A weekend to remember
EGYPTIANS celebrated last week's three-day Eid Al-Fitr holiday commemorating the end of the holy month of Ramadan with much flourish, devouring copious amounts of kahk (special cookies made for the occasion), visiting family and friends, and heading outdoors to public parks, for a sail down the Nile or a camel ride at the Pyramids.
The occasion began with millions across the country flocking to mosques for the morning Eid prayer on Thursday, 5 December. As always, many mosques were so crowded that many of the worshippers ended up praying in the street. President Hosni Mubarak, who had spent the last days of Ramadan in Sharm El-Sheikh, was joined by top officials at the Red Sea resort's Al-Salam Mosque for Thursday's prayers.
The official holiday began on 5 December and ended on 9 December -- with such a long weekend, many decided to take a trip to one of the beach resorts on one of Egypt's coasts. After all, the cool, gloomy weather in the days leading up to Eid had cleared up, replaced by the blue skies and sun of summer-time.
Children, as always, had the lion's share of Eid fun, dressing up in brand new outfits, getting their 'edeyya (gift money) from relatives and friends, chomping on candy and sweets, running and playing in gardens and parks, and setting off the obnoxious little bomb firecrackers that have become a festive tradition.
By Monday, the shops and banks had reopened, students had gone back to their schools and universities, and the streets were back to normal -- with large amounts of traffic clogging the main arteries.
All that remained of Eid were the piles of kahk sitting in cupboards in many a household, the delicious sugary cookies undoubtedly bringing a guilty smile to the faces of those continued to binge on the feast's most famous manifestation.
