There seems to be some sacred unspoken Ramadan rituals around every Egyptian house at the beginning of this widely celebrated month. It’s actually what gives the holy month its festive spirit by bringing the whole family together and having them acknowledge the significance of such situations and gestures associated with Ramadan. Of course, most of the items on our list are associated with food in a way or another.

1. A Raging Mama

5 Things Every Egyptian House Has In Ramadan

Things can get pretty steamy with a fasting mother who’s trying to make enough food to feed 10 or more people. Smelling her flavour-rich cuisine is tortorous enough to make her want to bury her face in the “7ala”. If she fails, she’ll resort to screaming at the kids as a defense mechanism.

2. TV Shows

5 Things Every Egyptian House Has In Ramadan

What more effective way to beat the hunger and thirst out of one’s belly other than tuning in to Ahmed Mekki’s moustache in “El Kebir” or Ramez Galal’s provocative and vexatious comments on his prank show?

3. Dad’s Home

5 Things Every Egyptian House Has In Ramadan

Dads are home surprisingly earlier than usual. Apparently, they too want to get involved in watching the infinite dilemmas of our Egyptian TV shows. They’re also present to relentlessly compliment their wives’ cooking skills all the way till sohour.

4. Holy Mother Of Food!

5 Things Every Egyptian House Has In Ramadan

This is enough to make you want to stay home the entire month. You just know the iftar table’s got everything covered, from salads and “3eish baladi” to “Konafa”, which leads me to our last point….

5. Konafa Alert

5 Things Every Egyptian House Has In Ramadan

Nabulsi, Cheese, Red Velvet, Rolls, Cream, Mango, Nutella, Banana, Dates, you name it and Konafa’s got it all. For those people who would like to maintain their weight, Konafa is a recipe for disaster.