Egypt Holidays
Government, administrative offices and banks are generally open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day, except for Fridays, Saturdays and public holidays. Most shops are open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day except Sunday. Please note that all these opening hours may vary in shopping centers and during Ramadan.
Fixed dates:
Dates that change according to the Muslim
calendar: |
On Egypt holidays, public transport may run only limited services.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and the most important month in the Islamic Calendar for Muslims, the majority religion in Egypt. Commemorating the time when God revealed the Qur'an to Mohammed, during this holy month, Muslims abstain from eating, drinking or smoking until after sundown on each day.
Although strict adherence to Ramadan is for Muslims only, some Muslims would appreciate that non-Muslims do not take meals or smoke in public places. During Ramadan, many restaurants and cafes won't open until after sundown. Public transport is less frequent, shops close earlier before sunset and the pace of life (specially business) is generally slow.
As
expected, exactly at sunset minute, the entire country quiets down and
busy itself with the main meal of the day (iftar or breaking-fast) that
are almost always done as social events in large groups of friends.
Many richer people offer (Tables of the Gracious God) in Cairo's streets
that cater full-meals for free for the passers-by, the poorer ones or
workers who couldn't leave their shifts at the time. Prayers become
popular 'social' events that some like to enrich with special food treats
before and after. An hour or two later, an astonishing springing to
life of the cities takes place. Streets sometimes richly decorated for
the whole month have continuous rush hours till very early in the morning.
Some shops and cafes make the biggest chunk of their annual profit at
this time of year. Costs of advertising on TV and Radio soars for this
period and entertainment performances are at their peak.
Christmas in Egypt
Egyptians follow Coptic (Orthodox) Church and celebrate Christmas on 7th of January. The preceding Advent season is forty-days long and people abstain from eating meat, poultry or dairy products during this period. However, people only follow this dictum for the last week of Advent. On Christmas Eve, Egyptians attend church dressed in a completely new outfit and the service lasts till midnight. Bells are rung to mark off the end of the service and people disperse after receiving special bread called ‘qurban’ (meaning sacrifice) at the conclusion of the service. This bread has a Holy Cross in the middle and 12 dots to represent the 12 apostles. Then, they eat a special Christmas meal in their homes, which is known as ‘Fata’.
This meal uses bread, rice, garlic and boiled meat as its main constituents. In the morning, people visit their friends and neighbors and exchange ‘kaik’ (a type of shortbread) that is eaten with a drink called ’shortbat’. Christmas is celebrated as a public holiday, especially for the Christians. Since the Holy Family fled to Egypt, the church is decorated with candles and lamps on Christmas to remind us of the times when Joseph lit candles to keep the cold away from Mary during the Nativity. Both Muslims and Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus with equal enthusiasm and Christmas traditions are influenced by regional culture throughout Egypt and thus, have a certain diversity to boast of.
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