I also live in a cery culturally mixed area, in the Midlands, and I've known Hindus who fast on certain days of the week. The lady I am thinking of's fasting usually consisted of eating only fruit and drinking water on that day each week, but I think a question about fasting would not neccessarily imply that you thought an Asian person was Muslim. Regarding the current debate about the veil, I personally think that part of the problem may lie in the fact that throughout history -in the west, at least, the only people who have covered their faces are those hiding their identities because they are up to no good. -Highwaymen with their hankerchiefs over mouth and nose, the IRA with their balaclavas and even in America the KKK with their white hoods spring to mind. Therefore we may KNOW logically that the reason behind the veil is a pious religious one, but it may still trigger a negative emotion response for us. Last year my parents were in Borneo, a Muslim country, and remarked to their local guide that they had seen far fewer veiled women than they did at home. The guide replied that the full veil was banned ever since terrorism became an issue. Their Muslim government had no such qualms about offending people's religious sensitivities.