Eid ul-Fitr (2007-10-15)

(Originally posted on 15 October 2007.)

This is the festival that marks the end of Ramadan. One of our neighbours is a Malaysian family whose son, Z, is in Giggles’s class at school. They are likely returning to Malaysia in November. Anyhow, last Thursday Z’s dad invited us to attend their Eid-ul-Fitr (or Aidalfitri, as they say it in Malaysian…) party. Having never attended an end-of-Ramadan party before, we were pleased to accept.

For the most part it was like most parties everywhere – lots of yummy food (Malaysian and Chinese for the most part) and lots of people standing or sitting around talking. We didn’t know many other people, other than Z’s family and a few other neighbours who were there. Giggles played with the other kids and watched some TV, and I chatted with a few people.

But what I really liked were the fancy dresses most of the women were wearing. The men were dressed up, too, but their outfits were quite plain while the women’s were very colourful. Modest, too, of course, but bright colours with fancy embroidery and matching hijabs. I was quite underdressed, having gone there straight from our day of running errands.

All in all, it was a pleasant occasion. Giggles even received a treat at the end – an envelope containing $5 (given to all the children)!