Ramadan diary: 19 hours of fasting in London

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  08.30: Dr Merali returns home from the school run to check on his wife Farida preparing the evening’s Iftar in Northwood, UK.

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  10.30: Dr Merali with Senior Nurse Rachel Coles at his surgery where he works part time.

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  12.30: Dr Merali greets children at a community co-operative nursery, where he is Chairman of the Board.

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  13.30: Dr Merali attends midday prayers at the Harrow Central Mosque in Harrow.

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  21.30: Dr Merali at evening prayers at a community centre in Harrow, UK.

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  22.00: Dr Merali enjoys a communal iftar at a community centre in Harrow.

An afternoon nap is the only concession made to a 19-hour day of fasting for this busy family man and doctor.

Looking at the diary of Dr Nizar Merali, it is clear that Ramadan does not lesser the pace of his busy day by a single minute.

A practising doctor who still works up to three days a week at his surgery in Northwood in North London, the first task of his day this Friday was to take his grandchildren to school.

Back home, he spent time with his wife as she begin Iftar preparations, then headed out for an operations meeting at the care home business he is involved with.

By 9am he had reached his surgery in nearby Harrow, where his tasks included another meeting and paperwork.

Midday prayers were observed at the Harrow mosque, followed by a visit to the proposed multi-faith Salaam Centre for a trustees meeting.

After a short late afternoon nap, Dr Merali visited his parents in the early evening before evening prayers at 9.30pm at a local community centre.

He broke the fast at 10pm, heading home for some sleep an hour later before rising for morning prayers yesterday at 3am. His fast lasted 19 hours, around four hours longer than the UAE.