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A taste of UAE tradition

Arab expatriates and their families in the UAE have been looking forward to joining Hag Al Leila celebrations, observed midway through the month of Shaaban, to feel in their hearts the tradition that only the UAE in the GCC religiously and traditionally celebrates.

Egyptian Khalid Shaaban and wife Lamiya, who have been in the UAE for five years, are among those expatriates, who are excited to participate in the celebrations.

“Preparations for Ramadan actually begin with this night-time celebration ‘Hag Al Leila’, but we do not practice it in Egypt. We observe Ramadan only. When I and my family first came here, I was amazed to see how the UAE celebrates the occasion with fervor and excitement,” Shaaban said.

He said he never missed bringing their children to the Hag Al Leila celebrations so they could learn by experience how Emiratis celebrate this tradition. “I want my children to see for themselves how Hag Al Leila is being celebrated so that they will grow up with this experience in their heart. Then, they will appreciate completely the observance of Ramadan from the first day of its preparation,” he added.

Shaaban came to the Hag Al Leila celebration, organised by the Sharjah Museums on Saturday, in cooperation with other government and private entities at the Sharjah Heritage Museum, with his twin daughters, 14, five-year-old son and six-month-old baby that his wife patiently held in her arms all throughout the four-hour celebration.

Wahiba Al Alawi, a Bahraini student, said that she found joy in witnessing and in becoming part of the celebration. “This is one tradition we miss at home. But, here in the UAE it is very much alive with students, teachers, families and visitors enjoying and preparing before the start of Ramadan. I have learnt a lot and, of course, I am queuing up to go around and fill my traditional bag with sweets, dates, and nuts. I am excited, for this is my first time to join with my teacher and classmates,” she said.

A Kuwaiti national, Wathiqa Al Nafisi, is filled with the same excitement. “I am here for holidays, and reading in the newspaper about the upcoming event, I became curious to see what it is, and how it will be celebrated, for we do not have it. It is heart-warming to see all these girls in traditional dresses singing traditional songs and boys dancing their traditional dances. I am glad I have decided to come at this time of the year,” she said.

Syrian couple, Ashur and Yalda Al Halbi, came with their two sons, aged nine and five. Ashur said, “Hag Al Leila is always in the family calendar yearly. We welcome it, and my boys are looking forward to it when they can participate and come home with the traditional bag full of candies, nuts, and others.”

“Today, they have the special “Halwan” with the Arabic bread as a surprise. So cute,” said Yalda.

Before the start of the celebration, Ashur said that their sons joined in the free educational workshop of making a traditional bag supervised by the staff of the Sharjah Maritime Museum. “It is not only fun. My kids have learnt something new today,” he said.

An Emirati traditional celebration, Hag Al Leila is an annual occasion in the middle of Shaaban — the eighth month in the Islamic Hijri calendar — where families in the UAE exchange sweets and nuts in preparation for the arrival of Ramadan, something they are proud to share with the expatriates in the UAE, particularly Muslims who have not experienced it in their own homeland. lily@khaleejtimes.com