Saturday,
March 27th,
6:00 pm to 12:00 am.
AID EL ADHA HAFLA
Dinner served at 8:00 pm sharp.
Couscous, Lamb & drinks provided.
Guests contribute Side Dishes/Deserts.
Live Music:
ANDALUSIA band
FREE ($5 person/ $10 Family donation welcome)
Crystal House II Party Room
2000 S. Eads St., Crystal City, VA
(Metro: Crystal City)
Contact: (703) 769-4286 |
A Great Celebration
by Abdelaziz Rebatchi
After several anemic participations to previous events,
the question was whether the smell of the couscous will bring back the big crowd? If that
was the idea behind it, the association tapped into the right well; Our board members
indeed had the right idea, as we could see many (if not all) participants waiting for the
"Iftar" (the word could not be better chosen as early comers seemed to salivate
profusely before 8pm, time at which dinner was to be served!!! ), especially where the
spicy smell of the couscous was in everybody's nostrils and minds!! (the author of
this article appeared to have suffered the most since chased repeatedly out of the
kitchen by the cooks despite repeated "offers to help...", but in vain, the
cooks were adamant and apparently heard it before... !!!).
In contrast with previously organized Eid El Kebir (or Eid El Adha) events organized
outdoors with barbecued lamb meat, this event was significantly different, in that it was
organized indoors with the spontaneous participation of the now established Andalucia
band. This "theory" seems to be comforted by the fact that most participants
arrived at dinner time or after. Or was it just a coincidence others might say, especially
when Eid Eseghir and Eid El Kebir have always attracted the big crowd? Whatever the
reason, this event brought new faces and other "older" faces we haven't seen for
a while. We were even graced by the presence of members of the algerian community in New
York (how about that Thouraya and Ramdane!) and her brother Zouheir from Baltimore, as
well as other friends, from other countries to whom we would like to extend our warm
invitation to celebrate with us. It seemed that no one wanted to miss this celebration,
reasserting the importance of the event in our lives. What a way to gather all these
people!!!
The effervescence surrounding the evening was only matched by the excellent
organization of the event diligently conducted by our board members and volunteers. They
did everything for the success of the Eid celebration, making sure that guests would have
an excellent evening gathered around our ancestral Grandma type of couscous that
overwhelmingly met all the expectations. This was also coupled with the otherwise
wonderful traditional support of our membership and guests bringing side dishes, pastries,
financial support etc...
As always, people arrived steadily and organized into chatting groups, roaming kids
finding a good opportunity to let loose and meeting new playing partners without
forgetting their artistic inclinations through paintings and drawings. Above all, the bond
between our organizers and the community was all the more significant since everybody
enjoyed an otherwise colorful and spicy evening enlightened by the now totally adopted
Andalucia band. The enthusiasm of the gathering filled the air in a spiral of fun that
engulfed all participants, litterally throwing themselves in the dancing floor. Echah fi
elli majach and sorry for those who couldn't make it.
In summary, it was a magnificent evening that calls for more of the kind and
represented, without a doubt, a triumph for the Association clearly underlying, one more
time, the importance of our beloved Association. Everybody came back home farihan
massrooran ("common" end to our otherwise famous arabic incha). |
