Jordan, Amman

Tomorrow or the next day will be Eid al-Fitr, the feast day that ends Ramadan. We won’t know for sure on which day Jordan will celebrate Eid until the evening news at 8 tonight, by which time the official government sheikhs will have seen or not seen the new moon. (In some other Muslim countries, like Pakistan, the day of Eid is calculated using mondern astronomy, but the Hashemites are traditionalists in this regard.) Eid will be the first day in a month that practicing Muslims will eat during daylight hours, and most will be feasting throughout the day. It’s a lot like Thanksgiving, with everyone gathering around the table or a platter on the floor with their families for a big feast, and then visiting and drinking tea and coffee and juice for hours. At the same time, Eid in the village always reminded me a little bit of Halloween, with all the neighborhood kids going from door to door collecting candy and “shillin” (nickels) in return for the traditional Eid greeting, “May you and yours be well all year.” But no doubt this will be different in the city. Just like Ramadan, I expect eid to be better in the village than in the city.

In any case, we have the next five days off from school, and I’m looking forward to the change of pace!