Small acts of Ramadan kindness
I'm sure such things happen all over the world. One of the nicest examples here in Cairo is that at busy traffic intersections, where cars are jammed up or moving slowly, just around Iftar time you will see guys on foot, weaving in between the cars, handing out dates, nuts and little snacks to all the drivers who will be stuck in traffic when the fast breaks. They also often have big bottles of water.
And a major, major charity operation takes place every Ramadan here - the huge outdoor "Tables of God" - hundreds of free restaurants that feed hundreds of thousands of Cairo's poorest people every night of the month with some decent food. Anybody who wants to is welcome to sit at these open air street places, at long tables crowded with people who are enjoying a month of unusually good eating - for many of Cairo's poor, this is the only time of the year when meat is a regular fixure in the diet.
Each individual place is funded by groups of donors, mostly organised by mosques or community groups. It is often the case that a group seeks 100 donors to contribute 1000LE ($175) each - and particularly pious Muslims will volunteer for the whole month to staff the places, cook and serve the food etc. I would love to see the statistics on how many meals are served in Ramadan this way, and the size of the "Tables of God" economy - I imagine it is a difficult thing to research, but the numbers must be huge. Just on my street alone in downtown there would be at least 500 people eating in this way, at 3 or 4 different locations. Even Yahoo News has a story about it...
(The street written about in the article, Hoda Sharaawi St, is where I live. Thats pretty cool...)
I think that the genuine sense of charity during the month of Ramadan is one of its greatest features - similar to Christmas in the western world, although I think Egyptians put far more emphasis on this than we would do in Australia. If only people could show genuine concern for the welfare of their fellow countryman all year round, not just in one designated month.....
And a major, major charity operation takes place every Ramadan here - the huge outdoor "Tables of God" - hundreds of free restaurants that feed hundreds of thousands of Cairo's poorest people every night of the month with some decent food. Anybody who wants to is welcome to sit at these open air street places, at long tables crowded with people who are enjoying a month of unusually good eating - for many of Cairo's poor, this is the only time of the year when meat is a regular fixure in the diet.
Each individual place is funded by groups of donors, mostly organised by mosques or community groups. It is often the case that a group seeks 100 donors to contribute 1000LE ($175) each - and particularly pious Muslims will volunteer for the whole month to staff the places, cook and serve the food etc. I would love to see the statistics on how many meals are served in Ramadan this way, and the size of the "Tables of God" economy - I imagine it is a difficult thing to research, but the numbers must be huge. Just on my street alone in downtown there would be at least 500 people eating in this way, at 3 or 4 different locations. Even Yahoo News has a story about it...
(The street written about in the article, Hoda Sharaawi St, is where I live. Thats pretty cool...)
I think that the genuine sense of charity during the month of Ramadan is one of its greatest features - similar to Christmas in the western world, although I think Egyptians put far more emphasis on this than we would do in Australia. If only people could show genuine concern for the welfare of their fellow countryman all year round, not just in one designated month.....
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