When fasting reigns and breaks

A visit to Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region during Ramadan highlights how deeply traditions run there

It has always been a riddle to me how Muslims bear hunger and thirst during Ramadan, the month in which believers are required to abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours. In a trip to the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region that mystery was cleared up.

Apart from settling that matter on my trip to Xinjiang, I also fulfilled a long-held dream: getting a taste of Islamic culture in the autonomous region's capital, Urumqi, and Kashgar prefecture in southern Xinjiang.