Selemat Idul Fitri

The Muslim fasting month of Ramadan ran from 28 June to 28 July this year; during this time Muslims are forbidden to eat, drink or smoke from dawn to dusk. We spent the majority of the month in Malaysian Borneo, where the huge Chinese population (around 40% or higher) meant that eating at any time of the day was never a problem. Often Muslim- run restaurants would continue to cook throughout the day for their Chinese customers. 

Here in Aceh province, in northern Sumatra, it means lots of crackers and two minute noodles...interspersed with the occasional proper meal eaten discreetly behind closed doors. The province has Sharia Law and is probably the toughest place to be in Indonesia if you are a hungry infidel. 

The end of Ramadan is celebrated with the Idul Fitri feast day; a major national holiday that sees Indonesia's Muslim population return to their native villages to seek atonement for any sins committed over the course of the year and cleansed by the Ramadan fast. Since Indonesia is home to some 200 million Muslims, the holiday means traffic chaos, overbooked accommodation and general madness whenever you try to get from A to B. 

Rather than try and brave the chaos, we decided to sit tight on Pulau Weh, an island off the northernmost tip of Sumatra, and found ourselves a sweet little bungalow overlooking the reef for $7 a night. 

The guys who run the guesthouse here are cool- every evening as the sun goes down their friends gather to hang out, eat, drink and greedily suck down the cigarettes they are forbidden from smoking during the day. We are invited to share their food and drink nightly; we reciprocate with cake and vodka/tonics (which are a huge hit).  As with any religion, there are varying degrees of observance- some have only made it through a few days of proper fasting, others don't mind a beer at the end of the day, some are more strict and keep the fast devoutly. 

We woke up exited this morning about the end of Ramadan and the freedom to chow down at any time of the day again- unfortunately Idul Fitri is a feast day only for those with families to cook for them. Absolutely nothing is open in the village this morning...so we're resigned to yet another noodle and cookie breakfast. Selemat Idul Fitri!!