Ramadam @ MindSay 
Having been raised Roman Catholic, I have never felt like an outsider when big Christian holidays come about since American society is structured around them. For instance, when Christmas comes, it doesn’t affect my school work because I am on vacation. Along this same line, the closing of stores and restaurants on Easter does not even cross my mind since I am at family gatherings all day. Not inconvenienced by these holidays, I fail to notice how much the daily schedule of my society is really affected. This perspective has all changed this past week though.
With Ramadan having begun at the beginning of the week, I have been put on the other side of the fence. Not being Muslim, I have seen how much a society restructures its daily schedule to accommodate the arrival of a major religious holiday. Just to give you the basics of Ramadan, it is a month long holiday where Muslims are required to fast from sunrise to sunset. Throughout this period of time they should also find themselves in deeper reflection and reading the Koran more often. Because of this and the fact that the vast majority of people in Jordan are obviously Muslim, every single restaurant and café is not open until about 7pm as they would more than likely lose money during the day if they were open.
Walking from class into Abdoun Circle for lunch on Sunday, the first day of Ramadan, was certainly a rude awakening for me as every place was closed. Even McDonald’s! Many of the other conveniences that I have taken for granted as the part of my daily routine in Jordan have also disappeared. Out of all of these, getting a cab is probably the one that stands out in my mind the most. Between the hours of 6 and 7pm, everyone is home for iftafar, the huge feast that occurs each night at sundown. Due to this daily ritual, from 5-6 everybody is whizzing home, and from 6-7 the streets are absolutely barren.
The clattering of silverware against plates and lighted crescent and stars are the only sounds and sights you will hear and see if you walk the streets of a neighborhood during this time of the day. As you can imagine, trying to hail down a cab to take you to an internet café can be a little bit of a challenge; therefore, I have to take this into consideration now when I decide at what time I would like surf the web and Skype.
While Amman is dead from 6-7, the city sparks back to life once dinner is over.
Probably due to the fact that they can now eat, everybody really enjoys themselves after dinner. Compared to the first month that I was here, I have seen many more people on the streets during weeknights. Many companies, especially the cell phone ones, have stations set up along the street where anybody can have free food courtesy of them (as you can see, the commercialization of religious holidays is not solely an American phenomenon).
Deciding to experience the festivities of Amman’s Ramadan nightlife, I went out with one of my brothers and his friends to hang out at Pasha, a chic Turkish bath that had been turned into a very cool café for the month of Ramadan. And let me tell you, this place was definitely hopping. By the way everyone was dressed and by the way males and females were sitting together in mixed groups, you would have thought you were in an American club. Throughout the café, the Arabian pop music of artists such as Nancy Ajrum, Eleesa, and Asala was vibrating off the walls. This was definitely the most lively night since I have been in Jordan, and I do not think it was a coincidence that it occurred during Ramadan.
