Dubai: The festive ambience at The Walk, JBR, with Ramadan-themed lights all around reminds Italian expat Luca Lampredi of Christmas season back home.
“I remember last year, they placed beautiful lanterns down the street,” said Lampredi, who lives in the area.
“This year, they have put moon-shaped lights on the palm trees … the ambience is quite magical every night.”
Having been used to hearing the church bells back home, Lampredi is happy that his children — Aurora, five, and Mattia, two — now get to hear the call for prayer from the mosque near his building.
“I am happy that they are exposed to different faiths here.”
Lampredi believes that the spirit of Ramadan enhances the camaraderie among the many nationalities living in the UAE. What also helps people to get to know each other more are the iftars, and the reduced working hours.
“People go for iftars together and enjoy spending more time with family and friends,” said Lampredi.
Flexible hours
As the head of regional operations of a multinational company, Lampredi also enjoys the benefit of the flexible working hours during Ramadan.
During the other months of the year, he has often to stay back after the regular working hours to be able to finish correspondence with the head office in Italy. But during Ramadan, he can clock off early.
- Luca Lampredi | Regional head of a multinational firm in Dubai
“You get a break from the usually stressful schedule for people like me.”
The sight of deserted streets in Ramadan during what are otherwise peak traffic hours is in itself somewhat relaxing, said Lampredi. “You never see this except during Ramadan,” he said.
His wife, Veronica, can count on him to be back home earlier than normal during Ramadan. The couple spend the extra time with their children. Usually, they head outdoors when the evenings are cooler and mostly eat out during Ramadan.
“Most evenings we stay out, walking and eating out. Though we love going to the beach and pool, we avoid doing it during weekdays.”
Veronica said she is happy that she gets to have lunch with her children during Ramadan as Aurora gets back home early from school.
“She also gets a good 20 minutes in the morning before she has to leave for school. It really makes a difference,” Veronica said, pointing to the extra minutes she gets to spend time with her daughter in the mornings which are otherwise quite hectic during normal school hours.
