An American in Tunis: My Ramadan Experience

Five hours in, and my stomach was growling (rather loudly). With six hours to go until I could finally eat, this process was getting infinitely more difficult. As I looked around at my host family, everyone else was going about their normal schedule. How was everyone able to act normal? I was hungry, thirsty, and getting somewhat irritable. Would I be able to last the whole day without food?

The cause of my hunger was my decision to participate in Ramadan festivities alongside my Tunisian friends and host family.

Ramadan is a special time for families to come together and reflect. As an American student living in Tunisia since the end of January, I had the opportunity to live with a host family in the Tunis suburbs. This is the first Ramadan I have ever personally experienced, and I was excited to take part in the family’s activities.

I decided to partake in Ramadan festivities for my final ten days in Tunisia, to soak up all of the culture and fully experience all that the country has to offer during this special time. The festivals, family gatherings, Ramadan television series- all of these will serve as the conclusion to my eventful time in Tunisia.

It all started with a 2 a.m Friday breakfast of pain chocolat (a chocolate filled pastry) and warm milk. Clustered downstairs with my host mother and host siblings, we had our morning meal while discussing our plans for the day and relaxing.  As my only meal for the next sixteen hours, pain chocolat never tasted so good.

Waking up and not automatically reaching for my host family’s daily morning assortment of coffee, tea, honey and bread was incredibly tough. I steeled myself, however, and after two hours I felt prepared to face the day ahead, sans food.

As my host family went about their daily routine, I attempted to work from home. Any tries at concentration were futile. All I could do were read and spend time with my host family watching movies.

Lounging around for the rest of the day, I tried to busy myself with household chores, work from home and my Arabic lessons. To say that I had limited concentration was an understatement.

As hunger pangs began to plague me around 1 p.m (six and a half hours before dinner), my host family was beginning to prepare for the night ahead.

Around this time I walked around La Marsa, usually a hub of activity, with an array of cafes, shoppers, and people relaxing in the sea air. Instead of the usual bustling activity, La Marsa was extremely quiet. It seemed that most people were traveling to their families’ homes or shopping for last-minute supplies. It was a calming silence, and spoke to the sentiment of Tunisians everywhere.

My host mother began to cook around 5 p.m., with the meal planned for around 7:45, when families around the city would break their fast. Cooking was a family affair, as everyone was involved in getting the ingredients prepared, setting the table, hooking up the television outside and, most importantly, cooking.

On the table was an amazing array of food, including brik, chorba, meat, salad, salad with mashed zucchini, my host mother’s signature lasagna, dates, and tajine. After the meal we shared fruit and coffee (which everyone was missing after a day without coffee or soda, staples of a typical Tunisian diet).

With the end of the meal came time to gather around the TV to watch the Tunisian television series that air only during Ramadan. Cell phones were abuzz with friends and family calling to say a happy holiday to everyone, and best wishes for the season. The once-sleepy town came back to life with full force as young Tunisians descended on the cafes for late-night coffees and ice cream, meeting up with friends and extended family. All in all, it was a successful beginning to my Ramadan experience.

As my time in Tunisia comes to a close, it is times like these, surrounding by my adopted Tunisian family, celebrating a seminal yearly event, and experiencing culture firsthand that I am so thankful to have had Tunisia welcome me with open arms. I reflect on my time here, and it is through Ramadan that my relationships, connections, and experiences come full circle. Ramadan is a time to celebrate family and tradition. There is no better way to end my time in Tunisia.