Wandering with the Wilsons: Garangao

Traditionally, on the 14th night of Ramadan, children in Qatar dress in traditional clothing and go from house to house singing the Garangao song, which you can see and listen to here, just scroll down to the video. The children receive nuts and candy in return.

I was glad we dressed up for a richer experience. We have had kids from other countries come to our house on Halloween in street clothes because they know we are American. I would be more inclined to give them candy if they had made an effort, so we decided to make the effort as well, though not really expected. Travis had asked a Qatari boy he tutors about the "traditional dress" part, and then he took the kids down to the souq to find outfits. They chose their outfits and were excited to be able to participate in this tradition, well, until our first experience (see last post). The kids were not too excited to go for another whirl. We are, however, glad we did.

Katara was holding a Garangao for the second year, and we met up with a couple other families that just moved to Qatar. We were pleased to find that it was very well organized. Maybe they learned from last year, but they also hold regular cultural events that are well done. They passed out bags & fans to all the children, and they only allowed a number of people to start through the "streets" for candy collection at a time to avoid to large of crowds. After we had collected plenty of candy and nuts, we went into the main hall where they had other activities to participate in: painting, music, games, etc. All in all, it was a very fun night, and the kids had a great time. Here are a few pictures from the night.

Ready