An inaugural event celebrating Ramadan will open on the Cloverdale Fairgrounds in March.
"Ramadan Fest B.C." is a new family-friendly festival put on by Surrey’s Salaam Events. Salaam Events is the same company that hosts the B.C. Halal Food Fest at Holland Park every summer.
Yosof Hakimi, managing partner with Salaam Events, said Ramadan Fest B.C.will be held in the Agriplex with two large outdoor tents set up behind the building, both of which will be fully heated.
"We'll have festive lights on display, similar to Christmas, except it's Ramadan-themed," he said. "We'll have over 120 market vendors selling different cultural items and different local artisan craft items, clothes, jewellery, and different packaged delicacies and other things."
He explained that one of the tents will be a dining space and the other tent will host information on Ramadan, fasting, and what the sacred, month-long time of year means to Muslims, both locally and around the world.
Hakimi said they'll have 20 cooking stations on site with 10 vendors doing live cooking. He has five food trucks booked as well. He noted various cuisines from around the world will be represented at the market.
The festival runs from 4 p.m. to 3 a.m., with two intakes each night and, as such, two different tickets: Iftar Timing, good for entry between 4 and 9 p.m., and Suhoor Timing, good for entry between 9:30 p.m. and 3 a.m. During Ramadan, Iftar is the name for the meal eaten after a long day of fasting and Suhoor is the name for a pre-fast meal consumed before sunrise.
Hakimi said akin to a Christmas market, the event welcomes everyone and will have special interests for non-Muslims as well.
"It's an open entry event and, just like Christmas, it’s a big celebration with lots of festivities and although there's a lot of cultural elements to it, it stems from a religious festival,” he explained. "We are bringing this event to Surrey, which is open to everybody, to have a good time, learn a little bit about Ramadan, and have some fun.”
He said the event will augment the already culturally diverse city of Surrey and market-goers will get to learn a little bit more about Muslims and why they fast.
"This is a big large winter night market, the first of its kind in Metro Vancouver and especially Surrey," he added. "There's a lot of amazing things that we want to showcase at this festival. For people interested in learning more about other cultures, this would be a great event to come out to."
Ramadan Fest B.C. runs from Wednesday to Sunday, March 5 - 9. As for Ramadan itself, the Muslim holy month begins Feb. 28 and ends March 29.
Hakimi said the festival is already 70 per cent sold out for their Friday and Saturday market nights. He expects tickets for both those nights to sell out soon.
Tickets are $5 plus a service fee online with discounts for purchasing multiple tickets. Tickets will be available at the door too, but Hakimi said to avoid lines and to guarantee entry, buying them online in advance is the best option.
For tickets, visit eventbrite.ca and search “Ramadan Fest Surrey."
