Every Ramadan, Muslims around the world fast from sunrise to sunset. Waking before dawn to eat suhoor, people then refrain from eating or drinking anything – a period of fasting known as imsak. When the sun goes down, friends and family gather to break fast together, over a meal known as iftar.
For travellers, things can be a little different. In non-Muslim countries, people continue to eat and drink throughout the day during Ramadan, and finding halal food in a place that is convenient when it is time to break fast can prove challenging. And for anyone travelling on a plane, it can be puzzling to know when you are supposed to break fast or stop eating – do you do so when the sun sets in Dubai or wait until it goes down in the place that you’re flying over?
For Rashid Al Tamimi, senior presenter at Sheikh Mohammed Cultural Centre for Understanding in Dubai, these questions are easily answered. “Today, it’s easy,” says the Emirati. “It’s not like in my grandfather’s day. Back then, people used to travel by camel and even going short distances was considered a huge journey. Going from Dubai to Abu Dhabi took three to four days, so imagine how prepared everyone had to be if they were fasting and travelling.”
If fasting is not feasible during a trip, you can make up the days on your return. Courtesy Westin Mina Seyahi
Be prepared
“Nowadays, as travellers, it is easy. Religion is not a burden,” explains Tamimi. “When it comes to fasting as a traveller, you just have to do a little pre-planning.
“You should be prepared, so bring a few dates with you when you go somewhere new and pack a small bottle for water, just so that you have something to break your fast with no matter where you are.”
Up in the air
If you are travelling by plane, most airlines in the Gulf will take the planning work out of your journey. As well as providing in-flight iftars, many flights have on-screen tools that travellers can use to find prayer times in various places around the world. Some airlines also provide Ramadan-themed television programmes, music stations and audio entertainment.
On Emirates, there's also a space for worshipping. The airline started this last year and it's happening again, across all cabin classes.
“On Emirates, there’s also a space for worshipping,” says Tamimi. “The airline started this last year and it’s happening again, across all cabin classes. But even if you’re on a plane that doesn’t have this space, wherever you are, you can always worship from your heart and your head.”
Travellers should follow the rules and timings of whichever country they are travelling towards, Tamimi says. “Let’s say we begin the day fasting in Dubai but we’re flying out to Singapore, which is four hours ahead of the UAE. That means I will likely be fasting four hours less, because of when the Singapore sunset timing is. You should follow sunrise and sunset in whatever country you are in. And if you’re still in flight when it’s time to break fast, the captain or crew will inform passengers that it’s time.
Make use of technology
“Thanks to the technology we have these days, it’s easy to travel in Ramadan, even to non-Muslim countries. People can use apps to help them find halal food, to establish prayer times in the country they are in and even to find the location of the nearest mosque.”
Apps can be used to locate the nearest mosque. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Travellers can also take a leaf out of Tamimi's book and download an app with passages from the Holy Quran loaded on to it. This way, when you have some downtime, you have something appropriate to read or listen to. And when it's prayer time, apps can help travellers locate the nearest mosque. "If there is a mosque in the area, then that's better, especially for men. However, if there is no mosque nearby, you can use an app to find the direction of the Qibla and pray anywhere you are."
Eating the right food
Very often, people break their fast by eating dates. As well as being the traditional manner in which the Prophet Mohammed first broke his fast, dates are also a great choice when it comes to nutrition. “They are packed with minerals and proteins, and are good for you, even if you are not fasting.”
When it comes to finding halal food, Tamimi has plenty of advice. “All seafood is halal, so you can always find something to eat. Even if you are not sure if a restaurant or cafe in a new destination is halal, you can simply opt to avoid the beef or the lamb and have a seafood or vegetarian dish.”
Do you need to fast?
While fasting today does not need to be a burden, there are still instances when people might opt not to fast. "Our religion tells us if you're pregnant, if you are on your period, if you're an elderly person or a young child, if you're on medication, then you don't need to fast. Travellers also don't have to fast; they can always opt to make it up later on."
If fasting is not going to be feasible for you during a trip, then you can alternatively plan to make up the days that you missed upon your return, or any other suitable time in the future. You can also pay for someone less fortunate to break their fast. “This is all written in the Quran,” concludes the presenter. “All the rules are given there.”
Five helpful apps to use in Ramadan
Muslim Pro
Millions of Muslims recognise Muslim Pro as the most accurate prayer time and athan app. It also features the full Quran with Arabic scripts, phonetics, translations and audio recitations, as well as a Qibla locator, an Islamic Hijri calendar, and a map of mosques and halal restaurants.
Ramadan 2019
Search by city to find out the exact local timings for prayers on this free, all-in-one app, available on the App store. It has multiple features, including prayer times with an athan feature, a Qibla compass with calculated distance and a Hijri date converter.
QamarDeen
If you cannot fast when you travel, use this app to help you record your charitable donations. You can also use it to track your daily spiritual efforts such as prayers and Quran reading, as well as any fasting that you do.
Salatuk
This is a great app for travellers as it helps you to locate mosques near you. It also indicates the prayer timings and the Qibla direction wherever you are in the world. The app uses your location services to bring you accurate information.
Khatmah
This reading app is great for making use of flight time to read the Holy Quran. As well as keeping track of what you have read, you can set a daily reminder so that you are prompted to read enough to finish the texts by the end of the holy month.
Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says.
Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.
Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier.
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Try out the test yourself
Q1 Suppose you had $100 in a savings account and the interest rate was 2 per cent per year. After five years, how much do you think you would have in the account if you left the money to grow? a) More than $102 b) Exactly $102 c) Less than $102 d) Do not know e) Refuse to answer
Q2 Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account was 1 per cent per year and inflation was 2 per cent per year. After one year, how much would you be able to buy with the money in this account? a) More than today b) Exactly the same as today c) Less than today d) Do not know e) Refuse to answer
Q4 Do you think that the following statement is true or false? “Buying a single company stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund.” a) True b) False d) Do not know e) Refuse to answer
The “Big Three” financial literacy questions were created by Professors Annamaria Lusardi of the George Washington School of Business and Olivia Mitchell, of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Answers:Q1 More than $102 (compound interest). Q2 Less than today (inflation). Q3 False (diversification).
The biog
Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology
Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India
Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur
How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993
Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters
Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 640hp
Torque: 760nm
On sale: 2026
Price: Not announced yet
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
Torrijos Palace dome
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
Priority access to new homes from participating developers
Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
Flexible payment plans from developers
Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The Comeback: Elvis And The Story Of The 68 Special
Simon Goddard
Omnibus Press
MATCH INFO
Osasuna 1 Real Madrid 4
Osasuna: García (14')
Real Madrid: Isco (33'), Ramos (38'), Vázquez (84'), Jovic (90' 2)
PSL FINAL
Multan Sultans v Peshawar Zalmi
8pm, Thursday
Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023 More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
