I have heard from a few friends that no matter how devout a Muslim is during the fasts of Ramadan, he or she always manages to gain some weight.Tonight, I got a hint of how this happens. I did the full fast today; not even water passed my lips. It wasn't really bad until about 5:30pm, when I knew Iftar was only a couple hours away, but I just had to sweat it out.
While not as extensive as the spread the other night due to running out of gas (literally) and not having any Arab mothers present, it was still an amazing meal. Even just tasting water for the first time today was an incredible experience. Water has a taste! I never realized this before.
But the star of the show came later in the form of halowiyat. I've had Arabic sweets before, but never like this. First, Khalid gave me the cheesy, nutty, syrupy concoction above. I believe it's called Hallawia al-jibna. It's something akin to cheesecake, but out of this world good. Already stuffed from dinner, I took a bite when Khalid handed it to me.
Me: "Oh God."
Khalid: "Is everything okay?"
It was delicious. Most Arab sweets have layer upon layer of honey and filo dough. This was different. It was soft, smooth, and cold, still with the characteristic sweetness. I loved it.
An hour later, he brought forth the Kanafa, a more well-known Jordanian sweet. It is an amazing mix of dough, nuts, and sugar strings on top.
Now I understand the gaining-weight-during-Ramadan thing.
(Side note: we had a couple of British pilgrims staying with us for a few days. Interesting characters both: they met on a game show, and one of them walked from Belgium to the Israeli border, before getting rejected for entry because he was penniless. His friend is now finishing the journey for him. You can check out their blog at http://richardandmikey.wordpress.com/)
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