Ramadan Up North

Ramadan has special meaning to the world's Muslim community. It's exemplified in Anchorage, Alaska, with its' diversity  and growing Islamic culture. The many groups celebrate and with an Alaskan twist at times. 

Regular contributor and food reporter, Victoria Peterson wrote about this in yesterday's New York Times Food section. A native Alaskan, herself, Ms. Peterson explored the wide diversity in the state's largest city. It is also home to Alaska's only mosque.Surprisingly the city is also an immigrant city with one hundred languages being spoken within the city's school districts. The Islamic Community Center of Anchorage has members from between forty and fifty countries. Some are Muslim s from the US , like Maleika and Gregory Shuaib Jones from North Carolina but there are others from Bhutan and Somalia. They are all bonded together  unlike in other cities where mosques reflect the majority of the people attending them. The only problem they have is the short winter and long summer days. Fasting can be hard, especially during the warmer months when sunset begins at 11:30 PM. Many adopt to Mecca's time for prayer and breaking the fast.

Feasting happens afterwards with traditional halal foods. When graduate student Sajid Raza first arrived there in 2016, there was only a pizzeria and and Indian restaurant. Now, six years later there are three halal specialty shops along with restaurants with several halal dishes on the menu. Local Walmart, Safeway and Costco stores also stock halal certified options. There are also a few international markets springing up across the city too. Mr. Jones feels that it's a remarkable because halal is becoming more and more mainstream in America. Their neighbor even killed and prepared a caribou in the Islamic law and ritual. Families have no trouble in finding rice, lentil, flour and vegetables, staples in every Muslim home. They are even getting Medjool dates, those big gooey ones that are becoming easier to find during Ramadan. There are also pot luck dinners at the mosque which turn into s buffet thanks to the wide variety from s;; over the Muslim world.. Ms. Jones and her daughter Shumalaiah are making kebabs, roti and fruit with yogurt. There will also be samosas filled with potato and meat.

Ramadam anywhere in the world is special. In Anchorage it is very, with bonded community celebrating togehter. They will fast. They will eat They will be there for each other in the country's most northern city.