Eid Mubarak

Eid Mubarak is a traditional Muslim greeting usually used during Festivals.  This can be translated to "Eid" - Feast and "Mubarak" - Blessed.

Qatar is currently enjoying the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha (Festival of the Sacrifice).  This holiday itself is 2 - 4 days long but the governments of countries with a significant Muslim population all decide independently how long workers will be off work.  This year, the Qatar government has given us the entire week off of work.  Thank you Qatar!

The holiday itself celebrates Abraham's willingness to put his first born son up for sacrifice.  Luckily God intervened and provided him a lamb to sacrifice instead.  Good decision for poor little Ismail!

The holidays celebrated by the Muslim faith follow the Muslim Lunar Calendar, even though business and daily living functions on the Georgian Solar Calendar.  The lunar calendar is 11 days shorter than the solar calendar, so Eid al-Adha moves earlier by approximately 11 days every year.  Therefore in 2014 Eid al-Adha will start on approximately October 4th.  And just to make things even more confusing, different countries celebrate on slightly different days because the sighting of the crescent moon varies.  The countries announce the exact days of the holiday and how many days most workers will be off work, approximately 2 weeks before the Holiday.

Tough to photograph a moon!

The Muslim community in Qatar is very family oriented so the activities scheduled for this holiday are all family oriented - plays, fireworks, food festivals, and family travel. 

The work week here is Sunday to Thursday and by 3pm last Thursday, my building was eerily empty because most of my fellow employees use this paid time off work to travel. I have friends visiting Lebanon, the Maldives, South Africa, Dubai, Australia, Germany, Italy and the United States.

 

So how am I spending my holiday?  I did not plan any travel due to a suggestion from my bank account and I could not leave without having my Resident Permit.  I was not sure when that would be complete so I could not make any plans. Fortunately my permit has been completed and now that I am an official Resident of Qatar, I am welcome to leave and return as often as I wish. 

No need to travel yet....(I do have future plans)....there are many ways to enjoy a holiday in Qatar.

 

Friday afternoon there was lunch outside along the beach at the Four Seasons. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday night was Jazz at Lincoln Center in the Doha St. Regis Hotel.  New York is cycling Jazz ensembles to Doha every 2 weeks.  I had a wonderful time getting to know fellow Sidra employees, while enjoying the Etienne Charles Quintet. Also, I finally got a Cosmopolitan. Yum!

(Stay tuned for a future Blog on Alcohol Consumption in Qatar)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday was an evening walk and dinner at the Pearl - the man made island here in Doha.  A great place to view large yachts and grab a bite to eat. My pay grade does not allow me to live here but visiting is free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today who knows?  No plans until later this week when my fellow NICU specialist Ellen and I become doggie nannies to a golden retriever and a rottweiler.  Both of their families are leaving the country and we are going to live in one of their houses while we entertain the dogs.  Since I miss my pets terribly, I am looking forward to this canine time.

What I should be doing with my time is looking for Double Stuff Oreos.  My supply has dried up.  This is a dark cloud over my Holiday.