Residents soak up Eid fervour with gusto as Covid fears fade
FESTIVE BREAK PROVES PERFECT FOIL AS PEOPLE WELCOME BACK NORMALITY
The UAE is at its festive best this Eid Al Fitr after two years of Covid-19 restrictions that had made it difficult for people to hold community celebrations. This year, Eid festivities have begun with gusto as extended circles of families and friends have come together right after the Eid prayers to share food, best wishes, Eidiya, laughter and bonhomie.
Son’s 13th birthday
Eid this year has been extra special for Emirati businessperson Moath Hazza Al Baser, as he was able to resume the family tradition of enjoying a sumptuous lunch at this uncle’s home in Dubai.
For the Almededdines — Lina Fadi and their children Zane, Luana and Jude — Eid this year is special. Lina told Gulf News: “We had a sumptuous Eid breakfast with at least ten members of our extended family and was such a joyous feel as we could do this after a gap of two years.”
She added: “The fear of Covid-19 is gone now. The last two years really dampened our spirits as we couldn’t socialise. This year, I was able to host a couple of iftars and the excitement had started building up from then on.” Lina, a Lebanese-American, ushered in her son Zane’s 13th birthday during Eid. This added a special dimension to the celebrations.
Time for families, friends
For Indian expat Raza Beig, CEO of a famous fashion brand, nothing has been more important than a family Eid celebration. This year, with the addition of a daughter-in-law-to-be in the celebrations, Eid is a very special occasion. Beig told Gulf News: “Eid is a special occasion for families and friends to congregate. I have my sisters, their kids and extended family members all living here in Dubai. During the pandemic, we could not meet, which was very upsetting. This year, we are celebrating Eid with all the fervour and festivities possible and the celebrations have continued for nearly 15 hours! We had at least 50 members of our extended family over for lunch.”
Joyous reunion
This Eid Al Fitr has been a time for family reunion for Pakistani expatriate Hassan Latif Talib. Talib, Managing Director at Vital Zone home health care, is spending the Eid weekend at a luxury resort in Dubai, with nine other family members. This Eid is special for Talib because he got to meet his sister Rubina after two years. “My sister Rubina Talib and her husband Junaid Ahmad, who live in Saudi Arabia were not able to visit us for the last two years, owing to the travel restrictions. Similarly, my mother, Shamim Talib, who also was not able to travel here from Pakistan, decided to fly into Dubai, accompanied by my niece Sana, 21. It has been a joyous reunion for us.”
Egyptian expatriate Mohammad Mobarrez and wife Hiba Abdulla and their four-year-old son Abdulla decided to organise an outing with four other families to Hatta. While driving down to Hatta, Mobarrez spoke to Gulf News: “I cannot tell you how happy we feel to be able to pray together inside the mosque, hug each other and go out with friends who are our extended family here in Dubai.”
‘Fulfilled my son’s wish’
Iranian expatriate Mahvin Haghighathjoo was thrilled to have finally fulfilled her son Kian’s wish to celebrate Eid with family at Yas Waterworld. She told Gulf News: “Since I am a photographer and had plenty of assignments doing Eid family photography, I made sure to finish all my work a week prior to Eid, so that I could take the weekend off with my son. He has been very unhappy since we could not go out for the last two years to any amusement park.”
Nurturing family bonds
Eid this year has been extra special for Emirati businessperson Moath Hazza Al Baser, as he was able to resume the family tradition of a sumptuous lunch at this uncle’s home in Dubai. “For many years, we were following this practice. However, since 2020, we were unable to do this and were very sad. This year, we had 30 family members over for lunch and it was such a precious moment to see all the cousins reconnecting.”
Non-Muslims join festivities
While Muslims have been celebrating Eid with families, nonMuslims are not to be outdone in their community celebrations. Indian expatriate Joginder Singh Salaria and his wife Madhu were thrilled to be able to reinstate a practice of 15 years of celebrating Eid with their neighbours Khalid Mohammad and Sobia Khalid again.
Salaria said: “For my wife and me, Khalid and Sobia, our Pakistani neighbours, are family. Barring the last two years, we have always been together with them on Eid and they come to our place on Diwali. This year we are so happy, we could go over to their place for an Eid breakfast and have the traditional Eid sweets and savouries.”