Well my friends its here again. Ramadan. 

If you’re too lazy to click the link as I normally am, Ramadan is a month long period of fasting during the day for all Muslims. Because we live in Kuwait we must respect these practices too. I found out last night not only eating, drinking, or chewing gum in public is forbidden- but also applying lip gloss! Isn’t that crazy!? I guess the reason why is because one is hydrating their lips or having a flavor on them and that sort of defeats the purpose of sacrifice. The lip gloss thing TOTALLY deserves its own post, however, since it is Ramadan I will be respectful of this rule and shut up. Thankfully, since I work on a military installation we are free to eat and drink during daylight hours.

And most importantly, apply lip gloss.

Whew!

The woman I share my office with, however, is Muslim and I have chosen to forego my usual 10:00 and 3:00 snacks out of respect to her. However, I will be drinking water in the office. She said she’d be fine with me eating, but I just don’t want to distract her. Although I do not believe as she does, I decided it would be the respectful thing to do. You’re extrememly hungry by the afternoon- not to mention unbelievably parched- and watching me eat hydrating fruit or veggies might just make her want to die. It will be interesting to share my office with this woman during Ramadan. I’ve never had to do that before.

Can I just say Ramadan Kareem!? (that basically means Happy Ramadan… I think)

From a totally non-religious standpoint, I enjoy Ramadan. The nights are so fascinating and cultural in Kuwait. Granted, the daylight hours are crappy because all the restaurants are closed (yeah! Isn’t that insane!? I wonder if the government provides money to food places during Ramadan since they’re required to be shut down during the day?? Hmmm) and you can’t meet up for lunch or have something delivered, but the nights are so interesting.

It starts out with the early evening right before the fast is broken, Iftahr (umm… not positive on the spelling so be merciful). The roads are desolate. It’s the weirdest thing because the roads are never empty. You could walk in the middle of what normally is the busiest road in Kuwait and probably be perfectly safe.

Right after the breaking of the fast, the restaurants, malls, and businesses open. Last night we went to Chilis and had our run of the place because we got there right when they opened. It was so weird and quiet! I wish you guys could spend a normal Kuwaiti weekend with me and then spend a Ramadan weekend with me. I simply can’t get my point across without you guys being here- so buy those tickets dang it!

A little after Iftahr, things start to become insane! It’s like the country awakens and all decides to go to the mall, or Chilis, or wherever you are at that moment. It becomes packed. So strange.

Last night Will and I were at the mall an hour after it opened and we had our run of the gammut. I told him I felt like we should roll ourselves up and down the walkways just because we could. He didn’t think that was a good idea. By the time we left, however, we wouldn’t have been able to roll (see!? We should have done it while we had the chance!) because it was crowded.

So that will be life for the next month. This is my third Ramadan, so hopefully by now I’m a pro at this- although I didn’t know about the freaking lip gloss rule until last night. I think that means I’m far from pro status.

Have a wonderful weekend all.

Ramadan Kareem!