Iftar @ Chill

I can't quite remember when I first went to a ramadhan buka puasa buffet. Probably around 20 years ago. In those days, upmarket hotel restaurants would hold these `all you can eat' buffet spreads where you pay a single price to eat and drink as much as you like at the time of breaking of fast. Those days it cost around RM30 to RM40 per head, still quite a princely sum if you are to consider the average take-home pay of the time. If you can't quite afford the meal, the next best thing you can hope for is to get invited to one.

During my early career days, being invited to such events was quite exciting. Sub-contractors and suppliers would rush to get your confirmation of attendance to their invitations. The junior staff would always look forward to such events. We would then compare which hotel or restaurant had the best spread of food at what price (not that we would be actually paying, of course). It then became a somewhat a tricky decision among subcontractors on which hotel to choose because they would not want to be seen as being sub-standard. This is one of the unsavoury aspects of this practice.

The other negative aspect is unnecessary waste. While the spread of so many delicious food can be very alluring, there is really only so much that one person can eat. Buffet food layouts fuel human greed. More so when one is selecting food on an empty stomach.

Nowadays, the price of ramadhan buffet at certain 5-star hotels has reached three figures. Melampau. Over the years, I have declined attending such buka puasa meals, to the extent of needing to apologise to those who have invited. It is becoming too excessive. Last year I went to only one and even that was as a treat to my small team of 3 staff.

So far this fasting month, I have been to one iftar buffet. It was at Chill Cafe of KFCH International College where my third son is currently pursuing his diploma in Culinary Arts. The college holds this buffet event as a way to expose and train their students on the skills of running a restaurant. The buffet is open to the public.

We went there in the first week of fasting when the promotional price was at RM35 per pax. The choice of menu was reasonably good with offerings such as roasted lamb, various Malay kampung-style dishes and even pasta. Taste-wise was not too bad too. My son was part of the kitchen crew that day. He made the pulut mangga dessert which sadly I did not manage to try.

Since the opening week, the price has gone up to RM58.90 per pax, which is way too much for me, no matter what dish you serve.

Chill Cafe @ KFCH International College is located at Bandar Dato' Onn, Johor Bahru.

Chill is cool...

Roasted lamb. The most popular dish, of course

Mix of a few things for my 1st round

Sup utara and toast for my 2nd round

Iftar in the Little Red Dot down south

I have previously written that the most significant event by which I mark the passage of time is the coming of the holy month of Ramadhan. Not my birthday or my wedding anniversary, but the arrival of the fasting month every year.

Tonight we are already entering the 13th day of Ramadhan of the Hijri year 1436. I have yet to put up a post to mark the occasion. So I guess I'd better squeeze in something before the month of June leaves us. Otherwise this effort of blog revival would not seem serious enough.

Last Saturday, I made a trip across the Causeway to the Little Red Dot to visit my parents. That's what some people call the tiny island nation of Singapore. I kid you not... just google those 3 words and the search engine will give you the city-state as the top result.

My mother is actually at the National University Hospital, recovering from a heart attack that occurred the previous Saturday. She is now in the normal ward after being in the ICU for 6 days. Alhamdulillah, she seems to be getting better although, for such an ailment to befall any senior citizen of her age, the overall effect of the attack is yet to be ascertained. Nonetheless, there is much we can be grateful for and to continue with our prayers.

Since mom is not at home, I had to look for somewhere to break my fast. Small matter actually. After about two hours of keeping mom company, I headed out to the old Masjid Hajjah Fatimah at the Beach Road area of downtown Singapore. My father is presently there on part-time duty as a muezzin (bilal, in Malay). In fact nowadays, he spends most of his time at this particular mosque, which is quite a distance from where he lives in Bukit Batok. There is another mosque just across the apartment block of his house, Masjid Ar-Raudah, but he still prefers the travel to Hajjah Fatimah, even though it means taking two different bus routes to get there. I don't have to ask him why, because I can well guess the answer. Sentimental reasons. Beach Road (or more accurately Kampung Glam) is the area where he grew up. No doubt, the kampung house of my late grandmother is no longer there but I'm pretty sure nothing beats the feeling of being in familiar surroundings of one's childhood days.

Masjid Hajjah Fatimah was built in 1846. Wow, that is a really long time ago. It is fairly small in size by modern standards but has unique architecture and historical connection. It is now a national monument of Singapore. One of the famous characteristic of this mosque is its leaning minaret, which is off-centre by 6 degrees.

While my father made the call for Maghrib prayer, which is also the indicator for the end of the daily fast, I sat down in the verandah together with other muslim brothers to break our fast. It was a simple meal of rice porridge plus mutton briyani served in a tray, to be shared at 4 persons to a tray. The meal was cooked in the mosque compound and paid for by donations from anonymous well-wishers. Simple and humble communal feasting at its best.

An old minaret surrounded by modern towers

Waiting for the time to break fast

Mutton briyani rice to be shared, with rice porridge for starters

The fast... but not furious

We are already past the first third of the fasting month of Ramadhan. The Almighty has graciously extended our lives to be able to savour and experience this holy month once again.

To those of us who have undergone the ritual of fasting for many years, the physical act of not partaking food and drink during daylight hours should by now, become routine. The real challenge, to me at least, is to ensure we do not spoil the reward of the fast by improper actions.

Do not tell lies. Be patient. Control our temper. Do not speak ill of others. No back-biting. Refrain from insulting. Be charitable and generous. Do not be wasteful. Beware of what we look at. Control our desires... plus much, much more.

The above are all noble virtues that should already be part of our system all the time and not just for this month. But such attributes take a special meaning during Ramadhan because our failure to observe such qualities would result in an imperfect reward for our daily fast. Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) had said, "It may be that all a fasting person gets from his fast is hunger and thirst. And it may be that all a person who prays at night gets from his prayers is sleeplessness."

May the balance of this holy month be gainfully used to achieve the objective of fasting... and that is to gain taqwa.

"Allahumma innaka 'affuwwun tuhibbul 'afwa fa'fu 'anni' ". Allah, You are The One Who pardons greatly, and loves to pardon, so pardon me.

Iftar at my mom's last week was a dish of `kacang pool', a family favourite.

Going back to my roots...

It has been quite a while since my last post. The new job I'm involved in now has really sapped up most of my time and energy. There have been times I have thought of giving up but that would've been the easy way out. Things have gotten a bit better the last few days and I guess it is fair for me to follow the sort of advice I normally give to others when facing similar situations. Going through tough times can only make you tougher... you won't learn much by doing things the easy way.

I am now working at a project located in the district where I was born. I can't actually say it is my hometown because I did not grow up here. I was born at my late maternal grandfather's house in Pontian, Johor but I grew up in Singapore when my father moved the family across the causeway the year after I was born. The only childhood memories I have of this small town are the times when my father took us back to visit our grandparents for Hari Raya.

My grandfather and grandmother of course, both have left us a long time ago but the old house is still there, now occupied by an uncle and his children. The story of this house was posted earlier here -> Day trip back to the kampung.

Now I find myself spending a bit more time at this small town, probably more often that I have ever done before.

After settling most of my work stuff earlier today, I had some time to kill and so decided to take a drive to Pontian and look for a place to break my fast. On the way, I stopped by a recreational park near Rambah to enjoy the beautiful sunset. There is this Bugis Museum nearby but it has already closed for the day. Maybe I'll drop by another time and have a look at what's on display.

Suspension bridge

The sky at sunset. The dark shape on the horizon is Pulau Pisang.

After snapping some photos of the sunset with a simple compact camera, I left the park and proceeded to Pontian town for some chow.

I'll end this post now with my first fasting month story. This incident actually happened last year and I am prompted to tell it after reading blogger-friend Kak Teh's status update in her Facebook yesterday...

The family and I were visiting a Ramadhan bazaar near our home in JB. We stopped by a stall selling nasi lemak ayam goreng berempah. While the seller was packing our order, I casually out of habit, picked up a kacang tanah goreng (fried groundnut) from the large plastic container in front of me and popped it into my mouth. I was happily munching away when I noticed the seller strangely staring at me. My first thought was... eh, tak kan kacang sebiji pun kau nak kira ke? Lokek sangat.

After paying for the purchase and walking away, I then realised he was staring at me for another reason! Orang tua ni tak puasa ke?! Hahaha....

Dua cerita berbuka puasa

Saya sebenarnya tidak ada apa sangat hendak diceritakan dalam blog ini. Cuma bila sudah beberapa hari tidak membuat entri baru, terasa ketinggalan pula. Jadi, mahu tak mahu, saya ceritakanlah juga tentang pengalaman berbuka puasa kami sekeluarga beberapa hari yang lepas... walaupun saya tahu cerita pasal berbuka ni dah terlalu biasa dan tidak menarik lagi untuk dibaca.

Namun begitu, untuk mengujudkan sedikit perbezaan dari norma penulisan saya sebelum ini, catatan blog kali ini ditulis dalam Bahasa Melayu. Saya pinjam ide dari kawan baik Versedanggerik.

Shah Alam : Khamis 3hb Sep 2009

Saya mengambil cuti pada hari tersebut kerana hendak ke KLIA bagi menjemput anak sulung kami yang pulang bercuti selama tiga minggu. Sudah dua tahun Along belajar di Timur Tengah. Tahun lepas dia balik juga, cuma terpaksa balik ke sana sebelum Hari Raya. Tahun ini dapatlah dia beraya bersama kami.

Terlanjur kami berada di Kuala Lumpur, kami singgah di Shah Alam untuk mengajak anak kedua kami yang belajar di UiTM untuk berbuka puasa bersama. Buat pertama kali tahun ini, kehadiran ahli berbuka puasa kami sekeluarga cukup sepenuhnya. Kesempatan juga diambil untuk mengajak seorang anak saudara bernama Farhana yang baru masuk Management & Science University di Shah Alam untuk turut serta.

Sebagai menjamu Angah yang selama in berbuka di kafeteria asramanya, saya cuba mencari kedai makan yang menyelerakan. Saya sebenarnya tidak berapa tahu sangat tentang kedai-kedai makan yang sedap di Shah Alam tetapi saya pernah mendengar bahawa ada banyak restoran di kawasan Seksyen 13. Pada mulanya, saya hendak cuba makan di Fiescanto Cafe (pemilik cafe ini pernah menghantar saya emel tentang masakan kacang pol) tetapi kedainya tutup pula. Kami meninjau beberapa restoran lain dan akhirnya membuat keputusan untuk berbuka di sebuah restoran makanan laut bernama Shuhaida Seafood Restaurant.


Restoran ini agak besar juga dan mempunyai hiasan dalaman yang kemas dan selesa. Juadah berbuka kami terdiri dari set menu tujuh jenis hidangan yang dimasak ala `Chinese-style'. Semua lauknya siap dihidang beberapa minit sebelum masuk waktu berbuka. Dalam keadaan perut yang lapar, sudah tentunya apa yang dihidangkan nampak enak belaka. Namun begitu, setelah merasa semua masakan tersebut, yang boleh saya puji hanya masakan ikan sahaja. Rasa lauk yang lain agak biasa... orang putih kata `average only'.

Along dan Adik

Farhana dan Angah

Setelah berbuka, saya menghantar Angah dan Farhana balik ke kampus masing-masing. Kami kemudian bertolak balik ke Johor Bahru malam itu juga.

Singapura : Sabtu dan Ahad 5hb - 6hb Sep 2009

Pada hujung minggu yang lalu, kami sekeluarga telah ke rumah orangtua saya di Singapura. Sebenarnya, adik bongsu saya menjemput kami berbuka di rumahnya pada petang Sabtu. Lagipun, saja nak bawa Along berjumpa dengan Atok dan Nenek dia.

Adik saya memasak mee bandung untuk juadah buka. Sedap juga rasanya sehingga terlupa saya untuk mengambil foto.

Keesokan harinya, sebagaimana biasa, kami mengambil peluang untuk ke Mustafa Centre untuk menghabiskan stok simpanan dolar Singapura kami. Adalah berbelanja sedikit... tak habis pun duit Singapore kami itu. Dan juga sebagaimana biasa, selepas membeli belah di Mustafa Centre, kami menuju pula ke Beach Road untuk membeli sup tulang merah yang dibungkus untuk di bawa balik. Sepuluh sing dolar untuk sepuluh ketul... lebih murah dari yang dijual di JB.

Sup tulang merah Beach Road

Petang itu, emak saya memasak mee siam kuah, antara masakan kegemaran saya (sebenarnya, tiada masakan emak kita yang kita tidak gemar, kan?). Dicampur dengan bubur lambuk masjid dan sup tulang merah tadi, maka penuhlah meja dapur emak saya dengan juadah berbuka puasa.

Oleh kerana masalah kolesterol, saya cuma ambil dua ketul tulang kambing. Anak bongsu saya tukang bereskan yang lain.

Sekian, cerita saya yang tidak seberapa ini. Saya rasa lepas ni saya tak tulis tentang buka puasa dah. Kita tunggu cerita hari raya pula...

Iftar with a good friend

The nature of my work has taken me to many places in Malaysia and also overseas. Most of the time, such postings were of a temporary nature and hence my family would be left behind in Johor Bahru. I was, in essence, a part-time bachelor (or looking at it the other way, a part-time husband).

I have gotten used to such situations but nothing brings about the real feeling of loneliness like having iftar (the breaking of fast) on your own.

Many years ago, I was working in a small family-owned construction firm in Kuala Lumpur. Most of my co-workers are Chinese and Indians. I was particular close to a Chinese colleague by the name of CP Toh, who is an engineer a few years my junior. During the non-fasting months, Toh and I would normally take our lunch together at a mamak stall nearby our office. It was only during fasting month that I see Toh have his lunch at the Chinese restaurants.

One afternoon, Toh asked me where I would be breaking my fast. At that time, I was a part-time bachelor staying at the company's apartment in Cheras. Sometimes I would just buy some food and break my fast at home but more often than not (to avoid going through heavy evening traffic), I would work late at the office and then break my fast at the same mamak stall.

"At the mamak stall," I replied.

"Let's go to a Ramadhan buffet at one of the hotels," Toh said. "Never mind... I belanja."

I remember Toh taking me to The Legend Hotel near PWTC for iftar that day. The meal costs RM60 per head, one of the most expensive buffet at that time. I told Toh that it costs too much but he simply replied, "Don't worry lah. Once in a while maa..."

A few days later, I thought I would return the favour and asked Toh if he'd join me for buka puasa.

"Sure," he replied. "Where shall we go today?"

I told him that I read about a few good restaurants at KLCC and thought of trying there. He agreed and so we headed for the city centre in my car. We were a bit late in leaving the office and were caught in the terrible traffic. By the time we reached KLCC, it was already a half-past six. We surveyed all the restaurants but they were all fully booked. Even the food court and fast-food joints were packed. Not a single seat available.

I was regretting my choice of place to buka puasa, when Toh suggested, "Why don't we buy something light for you to buka puasa first... we have the light meal outside at the park and try the restaurants again later when most of the people have finished."

What a wonderful idea... trust my Chinese friend to come up with a solution to problem that actually affects me more than him. And so we ended up buying some pretzels from the Auntie Anne kiosk and pack drinks from the newstand store. We then sat on the steps facing the fountain at KLCC park and chatted away while waiting for the sun to set. Although my friend could have munched into his pretzel anytime, he respectfully waited for the appropriate time.

After what we thought was ample time for the crowds to finish their meal, we went again to the restaurants to try our luck. There were seats available at Kelantan Delights, a restaurant serving Malay east-coast delicacies. Although the buffet spread was quite extensive, I didn't think it was that tasty and value-for-money. I can get more delicious Kelantanese food at cheaper prices at many other simple restaurants around KL.

Toh and I parted ways when both he and I left the company at around the same time. It has been quite a while since I last spoke to him. I am thinking that perhaps I should give him a call tomorrow, setakat untuk bertanya khabar...

The first day of breaking fast (1430 Hijrah)

This post is a little late in coming. It's the fifth day of Ramadan already and I am writing something about the first day. A thousand apologies.

The first two days of fasting was okay but I had problems for the next three days. I was down with some gastric pains to the extent that I spent most of the day in bed. Not really a good way to while the time in this holy month but the alternative was to forego the fast and line my bowel with some food. I've been to the doctor earlier today for some medication with the hope that I can see through this pain without the need of missing any fasting day, if possible.

Anyway, back to to the original intention of this post. It has been a tradition with us to spend the first day of breaking fast at my parents' place whenever possible. In fact, this year we spent the first two days of Ramadan in Singapore because they conveniently fell on a weekend.

Normally my mother would cook kacang pool for the first day (like she did last year, see story -> here) but there was slight change of plans because the fava beans she kept in stock had turned bad because of weevils. Instead, she cooked some lontong. Added to that, my wife prepared some mee goreng while my youngest sister brought some roti gulung sardin and begedil. My third brother and his family also joined us for the iftar and his wife brought along some mini meat pies and goreng pisang. Drinks included air katira (which I bought from a bazar ramadan stall in JB) and some watermelon juice. All in all, it was a truly a sumptuous spread. So I guess you can understand why some people say that they actually gain weight during the fasting month.

Later that evening, I did my terawih prayers at the Ar-raudhah Mosque that's located just across the road from my father's flat. As in previous years, the mosque committee has arranged for the prayers to be led by a team of imam hafiz (those who memorised the whole 114 surahs of the holy Quran) from Terengganu. All the imams are young men in their mid-twenties and they have such beautiful voices. One of them has a lovely recitation melody so similar to middle-eastern imams that it reminds me of prayers at the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah. I am quite proud that skills of our young imans are exported for good use to be shared with our brothers in Singapore.

The following morning, I accompanied my father to another mosque in Bukit Timah area where he is helping to cook some bubur lambuk. The cooking of bubur lambuk or rice porridge is somewhat of a tradition at most mosques in Singapore and Malaysia. The porridge would normally contain spices and some minced meat, and is distributed free to anyone who care to come and collect. It would be interesting to know how this tradition started.

At this particular mosque, Masjid Ba'Alwi, the bubur is prepared specifically for those who wish to break their fast at the mosque itself.

Ba'Alwi Mosque is located at Lewis Road off the main Bukit Timah Road, near the old university area. The location of the mosque is somewhat at odds with its surroundings. The dwellings around the mosque consist of private housing and condominiums. I doubt there is a single Muslim house within walking distance. Despite this, the mosque is very popular and has a large congregation. I haven't had the opportunity to study its history but I guess when it was first built many years ago, the surrounding areas must have included a Malay kampung or two. As the years progressed and private development swallowed the kampungs, the mosque must have faced tremendous pressure to relocate. Perhaps, its direct links to Arab benefactors has helped it remain where it is to this day.

I managed to take home some of the bubur lambuk that my father cooked. My father also bought some fava beans and thus my mother was able to prepare kacang pool after all. So for the second day of breaking fast, we had some bubur lambuk and kacang pool. Delicious.

Approaching the end of Ramadhan 1429AH

Today is the 27th day of fasting. There are only three days left to go before we leave this holy month of Ramadhan and end our compulsory fasting for this year.

There are many from amongst us who would be sad with the passing of this month. We would miss the bountiful rewards that the Almighty reserves for His faithful servants only in this month. Perhaps there are some who rue the missed opportunity to do good deeds on Lailatul Qadr, the Night of Power that is better than a thousand months. Others would miss the state of being calm and patient that the ritual of fasting is meant to inculcate.

At the same time, I guess there would be many people who would not be missing Ramadhan. They need not worry anymore about sneaking a bite, sipping a drink or puffing a cigarette behind closed doors. May Allah have pity on these types of people.

So how was my Ramadhan for this year? Alhamdulillah, praise be to the Almighty... it has been very fulfilling so far. I have been relatively healthy... the gastric problems that I experienced earlier in the year did not resurface. Things at work, although busy, were all under control. I had to travel to the Head Office only twice this month so most times iftar and sahur were together with my family.

And yes, I would be missing Ramadhan very much. Apart from the religious rituals, I would miss one of the most lively events that happen only during the fasting month, the Ramadhan Bazaar. For a food aficionado like me, the enormous range and variety of food and drinks that you can find at these bazaars are mind-boggling. Dishes from other regions that are not normally available at other times, can now be found at the bazaars. For example, the east-coast dish of nasi kerabu and nasi dagang can be found sold at many stalls here in Johor Bahru. There is this one stall at the bazaar near my home that sells Penang Char Kuetiaw (the Bukit Mertajam version). There are of course, the normal Johor favourites such as lontong kering, nasi beriani, nasi ambang, asma rojak, mee rebus, sup tulang merah, murtabak etc. etc. etc. It is very tempting to try all at once.

Asma rojak at bazar ramadhan Bandar Baru Uda

The range that's available is so huge that I can choose one dish for each day of breaking fast, and when the whole 30 days of fasting is up, there would still be many dishes that I have not tasted. But of course, that was not what I did. In the first week, I sort of experimented by trying the options available and once I found a few stalls that sold tasty food that I liked, I just stick to those few.

Bandung soda, another Johor speciality drink

In our house, the drink that is more or less compulsory to have at iftar is Air Kathira. This particular drink only surfaces during Ramadhan (well actually, some drink stalls sell so-called air kathira throughout the year but these are tasteless). The most famous air kathira in Johor Bahru is called Kathira Abu Bakar. Many news articles have been written about it. However, a new contender has emerged since last Ramadhan to challenge Abu Bakar's top position. It's called Kathira Urip, and I have been a loyal customer since last year.

Air kathira (also spelled khatira or katira) is a cool drink made with evaporated milk, pandan-flavoured syrup, kathira gum, biji selasih and buah kembang semangkuk. Some versions of this drink also include grass jelly (cincau), raisins and shredded dates. The kathira gum is a tree extract and comes in powder form. It is mainly produced in India. You probably know that biji selasih are called basil seeds in English. I found out from a friend of a friend on Facebook that buah semangkuk is called malva nuts in English. Malva nuts (see pic below) come mainly from Thailand.

Air kathira is a delicious drink. I cannot describe the taste. What puzzles me is why Abu Bakar and Urip only sell their drink during the fasting month? I have googled and found a recipe for this drink so that I can try to make one myself.

In a few days, I bid farewell to the holy month that is full of trials, temptations and rewards. May Allah be graceful enough to grant me the time to meet the next Ramadhan.

Update 08.11.2021 : This post is one of the very few that does not have page security issues.

Another experience of fasting elswhere

In the previous post, I described the experience of the holy month of Ramadhan while working in the United Arab Emirates two years ago.

My other experience of fasting while away from Malaysia was very, very much earlier. That was the time when I was a student in the United Kingdom in the early '80s. As most of you probably know, the daylight hours in temperate countries change with the seasons, being longest in the summer and shortest in the winter.

Fasting is the ritual where we primarily abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours. In tropical countries like Malaysia, days and nights are of almost equal duration. Hence the hours of fasting is almost constant. But in my final year in Sheffield, the Muslim month of Ramadhan occurred during the summer season. I remember that first light of dawn was around 2.30am while sunset was around 9.30pm. That works out to a daylight (and therefore a fasting) duration of about 19 hours. At first, the thought of fasting for 19 hours was a bit daunting. Fasting is however, also a form of mental training to enhance our tolerance to difficulties and improve our level of patience.

For the first few days, it was quite difficult but after some time, I got used to it and it became routine. Although the daylight duration was long, the warm English summer is not humid like in Malaysia. The dry air is not energy-sapping and since we do not sweat as much, we didn't feel that thirsty.

Another thing that helped was that our classes were already over and basically, we had free time. The lazy summer days were spent watching sports on TV, playing cards or board games, or just simply dozing off. Sometimes, my friends and I would take a leisurely walk around town to kill time but I didn't like to do this often. It was a bit difficult not to look at the so many pretty English lasses in short and thin summer dresses ;-)

There was this one time when we were really bored... so I suggested that we go to the public park and have a game of football. My friends initially thought it was crazy to be playing football while we were fasting but we decided to try it out anyway. So we trudged down to the park at around 7pm, had a kick-about with the ball for an hour or so, and returned to our house with ample time to shower and then prepare our iftar meal. Surprisingly, it wasn't that tiring and so we continued to play soccer on subsequent evenings as long as there were enough guys who wanted to do so.

I stayed at a rented flat with two other Malay students. Two other friends rented the flat below us. The five of us pooled funds so that we shared meals together. At least, the breaking of fast was not a lonely affair. Our iftar meals were simple home-cooked dishes but had variety because each of us hail from different parts of Malaysia. I'm a Johorean while my housemates Karim and Yusof come from Negeri Sembilan and Kelantan respectively. Azhar and Amir, our friends from the flat below are from Slim River and Ipoh. One thing's for sure, our meals were always fun and lively.

In Malaysia, the indication that the fast can be broken is normally the azan (call for prayer) for Maghrib (sunset) that can be heard from the national radio or TV, or directly heard from a mosque if you live near one. In the UK, the local newspapers publish the daily sunset and sunrise times. We referred to this as a guide for our start and break of fast times. Actually, the commencement of fast is the first light of dawn (fajr), which is earlier than sunrise. We therefore, had to make allowance for this interval and make sure we have our sahur (pre-dawn) meal well before first light. Another reference that we used was a booklet containing the prayer times for major towns and cities in the UK. Nowadays, you can just go online and check the many websites that provide prayer times for almost every significant town in the British Isles or even almost anywhere in the world.

As noted earlier, the nights during summer are short so there was hardly much time to catch any sleep between iftar and sahur. The sahur meal would be quite light since we had the heavier iftar meal just a few hours ago.

While Ramadhan during the summer months would result in a very long fasting day, the reverse is true when Ramadhan falls during winter. The sun sets around 4pm in winter, meaning a very short fasting day. While it may seem that the short duration would make the fast easier, the cold weather makes us feel hungry more quickly.

Presently, it is autumn in the UK now. A check with a prayer-times website shows that Maghrib for the city of Sheffield today is at 7.18pm, about the same time as Kuala Lumpur.

This cycle of Ramadhan falling at different seasons every year, happen because the Islamic calendar is shorter than the Gregorian calendar by about 11 days. Each year, a day in the Islamic calendar moves forward 11 days relative to the Gregorian calendar (see sub-story below). The 1st day of Ramadhan this year falls on 1st September. In six years, the 1st day of Ramadhan would fall around the last week of June. At that time, Muslims in the northern temperate countries would be fasting during the summer months.

Now... this brings us to the interesting possibility of the situation where a Muslim who is located somewhere where the sun does not set for days on end (e.g. above the Arctic Circle) during the month of Ramadhan. How does he break his fast when the sun doesn't set? Does he fast the whole duration of daylight hours or does he not fast at all? Trivial questions they may be, but interesting nonetheless.


The Islamic Calendar

The Islamic or Muslim Calendar is a lunar-based calendar. It is made up of 12 months in a year and each year has about 354 days. This makes the Islamic year about 11 days shorter than the Gregorian year.

Efforts to formalise an Islamic calendar was initiated by Caliph Umar. Upon consultation with his fellow companions, they chose the Hijrah event (Prophet Muhammad's migration from Makkah to Madinah) to mark the start of the Muslim year. That is why the Islamic calendar is also known as the Hijrah calendar. The present year is 1429 AH.

The twelve months in the Hijrah year are as follows :

1. Muharram
2. Safar
3. Rabiul-awal
4. Rabiul-akhir
5. Jamadil-awal
6. Jamadil-akhir
7. Rejab
8. Sya'aban
9. Ramadhan
10. Syawal
11. Zulkaedah
12. Zulhijjah

Because the Hijrah year is shorter than the Gregorian year by about 11 days, there would be times when the Hijrah year occur entirely within the Gregorian year. This year of 2008 AD is one such occurrence. To check this, have a look at a calendar that displays both Islamic and Gregorian dates. If you don't have this type of calendar, a standard Gregorian one would do as long as it highlights the Malaysian public holidays.

The 1st of Muharram 1429 AH (officially known as the Maal Hijrah holiday) fell on 10 January 2008. Have a look at the month of December and you can see that another 1st of Muharram holiday, this time for 1430 AH, falls on the 29th. In other words, 1429 AH sits between 10.01.08 and 28.12.08.

The experience of fasting elsewhere

I was reading the post by blogger-friend Nurie the other day about her experience of fasting and other activities in the month of Ramadhan in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This is the second year she is spending the holy month away from home. Her observations on some of the differences between fasting in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia can be read here -> Ramadan 1429.

Nurie's post reminded me of the time that I spent working in the United Arab Emirates two years ago. I was posted to a project site in the Emirate of Fujairah, about 130km from Dubai. When Ramadhan arrived that year, it was towards the end of the summer. The weather was still hot where daytime temperatures range in the mid-30 degrees Celsius, sometimes touching 40 degC. It was a really trying first day because the heat made me very thirsty. But then, a fast without the trials and temptations would not be a fast at all.

There is no such thing as a `Bazaar Ramadhan' over there. No place where you can feast your eyes on a whole variety of cooked food for sale. For iftar (the breaking of fast), you either cook your own meal, buy takeaway dinners from the Indian restaurants or join other muslim brothers to break fast at mosques. In addition, there are some well-to-do Emiratis who offer free iftar meals at their houses to anyone who wishes to join.

My local sponsor is one such generous person (a `sponsor' is an Emirati citizen who, for a fee, supports your work permit application). Since I was a temporary bachelor, I mostly took my iftar meals together with about 200 other foreign workers at the large courtyard within the compound of my sponsor's house. We would all break the fast initially with some dates and a yoghurt-like drink locally known as `laban'. The sour taste of the laban actually complements the sweet taste of the dates.

The congregational Maghrib prayers would then follow. After prayers, the area would be cleared, plastic sheets rolled out on the floor and the main meal would be served. The meal consists of briyani rice with both mutton and chicken, local Arab flatbread, vegetable curry, fresh salad and sweet desserts. I try to remain low-profile and like to have my meal sitting next to other foreign workers, normally Arabs from other middle-eastern countries such as Jordan or Egypt. But sometimes, I am spotted by the host, and he would gesture to me to come to sit next to him. My sponsor is somewhat of a local dignitary but he is a very kind and gracious person. He would ask how I was doing and then ask about my family back home in Malaysia as well.

The food portions were always generous and we were encouraged to pack the unfinished portions to take home. Most of the other workers would do this as it saves them the trouble of preparing the sahur or pre-dawn meal. But I never did so because I preferred to cook my own sahur. Having chicken or mutton briyani day in and day out can be a bit boring after some time.

My sahur meals were rather simple. Rice with fried eggs and fried ikan bilis (which I had brought from Malaysia). Sometimes, I would make do with fried rice using the pre-packed flavourings also brought from Malaysia. I would then eat my sahur quietly and alone. Perhaps the saddest moments to experience during my time being posted overseas.

Looking back now, I savour the experience... but given a choice, I would always want to spend Ramadhan with my family.

Update 26.10.2021 : Link to Nurie's blog has been removed because the blog no longer exist.

First day of breaking fast

I've always tried my best to make sure we spend the first day of breaking fast every Ramadhan at my parent's place. It helps make a memorable start to the holy month. It's only my father and my mother left at home so they are always keen to have us come over. It gives a reason for my mother to display her cooking skills and feed her grandchildren to the max.

On the way over there, one of my sons asked, `Nenek nak masak apa untuk buka puasa, abah?' (What's grandma cooking for the breaking of fast?)

I replied, `Entahlah... kacang pool agaknya.' (I'm not sure, maybe kacang pool.)

Sure enough, that was what she prepared for our iftar or berbuka puasa meal. A mother can always read her son's mind, no matter where he may be, believe it.

As I've mentioned before in my post of 24 August 2008, my kids and I like kacang pool, especially the one cooked by my mom. My mom learned how to cook it because my father liked it in the first place. The tradition has now been passed down the line with my wife learning the recipe from my mom so that she can placate the tastes of her husband and sons.

In addition to the kacang pool, my father had brought home some bubur lambok (rice porridge) that was prepared and given away for free by the nearby mosque. My sister and her husband also came by and hence mom's tiny kitchen was packed with ten family members.

When the time to break our fast arrived, my three sons quickly tucked into the kacang pool voraciously. This prompted my father to proudly remark, `Tak rugi cucu-cucu atok minat makan kacang pool ni macam atok juga.' (It's good to see that my grandsons like to eat kacang pool just like me.') Seems that all my sons inherit their grandfather's appetite and penchant for good food.

Iftar meals at our home are mostly non-rice dishes. Dishes such as mee goreng, laksa, murtabak, mee hoon sup etc. If there are actually rice dishes, then they would be of the `special' variety such as nasi tomato or nasi beriani. Plain rice meals are served only for sahur (pre-dawn). My mother has been preparing it that way since I was growing up and now when I have a family of my own, I had my wife practice the same.