Ramadan Kareem!

Well, we've been back for just over a week - still waiting for photos to be uploaded so that we can blog about our Canada trip. It isn't that we've been super busy since our return to MZ, but somehow we have no idea where the days have gone.

This weekend will mark the start of Ramadan, which is the month of fasting. It's going to be a rather interesting experience, I think.

As most people know, during Ramadan one cannot eat or drink during daylight hours. One also must "think and act piously". Not everyone does the fast - there are age limits and certain prescriptions for people who are traveling, or pregnant or whatever.

What we've been told to expect is a completely upsidedown life for a month - as, essentially, what might normally happen during the day (meetings, appointments, soccer tournaments) find themselves occurring sometime around midnight. The newspaper has even printed off (in between advertisements for Ramadan hotel deals) a list of suggestions for non-Muslims, including being more patient with people who are fasting and not eating, drinking or smoking in public ourselves. Colleagues who experienced this last year are actually looking forward to some of the evening Iftar parties that might be happening around town -- all you can eat and up all night...

I'll let you know how it goes!