As you might know already, we have been celebrating the holy month of Ramadan in the UAE since April for about 30 days now. Due to the current situation with Corona virus, the celebration has been kinda subdued and there are restrictions towards what can be done, as well.
Here is a little about Ramadan that I, as a non Muslim and UAE expat, have come to learn in the past few years.
Ramadan usually begins with the moon sighting to mark the beginning of the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. This year, Ramadan 2020 started on April 23rd.
During this holy month, millions of Muslims will undergo fasting between dawn to dusk with family and friends. But, of course, this year due to the Corona virus lock down, breaking of the fast (iftar) ritual has been restricted to close family only.
As per practice, there are five things that Muslims are usually encouraged to during the month of Ramadan.
Fast between dawn to dusk
Pray five times at their mosques
Donate to charity
Spend time with family and strengthen their faith
Take a pilgrimmage to Meccah, Saudi Arabia
Non Muslims are expected to be mindful about these rules. Usually there are no music or entertainment in the public and refrain from eating or drinking in front of those who are fasting. Usually the non fasting people eat at cordoned areas in the workplaces.
Some of those rules are changing for the current year, like the pilgrimage or praying at the mosques, which have been shut down for now.
A committee meets to officially mark the beginning of the tenth month based on the moon. This year, the moon sighting committee met virtually on Saturday to announce that the new month begins today!
We are on extended holidays for the Eid Al Fitr (end of Ramadan 2020/ end of breaking the fast) which started from Friday till Monday
Whoa that went longer than I expected it to be. Let me know if it were too much!
What I read this week
This has been an average reading week for me.
I finished reading two books this week. But I had started reading them weeks ago. Hence no so great actually
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear
Flateshare, The by Beth O’Leary
What I watched this week
I watched Scooby Doo and it was nostalgic. We had a namesake dog when I was young and I kept sending pictures of Scooby to my mom, who was overjoyed.
On my blog
In case you missed any of the posts this week, here is a recap!
Marie tells us it is okay for book bloggers to not be on every social platform. She talks about that and about other ways book blogging has changed in her post.
Did you learn anything new about Ramadan here? Do you know anyone who celebrates the month of Ramadan? What are you watching/reading these days? Let us talk.
How are you all doing? I am grateful that the whole of March 2020 is done now and we are into a new month. Despite everything that is saying in the contrary, I am excited to step into April. And it is just not about being my birthday month, but also because.. Okay I am lost. It is definitely only about my birthday!
I know. I know. The world looks grim and futile, in general. And mostly my birthday is gonna be super ultra low key, but still that is the only thing that is helping me face the day and continue to hear more morbid news. So let me have it. Please.
Also let us talk about some of the good things that happened in March 2020. Or at least try to.
Quick May’19 updates
Just before the social distancing fervor started, I took a trip to the beach and had dinner at one of my favorite places.
And guess what? I think I have not stepped out after that, other than the one time I had to buy grocery from a store. Well, there is a thing called door delivery, so I have not stepped out of my house in 15+ days now. I should get an award, y’all.
We had some rain in Dubai. And the clouds looked really scary. Photos for reference.
Well, nothing else happened in March, okay? I give up.
What I read this month:
March 2020 was an average reading month for me. I read 5 books and no 2 or fewer stars among them. Good right?
Poet X, The by Elizabeth Acevedo
From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon
Bride Test, The by Helen Hoang
10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak
Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner
And I am currently reading The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie.
That gives me a chance to show where I stand on my 2020 A to Z reading challenge now.
What I watched this month:
Here is a list of my top pick of movies and TV series I watched in March 2020 in no particular order.
Shutter Island (I know I had missed out years on this)
The boy 2
On my block S2
Sherlock (Rewatch)
Brooklyn 99 S6The
Outsider
Mr Mercedes – S1
I am currently catching up on Jane the Virgin, the new season, 5 I think. In case you had missed reading any of my recent posts, here is a quick recap.
How was your week and the whole of March 2020? What are you currently watching and reading? Are you happy with your country’s steps towards controlling COVID19 virus? let us talk.
This week was a fast blur for me. We just moved apartments and the whole house looks like a mess currently. And I am expecting guests on Tuesday, so I need to get settled in two days. So God help me!
On other news, I finished my first 5K on Friday for the Dubai Run, part of the Dubai Fitness Challenge 2019. And I had so much fun because I did with my friends and I can pretend it didn’t hurt.
What I read this week
It may come as no surprise that I didn’t get much reading done. But I am buddy reading Bridge of Clay by MarkusZusak with Huda, and I all am hoping for is to not let her down.
And I am sure I will catch upon more reading in the following week.
What I watched this week
I know I am late to catching up on the Mindhunter season 2 and I loved it so much. It was worth the wait.
I loved the earlier seasons of Netflix’s Atypical and as soon as I saw the trailer up I binged on it.
What else should I be binging on? Let me know.
On my blog
In case you had missed this week’s post on my blog, here is a quick recap for you.
What better way to meet you all after a long gap than a monthly update post? So here I am with the October update.
While I feel like have to search for words to type and things to say, I am sure it is just that I feeling a bit rusty and it would get better soon. Here we go.
I flew to Macau, China for getting my recovering cousin back home to India. Thanks to the flight schedule and the time zone changes, I went about 33 hours without sleep, my longest ever.
I also traveled down to Langkawai and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for a well deserved holiday after the hectic and emotional months.
Got out of the stupid reading slump and I am currently on a reading spree. (More on that below.)
And last week I joined a fitness gym and am hoping that I would hit it often enough to get my money’s worth.
I am holding the best for the last. The summer in Dubai is long gone and we are hanging on to that shortest period between summer and winter which means the weather is pleasant and the sky is blue. And am loving it.
This week has been hectic for me, even though I am unable to recall what exactly I did. I am sure it consisted of planning for my visit to India this week and tying up things here before we left. But I am sure I have not got them all.
And you heard it right. After almost six months I am for my visit to India and I am swamped just thinking about the logistics. There are many places to visit, people to meet and friends to catch up. And of course meeting and spending time with my family is the main goal.
Also, you can consider this as a heads up that I may not be able to post as regularly as I am now, but I am planning to try my best. As I mentioned in my last Sunday post about my blogger burnout and the drop in blog engagement, I am sure this trip to India will help me get over it, especially if I take a break during this time.
Quick June’19 updates
During the Eid long weekend, I took a little trip to Musandam, Oman to enjoy a relaxing pool side getaway.
We had another interesting book club and even got into a very passionate argument over non bookish stuff. I love the gang.
I got to hang out with my friends and work on a secret project that we surprisingly not abandoned.. Yet.
And oh the summer is here and as much as I try not to complain about it, the weather is killing us. Like we say, it is not the heat, it is the humidity! And I am so happy that I can visit India for a while during this season.
What I read this month:
On the whole the month was really good in terms of reading and I caught up six books which is fewer than May but a lot more than my general reading. So here we go with the list.
I watched Spider-man on the Cinemas last week and I should say the current cast are the best Spiderman team ever. I stan by this, it is even better than Toby Maguire team.
I am also slowly rewatching How to get away with murder. I am not binging it and I am enjoying it.
But on the whole I think I didn’t spend too much time on watching television or movies this June, which is somehow good, I guess.
Alta Mar or High Seas
Cube
Murder Mystery
Jessica Jones Season 3
Two Worlds – Korean Drama
Brooklyn nine nine – re-watched S5
On my blog
In case you had missed this week’s post on my blog, here is a quick recap for you.
How was your June? Have you read any of these books? What are your plans for the month of July? Have you been to India and if so, how was it? Let us talk.
