Online celebrations for this holiday season
Online celebrations for this holiday season
Ellen Whyte, Columnist, Malaysia, ellenwhyte@lepak.com
It's holiday season with Ramadhan, Idul Fitri, Christmas and New
Year all falling in December.
This week we take a look at sites offering free greeting
cards, recipes and ideas for kids activities as well as more
serious resources that look into the history and traditions of
these holidays.
* Free Online Greeting Cards
If you've forgotten to send a card, or are throwing an
impromptu party, visit Blue Mountain at www.bluemountain.com and
Yahoo! Greetings at greetings.yahoo.com and sign up for free
membership, (you're already a member if you use a Yahoo service
such as email). Both sites have an excellent range of plain,
animated and sound enhanced Idul Fitri, Ramadhan, Christmas and
party invitation cards you may send to one or more people at the
same time.
They will also let you set up an address book, keep track of
cards sent and received, allow you to write a card for sending at
a later date and organize reminders when it's time to send
birthday and anniversary cards.
Alternatively, visit Cyberloft's Mail-a-meal at
www.mailameal.com and mail your friends virtual hotdogs, bottles
of champagne or entire banquets. Check out the links at the
bottom of the page for sites that will let you send Virtual
Presents such as an ATM, sports car or elephant and one of the
dozens of funny Toonograms.
* Festive Recipes
There is no doubt about it, Epicurious at www.epicurious.com
is the best recipe resource online. It has a database of 14,000
recipes, a food dictionary and the latest recipes from Gourmet
and Bon Appitit magazines.
Browse the recipes, search by keyword or, go to the Enhanced
Search and search for recipes by cuisine, course, ingredient,
preparation, and occasion. There is a large section devoted
exclusively to Christmas fare. For a range of recipes for
Tabbouleh salad made from cracked bulgar wheat, aromatic lamb
kebabs, the bean dip called Hummus and other dishes suitable for
Idul Fitri parties browse the recipe section for Middle Eastern
food.
* Entertaining Young Kids
If you have young kids who are bored while stuck indoors
during those rainy afternoons over the holidays, visit Children
Activities in Ramadhan at www.submission.org/YES/child2.html for
craft ideas intended to help parents entertain and educate young
children. Includes instructions for learning about and making a
Fanoos Ramadhan lantern, a Ramadhan Calendar Chain and a night
sky and moon project.
For Christmas entertainment, visit Bethany Roberts Christmas
Fun at www.bethanyroberts.com/Christmasfun.htm for online songs
you can sing along with, games and ideas for Christmas gifts.
Also try Merry Christmas at www.merry-christmas.com/kids_zone.htm
for more activity ideas, free online interactive games and
coloring pages all with a Christmas theme.
* History of Ramadhan and Idul Fitri
The month of Ramadhan during which Muslims fast during
daylight hours, celebrates the time during which the Koran was
revealed. It is followed by Idul Fitri, a holiday named for "the
breaking of the fast". Learn more about Ramadhan and Idul Fitri
by visiting The Eid at www.theeid.com that explores related
history, traditions and legends as well as offering recipes,
greeting cards and PC wallpapers.
A similar site is Holidays Ramadan pages at
www.holidays.net/ramadan that tells the story of how the Koran
was revealed to Prophet Muhammad and has a selection of greeting
cards.
For more in-depth information about the history and background
of Ramadhan, check out Essentials of Ramadan, The Fasting Month a
comprehensive introduction to the observance, by Tajuddin B.
Shu`aib the author of The Prescribed PrayerMade Simple. This
electronic book is available at
www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/pillars/fasting/tajudd
in/fast_1.html. Chapters cover issues such as What Is Ramadan,
Kinds Of Fasting, Fasting The Month Ramadan - Sawm Ramadan, Bad
Breath and Merits Of Ramadan.
* History of Christmas and New Year
It's no secret that many customs and rituals that are
celebrated during Christmas and New Year on the 31st December and
1st of January have their roots in ancient festivals such as
Winter Solstice and Saturnalia practiced in Celtic, Norse,
German, Roman and other European based cultures more than 2000
years ago. Some of the best known include the practice of
decorating homes with green leaves and trees, inviting everyone
to celebrate, lighting candles and singing carols. Today New Age
adherents and Wiccans are celebrating new forms of these ancient
festivals, blending some old customs along with some newer ones.
Religious Tolerance at
www.religioustolerance.org/winter_solstice.htm has a good page
describing ancient and modern December celebrations by Ancient
Greeks, Incas, Buddhists, Muslims and other groups.
For a good guide to Wiccan Yule holidays, festival foods and
customs visit About's Yule page at paganwiccan.about.com/cs/yule.
If you love the old-fashioned celebration with Santas, carols and
Christmas trees, visit The History Channel Christmas Exhibition
at www.historychannel.com/exhibits/holidays/christmas, an
exquisite site that examines the roots of common Christmas
traditions as well as the development of the modern festival.
Find similar resources by searching for: ramadan, ramadhan,
idul fitri, eid-ul-fitr, id-al-fitr, christmas, saturnalia, yule,
winter solstice.