Ask Gadling: What to do in a Muslim country during Ramadan

by Sean McLachlan on

Ramadan is a month-long religious festival during which Muslims don’t eat, drink, smoke, or have sex from sunup to sundown. This reminds them what it’s like to be without the things they take for granted, and encourages them to be thankful for what they have. Certain people are excused from fasting, such as children, the sick, the pregnant, menstruating women, and travelers. The rest of the population has to suck it up and get through the day.

Traveling in a Muslim country during Ramadan poses two problems–you can’t eat in public and tourist sights may be closed. In countries such as Turkey and Egypt tourism is such a big draw that major sites will remain open and there are enough restaurants catering to non-Muslims that you’ll be able to eat. In smaller towns, however, you might find the attractions and restaurants closed. Gadling’s Grant Martin was visiting Cairo during Ramadan and found many places had abbreviated hours so the staff could eat at the appropriate times. He also found that while touristy restaurants remained open, some didn’t serve alcohol. Gadling’s Meg Nesterov, who’s living in Istanbul, reported very little changed during the fast.

The big challenge comes in more devout, less visited countries. Back in 1994 while I was crossing Asia, Ramadan started during my last week in Iran and my first three weeks in Pakistan. Pretty much everything shut except for museums in major cities and large archaeological sites such as Mohenjo-daro. Restaurants all closed their doors and I found myself in the odd situation of being an agnostic compelled to observe Ramadan.

So what to do?

Get into the spirit. Ramadan is one of the biggest occasions of the Muslim calendar and you’re there to witness it firsthand. You’ll almost certainly be invited to an iftar, the evening meal right after sunset. Muslims make up for their day of hunger with some seriously good cooking, and it’s traditional to invite a guest. One of my coolest travel memories was an iftar at a home for deaf people in Karachi. We communicated by hand signals the entire evening and one of my hosts gave me a silent tour of the city.

Be flexible with your hours. While shops and restaurants may be shut during the day, they often stay open long into the night.
Visit a mosque. You can rest assured that some of the major sights of any Muslim city will remain open during Ramadan–the mosques. Many are centuries old and are architectural jewels, like this one in New Delhi photographed by user jrodmanjr and uploaded to Gadling’s flickr photostream. Mosques aren’t only a place of worship, they’re a refuge from the heat and bustle of the street, a place where people sit around and chat. This makes them great places to meet locals. I’ve been inside dozens of mosques in many different countries and always found them welcoming. I’ve come across a few in Iran and India that were closed to non-Muslims, but in both countries I found mosques where the worshipers greeted me with friendliness.

Eat if you must. Strangely enough, I found food for sale everywhere in Pakistan and Iran. Nobody was eating, but they were shopping in preparation for breaking the fast. Shopping in daylight hours can be a bit awkward, however. The guy with the rumbling stomach selling oranges in the market knows that Westerner is going to sneak back to his hotel room and gorge himself. I found I couldn’t go the whole day without eating and kept a cache of food back in my room for secret snacks. Out of consideration for the hungry vendors I tried to do my shopping at night.

Know when Ramadan occurs. Ramadan is determined by the Muslim lunar calendar and thus varies from year to year. The exact start depends on when the first sliver of the crescent moon is spotted, which in 2011 Ramadan will be around August 1.

Be understanding. I get grumpy if my lunch is more than an hour late, so I can imagine what I’d be like if I skipped food all day. It must be extra hard for the smokers. Many folks are going to be a bit edgy. By the afternoon they may be lethargic or will have disappeared to take a long nap. Ramadan is a big challenge, so cut them some slack. Just wait until half an hour after sunset, though, and you’ll find everyone in a festive mood.

Ten wild cab rides that you’ll never forget

by Grant Martin on

Everyone has their own way of immersing in a culture. Some jump in knees-deep into the food scene, massacring the local food blogs and munching their ways through every gastic adventure that they can find. Others enjoy the philosophical and soft-edged days of lounging in street side cafes, watching passers-by and drinking coffee in the early afternoon sun. Here at Gadling though, we prefer the good old cab ride.

It’s pretty surprising what you can pick up about a culture from the cabs, each driver with his own background, each car holding thousands of untold stories. Inspired by the works at the outstanding blog known as HACK, we’ve thus put together 10 of our favorite rides from around the planet below.

1. Cairo
One of the most fun and arguably scariest things about Cairo city life is the traffic. Here, traffic signals are rare and crosswalks are non-existant, meaning cars, taxis, trucks, people and donkeys are all jumbled into a free-for-all on the dusty Egyptian roads. It takes nerves of steel to brave these roads, which is why it’s so fun sitting shotgun in an experienced cabbie’s car. An average ride will involve darting through city traffic honking up a storm while barreling past 1960’s-era Fiats, diladapidated buildings and remnants of Cairo history, all for the grand sum of no more than 4USD.

2. Moscow/St Petersburg
The funny thing about cabs in Russia is that there really aren’t any. Instead, the majority of car service is provided by everyday residents looking for an extra few dollars of income. All you have to do to flag a car is hold your arm out low and wait for a passing vehicle to pull over — it could be the remnant of a cold-war era beater or a shiny new Volkswagon — then mutter your destination and you’re off to the races.

This could be a little unnerving for the first time hithchiker, which is why we recommend a few Stoli and tonics before trying your first time. Another handy tip: if you don’t speak Russian, take a photo of your destination and show the driver.

2b. Moscow at 5AM
Traffic is so thick in Moscow that it’s hard to ever really appreciate the passing city while gurgling through the congested streets. For a real taste of Russian ridesharing, try taking a cab to Domodedovo at 5AM when the streets are clear and when your car’s throttle can really open up. Roll down the windows and watch the amazing city of Moscow fly by as you get an uninterrupted view of the beautiful capital city.3. Tokyo
The most mindblowing thing about Tokyo cab rides is the cordiality. Approaching your target cab, the first thing that you’ll notice is that the door automatically opens and shuts for you — all controlled by the white-gloved driver. The rest of your ride is strangely reminiscent of a ride in a London taxi, with black, fancy leather and all the pomp and circumstance of a ride through Oxford Circus. Set that against the high-neon and non-stop glam of Tokyo and you’ve got yourself a formula for travel contrast bliss.

4. Bangkok via motorcycle taxi
Tuk-Tuks and taxi cabs are the mainstays of Bangkok public transportation, but if you really want to make progress then take a motorcycle taxi. You can pick them up at stations around the city and they’ll provide a helmet and the ride of your life — all you have to do is lean and and hold on tight.

5. Delhi via Tuk Tuk as told by Mike Barish

Plenty of places have pedicabs and rickshaws that cater mostly to tourists. They’re alternatives to cabs, but exist only to be kitchy. In India, however, the small cabs know as tuk tuks are commonly used by locals and tourists alike to navigate the incredible congested cities in the nation’s capital.

The tiny three-wheeled vehicles are as ubiquitous in Delhi as cows in the streets and the smells of spices in the air. They’re loud, mostly uncomfortable and expose you to the exhaust fumes from the trucks that suffocate the city’s highways.

All that said, tuk tuks are convenient and get you to where you’re going much quicker than walking. They cost a pittance (think $5 or less), can be found everywhere and usually idle on the side of the street, making it easy to approach and speak with the driver about the price. Once you get going, though, don’t expect to converse much. You’ll be lucky if you can still hear your own thoughts.

6. Enroute to Pudong Airport, Shanghai
The only thing slowing your cab driver down between downtown Shanghai and the international airport at city’s edge is the glaringly obvious radar banks over top of the highway. Imagine yourself comfortably crusing at 95 miles/hour on the People’s highway at 6AM when WHAM, the cabbie slams on the brakes and you slow to 45 for 2000 feet. Get a safe distance away and VRRroooooom, you’re pressed against the back of your seat on your way to the International Space Station once more.

7. Zambia as told by Willy Volk
After our bus from Livingston, Zambia, to Sesheke (a border crossing in the southwest of the country) choked and died, my friend and I sat in the scalding sun waiting for repairs. After about 90 minutes, an approaching pickup stopped when it saw potential passengers sprawled in the dust. Able to outbid the others for seats in the uncovered rear of his truck — we paid the equivalent of $2 each — we high-fived each other, jumped in the back, and sat down … on fifty-kilo bags of uncooked sweet potatoes.

For the next four hours — during which we covered maybe 100 kilometers — we rumbled, bumped, and jounced along southwestern Zambia’s dusty, desolate M10 “highway.” Cinnamon-colored dirt coated my skin and, together with the smoke from roadside fires, filled my nostrils. Bouncing over potholes as large as truck engines, we repeatedly flew in the air and landed hard on the solid, gnarled edges of the sweet potatoes. Bang, bang, bang: our asses smacked those unforgiving, rock-hard bags every 10 seconds for hours. Bang! When we were finally able to crawl out of our tortuous ride, we hobbled to the boat launch — Namibia’s immigration office lay on the other side of the Zambezi River — only to discover we’d missed the day’s final boat and had to be ferried across in a dugout canoe.

8. Technology touts in Taipei as told by Darren Murph
One of the unfortunate results of the broad information infrastructure in Taiwan is that streaming video is everywhere on the island, which means that more than a few cabbies are all-too-distracted by what’s going inside of the cab instead of outside. Darren recounts the full experience with photos over at Engadget.

9. Mexico City
They say tha cabs in Mexico City aren’t the safest in the world, but it’s just so hard to resist the cute little green Volkswagon Beetles that chortle through the street. Provided you have a good command over the Spanish language or at least a good idea of where you’re going, make sure to jump in the back seat of one of these vochos — there’s as much history in these taxis as there is in the city at large.

10. London
Sure, it’s cliche to tout the cultural value of the London taxicab, but there’s no question about it: it’s a rite of passage. From the iconic, black taxi styling to flip-down seats to the near-perfection of every London cabbie the experience is sure to please — just make sure you’ve got enough Sterling to make the trip, UK cabs are among the most expensive on the planet.

[Flickr image via Bruno. C.]

Cairo in the full heat of Ramadan

by Grant Martin on

It’s 6:14 in the evening in Cairo, and 140 Muslims are lined up banquet style on the bank of the Nile across from the Marriott Zamalek. A hotel worker scurries across the street shuttling plates of rice, chicken and gravy, placing dishes carefully in front of each anxious visitor, but nobody is eating. A palpable tension hangs at the table; some diners banter back and forth, gesturing cautiously as they avoid bumping into their full drinks and salad bowls; some stare sullenly into the distance; a few lie with their heads on the table unconscious.

Ramadan is in its last week, and the effects of fasting during the daylight hours are starting to show on the faces and in the interactions of Cairenes. Emotions run high on the streets of the city, and as the sun beats down on hungry residents it seems that the smallest infraction can set a temper off. Even those working in the full shade and air conditioning show the weight of the fasting – seem irritable, less patient. Who wouldn’t be?

As I pass by the waiting dinner party and under the 26th of July bridge I wave to the sulking parking lot attendant as he scowls at me and then dive through four lanes of traffic. Brown and gray are not just colors here, they’re the tapestry on which Cairo is painted, filthy cars kicking out smoke and blaring horns as they pass dusty, dilapidated store fronts and acid rain-etched columns. The small respite from this madness comes in Zamalek, where the tree lined streets vainly try to soak up some of the non-stop city blare and hide the permahaze that hovers hundreds of feet above the city.

And then, from deep in the depths of urban Cairo to the east the call to prayer rings forth. Iftar, the traditional breaking of the fast, has arrived. It’s time to eat.

Like clockwork, the rows of dinner guests dig into their food. Now in Zamalek, where I’m currently heading to the market, the shops button up and commerce slams to a halt. Pockets of shopkeepers and residents filter into the street, many seated on the sidewalk in communal circles, many in the traditional Egyptian dress. At the gas station, workers hide at a table positioned behind stacks of oil as they ravenously tear at a loaf of bread while a few unlucky staffers finish up washing the city off of a 1960’s fiat.

A foreigner among Cairenes, I navigate the suddenly crowded city streets, avoiding eye contact with diners and getting closer to the store in mind. On my way out of Cairo airport earlier in the week, I earlier exchanged pleasantries with a group of security guards breaking fast on the side of the street next to their booth. Spotting my curiosity, one held up his bag of milk for me – it’s tradition and polite to share with anyone on the street once fasting breaks.

Today, though the gesture is appreciated, I’d rather not distract anyone from their current meal. Turning off the main thoroughfare and onto a side street, I reflect that Ramadan in Cairo has definitely had an impact my my tourist’s take on the city. Many of the public works and attractions operate on abbreviated schedules so as to accommodate hours for fasting and napping. Alcohol is almost never-consumed, and even restaurants that normally serve it tend to abstain.

And then there are the people. Fasting and sleeping at strange hours brings brings out the best and worst in people. Innocuous, simple tourist questions can quickly become matters of irritation among guides, taxi drivers have little patience for English and it seems that the weight of everyone’s temper balances on the edge of a knife.

After Iftar, however, everything turns on its head. Finally with a stomach full of food the relieved Cairenes head out into the street to finish their day to day business. The city teems with life, with many shops staying open well after midnight and many of the citizens staying out later. Much further into the night, they’ll still be up having their breakfast suhoor right before preparing for another long day of fasting.

As for me, this Iftar meal isn’t necessary but it’s interesting to practice the tradition while deep in the gristle of Cairo. I pick up one Cornish hen and a stuffed pigeon for the pure sake of adventure and make my way back through the melee towards the hotel.

“Welcome back,” says the now-attentive parking attendant, in English as I pass back through the lot. I smile. In the fifteen minutes since I had been away, Cairo is now a completely different city.

Behind the scenes in the Round The World travel machine

by Grant Martin on

So what will you do when you get back?

I’m going to collapse in exhaustion – and turn 40. – Rolf Potts

Gadling Labs was in Cairo for much of last week, helping out on the Herculean effort of developing, shooting, narrating, editing, blogging and publishing the internet travel phenom known as the No Baggage Challenge. The journey, set to prove that luggage can be as much physical as it can be psychological is about 1/3 complete, with the team crossing the northern shoulders of Africa and heading south to Johannesburg.

I met up with Rolf and Justin at the Cairo Marriott late one evening, a sprawling, beautiful property at the edge of the Nile on Zamalek, the leafy island at the center of the city. With few hours of sleep and a bad case of jetlag, my condition was actually pretty similar to the travelers, and as we ate dinner at the edge of the property they caught me up on their day-to-day and future activities. We would be spending the next two whole days filming and editing here in Cairo and there was a lot to do.

Like on most days of production, my time with the team was action packed and exhausting. Each morning the team met for breakfast at Omar’s Cafe at the hotel, discussed strategy, gathered our bearings and polished plans made earlier for the day. On the day that we shot Giza Plateau footage, we were out the door by 8AM, deep in camel negotiation by 9 and wrestling with a crowd of touts and salesmen before lunch – all before heading back to Zamalek, barreling through the city streets and shooting b-roll and side-story footage for later episodes.

Only after returning to the Marriott could we consider lunch (or at that point: dinner) but it was time for post production, so offset in two opposite chairs, Justin and I worked on blog and video content from his room while Rolf compiled dispatches from his tiny keyboard and iPod across the hall. For the two travelers, dinner in greater Cairo wasn’t an option, so I took some time to walk down to a local haunt, pick up some shish and some stuffed pigeon and bring it back to the starving lads. Wrapping up late in the evening, we made plans to meet for breakfast at Omar’s the next day and retired to our rooms in exhaustion.

Twenty-four hours after departing the lush Midwest, the process of planning, shooting, editing and posting a round-the-world travel series was nothing short of exhausting for me. The two days of involvement in the No Baggage Challenge left me completely drained, dirty and sick on my return to Chicago a few days later – I’ve no idea how these two guys can continue to do it around the clock. As I write this from the leafy suburb of Evanston the boys are currently roughing it through Johannesburg — check out their progress at rtwblog.com and wish them luck.

Women travelers have the world at their fingertips with Pink Pangea’s website

by Laurel Miller on

I’m usually allergic to pastels and anything labeled “women-specific,” but Pink Pangea has won me over. The new women’s travel site was launched in June, by world traveler Rachel Trager and two similar-minded female friends. The trio work for an organization that finds overseas volunteer/internship placements for young adults.

Named for the supercontinent that existed 250 million years ago, Pink Pangea is essentially a forum for women’s travel concerns, tips, experiences, and photos. As such, it contains helpful background information and advice on specific destinations and cultural mores.

Says Trager, “We were frustrated that existing travel guides presented–at best–a paragraph that dealt with women’s concerns or non-specific travel information. We know that there’s a lot more information that women need in order to have secure and fulfilling experiences abroad. The hope is for Pink Pangea to help make countries around the world more accessible to women travelers.”

Trager fell in love with travel after working on a kibbutz when she was 18. Since then, she’s traveled extensively by herself, as well as with her brother, friends, and boyfriend. It was while visiting her brother, who was studying Arabic in Egypt, that she first experienced some of the obstacles faced by female world travelers.

“In Cairo, I was scrutinized by my brother’s landlord, who was concerned I was his girlfriend, which would mean that I’d be forbidden to stay with him. In Morocco, I grew tired of the attention I got as an American woman in pants and bought a jalabiya to cover up.” Despite the frustrations that inevitably occur, Trager says, “I travel because I’m interested in seeing how and where other people live. It’s incredibly energizing to realize how large the world really is.”

Popular tags include “modesty,” “safety,” “transportation,” and “shopping.” Even I’ll admit you can’t have a site devoted to women without mentioning shopping; in this case, there are some great tips on regional-specific souvenirs, food, and bargains/rip-offs.

Because this is a public forum, the writing runs the gamut. You’ll find the odd, underage-drinking-in-foreign-country, or “I smoked too much hash in an ashram while journaling”-sounding post, but in general, entries are well-written, informative, entertaining, and often thought-provoking. Lots of cute pics, too.