right here in Ramadan

Oh yes, I'm still around! I got busy with stuff ... as you do. And then there were weddings and the 'flu knocked me out (strange time of year for 'flu I know) and when I thought I was regaining energy, a stomach bug came along! Alhamdulillah I feel completely recovered now and we're actually one week in to Ramadan (the month of fasting).

Ramadan is a pretty amazing time for me. But this time, I know that this will probably be my last Ramadan in Saudi Arabia! We're getting ready to move to another continent, another lifestyle. We're getting ready for another chapter of our lives, another adventure. But before we do that I want to savour my time here in Jeddah and it's surroundings. I will try and share some of my thoughts here in sha Allah.

For the time being, I've had a week's break from eating clean, but now I'm back on it. Yes, that's what I'm doing these days too! I love that while I'm fasting, I feel that my other senses are so much stronger when I'm not concerned with taste! The smell of tropical fruits and the warm aroma of natural coconut oil, the sticky elasticity of brioche dough through my fingers and the bleeding dark red of sweet cherries in my cheesecake! Ma sha Allah.

I love that Ramadan started with my brother and his family sharing experiences of their trip to Kashmir along with some of the flavours of one of my ancestral lands. Yes, they served up some refreshing Kashmiri Qahwa, an exotic light, sweet, hot drink of apricots, raisins, nuts, saffron and more! He also cooked up Kashmiri chicken and almond curry!

I'm also loving that in my household, both father ...

... and daughter ...

... leave traces of their "food styling" on my phone!

And today must be filled with a bit more of this ...

... and some more hooking up too ...

 ... before we get together with family!

I'll leave you with this lovely blog where Neelu is journaling her Ramadan experience with daily prompts. It's a nice idea.