It’s already Ramadan, a month full of joy and glee. In Tunisia, this holy month has a special charm and people get prepared for it before weeks and weeks. During this month, there’s a magical atmosphere throughout the country and people keep all their problems away for a while, to enjoy moments of share and altruism.
Ramadan is a holy month for all Muslim people, and one of the major events of each year. During this holy month, the Muslim community fast all day long, for 29 or 30 days. According to Muslim religion and traditions, fasting will make you get closer to God, and also help you feel what poor people may feel when they spend days and days without eating. Fasting teaches patience, altruism.
But Ramadan is not only about fasting and breaking the fast, it’s all about traditions and habits. One of the main traditions is what we call the “Night Caller”. Every single night, this Night Caller calls people in each village to have their pre-dawn meal before the fasting begins. The pre-dawn meal can be a classic breakfast, a white version of couscous called “Mesfouf” or savory meals (it can even be dinner’s leftovers).
As work schedules change during Ramadan, people finish their work earlier and thus have time to do some shopping for dinner. Few hours before breaking the fast, women (and eventually men) begin making the dinner and the menu is always appetizing. From the entrance to the dessert, no details are left out. Especially desserts, they are always considered as the most important part of the menu
After breaking the fast, the family members get together in the living room to watch Tunisian TV series and programs. You must know that Ramadan is the best time for Arab TV. But instead of watching TV, some people prefer going out to sip some tea in some pleasant place (usually the suburbs). The charm of Ramandan nights is priceless. If you had the chance to spend Ramadan in Tunisia, go to the Medina of Tunis after breaking the fast. The atmosphere there is simply magical during the holy month.
But before anything else, Ramadan is a month of love, share and compassion. During this holy month, we forget all types of hatred, selfishness and dedicate ourselves to help each other and most of all, love each other.
photo credit: Hello Tunisia
