Googni is a term I grew up using for all types of boil and fry peas and beans – so during Ramadan people would make blackeye peas googni or channa googni. Actually those are the only 2 types I can think of in Trinidad, but there may be others I do recall that as a child, when I saw boil and fry channa on the Iftar dish, I was never impressed. I didn’t understand why people just didn’t curry the channa! It went so much better with the fried kachourie or saheena, plus it was half of being a doubles!!. And not everyone can do a good boil and fry…for years I swore that boil and fry meant “hard and dry”. But it doesn’t have to be like that. Really!

I made almost a pound of blackeye peas.* Sister-the-elder was a bit surprised, but 1. I wanted to have enough for days so I could be sure to replicate some small part of my childhood Iftars and 2. I forgot how much the peas swell when cooked. But back to reason number 1! Typical things people would bring to the masjid for communal iftar – dates of course;  fried stuff like pholouri, kachourie, goolgulah or saheena; fruit like watermelon, bananas, pineapple, apples, grapes; sweet stuff like cake, sweetbread or packaged biscuits; and channa, either curried or boil and fry (googni) or blackeye googni. Chutneys to go along with fried stuff, which also tastes pretty good with channa and blackeye! And maybe some ginger, which is used to help with “gas” after a day of fasting. I cannot replicate all of that at home just for me, or even for me and the sister, but having googni around is part of that traditional meal. So I have been breaking fast with it every day since I made it, taking a little container of it with me when I go to sister-the-elder’s. When I had first made it, she wasn’t sure about it because I had omitted pepper, which she considers essential to the dish. However, come her first day of fasting, possibly feeling those reminiscing urges as well, she asked me to bring along enough for her in my container and we had it with some tamarind chutney along with our dates and cake.

I’ve spelt it “googni” but if you do a search for “ghugni” or “ghoogni” you might encounter the root of the term and how it is used in the Eastern part of India (Oriya cuisine) or in Bihari cuisine. While some versions may use different types of peas, or add potatoes, it seems common that googni consists of some kind of peas sautéed with spices and aromatics. My aunt suggested the addition of saltfish, which would seem very West Indian The combination of spices and herbs can be infinitely varied to suit your taste, compliment your peas or the accompaniments. Just make sure you cook the peas enough!

RECIPE

• 2 cups dried blackeye peas (Although you could cook canned peas, I tend not to like the taste of canned peas. Plus blackeye cooks really quickly)
• 1 large onion, diced finely
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed slightly
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3-4 pimento (seasoning) peppers, diced finely
• (bird pepper or hot pepper, diced finely)
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives
• 1 tablespoon chopped bandhania (culantro, shadow beni)
• 2 teaspoons (roasted) ground geera (cumin)
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• salt and pepper to taste
• oil for sautéeing
• (any combination of herbs and spices)

1. Boil blackeye peas in water, with smashed garlic and salt to taste until cooked. (I cooked them in a pressure cooker and they were done in 15-20 minutes). Drain the peas.

2. Use a wide, deep pan (I used a wok). Heat oil on medium-low heat. Add onions and peppers and sauté until the onions are translucent (I like my onions WELL cooked).

3. Add minced garlic and chives, stir for about 20-30 seconds.

4. Add peas, with the bandhania, geera, coriander and black pepper to taste. Stir constantly to mix thoroughly and check for salt. It’s ok if the peas get a little mashed in the process. The flavours will get to the core of the bean!

Enjoy as is, or with some chutney!

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* peas and such are sold by the “pint” in Guyana, which is somewhat less than a pound.

This year, I thought I’d share a little of how I approach these important meals, as we are near the end of the first week of Ramadan.

Day 1
Suhr – got up, thought really hard about what to eat, but had no appetite. I am NOT a breakfast person or a morning person and I settled with drinking lots of water. Bad idea! I was headachey and tired all day. One MUST plan better!**

Iftar – Although feeling miserable, I got home in time to MAKE food. I made a potato, broccoli and cheese frittata, browning thinly sliced potato before adding the egg to get a beautiful crispy bottom. I also boiled corn with garlic, chives and bandhania (shadow beni) from my little herb trough and coconut milk. Yum. Although the headache didn’t go away till I had a cup of tea. Tea has now become a fixed part of my tradition this Ramadan

Day 2
Suhr – One benefit of cooking the night before was having a Suhr all ready and waiting – the frittata and lots of water made a great Suhr and this fast was much easier, alhamdulillah. I got work done although I developed a craving for a real cheesy macaroni pie, maybe with beef in it.

Iftar – I believe I broke fast at sister-the-elder’s and I cannot recall what exactly I had…hmm…but I had tea eventually! Her oven wasn’t working so NO macaroni pie!

[man...this hard! where are my notes?? like I took notes! sigh...or PHOTOS]

Day 3
Suhr – Uhm…Toast! With…butter. Actual butter because I am out of margarine. And mucho agua. It was Saturday and as per usual I crashed after Fajr so this was an easy fast. Although I DID do laundry! AND I made blackeye peas – blackeye googni (boil and fry peas) because it’s one of the non-fried things that always makes an appearance at communal iftars and I wanted it.

Iftar – Of course I had the blackeye peas – Went over to sister-the-elder’s where her oven WAS working and armed with cheese, we made MACARONI PIE. As well as some mini oatmeal-chocolate chip-almond muffins. All with the help of the almost-3 year old and the 4.5 year old, both of whom conspired to wake up the 7 month old so we had him in there too.

Day 4
Suhr – Macaroni Pie of course. And a Kiss goodie. And the water.

Iftar – uhm. Blackeye peas. Oh, and some simply cooked Brazilian food – steak, pan-grilled then topped with tomatoes and onions, yellow rice with carrots, fried plantains (diced not sliced) and sweet potatoes. Was pretty good! [Again...no photos...]

Day 5
Suhr – This was yesterday…and I cannot remember…oh…a granola bar I think. And water.

Iftar – stayed home and had the blackeye peas. Then made grilled cheese sandwiches on the tawah. With tomatoes, chive and bandania snipped from my herb trough and a mixture of cheeses. Yummy.

Day 76(today!)
Suhr- didn’t feel like trekking downstairs, was very groggy. Had a pack of those Go-Ahead biscuits (kept in my room for just such times!) and water.

Iftar – as you can see in the photo at the top, blackeye peas (going strong I made a ‘pint’), cake and dates. Followed by PIZZA. We made a couple with a biscuit dough like crust (like the one used in my cheese rolls) and 3 from Rose Levy Berenbaum’s recipe. So of course, pizza will be my Suhr!

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*See previous post on how Ramadan starts.

** My Halal Kitchen has some tips on preparing/planning for meals during Ramadan.

[can you believe I had to edit this post because I counted the days wrong? No wonder I couldn't remember these things!]

Ramadan is a month where Muslims try to be the best Muslim they can be, in addition to the daily fast (from dawn to sunset) and the additional night prayers (Tarawih). Because it focuses on a month of fasting culminating in one of the two official Muslim celebrations – ‘Id ul Fitr** – you would find some attention to food during this month. And thus there may be activity on Lifespan of a Chennette during Ramadan especially if I manage to partake of or make some favourite childhood delicacy or experience something new and fantastic from the Muslim Ummah.

You can check out my Recipes page for some of the traditional treats Muslim Trinis might enjoy during this month – savoury ones like accra, kachourie, baigani, or sweet like halwah and sawine. Or read some of my Ramadan to see what I might be getting up to when it’s quiet on the blog!

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*The moon was not visible last night in our part of the world, but as it was announced in Saudi Arabia, Europe and parts of the USA, some jamaat (congregations) may have started fasting today, based on the ‘international sighting’ school of thought.

**‘Id ul Adha is the other celebration, and is technically the Big Eid.

Falafels are that ubiquitous Middle Eastern item – savoury, crunchy, fried balls of beany-goodness. Some may say falafels are Israeli, there may be other countries laying claim to the source of these delicious vegetarian protein-packed treats, but I am no food historian, so I won’t get into the debate. You can check out Wikipedia. Falafels are great on their own, eat with a tahini (Middle Eastern sesame seed paste) dip, or as shown above with one of the chutneys Trinis serve with all our savoury deep fried goodies – in this case a boiled mango chutney. In fact, falafels are so similar to Trini kachouries (ground yellow split pea fritter), that they should be recognised as siblings. Falafels are also commonly served popped into pita bread, for a deliciously filling sandwich. Falafel like this is street food, and like the Trini doubles, or bake and shark, they’re sold with “a vast variety of ingredients and sauces to fill … falafel (pita) sandwiches” (burekaboy‘s Falafel 101 is an excellent guide and recipe to perhaps more authentic Falafel).

While the most commonly found falafel is made from chickpeas (channa, an ingredient extremely familiar to Caribbean people, especially Trinis), Egyptians traditionally made theirs from fava beans. Mom always made hers using lentils and bulgur wheat. Much more like a vegetarian kibbe actually. She says it’s because she never liked fava beans, so…lentils…after all she grew up with it in jedra!. And burekaboy noted that his Lebanese neighbours added bulgur. So Syrian-Lebanese-Trini variation maybe.

This recipe is really simple. Really. Soak beans for 24 hours, add lots of fresh herbs and aromatics. Use food processor or blender if you want a smoother texture. And fry. Voila. Don’t believe me?

RECIPE
Makes about 40
Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb dry chick peas
• 1/2 lb dry lentils (or use 1 lb chick peas)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup chopped fresh herbs of your choice (parsley, chives, shadow benny/cilantro etc)
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp geera (cumin)
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• salt and black pepper to taste (taste the batter raw, go ahead)
• possibly a few tbsps of flour (or dhal flour)

optional: some fresh bird or other hot pepper to your tolerance level

1. Soak beans in enough water to cover about 2 inches over. Add baking soda. Leave for 18-24 hours.

2. Rinse beans well and let drain.

3. Put beans and all other ingredients in food processor or blender and zap away. (I like the food processor because I like it chunkier – it’s super crunchy that way and I love the texture).

4. You can store this in the fridge for a couple days, although I have noticed that it might need a little flour to bind after this.

5. Put about 2 inches of oil in a heavy pot and heat to medium high.

6. Check the mix to see if it needs flour – squeeze a golf ball sized in your hand and see if it sticks together. If it does, then take a heaping tablespoon of the mix, shape into a slightly flattened ball and fry. If it holds up and doesn’t burn, then you’re good to go without flour and the oil isn’t too hot. If the mixture breaks up in your hand or in the oil, then add a few tablespoons of flour and mix so it can be shaped easily. Until you get the hang of it, fry one at a time. Keep hands moist.

7. Fry the falafel until golden brown (lentils in the mixture will make it a bit browner) and drain on paper.

Serve with a tahini dip (maybe recipe to follow, although I relied on Mom to do this!) or a spicy Trini chutney (tamarind is really really good).

Our (sister-the-elder and I) prep for Eid started earlier in the week with discussions on menu and making lists. I’m doing Eid with her family here in Guyana and not in Trinidad. So, we basically have to cater for the mosque crew tomorrow from lunch onwards (which will NOT be curry since that’s the primary food group they’ve been enjoying all month long at the masjid). And then another big do in the week for other friends, which will be curry (alhamdulillah, because it means less I have to actually cook!). And then, super ambitious this year – I am going to have a few people over next weekend for a small Eid dinner. Haven’t done that since my student days in Edinburgh. I usually just am part of a larger family thing either at home in Trinidad, or here in Guyana with my sister. So lots of menu planning and cooking.

All 3 events will need some sweets. And after our years of experience with Mom, we try to set aside some nights in the week before Eid to make large batches of sweets. This was somewhat hampered by lack of essential ingredients (NO Nestle’s cream? Can you imagine?? I can only surmise the distributor in Trinidad just kept all there!). But 2 nights ago we made gulab jamoon – 206 of them, fried in batches of 13 and then sugared in a quick icing sugar glaze. We had planned to make one of those large cartering size sheet pans of barfi…but no cream and no desire to be creative and experimental with such a core sweet. So tonight we made halwa – 1.5 lbs of semolina halwa! All this while fending off 2 little ones and with the varying helpfulness help of a pre-teen and teen.

We also did some prep for the more savoury courses – boiled 5 lbs potato for the potato salad, ground 3 lbs of channa and lentils for falafel, cooked the 4 lbs of minced beef for lasagna, someone cut up and season the 20 lbs of chicken and made sure we had more than enough green seasonings and other ingredients. We also made a macaroni pie with lots of cheese and mustard…and minced beef (which won’t pass Lilandra’s standards because of that one little addition). It made a good dinner for the night of Eid, followed by ice cream (and goodness, the places little ones can drip and drop ice cream is amazing…and they don’t go for the no-stain coconut…no, it has to be chocolate…)

So for those who are interested, our menu (a la Lilandra’s usual style)

Eid Day

• Falafel
• Tahini dip (darn got to remember to dig out the tahini from my fridge!)
• Lasagna
• Yellow Rice
• Stew Chicken
• Potato Salad
• Green Salad
• Halwa
• Gulab Jamoon
• Sawine

(It may not sound particularly exotic, but we’re looking forward to it, so it’s festive enough!)

Wednesday
Curry – which should be roti, rice, curried meats, punpkin, bhagi…you get the idea)
Plus the sweets

Saturday Night

• Falafel
• Bulgur Pilaf
• Trout Filets baked (perhaps stuffed) in a sour cream/lime sauce
• Chicken Biriyani OR
• Chicken Kebab inspired dish (with Middle Eastern seasonings – time to break out the sumac I brought from Hajj)
• Potato, Eggplant and Feta dish
• Usual sweets (whatever’s left)
• Baklava (if I can find filo pastry)

It’s already close to midnight and I still have to sort out my clothes, so I won’t even try to put more photos in this post. You can browse my Flickr stream for Eid photos and enjoy!

Yes, I know, this is primarily a food blog, and people might think I spend a lot of time cooking, or getting food supplies, but recently, not so much. And to actually get out there on a Saturday!! Saturdays I am not usually sure I am alive, much less active. So I hope and pray insha Allah (God willing) that the focus continues. I’ve found over the years, that focus during this month makes me more efficient at work too – getting things done more quickly and getting OUT the door and home. So we can all hope for some more food talk on this blog during this month too as it relates to Ramadan of course.

*****

Speaking of good happenings, several weeks ago the ever-so-kind people at Amazing Trinidad Vacations contacted me to interview Chennette for their site. I took a while, but they were patient thankfully, and the interview is now live on their blog. I am very flattered that they asked me – one of the previous interviewees was David Rudder!!  The site is intended to be a vacation guide to Trinidad and Tobago, starting with the personal experiences of the hosts (a family affair, Trinis and Trini by marriage) and providing information on the destination, culture, food etc – it’s a good online resource to refer people to as a starting point. Even for locals – especially those who missed out on the family’s Maracas trips

One really popular search recently is for the “ghost of the solomon hochoy highway” “claxton bay ghost” “the story about the little girl in the white dress by claxton bay in trinidad and tobago”, leading to my post on the Haunting of the Solomon Hochoy Highway. THe popularity has resurged based on the recent reports in the Trinidad and Tobago Express on the government investigations into the “death highway” (which is apparently caused by speeding, dangerous curve and high wind, but mostly speeding – that’s the official word!) People have still been commenting on the original post, adding their bits of knowledge to the history and folklore. The T&T Express seems to have done an investigative piece on the story though, confirming that the statue and site of disturbances is Forres Park, providing input from estate workers etc. Apparently this year is 100 years since the poor girl died.

From the story -

“Maria was the daughter of a Forres Park estate overseer who died near the highway in March 1909 while on her way to warn her lover that he was about to be killed because her parents did not approve of their love affair. Shortly after her death, a statue of the Virgin Mary [by her grieving father] was erected near the spot where she died. It was some years later that the statue was desecrated by a mentally impaired woman who claimed it was not responding to the questions she had asked it. In a fit of anger, the story goes, she climbed the pedestal on which it stands and decapitated the statue.

Former workers at the Forres Park sugar estate testified to the decapitation and they also knew why the statue was erected by the overseer. …Harry Seedas, a former worker on the estate, was the last person to testify about the accuracy of the event. Seedas died a few years ago leaving behind the story of a legend that has captivated the minds of many for years. This year marks the 100th anniversary of her death and residents are planning a religious ceremony in commemoration of her death and to make every effort to have her spirit put to rest.”

Another frequent search is for the “Good Eats burger” or the “Alton Brown hamburger” or the very specific “grind your own meat burger”. I imagine there’s a great demand for burgers on the US Independence Day (Happy Independence Day to any US readers!), so I hope my AB Burger post was helpful.

July 4th is also an important anniversary for us in the Caribbean. On this day, in 1973, 4 regional leaders signed the Treaty of Chaguaramas, creating the Caribbean Community. In Guyana, it’s CARICOM Day and we get a holiday on Monday. Yay, us! (I mean the Community, not just us lucky folk working in Guyana.)

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Although I have not been blogging (or taking photos) recently, my creativity has not been wanting. It’s just all been sucked in by the exigencies of the day job. It’s a crying shame when your JOB makes you use that part of your brain you reserve for your own activities. I mean, it’s been rewarding and fun to do things that are not necessarily all about law and procedure, but I don’t know. I am undecided. After all, I have all of, I don’t know 10 faithful readers, and those eager search-engine users to serve. You don’t pay me, but that’s ok. That’s what the job was for right?  Anyway, if I get to put away the job for tomorrow and Monday (holiday!!!) then perhaps there will be more to blog very soon. After all Lilandra is visiting, and we have been cooking from time to time.

I’d always known of the 2 kurmas, and gulab jamoon, as separate entities, and it was only once I hit high school that I realised there was any other way of thinking. Kurma growing up (in a primarily Indian village in Central Trinidad), was really the fat kurma, served as sirni (sweet) after Juma in the mosque on Friday, or at Muslim functions and weddings in little plastic bags (fancy boxes and paper bags developed in later years). There were only a couple families I knew who would sometimes make and bring the thin kurma, which in my mind, was the kind normally sold in shops A recent conversation with a friend who also grew up in Central area, provided a possible reason that we didn’t get much thin kurma growing up – being Christian and surrounded by both Muslim and Hindu neighbours, she remembers getting fat kurma from the Muslims and thin kurma from the Hindus. AHA! It all made sense.

Thinking back to my sources of kurma, and checking with Mom, this explanation was indeed valid. In fact, back when lines between Muslim and Hindu Indo-Trini foods were more defined, you wouldn’t ever get thin kurma from a Muslim household! Muslims served sawine, halwa, maleeda and fat kurma. I used to wait to go to Hindu weddings to get karhi (the dhal with pholourie-like things in it) and even to this day some traditionalists say channa and aloo is “Hindu food”. Mom says long-time, paratha (buss-up-shut) was the roti of choice at Muslim weddings, while dhalpuri was the only roti served at Hindu weddings. Fortunately, I firmly believe if food is good and halaal, there should be no other distinctions In any event, gradually over time, these lines in the sand have been eroded to the point that people outside or within these communities never even think about such categorisations.

But back to the fact that there are 3 fried sweet dough things!

Thin Kurma is made from the least rich of the doughs, which is rolled out flat and cut into thin, rectangular strips, deep fried, then coated in a sugar syrup (paag). Simply Trini Cooking has an excellent step-by-step recipe with photos.

Fat Kurma is a little richer and should taste of some spice (cinnamon, clove and ginger). The dough is usually rolled into ropes, which are cut at an angle into diamond-like cuboids, deep-fried and coated in sugar (usually ending up in white, clumpy, oh-so-sweet sugar all over). It should only be crunchy on the outside, and soft and a little fluffy on the inside.

(Trini) Gulab Jamoon is fried balls of a dough enriched with spices, butter and condensed milk, then glazed with sugar. Traditionally made in elongated ovoid shapes, hand-rollled individually (see photo on the right).

But onto the FAT kurma recipe!

Ingredients

* 2 kg flour
* 500 gm butter/margarine
* 1 tin condensed milk
* 1 tin evaporated milk and 1 tin of water mixed
* Ground spices to taste – cinnamon, elaichi (cardamom) and clove
* 6 tablespoons finely grated ginger (or as desired)
* Oil for frying
* 1 kg granulated sugar (plus 1 cup)

Method

1. Mix flour and margarine completely until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.

2. Add half the tin of condensed milk, half the ginger and the evaporated milk and water and mix well.

3. Knead the dough until it is smooth.

4. Separate the dough into 4 balls and knead again to a smooth surface and allow to rest.

5. Put oil to heat in a heavy pot.

6. Roll out a ball to 1/2″ thick and cut into 1 1/2″ strips. Roll these strips slightly into ropes, and cut at an angle into 1 1/2″ pieces. Alternatively, don’t roll into a rope but cut the strips, turning/twisting the strip after each cut.

7. Fry the pieces in batches until golden brown. Repeat for each ball.

8. Leave the kurma in a large basin to cool and continue until all the balls are fried as directed above.

9. Divide the unsugared Kurma into 2 or 3 basins and have sturdy spoons for mixing.

For the Paag (Sugar Syrup):
10. Put sugar and one cup of water to boil in a large pot with the remaining ginger until the sugar mixture spins a thread when dropping from a spoon.

11. At this stage add the remaining half tin of condensed milk and boil again until the mixture spins a thread.

12. Divide this mixture equally between the basins and stir continuously until the kurma is evenly coated. You’ll need help to mix all kurma at the same time or the paag will harden. Unless you just keep the kurma in one large basin and turn it all at the same time.

13. Transfer to another bowl or tray to spread out a bit so that the kurma doesn’t clump together.

This is usually served in little clear plastic bags, but you can go ahead and pop them in just like that. Go brave!

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* just to clear up other possible confusions, this has nothing to do with korma which is a type of creamy curry, originating in Pakistan or North India

** oh, harken back to school bazaar days promising many Indian Delicacies for sale!

I don’t get home to Trinidad until Friday, and this is my first Eid in Guyana with no family around, but insha Allah tomorrow I meet with friends and others to celebrate and enjoy until I reach home, and cook

The course of my Ramadan has been somewhat different. This is the 4th Ramadan in this job, and the 4th Ramadan where I have spent significant time in airports and hotels. Yes, if anyone is wondering, it is rare that any month passes without my having to get on a plane and go somewhere. In fact the very first meeting out of Guyana I had to attend, coincided with the beginning of Ramadan…It’s not usually very far somewhere, or for too long, but I do wish, that it wasn’t in Ramadan. Especially a Ramadan where I wanted to focus on preparations for the Hajj. But it has given me the idea for this post! How to fast in hotels in the Caribbean For anyone who might be wondering.

I come from Trinidad and Tobago, and currently live in Guyana. In both these countries there is a significant Muslim population (6% and 10% respectively) – significant as compared to the rest of the region. So you can expect that people would be a little more aware of the existence of Ramadan, and the requirement of fasting. In the tourist industry, however, where this part of the world may not often see practising Muslims as a significant portion of their clientele (rum and bikinis, you know ) Actually, in many hotels in the Caribbean, even though they may have business clients, the vacationers and sunseekers are the majority. So sometimes finding wifi or a printer is as hard as finding someone who understands why you need to have food at 4 am.

Travelers are exempted from the fast, although they will have to make it up after Ramadan (or pay the fidiya). Given my work demands, however, I could end up only fasting a few days out of the month, and I’d prefer not to do that. Especially where I had to travel only to St Vincent or Grenada, passing through overnight in Trinidad first. These are flights of less than an hour and no time zones involved. Plus it’s on the little planes, so there’s no real hardship. It’s a personal choice. Believe me, I tried fasting on the way to Jamaica once, and the BWee planes fly higher and I got so dehydrated (especially since you start out by leaving home at 3 am to catch the flights from GEO to POS, then POS to BGI to ANU then finally Kingston). Somewhere after Barbados, my throat felt so dry and hard it hurt and I could not even begin to imagine what the rest of the day would be like. So I utilised my exemption gratfeully. Of course, that was the trip where I began my typhoid symptoms, so maybe it wasn’t just the fasting!

A Muslim’s fast is the same whether in Ramadan or out – between Dawn and Sunset, we do not eat or drink (anything, not even water), refrain from telling lies, sexual relations and generally try to live a day following all the requirements of prayer and a Muslim life.

This means that we eat before Dawn (which is some time before Sunrise) and then eat something to break the fast at Sunset. When you’re at home, or in a Muslim household, meal preparations are organised according to this schedule, so there’s no worry. When you’re in a hotel that’s not in a Muslim country, it’s often a bit more complicated to ensure you have food at the right times.

Getting food at 4 am or whatever time Dawn is in that country (another thing you need to do, get a hard copy of the prayer times BEFORE you arrive in a hotel where you don’t have internet access to get on to islamicity.com or islamicfinder.org) is not always easy. If you’re in a super posh hotel with 24 hour room service, matter fix – either pre-order your food to be delivered at an appropriate time (with an accompanying wake up call) or wake up early enough to order, and your Suhr will arrive at your door. This is also easy if you’re in an all-inclusive with 24 hour food. It may only be light snacks or breads etc that they keep out somewhere, but I’m not a huge eater for Suhr, so this is fine.

The more usual scenario, even if you’re in those luxury places, is trying to get some food in your room before you go to sleep, so that it’s there when you wake up, even if you wake up a little later than desired. This is also not a problem if the hotel is in a location with supermarkets or such stores – get some bread, pastries, even some sandwiches that can keep for a few hours (don’t forget the drinks). If not, you have to get it out of the hotel – unfortunately, the restaurant menu doesn’t always cater for such food, especially in small places, but if you explain it you can get nice folks to make up some sandwiches, or provide some extra bread at dinner and bottled water or juices.

It would make sense that Iftar is the easier meal to organise and it can be, most times. However, in the Caribbean, Sunset is usually between 5.50 and 6.30 p.m. (approximately). Most hotels/restaurants don’t start serving dinner until after 7 p.m. Not too much of a problem if you’re breaking fast at 6.30, but last year for example, I was in an all-inclusive in Jamaica in October where the buffet didn’t start until 7.30 and I was breaking fast around 6. And there was not a lot of food to be had nearby until then. Sigh. Anyway, you can sometimes recognise a fasting person during this month at meetings – they’ll be the ones not eating (yeah, surprise) scouting the break table and wrapping up pastries and goodies in a napkin so they’ll have something quickly at hand when it’s time for Iftar. Or, if it’s one of those meetings where there’s always food, the fasting person will be scrutinising her watch or the horizon for several minutes and moving to the table at the right time. Thereafter ducking out for Maghrib prayer (unless joining with Isha).

At that same all-inclusive, I’d break fast and then wait patiently for dinner to start. I’d be practically the first one at the buffet! Not just because of hunger, but because I needed to scout out the manager before they got too busy, so they’d give me a take away plate or box for Suhr. Remember I spoke about posh all-inclusives? Well, not-so-posh all inclusives have serious restrictions about when food is served, and taking food up to your rooms etc (can’t have people hiding up there eating free). Every night I had to explain my case to clueless servers, who, to give them their due, found senior persons who would easily authorise my request. Then, I’d scout the buffet sections to grab up cool breads and fruit and things I thought would keep well overnight. Since I was eating that early, I was also grabbing later-in-the-night snacks, especially if I was up working.

All of this is much better when you have a mini-fridge in the room. Even better if it’s a kitchenette! Two weeks ago I spent a week in Grenada, and since I passed through Trinidad a few days before, I went in with food – dhalpuri, curry saim, pizza, real food! and SNACKS! I figured as I would end up buying the same Trini snacks in Grenada, may as well buy them at the cheaper home rate The supermarket option for a fasting person is always cheaper though – room service can rack up those bills. But when you’re passing through relatively quickly, and don’t have a whole lot of time between meetings to go out into the street and shop, you have to get the hotel to work with you. If they understand the nature of service, it shouldn’t matter if they don’t entirely understand the reasons you need food at odd hours. It’s almost like being on Travel Spies, and judging the merits of a hotel on how well they can cater to the needs of the fasting