Thoughts on Ramadan

It’s really true that people are the eyes through which we see another culture. The problem with blogging, as we’ve found out, is that people tend to find out about it (with mixed feelings), which makes us a bit gun shy.

So there will be no names or photos to accompany this post. Suffice it to say that on the second day of Ramadan I met for a coffee with an educated Moroccan fluent in 5 languages. When I say we met for coffee, I should say we met at a café, and as this is Ramadan, I felt awkward already. Cafés are great places for casual meetings, but there’s an expectation that you will, in fact, order some coffee. I ask my companion outright about the protocol. The café in Gueliz is filled with clients sipping afternoon espressos, but these are exclusively foreigners. He waves off my concern, pointing to the waiters around us. “No Moroccans are here during Ramadan. If foreigners like you don’t come here and eat, they’ll have to close the restaurant for a month and they’ll all be out of work.”


He complains about all the hypocrites during Ramadan. In private, behind the Medina’s high walls, people having sex during the day while parents are away, drink water and booze, then put on a veil, go outside and talk about how difficult their fast is. He argues that lots of Moroccans are like sheep, free to wander and eat, but only within very narrow confines. I didn’t have the nerve to ask him if behind closed doors he keeps a strict Ramadan himself.

We’ve spoken with several other Moroccans about Ramadan, and for the most part they want to share their excitement for the month-long holiday. Lots of Moroccans ask us if we’re joining them in fasting during Ramadan. The answer is a resounding no, and I confess to being a bit surprised they ask. They couldn’t be more conscious of the fact that we are not Muslims, and they frequently share their thoughts on religion with us. While some seem to hope that we will fast in solidarity, others indicate that we’d be foolish to fast. My café companion tells me that if the King (who is both the ruler of the kingdom, and the religious head of Moroccan Muslims as well) announced that as of tomorrow there would be no Ramadan, most would happily give up the practice.

We’re in the early days of the month, before the cumulative effects of deprivation have begun to take their tole. Who knows what the next few weeks will bring.