If there is one thing that is important to me in a country I deign to call 'home,' it is the food on offer. I don't particularly care what it is as long as it tastes good. Over the years I have eaten most things I could stuff into my face including such delicacies as camel, horse intestines, pig's trotter, the head and feet of a chicken and, yes, dog (boo hiss!). This has been supplemented by an array of food from all over Asia that would set you back a few bob in a restaurant back home; Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, Central Asian, Turkish, Persian, Lebanese and Georgian to name just the highlights. Since moving to Dubai I have not been disappointed in the food stakes. The only thing I don't seem to have had is anything traditional.
Being an 'international city,' Dubai has been inundated with foreign workers from all parts of the globe looking for their own piece of the 'Dubai Dream' (much like the American one, this 'dream' revolves around money) with the bulk of this mass immigration has come from the Subcontinent, China and the Philippines. A common misconception about the Emirates' jewel is that it is merely the plaything of the rich and famous. However, cheap (ish) food can be had in the less glamorous nooks and crannies of the metropolis. For a couple of dollars it's possible to pop over the street for a biriyani from the Indian place or go around the corner to the Lebanese joint and pick up a falafel sandwich with a side order of hummus (and complimentary baklava for dessert).
The only problem with being spoilt with such a selection here - apart from an ever expanding waistline, is that as a Muslim country, most of my favourite places close for the month of Ramadan as they are forced to close during daylight hours. Many owners choose to take a month-long holiday than worry about the cost of opening up for a few hours each evening.
Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calender and is the time when Muslims fast in order to learn about the values of patience, humility and submission to God. It's a bit like Lent and Yom Kippur rolled into one. As well as giving up food during daylight hours, Muslims are also expected to refrain from drinking, smoking and sex. Here in the UAE, even infidels are, by law, required to adhere to these rules and keep any such acts out of the public eye. The act of fasting is intended to teach believers the importance of self-control, sacrifice and empathy towards those less fortunate.
Now, you'd assume that most of the offences carried out during this holy month were by non-Muslims ignorant of the rules or just plain culturally-insensitive. For that you'd be wrong as most infidels try their hardest to eat and drink behind closed doors. In actuality, most 'crimes' during Ramadan are committed by Islamists. In other countries around the world, people are expected to live their lives normally and make the sacrifice regardless, but I've found that in the UAE special dispensation has been made to aid in the success. Most workplaces operate on 'Ramadan time,' which means that employees sleep in half the day and don't go to work until the afternoon. This means that instead of a full day fasting and reflecting upon their faith, they only have 6 or 7 hours, at most, to carry out their duty and miss prayer times - one of the pillars of the religion. As well as not bothering with the sacrifice bit of it all, it is a sad sight to see iftar (the evening meal to break the fast) abused with food being gorged upon by ravenous mouths and platefuls of leftovers sitting on empty tables. What happened to thinking of others less fortunate? It would seem that in the UAE, or Dubai at least, the real meaning of Ramadan has gone the way of Christmas in the West.
Last year, Saudi clerics condemned the UAE for the behaviour of its Muslim residents during Ramadan. A report had shown that more food was consumed during the month than for any other month of the year. Now, it doesn't take much to get rebuked by a Saudi cleric, but when you find yourself agreeing with them, then you know something must be amiss.
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