By nlgyon
Happy New Year, everyone! You might be thinking, "Nick, what are you talking about? Don't you know it's only November?" Indeed. But yesterday marked the celebration of the Islamic New Year, or the Hijri New Year. This holiday signifies the beginning of the Islamic calendar, which started in 610 AD, when the Prophet Muhammad emigrated from Mecca to Medina, a journey known as the Hijra, hence the term "Hijri New Year." The first day of the first month of the New Year varies from country to country; some calculate it based on local moon sightings, and others rely on astronomical calculations.
While of little significance to a non-Muslim such as myself, I was happy to hear the Prime Minister announce that Thursday, November 7 was an official holiday. I decided to take the long weekend to chill out at home and work on some long-term projects/job searching. As far as I could tell, there weren't any huge public celebrations like there are for the common new year; it seemed like more of a family-oriented holiday, celebrated by attending mosque and perhaps having guests. There were, of course, fireworks. As often as I hear fireworks, I imagine the complement every holiday or celebration. At least I hope they're fireworks.
I'm sorry I don't have any adventures for you this week; they will resume in a few weeks as I reemerge from a deluge of midterm exams, presentations, response papers, case studies, and scholarship applications...