Salam Aidilfitri & Maaf Zahir Batin

Salam Aidilfitri & Maaf Zahir Batin dari kami sekeluarga di Doha, Qatar. Qatar is celebrating Eid Mubarak on 30 September 2008, a day earlier than Malaysia.

Again, we celebrate raya in Doha this year. May be we will celebrate next raya in Malaysia with our family, insyaAllah. That's the plan so far anyway. From the look of it, we will have the chance to celebrate raya in Malaysia for the next 10 rayas as the raya falls during summer holidays.

Selamat Hari Raya
Maaf Zahir Batin

Ramadan Bazaar @ Hyatt Plaza

This was the 2nd & final Ramadan Bazaar for the year..huhu. We wish there could be more.. Hopefully next year there will be at least three Ramadan Bazaar..

It was held at Hyatt Plaza this time. Thank God. Thanks to Hyatt Plaza Management for allowing us to have the fun in the mall. Few people stayed till the end. It was pleasant to be in the air-conditioned area during Ramadan.hehe.

Again, most of the foods sold out within 1 hour. Another record breaking for GAP (Gabungan Anak Perantau). GAP presented the most varities of delicacies including pulut kuning with rendang ayam, apam Cik Dills, laksa Penang, laksam, cucur udang Abe Zu etc. Again, GAP was also the most coordinated team with everyone wore orange t-shirt.

Garangao Festival - A Popular Children’s Festival In The Gulf

Garangao Festival is a popular children’s festival in The Gulf. Apparently it is celebrated on the 14th day of Ramadan. On this day, young children will go around from house to house collecting sweets, nuts and money, after Iftar. How I wish I am still a kid & go around collecting money..hehe

This is the extract from Gulf Times on the festival : "Children throughout Qatar will today take part in a number of celebrations to mark Garangao, the most popular children’s festival in the Gulf. The celebration is traditionally held on the 14th day of Ramadan despite having no religious connotations, and involves a wide selection of cultural programmes and events for children and their families. Children attired in specially prepared outfits, accompanied by songs and drums, visit their neighbours in the hope of receiving treats on this special day..."

If you want to read more, please visit here.

Few outlets in The Mall also handed in the pack to children. We also bought few Garangao Packs for souvenirs.

Ramadan Bazaar at Embassy

The most awaited Bazaar Ramadan finally came. This time around I was on the other side of the coin. I was the buyer. Last year, I had joined up to sell some food. It was a big hit.. Our stall completely sold out within 1 hour.

This year, team was equally well coordinated. Everyone put on red t-shirt. It gave the impression that the stall was sponsored by AERO NY..hehe. Last year, the theme was Orange.

That was the 1st Ramadan Bazaar. There will be another bazaar next Friday held at Hyatt Plaza Foodcourt. Hopefully, the same crowd of buyers & sellers will be there. I will definitely be there to spend..

See you next week. Same time different place...

End of one chapter, the beginning of another

It has been almost week since Alisha left Marry Poppins. We bought the teachers some chocs to show our appreciation for taking care of our little Alisha for about 1 year. She joined Marry Poppins around this time last year. It was not easy for us. We felt very comfortable to keep Alisha at that nursery. The teachers seemed to enjoy her company as well.

Now the time has come for her to go to 'big school'-term used by the teachers to tell Alisha & the kids that they are already now big girls & boys. That itself prepared them mentally for the new adventure in life.

1st day at the new school was no different at any school in the world, I guess. You could hear kids crying. Alisha seemed very composed. She seemed to be prepared for anything. What she was not aware was the fact that the school medium is 100% Arabic. She was ecstatic to see the uniform! Maklum la sebelum ni tak pernah pakai uniform kan..

We decided to send Alisha to the Arabic kindergarten for her to grasp Arabic. We plan to put her at the school until she reaches 6 years old. We reckon two years is good for her to master Arabic before we bring her back to English medium school. Hopefully she will be able to master the language of the Quran soon...

It is now ok

Today is the 5th day of Ramadan! Time flies..

I suppose it is now ok to put back Lagu Raya Collection. Just to keep the spirit of raya..

For those yang tak balik raya like us. Hope the songs bole mengubat rindu. Hope they don't make you homesick..hehe. If they do, I suggest you book your ticket with Qatar Airways online NOW to avoid dissappointment. We certainly do not wish to see you cry on the raya day itself.

Ramadan Kareem again to all of you.

Ramadan Kareem

Ramadan Kareem everyone!! May the Holy month of Ramadan brings us the barakah.. Lots of them..

The fasting month in Qatar starts today, 1 September 2008. Malaysia also declared the 1st day of Ramadan for the same date. What is interesting in this part of the world is the way the start of Ramadan is decided. Yes, Saudi & Qatar also followed the sunnah to sight the moon and calculation to determine the 1st day of Ramadan. However, Qatar Government also appealed to the people of Qatar to report to the committee if they see the new crescent on the early night of 30 August 2008 ie 29 Shaaban. This Moon Sight Appeal was publicised in The Gulf Times. So much trust given by the government to the residents of Qatar.. Interesting!

During Ramadan, the working hours will also be reduced especially in the government sectors. Labour Law clearly states that maximum hours during Ramadan shall be maximum 6 hours.

Hopefully more time can be spent on sunnahs during Ramadan month.

Ramadan Kareem to every Muslims in all parts of the world... God Bless.