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Ramadan digest
Visit cairolive.com every day during the holy month for interesting tidbits from the Ramadan scene

Jobless in Ramadan
Although for some Ramadan could be a season of high sales, others are left jobless, waiting for the Eid (post-Ramadan celebrations). According to an article in Tuesday's Al-Wafd, the hairdresser and maazoun (the person responsible for performing the marriage ceremony rituals) are on an obligatory vacation for 30 days, waiting for the Eid holidays to boost their job popularity back up to normal levels.
According to the maazoun interviewed by Al-Wafd, people falsely think that it is forbidden for religious reasons to get married in Ramadan -- therefore, people wait till the holy month is over and then start planning for their marriage.
Hairdressers are not that lucky in Ramadan either, as many girls cover their hair with scarves for this month, and the lack of parties and weddings results in less people finding the necessity to have their hair styled. Also, since banquet managers in clubs and hotels regard Ramadan as an opportunity to redecorate, there are rarely weddings or engagements going on.
A similar article in Monday's Al-Akhbar says that koshari (macaroni, rice and lentils combination) and fisikh (salted fish) sellers are having a slow month of business as well, because very few people eat these types of foods in Ramadan.

Soap opera crisis
A cartoon in Tuesday's Al-Ahram shows a child crying and complaining to his mother that "I only have time to watch four soap operas a day and that means God will not accept my fast."

Hassan Youssef sued
In last Saturday's Akhbar El-Youm a tiny article says that the lawsuit filed by Sheikh El-Shaarawi's heirs against actor Hassan Youssef has been postponed to the 25th of November. El-Shaarawi's memoirs will be presented as proof that many of the incidents mentioned in the soap opera "Emam El Doaa" (which is about Shaarawi's life with the sheikh being played by Youssef) are not true. Youssef defended the soap opera to the paper by saying that it only includes real incidents. He is surprised at the criticism because he says the soap opera's main focus is to portray how great El-Sharaawi really was.

FOR SUMMARIES OF THIS AND OTHER RAMADAN SOAP OPERAS CLICK HERE

Hussein Fahmi neglected
In last Saturday's Akhbar El-Youm veteran actor Hussein Fahmi expressed his anger that the soap opera he stars in was being aired on Channel 3 in Ramadan and has not been publicized like many of the other soap operas being aired this month. Fahmi says that he is a great actor who has been in the business for a long time -- thus his soap opera "Al Khareef lan ya'tee abadan" (Autumn will never come) deserves to be aired on the main 2 channels and several satellite ones as well. He also suggested that personal relationships are responsible for deciding which soap operas are aired where. According to the disgruntled Fahmi,  the actors in the main soap operas every Ramadan are the same, leaving little room for innovation.

Regulating funds in Ramadan
During a recently held Islamic conference, Minister of Religious Endowments Hamdi Zakzouk said that the 'omra' (lesser pilgrimage to Mecca) should only be done once. According to an article in Tuesday's Al-Akhbar, Zakzouk said that people should give their excess money to the poor, instead of paying it to perform another 'omra'. Zakzouk also said that the money spent on the  kahk (biscuits) eaten during Eid would be better off going towards the building of hospitals and schools.

RELATED LINKS

GO TO THE RAMADAN 2002 FULL COVERAGE FRONT PAGE

FOR MORE EGYPT RELATED HEADLINES CLICK HERE

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