So its Ramadan. And Bubba is gone. What’s a girl to do? I don’t want to cook for only myself, as making 4 peoples worth of food for only one person seems silly; I can’t order, as most of the restaurants don’t start cooking or deliver until after sundown (after 7pm) and I want to eat early; and they don’t have Lean Cuisines in the supermarkets that will provide me with one serving size-worth of lowfat goodness.

Therefore, when people want to invite me for dinner (i.e. free food I don’t have to cook), I jump on it immediately! This led me to my very first Ramadan Iftar with my friends, the guards at the back gate. For those of you who aren’t familiar, Ramadan is the Muslim holy month, where Muslims fast from everything (food, water, cigarettes) during daylight hours. The first meal of the day, held after sunset is called “iftar”, from the word “futoor” which means breakfast. 

This iftar was fairly mundane, happening in the control room at the back gate. The guard contractor provides meals for all the guys, however, many of them bring them special dishes from home. So, provided we had chicken halves bbqed on a bed of french fries and bedouin bread. Abu Jad brought in kufta in tomatoes + rice, which was awesome. And Amiina prepared a fatoush (bread salad) that featured pomegranate seeds. It was fantastic!

It was really very fun to watch the guys chow down after not having eaten. They are very used to eating without utensils, often using bread and their fingers to create spoons or forks. It was impressive to see them tearing into the chicken. Ever try to eat a leg of chicken using bread to pry off the meat? Its a talent.