So a week has passed by of Ramadhan, its as if Ramadhan started yesterday.
First of all, it was a hassle try to explain the whole hilal thing to my roommate (he is really curious about other cultures, as he grew up in a small town in Ohio, but he knows some Arabic cause he had Iraqi friends back in Ohio … dont ask). Explaining the whole did we see the hilal or not, should we fast or not, was tough.
So how do you guys print your yearly calenders if you dont know when Ramadhan starts, and the calendar says one thing, while the date says another thing?
Yeah, how do we use a calendar (Hijri) after Ramadhan when Ramadhan starts (or ends) on a different day than the calendar?
After that, I had to explain the fasting part. He thinks that its cruel that we cant atleast drink water when we are thirsty, my reply was “we get used to it cause we have been doing it all of our lives.”
So the other day a friend comes by before fu6oor so he can “help” us cook some rice and chicken (Kabsa) for fu6oor. We just starting “chopping” (see the previous post) the onion and he (my American roommate) comes out of his room, complimenting the smell. It was onions for god’s sake, we still didnt cook anything. An hour passed by and the cooking really began, and he comes out again:
That smells gooooooooooooood. What are you guys cooking? It smells like home. ( :))
When we finished cooking, we asked him to join us (yamkin feeha ajar, galaw if6ar 9ayem 
), so he does (ma 9adag 3ala allah :)). El moshkilla inna e7na el 9aymeen, oo 6ab5een, oo ohwa makil akthar minna He really enjoyed it and he joined us today too (still, he ate more than any of us :P). He is really starting to get hooked on rice.
He is starting to get this impression that Ramadhan is all about cooking, eating, eating, eating dessert, watching tv, praying in between a few of what I have mentioned, and then eating again :P. He is a cool guy and he asks a lot of questions about our religion and culture.
Why dont you ask your roommate to help you with the cooking?!?
I mean he’ll enjoy helping and its only fair if he’s eating more than you.. Just let him chop onions or as you say “chop” the tomatoes.. I’m sure he can be usefull..
I wonder, would these food & cooking adventures continue after Ramadan
lol And I love the expression “Smells like home”
I don’t let them help me when I cook. One of them was going to put ketchup in MY MARAG and I was going to kill him. “But it’s the same thing!” He said.
Your post is funny. The last paragraph is sprinkled with smiley faces : P
Myvy,
he will come in handy when i ask him to taste and see if there is enough salt bil 6ab5a.
ohwa 7ada baith bil jibin tara
Khuloud,
well they do continue after ramadhan (i hope) but they existed before ramadhan, once every week or two.
erzulie,
loooooool ketchup!
i know i used many smiley’s, he reads this blog, so lazim inragi3 il wath3 shway
You know ajir ekbeer 7ada if you get someone to convert, might be just curiousity or might be something else.
Anyway, about people asking you and the not knowing part… I hope I don’t get into situations like that. I know its lots of information but still, it doesn’t look nice.
But yeah… allah eyaserlik when it comes to queries in that sense.
Ta8abal allah ta3tik enshallah.
lol Ok, I just went through your Flickr Pictures and saw what you were talking about.
LOL & the Arabic Coffee Shots
& The “Kabsa” Before, During & After
Bel3afyah
Hey, I need your address, You guyz need to be rescued with “Sofar” !
Safi,
enjoy it while it lasts :), 3ad killha 2 or 3 years oo ramadhan yikoon bil summer, so studying abroad wouldnt suck that much when it comes to ramadhan.
wallah it9adig, the though had came up, we were praying today infront of him for the first time, oo shaf shloon ni7trim il sijada oo shloon ma khalaina yamsik il quran cause ohwa mo mo6ahar oo min hal sowalif, oo shakla ta2athir min e7trama 7ag il deen oo he started asking questions about that, and he seem startled at first. 9ara7a has inna he is very interested in learning more, i’ll update if there is anything else that in that sense.
anyways it seems that this is ur last ramadhan at home
cherish it man, cherish it
Khould,
oo il sofra ta6awart oo 9arat jarayid, cause 9irt mothaqaf al7een oo eshtarakt in the newspaper 
let me remind the guys tommrow when they come over and put up a sofra of garbage bags 
shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh fatha7teena!
3ad i collect shot glasses whenever i travel, they sure came handy ma3a il gahwa
I do, I really do.
Ajer oo 3afya, ta8abal allah minkom inshallah.
Keep up the good deeds.
thnx bro
Yazeed,we made a few foreigners fast for a day to raise money for charity here .I suggest do ask him to fast for a day and also tell them the dos and don’t and ask abt his experience.I am sure he will learn.