As I strolled through the medina of Rabat today after class, there were signs everywhere reminding me that tomorrow is the Eid al-Adha (or the festival of sacrifice and one of the biggest holidays in Islam). Men were sharpening knifes on every street corner, pastry shops were packed with women buying boxes of cookies and the sounds of sheep could be heard in every direction. I will be spending Eid in a small city outside of Rabat as my roommate was kind enough to invite me to spend Eid with his Moroccan friend and family.
The holiday is in honor of the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his only son to God. In Morocco, it is an important time for family to get together (as the holiday starts Wednesday and goes through Friday). Already I have noticed restaurants and shops shutting down, but the major aspect of this holiday is the slaughtering of the ram. Most families purchase a ram, slaughter it (which happens tomorrow, Wednesday) and then spend the rest of the holiday eating the meat. Tomorrow I am preparing myself for the reality that I will probably witness the slaughtering of a ram, followed by learning how to clean, cook and eat every part of it. A longer blog post to follow...
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