Buck Creek Diary: Ramadan

It is the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims worldwide perform one of the pillars of their Islamic faith – fasting from sunrise to sunset.  In Oman, although it is not legislated or mandatory for people to perform Ramadan, all eating establishments are closed until after Iftar, the breaking of the fast at sunset.    However, by law, one is not allowed to eat or drink in public during this period and I have been told that you can be stopped by the police if caught doing so.  Hotels circumvent this law by sectioning off eating areas and by putting up shades, curtains, partitions, and masking windows so that its guests and other non-believers may eat in daylight.  Alcohol is also not allowed to be sold by the designated shops, nor served or consumed in public.   This can be problematic for some of the tourists who come here at this time and expect a beer poolside or a nice glass of vino with their beach dinner.  But I am told that they are able to drink in their rooms from the nicely stocked (and probably well priced) mini-bar.  And as people are supposed to refrain from all vices at this time, we noticed surprisingly that Fashion TV has been suspended by the cable networks for the month.

We have come to appreciate the quiet and even slower than normal pace of life here during Ramadan.  Because of fasting, the locals have curtailed working hours, starting later than expatriates and finishing earlier.  The morning drive is quite pleasant with very little traffic on the roads before 900 am.  The trade off  is  the horrendous noon to 200 pm rush as thousands of tired, irate, very hungry and nicotine deprived people rush home for their naps eschewing any traffic rules or really anything in their paths.  It is not surprising that road accidents rise significantly during this period.  After the midday rush, roads are quiet again till sunset.

Just as Christmas is commercialized so to is Ramadan, for basically people have turned night into day.  By 700 pm until very late traffic jams abound.  People scurry about attending Iftar dinner parties, shopping for all those midnight specials and enjoying the “ Ramadan nightlife”, which often means feasting on special foods,  partying with friends, having sheesha, listening to live bands and playing cards and other games until 300 am.  I have heard that some people actually gain weight during Ramadan and the average family’s food bill can go up by 30%.  And of course, there are also many who follow the spirit of the religion and are very pious during this time.

The non-believers that we are try to do our part by being extra aware of not offending local customs – some suggestions offered by an email from an Embassy included

Dressing more conservatively. (No, I do not wear an abaya but I will definitely not miss wearing long skirts and long sleeve shirts in 35 C degree weather someday.)

Refraining from playing loud music especially with car windows rolled open. (I guess “My Humps” by Black Eyed Peas will have to wait.)

No eating or drinking in public (except for children, the very old, the sick and infirm and for women menstruating – very smart rule to not want to deal with PMS and low blood sugar.)