Pigeon delicacies (Hamaam)

Pigeons have been a delicacy raised and eaten in Egypt since around 3000 BC. The below bird was served to me at my company iftar (breaking the fast) just the other night.

You can never fit enough people on a motorcycle

I believe it is something of an incredible sport in Egypt, to see exactly how many brave people can fit on a motorbike.

(Click me to enlarge)

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Contrasts

Old and young, rich and poor, new and really really not new, you name the contrast and you will find it in Egypt, side by side, existing somewhat harmoniously right up against one another.

Garlic

Garlic, is a staple of the Egyptian diet. It figures prominently many famous Egyptian dishes, from moloheya to those spicy eggplant appetizers. They even have an entire fast food chain called "Tom & Basil" (Garlic and Onion). Mmmmm.

Should I stay or should I go? You decide!

Living in Egypt, you learn to navigate choices. You learn that really, at bottom, there is a choice behind everything we do. In Egypt, the message is somehow more explicit than elsewhere...

A traffic light inside Heliopolis Cairo.
Lighting BOTH red and green at the same time.

Immense faith things will all work out

Every time a car comes by in
the next lane, those in this position shout this out and try to duck inside the crowded bus

Ramadan Fasting and Fun

Ramadan is a time for deep inward reflection self-control as well as self-improvement. Yet, it is equally a time for enjoyment of family and friends and for saying a strong "thank you!" for all the gifts we've been blessed with (for believing Muslims, principally the Quran, but also the food we so often take for granted, our loving family, and the neighbors who make our lives wonderful and all such gifts).

Islam teaches that the golden mean should govern our lives.

The Golden Mean in nature

 We are not to lead our lives in total asceticism nor in total hedonism, but to strike a balanced life that includes joy and pleasure set within limits of our good habits, bringing respect to the lives of ourselves and others. There is a saying that captures this balance nicely,

"Work for this life as though you are going to live forever. Work for the Next life as though you will die tommorrow." (Ali Ibn Talib 600 - 661)

During Ramadan, Muslims fast during from sunrise to sunset, which includes abstaining from food, drink, sex, cigarettes, bubble gum, etc. Each evening however, once the fast is broken those things which were forbidden are allowed, and it is a time to treasure and enjoy being with one's close family and friends, as well as dedicating time to prayer and learning.

Taraweeah Prayers during Ramadan

The Taraweeah prayers are held nightly during Ramadan, during which time the congregation attempts to read the Quran in its entirety by the end of the holy month.
Taraweeah prayers often run very long. You stand, in the usual prayer format, row by row, shoulder to shoulder, praying side by side and speaking to God in unison. You feel not only great strength and warmness of community, but also the prayer itself has a strongly meditative effect, after long hours of prayer your mind becomes focused, rhythmic, awakened and in touch with the unity and presence of your human neighbors beside you, the earth below, and the heavens above.

Waking up (or staying up) to pray the Fajr prayer

There is something so beautiful about the time of early morning of the Fajr prayer, which is right before the sun begins to softly reveal itself to the world in white radiance melting over the horizon. This early hour is so calm, and the adhan resonates particularly softly through the gentle air.




Outside of Ramadan it is mostly a very quiet time, you have this satisfactory feeling of experiencing the world when everyone else is still nestled in slumber, being alone with your thoughts or with God. Indeed, it is said that the morning angels gather to listen intently to the prayers offered during this time. And truly, it is a great time for reading, learning, and planning one's day.

During Ramadan in Egypt, you will find a lot of activity at this time still, either from people still finding their way home from sohour (the meal eaten before beginning the fast) or from those walking to pray together in the mosques. The night takes on a special feeling of activity and vitality, something mysterious and magical afoot when people are moving about in the wee hours of the morning.

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Rockin' dinner tables

In Egypt, there seems to be a trend among restaurants to have on the outdoor patios large wooden rocking chairs for the whole family to eat dinner on. A fun way to keep kids interested in sitting down at the dinner table. Nice romantic dinner or drinks for a new couple. Just fabulous way of making great use of Egypt's year-round wonderful outdoor weather.

Qatayef

Qatayef (pronouned in Egypt like aht-ei-f) is a crescent-shaped dessert specialty eaten during Ramadan. A yummy fried batter stuffed with cheese or a mixture of nuts, then coated in honey-syrup. It is a delicious treat to feast on after breaking one's fast. There are other more savory versions also, not coated with sugar, stuffed with white cheese mixtures or minced meat (something like a thick perogie, minus the potatoes and sour cream).

Qatayef, just waiting to be eaten, yum!

The nut mixture that is stuffed into the Qatayef

Art tables for kids

A nice feature at a lot of cafe and restaurant areas are art tables set up for your kids to do nice activities and paint pictures they can take home with them (sometimes on stickers, sometimes on large posters, sometimes on clay sculptures, etc etc) with bright colors and sparkles.

This table is set up during Ramadan in the cafe area in Al Rehab
The company running it is called Artoon and is based in Heliopolis.
where they provide art classes and music lessons.

Tangled

Birthday, fish and Jasmine

The best things in life are free

Today I went shopping, and I went to a fruit and vegetable stand and wanted to pay for a handful of cilantro. The guy kindly laughed and told me I could take it for free (I guess 2 big batches of herbs is sold for about a quarter of a pound). Anyhow, Egypt has overall been a country that has taught me how the best things in life are for free. Not just the thrill of getting a freebee, but somehow a deeper lesson in simplicity that separates monetary value from value.
Despite poverty, despite hardships, the Egyptians laugh and love with such big hearts and compassion, proving that even amongst the poorest people, the greatest light can shine -- with a vitality that can spice up life and color it with fabulous flavors.



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Dates

Dates are eaten all year in Egypt, however during Ramadan they take on special significance as they are used to break one's fast. Muslims believe that dates have special health benefits, this stems from the Quran. In one of the "Chapters" (Suras) of the Quran called Maryam (the Virgin Mary), there is a description of Mary experiencing the pangs of giving birth to Jesus. A voice calls out to her, "Do not grieve! Your Lord has placed a small stream at your feet. Shake the trunk of the palm towards you and fresh, ripe dates will drop down onto you. Eat and drink and delight your eyes…" (Qur'an, 19:23-26)

The health benefits of eating dates while pregnant have been proposed in other places as well, however the benefits of eating dates extend beyond pregnant women, reputed as a good way to lose weight, a laxative, good for the nervous system and fighting melancholy and stress, good for lowering cholesterol, a great source of dietary fibers and antioxidants, rich in iron, potassium and minerals like calcium, copper and magnesium, chock full of vitamins, and fabulously delicious to boot. (They make for really healthy ingredients in cookies and desserts, avoiding excessive use of sugars in cooking)

Travel to Egypt During Ramadan

Ramadan is a great time to come to Egypt. This video is oriented towards tourists from the Arab world, however it shows a glimpse into how special a time it can be to be in Egypt for all tourists. In 2011 Egypt needs your support.

The people who stand at the side of the road to help people break their fast during Ramadan

In Egypt during Ramadan, right as the sun is about to set, you will find lots of helpful souls trying to collect their good deed points (hassanat in Arabic) by standing outside and offering bottles of cold water and dates to the unfortunate people who find themselves stuck on the roadways in traffic, or late for arriving at their final destination of food with family and friends. This considerate act is but one example of the many kind acts you find in Egypt on a frequent basis.

Blurry shot - but this is table ready with water to distribute

Islamic Museum of Cairo

The newly renovated Islamic Museum of Cairo is a great place to visit to learn about art history in Egypt and the Middle East. It seems while the museum itself has been nicely renovated, its website is consigned to ancient history, so ignore the online site and go in person yourself to witness a fabulous collection of beautifully displayed artifacts.

Source: http://www.islamicmuseum.gov.eg/museum.html

As I wandered through the museum on my last visit, I wrote down a series of vocabulary from the titles on the items on display, the following was my luxuriant list of scribbles:

- Astrolabs
- Sundials
- Arches
- Geometric patterns
- Wood assembled "tongue and groove"
- Mother-of-pearl
- Marble inlaid with colored stones
- Colored glass windows
- Carved marble
- Vegetal design
- Mortars
- Hexagonal kohl container
- Surgical instruments
- Medical instruments
- Perfume bottles and chemical liquids
- Bowls with talisman inscriptions
- Pages of manuscript "benefits of herbs"
- Balance
- Anatomical panel of circulatory system, digestive spine and rib cage
- Prescriptions for treatment
- Ottoman
- Mamluk
- Wide use of geometrical compositions more than 12 centuries
- 12 c. polygon an essential figure of elaborate geometric patterns replaced by a star
- Geometric decoration in Egypt at peak under Mamluk reign
- Star replaced by decentralized composition - creates depth
- Fascinates eye
- Riot and harmony of geometry to enhance elaborate architecture
- Fountain carved marble resembling fish scales
- Blue and white tiles
- Fragments of a frieze with arabesque scrollwork
- Marble inlaid with black paste
- Floral and animal design
- Fish decoration
- Public fountains (sabil) 19c carved and painted marble
- Ceramic lusterware
- Kufic inscription
- Fatamid Ayyubid
- Arabic script, fluid letters
- Boundless inspiration
- Calligraphy
- Rules of proportion
- Lamps from madrasa
- Mihrab
- Colored glass inset in stucco
- Turned latticework (mashrabiyya)
- Wood joined and turned
- Court carpet from Iran
- Wool silk, silver threads
- Prayer carpet
- Textiles
- Spindles
- Knot methods
- No. of knot in each square inch increases value of carpet and durability
- Brocade
- Damask tapestry
- Embroidered
- Rich glass making
- Cameo glass
- Iranian potters
- Resemble ceramic lace
- Rich painted enamels
- Shallow reliefs enhanced with gold
- Decoration with metallic oxides
- Long-necked bottles
- Poet Firdawsi (Iranian) The Book of Kings (The Shahnama)
- 13 c. Mongols promoted great artistic accomplishments in Iran
- Timurid empire / Tamerlane
- Buyids
- Samanids
- Ghaznavids
- Copper alloy jug inlaid with gold
- Candlesticks
- Mirrors with ring of lions
- Quranic inscriptions stand out in cobalt on a metallic luster background
- Turquoise ceramic
- Mongol Ilkhanid Dynasty
- Overglaze painting
- Lapis Lazuli
- Cobalt blue
- White red blue enamels
- Manuscript
- Compass
- Panels from cenotaphs
- Tubercle
- Saddle cloth cotton and silk brocade with metallic thread red and gold
- Fascination with numbers order and structure
- Candlestick with ducks
- Coins
- Salah al Din
- Glass vessels
- Gold dinars
- Panels decorated with birds
- Collection of gold jewellery
- Dishes with dance and music scenes
- Desert hare
- Gazelle
- Lion sphinx and hare

Astronomy

Astronomy has always played an important role in Egypt and the Arab world. Indeed, back in the day, the Arabs paved the way to many great advances in Physics, Algebra (Al-Jabr), Optics and Astronomy. The emphasis on charting the moon and the stars was partly traced back to precepts of Islam (see Astronomy and the Quran), which dictated precision in following accurate prayer times and directions, as well as timing for the beginning of Ramadan and the yearly Haj (pilgrimage) through astronomical calculations. In Islamic societies, including Egypt, to this day the sighting by eye of the new crescent moon marks the beginning and end of the holy month (read more on the recent work of Algerian astrophysicist Nidhal Guessoum).

Quran, Sura 6, verse 97:
"(God) is the One Who has set out for you the stars, that you may guide yourselves by them through the darkness of the land and of the sea. We have detailed the signs for people who know."

The Egyptian love affair with the stars goes back far earlier than the age of Islam however. The ancient Egyptians lived by the night sky, and some theories propose that the secret behind the location of the great pyramids lies in understanding a correlation between the location of the "immortal" stars as they were positioned 4,500 years ago with the Pyramids as they still stand today (also see Orion Correlation). The ancient fascination with the night sky is evident in visiting the tombs in the Valley of Kings, many of which have elaborate murals of the sky depicting the Ancient Egyptian cosmogony, with the 12 hour night journey of the sun into the netherworld wherein the Sun God Ra (God of the Living) and Osiris (God of the Dead) became one.

The Ramadan Cannons

Dating back to the Fatamid period in Egypt, cannons have been used to announce when it is time to break one's fast during Ramadan, as a way of sending a signal that everyone could hear and recognize. The tradition continues today, though I believe most people hear the cannon over the radio or television set than by their own ears.

Working out at the gym before breaking your fast during Ramadan

After fasting an entire day from sunrise to sunset, a workout just before eating is a great way to burn calories and get in shape, as well as stave off the holiday extra kilos.




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Fatafeat

Fatafeat is the Middle East's cooking channel, featuring shows from the Food Network, but also homegrown Arabian cooking from across the Arab world. The company also has a monthly magazine with beautiful photography and recipes, and is available both in Arabic and thankfully also in English.

Great place to learn new Ramadan recipes to impress the whole family, you can see the videos from here: Fatafeat Youtube Channel or pick up a copy of their magazine.

Ramadan Delights

Include dates, figs, apricots, nuts, tamarind drink, carob drink, coconut, prunes, etc. etc. See also Ramadan Goodie Bags and Khoshev and Yummy Drinks

Ramadan Goodie Bags

Often, people will give bags of food as donations or gifts during the month of Ramadan, to friends, family, employees, co-workers, the butcher and the baker and those we interact with on a daily basis, and most importantly giving charity to the poor.

Bags range from exquisite gift baskets to simple plastic bags filled with essential foodstuffs, typically a bottle of oil, rice, sugar, pasta, tomato paste, tea, and the ramadan delights dates, raisins, coconut, etc.

Children's Fanoos (Lantern)

Each year during Ramadan, kids get given toy lanterns. They have loud music and bright alternating lights. Fabulous fun.

Ramadan Fanoos (Lanterns)

In Egypt, Ramadan is a festival of lights, with lanterns of all sizes and shapes being lit during this holy month. The tradition apparently dates back to 968 when the people would celebrate the arrival of the Caliph. For more on the history of the tradition see this article on The Ramadan Lantern. Today, in Egypt lights are strung from homes and apartment buildings not just in the form of lanterns, but also long strings of LEDS (see my post on Ramadan Lights).

Khoshev

This is one of my favorite fabulous things about Ramadan. Khoshev is the first thing you eat after you break your fast at sunset. It can be made in a number of ways, but the basic recipe is dates, with prunes, apricots, raisins, soaked in either water or milk. You prepare this first thing in the morning, so by the time you break your fast, the water/milk has taken on all the sweetness of the dates and raisins, etc. and tastes fabulously delicious.

Ramadan TV Series

Every Ramadan, following iftar (breakfast, or break the fast), families gather around their TV sets and prepare for the best TV pickings of the year, the special Ramadan series which air every night during the month of Ramadan. Like month-long mini-series, the shows build on one another, so to "get" what's really going on, you probably have to watch each night.

Comedies, historic dramas, talk shows, candid camera, Hindi movies, and a whole lot of Egyptian series that look an awful lot like daytime soap operas, you have your wide pick of viewing. I must say, it seems to me the pickings get better each year.

Bakar

Bakar is an adorable cartoon series that airs every Ramadan after the breakfast (i.e., break fast, when the sun sets). Each episode carries another moral lesson about virtue and the series displays fantastic scenes from the local rural life in Egypt.

Ramadan Lights

It's like Christmas... only it's Ramadan.

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First Day of Ramadan!

The first day of Ramadan is a really joyous occasion, as families begin on a month-long spiritual and family-oriented period of alternating fasting and feasting. Ramadan is the month in which Muslims believe that the revelation of the Quran was completed. During this month, Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset. The month is meant to teach self-control, moderation, discipline, self-awareness, as well as awareness of others (such as those suffering from hunger on a daily basis) and is not only about abstinence but also about doing good works and especially charity.

In Egypt, the country transforms for this entire month into a different place (highly recommended time to come visit!). After sunset ("Magreb" in Arabic), families and friends gather and break their fasts together in celebration and prayer. (You can compare the meals in Egypt to an entire month of Christmas dinners - with a 3 day holiday of eating sweets tacked on at the end).

The following posts in the coming days will give a small glimpse into Egypt during this special and fabulous period.

Beautiful Money

C'mon, where else on earth can you find Tutankhamen on a dollar coin, or the Sphinx on a 100 pound note?




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Bumper Cars

Remember all the fun you had as a kid driving bumper cars? Well, in Egypt (and in Cairo especially) driving on a daily basis is a bit like that. ;-) Fortunately the car shops are really great with repair work.

Little old men who sit at cafes all day

Speaking of cute, I just love the little old men who sit at cafes drinking tea and coffee and sipping shisha all day, very cute old guys.

Kosherie

Kosherie is a staple of the Egyptian diet, and its wonderful. The word kosherie apparently means a mixture of many different things (a great symbol for Egypt really...). To make it, you need small round pasta, lentils, rice, chick peas, some burnt onions and garlicy spicy tomato sauce to throw on top. See this post more about Healthy and Delicious fast food in Egypt.

Kosherie often scooped into plastic cartons and served to go!

Kids leaning over a kosherie cart in Old Cairo

Woodwork

Egyptian crafstmen are masters when it comes to woodworking, especially in designing wood lattices and turnery (which apparently is woodworking with a lathe). The below examples are taken from the Bayt al Shuyami Area, however they abound throughout Egypt. You will often find symbols or words (like the name of God) written inside the latticework. Here's more information on The art of Egyptian Turnery from the Egyptian State Information Service.