Ramadan, The "What?" and the "WHA'?!"

The 20th of July marked the beginning of Ramadan this year (in Qatar). It is the 9th, and holiest month of the lunar Islamic calendar which lasts 29-30 days depending on the crescent moon. This means that the dates change every year. (Christians also use a lunar calendar to calculate the date of Easter).


Ramadan is a month of prayer, repentance, compassion, charity, and a time where most Muslims spend time with family and refocus their attention on their faith. The first verses of the Holy Qur'an were revealed to the Prophet Mohammed by the Angel Gabriel during a period of meditation and solitude in a cave near Mecca in the 7th century (Gabe' also PM'd Mary and Zechariah about the births of Jesus and John in the Old and New Testament). 

Mohammed receiving his first revelation from the angel Gabriel. Illustration from the book Jami' al-Tawarikh by Rashid al-Din, 1307A.D, Persia; now in the collection of the Edinburgh University Library, Scotland. 

During this holy month, Muslims fast from dawn until dusk. They not only abstain from food and drink during daylight hours, they also abstain from (in no particular order) sex, smoking and entertainment. They will also curb undesirable emotions such as anger, greed, envy, lust and refrain from gossip. 

Ramadan Cliffs notes. 

Things to keep in mind during Ramadan:

Eating, Drinking & Smoking

Fasting is compulsory for Muslims. Non-muslims are expected to respect and support those fasting.

No eating, drinking, or smoking in public during daylight hours. It is illegal. No gum chewing, no spitting, no mints. And don't think you're smart and tempt fate by taking a sip or a snack in your car, no one wants to get into trouble or see what jail is like because they were caught drinking water. Adults found eating or drinking during fasting time can face up to three months imprisonment or a fine of up to QR 3,000 (that's about $850 USD) or both. 

Dress Code

Modest attire is particularly important during Ramadan, and a rule to abide by year-round. This is a Muslim country, you did not land in Palm Beach. No shorts, mini-skirts, tank tops, sleeveless tops, or revealing articles of clothing. Are your knees, shoulders or muffin top showing? Then cover it up, especially during this month. You can be fined, arrested or "verbally castrated" for showing too much skin. Dressing indecently is also punishable. 

PDA

No public displays of affection. Another all-the-time rule, but more so during this month. 

Watch your Language 

No abusive language, which includes giving the finger or any other rude or lewd gestures. This is also punishable by law and is another a year-round rule. Suffer from road rage? Time to get your wife to drive you around. Ryan isn't even on our car insurance anymore. Don't believe me? Ask him. 

And General Merrymaking...

No singing, dancing, laughing, joking, music, loud tv/ipod playing or anything that can be mistaken for lawless merrymaking. Turn your car stereo down and be mindful about playing loud music, even in the comfort of your own home. Again, this is a time of reflection.

Night clubs are closed and bars and restaurants do not serve alcohol during this month. 

The QDC (Qatar Distribution Company, the one place you can buy alcohol in the country) is closed for the month also.


DO Enjoy 

The food! The Iftar and Sohour feasts in the evenings are amazing! 

No traffic! Hurrah! ... Except for traffic jams just before Iftar or breaking fast.

The culture! Visit Fanar or Katara on open days to learn more about the culture and faith. 

The Sales!! A shopaholic never had it so good, and shops are open until midnight - 1am. 

Time with your family and friends, and take the time for a little reflection this month. 

Ramadan Mubarak
Have a Blessed Ramadan

This Might be Wildly Inappropriate ...

... but sometimes you just have to laugh.
Mundane things, such as doing groceries, are never mundane in the Middle East when you come across gems like this.

This photo was taken in the grocery during my first few weeks here in Qatar. The 'octupussy' has been more appropriately labelled since then.
Happy weekend folks.

Mixed seafood? ..

M.I.A

Hi guys and gals, I'll be posting again soon. So much to tell!

I've had visitors, I went to Trinidad for Carnival, I was on Safari in Kenya, vacationed in Thailand, Malaysia, and a few other places, there have been baby showers (not mine), bridal showers, and high teas, and a few more surprises and lots of news form the M.E! 

Keep checking this space. Lots of news to come!

In the meantime check out my newly updated website here !

West, East, West Five Times Fast

The Ballad of East and West


Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet,
Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God's great Judgment Seat;
But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth,
When two strong men stand face to face, though they come from the ends of the earth!

[...] 

Mont Blanc, Ialy/France

The world is a much smaller place since Kipling wrote his 1889 poem. 



If there was just one thing I have learned this summer it is that Asia is as sophisticated and as historically and culturally vast as the Europe I have known since I was that little girl traveling 10+ hours in the jumpseat of dads L1011, and as the twenty-something year old that rendezvoused in Italy for a year as an artist. 

This August we flew East, then West, then East then... West.. then East... then West. 

Jet lag? By the time we were done our bodies did not know which way was up.  

The wonderful thing about living in the Middle East is that you're quite literally in "the Middle" (not to be confused with my favorite sitcom).  Six hours west, "bonjour Geneva," and 3 943 miles and eight hours east, "ni how Hong Kong!" We are never too far from any destination, and certainly not far enough for me to not jump at the opportunity (and onto a plane) to head off to anywhere for three days or less. --Bonus if there's champagne!.. and lobster... and a giant seat that reclines into a bed; then there is no question what I won't be doing in the desert heat (staying home watching tv, that's for sure!). 




I sing "It's a small world after all" in my head all the way to the plane... Who would have known the world doesn't fall off at the furtherest Caribbean Airlines shopping destination? 



World here I come! I said I'd get out east one way or another, and with a nice gentle great big shove by my management team at CAL, and a tug from a handsome best friend from flight school and here I am. Thank you team, you're in the right position to kiss my -. 


So here's what my August looked like!

Chanting in the Hundred Dragons Hall, Buddha Relic, Singapore.

Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore's oldest Hindu temple (1827).

Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

Geneva

United Nations, Geneva

Star Ferry, Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Zurich

Homeward bound

The Thing With The Visa ...and The Other Visa

The thing with the passport I possess is that to travel to most places I must obtain a travel visa. There was no exception when it came to our Thai honeymoon (see post 'From One (Amazing Day) To Ten)', so off we went to the Royal Thai Embassy in Doha with passports and supporting documents in hand.

Ryan walked up to the visa counter while I took a seat behind a couple Qataris. He returned moments later and sat next to me with an expression on his face that told me I was about to receive some bad news. I had a moment of panic.

What?! What had happened that we can't go on our spectacular vacation?!

We had all of our documents, Ry explained. All but one.

"Um, I have to give you written permission to travel."

Silence.

"Well,... if you want me on our honeymoon then you better write that letter of permission."

"Right... got it!"

He hustled back to the counter and scribbled something on a plain piece of A4 printing paper along the lines of 'I hereby allow my wife to travel with me to Thailand...'

Was this what I was being warned about all this time? That wasn't so bad, kind of like ripping off a band-aid. Once you've had your autonomy threatened in the M.E you realize it's actually not an unpleasant experience (once you have an accommodating spouse), nor is it the end of the world. Gasp! Did I really just say that? To be fair this was a requirement for the Thai visa and not something I have to get every time I leave Qatar.

Being the strong, fiercely independent third-wave feminist he knows me to be, Ryan was still worried I may have been holding back my anger as we got into the car. However, I genuinely found it amusing that he had to write a letter of permission for me for anything. Saying that, I am sure I would have been furious wasting time at the embassy had he not been there. That's the nice thing about toting your doting husband around everywhere.

"Will you stop asking me if I'm okay? I'm glad I got my visa, regardless of how I got it. Now, would you just drive please?"


The Thing with the Other Visa...

On our way home I called our bank to activate my credit card that had just been issued to me.
It was 'simple' the bank teller said to me the day before, just call the number on the card, give them my name and Qatar ID number and...

"Ms. Shannon, can I speak to your husband?"
"Excuse me?"
"Is Ryan there?"
"Ha! Sure!"

I put the phone on speaker...

"Mr. Ryan, is it okay that we activate your wife's credit card?"
"Yes, it's okay. You can activate her card."
Ryan grins at me.
I roll my eyes as I hang up and he laughs.

Did I mention that every time I use the credit card a text message is sent to Ryan letting him know where I have been shopping and how much I spent?

Some men get text messages every time their wives leave and re-enter the country (they are allowed three,.. wives that is). We're not sure why Ryan does not get these text messages but he only has one wife to keep track of, so that shouldn't be too hard for him to handle.

People are surprised that I find none of this intrusive or offensive. I find it no different and far more transparent than other countries that have CCTV, access to your financial information, personal records, etc. Things that I can't do in public include giving someone the finger and stealing someone's falcon, along with a list of other things I probably shouldn't be doing anyway. It does not in any way affect my day to day life, and when things like these come up I oblige. Why? Because we have a happy life here. That's why. In the meantime I am afforded far more liberties here than I was where I am from because of safety. 

Know Your Thobe

Censorship - Stickers and Sharpies

How many times can my magazines be censored this month? 

Hint: much more than this (below).
These are just a few pages of about 30 or so that have been censored in the couple magazines I bought this month.

To be honest I find it more comical than annoying or intrusive as I wonder who sits in what office where with a black Sharpie and white stickers to cover offending female bits.

Below are pages from my Women's Health, Psychology Today and Marie Claire magazines.

Someone went through a lot of trouble to re-make almost the entire cover of the Psychology Today magazine on white sticker paper, and The Women's Health got more than a few layers of the white stickers to cover up that bikini bottom.

Below are examples of censorship of the black Sharpie variety.

Truth be told, this is nothing compared to Saudi where they draw on clothes and scratch out faces in pen.

On a side note, as I am not in the habit of buying children's books, but
did I mention that Disney's Piglet is banned in the Middle East?
I suppose it's understandable because he's pork right?
Sorry Piglet, no visa for you.
On some online forums, locals have said that the censorship of Piglet may be more to do with the sexual ambiguity of the character than because he's a pig (because he is pink Piglet is seen as a girl) and he (she) is naked... so poor Piglet gets Sharpied out of books along with breasts and bums.
By the way, anyone notice Pooh doesn't have any pants on? I'm guessing that's okay because he's a bear? or because he's a boy?

This post is brought to you by the letters "T & "A"

From One (Amazing Day) to Ten

I organized one very special day (with a team of talented people), while Ryan single-handedly organized the ten-day trip of a lifetime.

While everyone was having their mid-day coffees and nursing their hangovers over Sunday brunch after our wedding, we were already in JFK, as we made our way to the other side of the world for the kind of vacation dreams are made of. 

Two days later we landed in Bangkok and then Koh Samui, and took a boat ride to the island of Koh Phangan to our five star villa at the Santhiya Resort and Spa. 

Words can not describe the magic of this island and the amazing time we had there. 

Reception

View from the Spa.. we had Thai massages almost every day.

Rasta Baby - a cute beach bar next to the resort 

Our awesome villa, too big to fit into one photo with its waterfalls, huge grotto, orchid garden, outdoor shower and tub, bridge, separate living room, ..I could move in here.

Local fruit table at breakfast buffet at Chantara, Santhiya - yumm

Ang Thong's amazing snorkeling

Emerald Saltwater lake

Elephant trekking

Thing Nai Pang Yai beach

Dinner at the Seaside Bar at Santhiya - my favorite spot

Kohm Loy wishing lantern

Home Again via One Epic NYC Shopping Spree

Apologies for my absence. I have been --what else? Traveling.
I also got married again (see "Kuala Lumpur to meet the best man and how to avoid prison") so that explains my extended leave.

The countdown was on for our wedding day and I was back in Trinidad last month to get things rolling,.. and by 'get things rolling' I mean check in with my wedding planner, who has single-handedly organized everything while I lived the life out in the Middle East. I cannot imagine what I would have done without her except that it would have involved a lot of tears. (Laura Darwent Weddings).
Special thanks to my mum, dad, and my best girl-friends.
How do you plan a stress-free wedding? Surround yourself with these wonderful people.

So, what have I been up to in the last month and a bit?

We re-visited Kuala Lumpur.. for the pork of course.


We flew back to Doha from Malaysia and I left for New York three days later.

I met a famous 'Fugee on my flight this time. He walked up and down the first class aisles stretching his legs during our 13 hour flight. He introduced himself and took a seat next to me. He was friendly and down to earth. Poor fella, after chatting about Haiti, traveling, and visiting Qatar, I think I embarrassed him when I asked for his autograph,.. for my mum.



Mum met me in JFK hours later. We stuffed our bags into a cab and off we went on our week-long pre-wedding vacation in NYC.
Really, this trip was supposed to be all about the final fittings for my wedding dress and bringing the dress down to Trinidad, but let's be honest here: two women + New York = Plenty Shopping.
The buy-an-extra-suitcase-to-come-home kind of shopping.

We stayed at the gargantuan Marriott Marquis in Times Square in the heart of the Broadway theater district. The weather the week we were there was glorious. We shopped, we went sight-seeing, we took rickshaws, had nice brunches, dinners, went to the theater, picked up some last minute wedding things, and visited Kleinfeld several times to have my dress fitted within an inch of its life.

We went to see Billy Elliott. The Tony Award winning show did not disappoint. We left the theater and ran into (quite literally) Robin Williams who was exiting through the back door of his Broadway production next door, "Bengal Tiger at Baghdad Zoo." Mum wanted so badly to get his autograph on our playbill (from a totally different play), but I pretended I didn't hear her and did one better by getting her a great photo with her blackberry instead.

Twelve pairs of shoes, eight cocktail dresses, ten gym outfits (yeah- outfits), five bathing suits, two mother-of-the-bride evening gowns, eighteen wedding candles,... tops, bottoms, undies, nighties,.. things we needed, things we didn't...
Mum and I flew home to Trinidad one week later and 52 pounds heavier (if we're grossly underestimating). We had a fabulous mother-daughter-fun-filled trip. We were homeward bound and counting down the days to the big day.


I spent the few weeks home before the wedding having a great vacation with my friends and family. I wasted no time stressing about the wedding, and was happy and enjoying every valuable moment there.