Pending Holiday for Eid Al Fitr in Kuwait - 5/6 days

Hark Denizens of Kuwait!

The Arab Times (link) has reported that the government will declare a 5-day holiday if this Ramadan is 29 days and Eid Al-Fitr falls starts on Tuesday (corresponding 2930th of August, 2011).

Better still, the holidays will stretch to six days holiday if Ramadan is of 30 days and Eid falls starts on Wednesday (corresponding to the 30th 31st of August, 2011).

The concept of Ramadan and the public holidays is tricky for some expats to grasp, this is mainly due to the fact that Ramadan is declared based on lunar sighting, compared to the solar calendar, the dates of Ramadan vary, moving backwards by about eleven days each year. Hence, it is not known at the beginning of the year how long Ramadan will be, whether 29 or 30 days, despite it being marked in Calendars.

The good people of Kuwait, thanks to the goverment, enjoy a clear advantage over their counterparts in other Gulf states such as UAE, and that is holidays in arrears, which means that, if a public holiday coincides with a weekend, it is shifted to the next working day, hence since Eid Al Fitr is likely to fall over the weekend, friday and saturday, it will be extended to Sunday as well.

Eid Al Fitr (or celebration of breaking fast) is usually celebrated with pastries covered in powdered sugar (kahk).

Ofcourse, this means that for the Expats in Kuwait, its a clear occasion to book their tickets and go out for a breath of fresh air.

Stay tuned for Ramadan updates, and pending holiday joyous celebration!

(It is worth mentioning that the calendars have been known to be correct most of the time, so go ahead and plan your holiday now, starting from Tuesday the 29th of August, but be warned! The airport will be PACKED, and if Ramadan is still with us till wednesday, simply tell your respective employers that MyBloogle made me do it!)