Eid ul-Fitr in Syria
End of Ramadan
My Friend!
My friends name is Hafez. He is very nice. He is Muslim and celebrates all the Islamic holidays. He is my age and is tall and skinny. He dresses like the common person in Syria and follows the practices and traditions of Syrians. His family is also very nice. He has a mother and a father and also a brother and a sister. They all live together and their close family also lives in Syria and they see each other very often to celebrate holidays together and also just to do daily activities with. He lives in the capital city of Syria, in Damascus. They live in a nice house with a courtyard thing in the middle and all the rooms are surrounding this courtyard. It was very different than the houses in the United States and it was fun to visit and see.I am very excited and lucky to have went over and visited him! I went while Eid ul-Fitr was celebrated.
Major Holiday
This is a major holiday in Syria and many other countries. It is an Islamic holiday. It follows Ramadan. Ramadan is a month long fasting period and this holiday Eid ul-Fitr is the dning of Ramadan. It is a major time of excitement and fun. It is celebrated with feasting, gift giving, and praying.
Traditions and Celebrations
Families get together and exchange different gifts and goods to one another. Also, decorations and lights are put up around to celebrate this holiday. It is full of excitement and fun.
Quick Video: showing some celebrations
Special Time
This is a time to show their gratitude to God and remember him. This is also a time for entertainment and enjoyment. It can be celebrated for one, two or even three days. It is forbidden to fast on this day. It usually happens beginning at sunset when the first sighting of the crescent moon is seen.
Common Rituals and Celebrations
These include gift giving, praying, feasting, giving back, showing excitement, certain prayers done in honor of the day, and decorating.
While I Was There...
While I visited my friend I was there during this holiday. I was there for the last day of Ramadan and then it went right into celebrating this holiday. It was very interesting to see everyone get so excited about this. My friends parents decorated the house with different types of lights and balloons and decorations. We all went out to the markets to buy each other different gifts and goods. They all had new clothes they put on to wear for the day. We ate a lot that day too. We feasted and ate a lot of sweets and goodies throughout the day. I also got to observe them do all different types of prayers and what not. It was very interesting to see and be a part of. If I was to compare it to a holiday I celebrate here in the United States, I would compare it to Easter. This is because after we fast for some days and give up meat on Fridays and usually give up something for lent we celebrate on Easter with a big meal with family and we also receive little gifts and sweets from family.