During the month of Ramadan, most people in Yemen fast every day. From dawn to sunset, they abstain from eating food, drinking liquids and smoking cigarettes. It is a spiritual time of the year with extra prayer and reading more Quran. For those who are able, it also is a time to celebrate and eat nice food with family and friends.
In these photos you can see how this small Yemeni family spends their day in Ramadan, how they are preparing their traditional Yemeni food, praying and spending quality time together as a family.
The two little brothers were happy to be photographed wearing the special Arabic "jellabiya,'' which is a loose-fitting, traditional garment worn in Yemen and some other countries in the region. In the photos, the children are wearing the white garment on one day. Another time, they are wearing dark blue.
The dates usually are followed by the main meal, which often is shared with family and friends.
As you can see this family is sitting together. They take their time eating and talking. The foods are specially made for the occasion, mostly by the mother, yet also with a lot of help from other family members.
Many Muslims go to the mosque for the evening prayer, or they stay home and read the Quran or spend nice time with family, watching TV or preparing food for the next day.
Before dawn in Yemen, Muslims eat a light meal again. The little kids are also allowed to fast, not for the whole day, but they can try it for a few hours in order to practice and to enjoy the experience with others around them.
The fast is then started again and morning prayer is performed. Everyone who is able goes back to sleep for a few hours then wakes up again a bit late in the morning or sometimes early afternoon to get ready for the day. Family members then work, study or do other things while waiting for the sun to set again.
Al Jisr – The Bridge – is a collaboration among students and faculty from four public universities in Yemen and faculty and students at The University of Arizona. Students from University of Aden, Hadramout University, Taiz University, University of Saba Region and The University of Arizona are participating in this nine-month cultural exchange project that includes talking about media practices in Yemen and the U.S. Some student work is presented under the Al Jisr Collective name for the security and safety of those contributors.