Day 62: The Search for the Eid Cookie

Day 62: May 27, 2020
Global cases: 5,784,643; Deaths: 356,937
Egypt cases: 19,666; Deaths: 816

Nada Wahba
Multimedia Journalism senior

Eid is almost over and I still have not slept for one minute.

The semester wreaked havoc on my sleep schedule, my skin and most of all my emotional well being. I thought about how online learning was tough to handle but I hadn’t yet experienced online final exams whilst a pandemic was sounding off; an entirely different level of stress.

When Eid-al-Fitr usually approaches, what I look forward to the most are the kahk cookies my best friend’s grandma bakes every year where she brings a fresh batch just for me. Her cookies have quickly become my favorite and I wait all year round to have them.

But with the COVID-19 cases significantly on the rise, this was not an option this year. So I dedicated the last few weeks to hunt down pastry shops that make exact replicas of the cookies my best friend’s grandma makes.

11am, the clock read.

30 searches later, I found my perfect cookie. Round? Check. Supple? Check. Half-dipped in chocolate? Check. Out of stock? Check.

Wait, what?

For The Caravan‘s previous diary entries in Arabic and English go to our COVID-19 Special Coverage page.

I stared blankly at the screen for a good minute, what am I supposed to have for Eid then? Existential dread started to seep in and I got very frustrated. I looked up the number of the store and decided to give them a call.

“They’ll be back in stock at three in the evening,” the voice on the phone said. And so I patiently waited, a hungry girl who hadn’t slept because she was consumed with final submissions and papers.

The Maghrib call to prayer echoed through the house, It startled me awake – my eyes opened wide and I got up in a hurry. What happened?

I rushed downstairs, extremely disoriented and frazzled. I broke my fast and ate with my family – something was missing.

As I was devouring a spoonful of soup, I remembered. My cookies. I rushed back upstairs, turned my laptop on and typed away the store’s website that I now know by heart since this must’ve been the 10th time I revisit it.

Out of stock …

This was the case for two weeks, I set an alarm at three, I oversleep, I forget and I remember. I check and it’s out of stock.
So for the first day of Eid, I baked myself cookies at four in the morning to make up for the loss of my perfect Eid cookies.

Alas, nothing can compare.