First Visitors in the month of Ramadhan

Mama Tok's kitchen is under renovation for one day so she decided to break fast in our house together with Tina, Lalan and Nad. Jo is breaking fast outside with her friends so we decided to buy the food from the restaurant and bring it to the house instead. And thus keeping our showroom kitchen clean and tidy. And I just realise our gas tank is still not empty after one year.

Reunion Dinner for Ex-SMSS

 Pictures courtesy of Ahmad Shahzali

I received an invitation to break fast with my former schoolmates (from Sekolah Kebangsaan Serdang and Sekolah Menengah Sri Serdang) and really looking forward to it. This is because I haven't seen some of them for nearly 22 years. When we finally meet up again, I can remember some of the faces but not their names. And for some others I could only remember their names but the faces look a bit different. I really enjoyed breaking fast with them and we talked about the old times for hours. When it's time to go home, we made a promise to meet up again, maybe having a picnic together.

Breaking fast with the orphans

Today we are invited to attend a charity breaking fast event organised for Rumah Amal Peribadi Mulia, Prima Saujana Kajang at the Borak Coffee Shop, Prima Saujana. One of the organisers are the parents of Aisyah, Maisarah's schoolmate. While waiting for Maghrib, we were treated to Quran recital and religious talk by a prominent ustaz. After breaking our fast and performing Maghrib prayer, there were performances by the orphans in form of poem recital, nasyid and dance. TV3 personality, Azizah Ariffin hosted the event and towards the end they were holding a birthday celebration for a number of people including Aisyah. Maisarah is very happy because she got to play around with her schoolmate.

First Day of the Fasting Month

Although it is not obligatory for the children to fast during the month of Ramadhan, we encouraged Ilyas to experience how does it feel to be an unfortunate one, those who are struggling to get their food on the plate every day of their life. So we woke him up for the early breakfast and I was quite surprised when I found out that he is still fasting after his evening school ended. However, when there is half an hour left before the breaking of fast Ilyas started to feel restless and asking for a drink. I make him think about something else by playing a computer game with him. After that Jo took him to the bathroom so that he can have his shower. When he is fresh and nice smelling, it is time to break the fast. He easily downed four glasses of water and we had to slow him down so that he can have a proper meal. We are so proud of him because he is so determined to complete his fast. Later on he asked us whether he still had to fast on Saturday and Sunday. Well...

Inconsiderate Driver

We just came back from having a dinner in one of the restaurants in Seksyen 15, Bandar Baru Bangi when I noticed this white car parked behind ours. I couldn't get my car out of the parking area so I thought the owner might be nearby. Jo honked the horn few times but nobody came. One thought came into my mind though. I immediately called the telephone operator and asked for the Bandar Baru Bangi police station phone number. When I called them, I told the person in charge my situation and he promised to send his men over there. 

After 10 minutes, one police car came with the flashing lights (minus the blazing siren of course!) and stopped near my car. Out came the three uniformed policemen and they helped me maneuvering my car out of the parking slot. Suddenly, one young man wearing nothing but his Bermuda short came down from the stairs of the shop house nearby and started to apologize profusely to the policemen. He said he just moved in to the area but I could not see why that is a valid reason to just park your car in the middle of the road when there are lots of empty spaces nearby (both parking slots next to my car are empty by the way). Whilst watching those policemens scolding that young man, I quietly drove away with a smile on my face.

Breaking Fast in Liverpool - Part 4

Today we invited three more families to break fast in our house. We were supposed to have another breaking fast party last Sunday but had to cancel it at the last minute because Ilyas was suffering a mild flu. Thankfully it was nothing serious as he did not has any fever or cough so by Tuesday he is all well and attending his school. During this Ramadhan we have also been invited to several breaking fast party among the Malaysians in Liverpool and we will be attending a couple more in a few days time. We will surely be missing this kind of togetherness once we are back in Malaysia.

Breaking Fast in Liverpool - Part 3

Zaid ibn Khalid Juhni related that the Prophet said: He who provides for the breaking of the Siyam of another person earns the same merit as the one who was observing Siyam diminishing in any way the reward of the latter (Tirmidhi).

Breaking Fast in Liverpool - Part 2

Abu Huraira related that the Prophet said: Allah the Majestic and Exalted said: "Every deed of man will receive ten to 700 times reward, except Siyam (fasting), for it is for Me and I shall reward it (as I like). There are two occasions of joy for one who fasts: one when he breaks the fast and the other when he will meet his Lord" (Muslim).

Breaking Fast Invitation

Barbequed lamb, chickens and mackerels caught in Bangor, Wales (the fish, not the lamb and the chicken)

Nasi Kerabu with huge solok but minus the budu *sigh*

Today is our second invitation to break fast among friends in Liverpool. Unlike the first one where only a couple of families were invited (understandable because the host family is only renting a small 2 bedrooms flat), this invitation is open to all. The host is living in a bungalow so there is plenty of space for everyone. The men break their fast and perform prayer inside the tent while the ladies and the children remain in the house. The main meal is my favourite, Nasi Kerabu and they have the biggest solok I have ever seen. I just wish I brought my specially brewed budu with me at that time.

Ramzan

I got this prayer timetable from a Turkish grocery store. Yesterday was the longest fasting day ever for me and Jo, exactly 17 hours. Towards the end of Ramzan (or Ramadhan as we say it) Maghrib will be more like in Malaysia, at 7.23pm. I wonder what fasting in the UK will be like in few summers time? Maybe Tourism Malaysia can promote a one month Ramadhan holiday package for Muslims in the UK. I'm sure they can arrange daily visits to various pasar malam (night market) and Ramadhan buffets in hotels, things which are definitely will not be found in the UK.

Breaking Fast in Liverpool

Our first day of breaking fast in Liverpool was really nice because we were joined by friends from near and far. Few hours before Maghrib, I went to the city centre to pick up Shima, Jo's best friend since her time at Uniten, who has just arrived from Malaysia the day before. She is here on a three weeks holiday and Liverpool is her first stop.

Bong and his family also took the opportunity to drop by our house to break fast together after their visit to the new shopping centre in Liverpool, which is called Liverpool ONE. I resist the temptation to take a picture inside of their MPV, so full of Cath Kidston shopping bags! Yana insisted that those were meant for her friends. I thought I heard this kind of explanation before from Jo, whenever we received several parcels delivered to our door on a daily basis.

And don't worry, we the husbands believe you guys. Because I am also guilty of buying loads of Manchester United and Liverpool souvenirs for the past few days. Except that not all my friends really asked for them, just a few misguided cousins who support a club who has not won anything since 2006. But it's better to be safe than sorry, right?

Ramadhan Mubarak

Selamat menjalani ibadah puasa di bulan Ramadhan 1429 Hijrah. Hari ini Subuh pukul 4.38 pagi dan Maghrib 8.05 malam. :)

Breaking Fast in Lancaster Part 5

Main course

Dessert

Today we were invited to break fast in Huzaini's flat, along with several other families and friends. It was a lovely dinner, plenty of food to enjoy. After the dinner, the ladies went to other flat to discuss ermm... ladies matters and the kids were in another room to play with each other. So the husbands were left to do something healthy and beneficial, like 'exercising' their fingers with carom pieces.

Breaking Fast in Lancaster Part 4

Today, for a change, we break our fast with fish and chip. But it is not just an ordinary fish and chip, it is an award winning fish and chip. Apparently Hodgson's Chippy of Lancaster had won the National Fish & Chip Shop of the Year back in early 2006. Considering that there are over 11,500 chip shops across the UK, it was quite an achievement. I arrived at the shop around 5.50pm and people are already queueing outside the shop. Honestly there is indeed a difference between their fish and chip with others. The chips are not soggy and the haddock fish was simply delicious and covered with crispy batter. Tomorrow the Malaysian Students' Society will prepare 'nasi paprik' for the iftaar gathering at the mosque. If I had to choose between the two, 'nasi paprik' will always be the top favorite... hehe.

Breaking Fast in Manchester

Still sizzling hot

Yesterday Bong's family and my family went to Manchester to send two of the postgraduates to the airport. One of them is going back for good and another one is going back for Raya. Afterwards we went to my friend G's house near Whalley Range before goig out again to break our fast at a restaurant near Rusholme. This area is full of halal restaurants and shops and we were basically spoilt for choices. Finally we decided to try this one shop named Sizzler. I ordered 'Mix Grill' consisting a variation of lamb, chicken, kebab and other stuff all grilled and lumped together on a plate. Of course it was too much for me to handle so I split it with Bong. On our way home there was an accident on the M61 highway so the traffic was heavy. We finally managed to get back to Lancaster around 11pm.

Breaking Fast in Lancaster Part 3

Last night we went to Imran's, a new restaurant opening in the town with a couple of families and friends. They serve buffet style and charge only £4 for adult and £2 for kid under 10. Anything you can eat. Basically they have the usual suspects such as pilau rice, naan, samosas, kebab sausages, lamb curry, chicken curry, vegetable curry, dhaal, salad etc. The food was nice and we had an enjoyable evening.

Breaking Fast in Lancaster Part 2

Last night we were breaking fast in our flat with friends.

Breaking Fast in Lancaster

Last night, we were invited to one of the postgraduates' house (Novia, June and Fidah) near the town for iftar. They cooked Mee Bandung as the main course. Simply delicious! By the way, those 'pisang goreng' were cooked by my wife :)