QATAR PREPARES FOR GARANGAO CELEBRATION WITH SAFETY

Garangao

Garangao celebrations are going to be here soon and given the prevailing social distancing situation, the celebrations will be different. So what is Garangao? Garangao is celebrated every year on the 14th day of Ramadaan. It marks the middle of the Holy Month of Ramadaan. It is celebrated extensively in the Gulf Region, particularly in Qatar. The festival traces back to Qatar’s tradition of pearl-diving back  in ancient times.

During this celebration, children would dress up in traditional attires in the evening. They would go to various homes knock on doors and gifted with sweets and nuts. They would walk around the town with a specific cotton bag around their necks singing traditional Garangao songs. It is a fun tradition that has been enjoyed by Qatari and expatriates alike.

This year though, social distancing has made it different. Children will not be out given the pandemic situation, but thankfully Ministry of Culture and Sports is going to make sure the celebrations go on.

After keeping all precautions in mind they have come up with interesting ways to keep the tradition alive even in the time of COVID-19. The Ministry of Culture and Sports plan to bring the tradition to the children this time around. They have decided to run buses in the celebration of Garangao. These buses have special packets of sweets and fruits which shall be distributed to children at their homes in and around Qatar. Along with this the celebration will be organized in collaboration with sports clubs and some entities affiliated with the Ministry of Culture with full commitment to apply preventive measures, and will carry out the mission with volunteers trained in precautionary measures.

Issa Al Haremi, Director of Sports Affairs at the Ministry of Culture and Sports, noted that special videos have been made and will be posted on social media platforms to train about the safety measures when preparing buses for Garangao sweet distribution.

Garangao

Source : www.thepeninsulaqatar.com 

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