The Holy Journey (07): Mecca

Mecca has not changed much since my last visit in 2002. It’s the same city where construction works are forever going on; the dry, hot wind full of dust; the Habsyi selling on the streets; beggars; pilgrims; great bargain; great Pakistani food at Pakistani Gulistan Hotel on the way to the mosque where you can get this juicy roast chicken, amazing beryani and crispy naan fresh from the tandoor. (Sorry no pics on this; by the time I got hold of the camera, most of the poor fowl was already eaten up).


Your hotel distance from the mosque pretty much depends on your tour package rate; the more you pay, the closer your hotel is to the mosque but this is not applicable for hajj season where everything becomes erratic and out – of – hand. Me, I’m just too lazy sometimes to walk the 300 meters distance under the scorching sun (daily temperature is 34 – 45 degree C in summer, peaking at noon) so most of the time I would spent my time at the mosque (Zohor – Asar, Asar – Isya’ or Maghrib – Isya’). There is a public toilet somewhere outside and an abundance of this area called “Drinking Water for Woman/Man” where there are water coolers supplying Zam Zam drinking water within the mosque. Most of the time I perform my ablution (wudhu) at the drinking area.

Note on drinking areas: Just don’t be shocked at the sight of Arabs and other Middle East people filling up their huge bottles and even taking showers (fully - clothed) there. Peak hours where the crowd can be overwhelming are 45 minutes before prayer times, between Zuhur-Asar-Maghrib and after Isya’.

I always pray within the air – conditioned zones, but sometimes I’d go upstairs where I could pray facing the Kaabah in full view in the first row (but it’s not air – conditioned there, go at evening time when it is cooler).

By the way, if you see someone’s shoe bag or things on the praying carpet, it means that that spot has been claimed. They also play “cop-cop” place over there. You can do the same with your shoe bag; USUALLY no one will take or displace it except for the cleaners. (USUALLY, meaning that I wash my hands off if it get stolen or lost. Hajj season, as I mentioned, is when everything gets out of hand. SHOE BAG: since we have to take off our shoes prior entering, we brought along a bag for our shoes and kept it with us all the time. Too many missing shoes cases at the public shoe case.)

Again, I could not get a good shot of the mosque (Masjidil Haram) because I was too scared that a policeman would pounce on me and my camera.

By the way, within this brown marble building (above, below) is a shopping mall where you can find cloth shops, jubbah, perfumes and whatever souvenirs there, food outlets and a hypermarket called Bin Dawood that sells pretty much the usual stuff that you can find in Giant/Tesco/Carefour and the likes here.

Outside the building though, is a row of shops and food outlets. I always stopped by for the store-made ice cream (the mango flavor one is awesome), kabob and bottled juices (Brand name: Caesar).


The doves here apparently are not afraid of humans and just peck at the strewn grain on the roadside as you walk by (courtesy of passerby. You can buy the grains from peddlers tanpa lesen there, mostly Habsyi women). Heck, you can stand in the middle of the flock and the birds would just ignore your existence.


One of the places I visited near Mecca is Jabal Thur (Jabal =hill), where the Prophet (PBUH) and Saidina Abu Bakar As-Siddiq hid from the assassins sent for the Prophet (PBUH) on the night the two were supposed to depart for Medina.