Ramadan Kareem!

[allionna]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

Allionna, being a bit closer to the equater, sunrise and sunset at this time of year are both about 7, and doesn't change too much through the year. My understanding is the "rules" say you should follow the hours the the University of Cairo follows if you are far off of similar to Mecca. It is really quite unrealist for a Muslim in Norway, for instance, to follow actual sunrise and sunset where they are. But apparently they still do sometimes!

The rule you mentioned may be used in some places where, at times, there may not be a sunrise or sunset, but otherwise it does not really seem to be taken into consideration. In general, Muslims fast based on the timings of Fajr and Maghrib prayers. Fajr is the first prayer of the day, which is about an hour before sunrise. Maghrib is the 4th prayer of the day, which takes place around sunset. Muslims in the New England area are fasting around 16 hours, from ca. 4 am until a little after 8pm. I have friends and relatives in Europe that are fasting up to approx. 17 hours depending on where they live. Also, depending on where you live, the start of Ramadan and the prayer times are based on different societies / councils. Ramadan is marked by the sighting of the new moon. In otherwords, when you can just see a slight sliver of the moon. In the US, generally the rules of the Islamic Society of North America are followed. Many times they choose to follow calculations of when the new moon will be seen, rather than waiting to see if someone physically sees the moon in North America.

As for the crankiness mentioned in other posts, the first few days are the hardest, but it gets better. In my case, the limited sleep affects me more than the not eating or drinking anything. The last prayer of the day is around 9:45pm these days, so I don't get to bed until 10-10:30 and I have to be up and finished eating around 4am. I have a hard time falling asleep after eating in morning and have to get up around 7am to get ready for work. As a result of getting up to eat, I miss out on sleep. I am not always the nicest person when I am tired, but I adjust to the change in my sleeping pattern by taking naps at lunch and taking my lunch later in the day when I know I am more likely to be irritable.