got 7 daughters and 4 sons. The 12th baby is on the way, while she is a grandmother of at least 3 little ones that I know about.

The eldest daughter living at home started baccalaureate and asked me to have a look at her English study book. Did I understood the exercises ? Was it difficult ? After a glance at them, I tried to converse with her in English. Her knowledge of the language is almost zero. I asked her parents to buy a dictionary which they didn’t until now. Am afraid that she will not learn much more English during the year, the matter being too difficult for a beginner.

It is a good thing, however, to see that parents allow their daughters to finish school and that they are very proud of it too.