Halaltrip.com works to prevent “survival trips” by providing much needed advice to an overlooked marketing niche – the Muslims. It unites Muslim tourists, both veterans and newbies, to rate their travel accommodations, the area’s friendliness towards us, hotel perks (like women-only pools), and areas to avoid. The coolest feature about Halaltrip.com is that they’ve created a network for Muslim travelers that acts as a virtual encyclopedia and scrap-book of shared experiences and pictures on various countries, cultures, and masjids.

The site is a major step forward in promoting the Muslim voice, even if tourists offer quick one liners.  Masha Allah, this site really has the potential to make hotels andtourist destinations worldwide cater to the Muslim consumer. There’s always hope, insha Allah!  Maybe the next time I travel, I’ll know of an awesome masjid and spare my family body-guard duty while I pray in public.

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Madinah was a place of firsts for us and provided clues to the trip to come. We got off the plane like tourists, giddy and exhausted. The giddiness dissipated as we stood in line to be processed by a series of clerks who were the first in the long line of alternately aggressive and apathetic bureaucratic employees we would encounter during our hajj journey. The chaos of getting onto a bus and checking in to the hotel was the first of many moments of chaos we would encounter. We got settled in our hotel room and immediately set off with two friends from Houston for the masjid an Nabawi.

Being in the masjid an Nabawi and visiting nearby mosques of historical significance would give us the first taste of the terrible pushing crowds we would experience. In that way it was beneficial to go to Madinah first – it prepared us as best we could be for the crowds to come in Mecca. My husband and friends made plans to get up after a few hours of sleep to pray tahajjud at the mosque, but I was tired and disoriented and opted for sleep instead.

December 31, 2005, ~3:15 a.m. Room 317, Hilton Madinah. I’ve been up for about an hour or so, taking my time and having a nice hot shower. Husband left to see the Rawdah ~1:30 a.m. but I thought I wanted to sleep more – as it turned out I wasn’t as tired as I thought, and got up shortly thereafter. The plan is for my friend and I to go to fajr together at the masjid an Nabawi and stay to see the Rawdah. After that we’ll meet our husbands back at the hotel and go on the tour of historic sites and such. Unfortunately the plan isn’t 100% clear to me, though, as far as what time my friend and I are meeting, and I will likely end up walking over to fajr alone. I’m kind of nervous about doing things alone.

So I’m looking out the window right now watching people steadily walking towards the Prophet’s masjid. Madinah is like a party town in total reverse – people are out at all hours of the night to pray, not to party.

I was totally jonesing for some coffee, even though I’m down to one cup in the morning and really do well without it. I was simply dreaming of sitting down with a hot cup of black bitter coffee when I started writing. I ordered a small Arabic coffee from room service and ended up with a carafe full of tea-colored cardamom-flavored hot beverage, which I’m hoping has caffeine in it…

I see so many people heading towards the masjid that I keep thinking it will run out of space – but then I remember it can hold a million people within the building and surrounding grounds. It’s enormous! And gorgeous. Subhanallah! Off I go.

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There is no day on which Allah frees more of His slaves from Fire than the Day of Arafat, and He verily draws near, then boasts of them before the angels, saying: “What do they seek?”

December 29, 2005, ~9:15 p.m. At JFK. Feeling really good now after a brief bout of “eye ache” [pain in my eyes that’s often a precursor to a migraine]. I drank a tall Starbuck’s Americano and now I feel much more energized. I also got myself up and chatting, which helped. Talking to a friend, I found out her story is much like mine, although she’s a born Muslim from the middle east. She didn’t practice her deen for many years; about four years ago she returned to being a practicing Muslim, although her family hasn’t necessarily followed suit. Like me, she will be making du’a on Arafat for her closest family.

This afternoon on the way home from lunch Daughter kind of laughingly made reference to stupid terrible things I did as a mother and it made me cry. On Arafat I will have so much to beg forgiveness for as a mother. I apologized to her and told her my “bad mother moments” are top on the list of things I will ask to be forgiven for. I still can’t imagine what that day in Arafat is going to be like. There are so many things I’ve done wrong that have kind of hidden or festered somewhere inside me because of my inability to manage my feelings about them. I can only imagine what it will feel like to confront my guilt, acknowledge it, feel it as really part of my life and part of me and then beg for pardon.

…~Midnight, I think. Aboard Saudi Air flight 34 headed to Madinah. The flight was scheduled to leave at 9 and just now left, but it was a delay I was prepared for, as we’ve been told again and again to anticipate delays and that patience will be essential to successfully navigate and finish this trip and the hajj. The plane has TV screens that during taxiing transmit the picture from a camera mounted outside the plane. When at long last the plane came to the takeoff strip and began speeding over the white arrows pointing out, out, out, I felt that now I am a pilgrim; now the pilgrimage has begun.

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We started our trip – which lasted almost three weeks – by visiting my family in New Jersey. Our itinerary would take us from New York to Madinah, where we would stay for two days before going on to Mecca.

December 25, 2005, ~11:45 a.m. (eastern time). On the plane from Houston to Newark. I’ve been trying to decide if I’m a pilgrim as of today, in a broad sense, that is. Although I’m not yet headed toward Madinah, today is the first day of a journey that will ultimately make a hajji of me, insha Allah. On the other hand, though, it’s Christmas and we’re on our way to visit my family for a few days. It’s hard to get my head around one or the other or both trips. I feel disoriented. I’m still really nervous about hajj and feel like I’ll be in a fog the whole time in NJ. I do want to stay focused on hajj and preparing myself for it.

So strange – melange of the many “ME’s” I’ve been – kid, high school, wife, mother, single girl, Muslim, then much more Muslim. When I broke away from my old life, I didn’t go in the direction I planned. This is the alternative, one that is, of course, quite superior. I’m almost – well, just about – to the point of not regretting my choices of the last few years, and maybe somehow this trip is the thing that will seal my acceptance of the life I chose and the life Allah guided me to.

I never actually thought about that before – that if I do hajj seriously and I do it well none of the other stuff I’ve prioritized or valued will seem so important. Hajj – pilgrimage – should make me feel like I’m truly a Muslim first and everything else secondarily, and in support of, my deen. I imagine that when I see the kaaba and when I see Arafat, places of such ancient history, I will feel so rooted in the beliefs Allah has given us since the days of Adam that nothing else will truly matter. If I can open my heart wide enough and absorb the experience enough I can feel content and satisfied. I look out the plane window and see the clouds. I’m traveling in a beautiful place above everything else, a place whose essence is much purer and simpler than life below. When I descend I hope I will be purer and simpler too.

December 27, 2005, ~ 6 p.m. At my parents’ house. I’m a little weary. We went into the city [New York] today – me, husband, Dad, daughter, sister and niece – and went to the MOMA, walked around Rockefeller Center (which was crazy crowded) and had lunch at a restaurant on 48th Street and 5th Avenue. It was so crowded we didn’t get to do much more. I feel bad for niece because she really wanted to go to the American Girl store (whatever that is; I think it’s a kind of doll) but the line was ridiculous.

December 28, 2005, ~10:30 p.m. Last night at my parents’ house. Tomorrow is Dad’s birthday and we’re going out for brunch at 11:30. Then the limo comes for us at 2 p.m. It all seems unreal. I finally got shoes for the trip that I’m happy with. I’ve been way overeating. Tomorrow will be a day to move on. I am nervous.

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This year Allah swt blessed me and my parents with the humbling opportunity to make our hajj, and what an experience it was.

Words cannot fully describe the way I felt about my trip, what it’s like being there, what I saw, but if I had to choose a word, it would be “magnanimous”. Everything about it was magnanimous, in a way that could only be created by God. If anyone had any doubts before, they fell over backwards the minute they step foot into Makkah.

Alhumdulilah, our flight there, Jeddah airport, luggage, all that went smoothly. All along, I had been mentally preparing myself for all the horror stories other people had told me about. We arrived safely at Jeddah, and while getting our luggage, one of the sisters tripped over a pole and fell down, landing on her outstretched arm. I scrambled to remember anything I had learned from my rotations, trying to help. But alas she had broken her arm. Her arm was casted and alhumdulilah, she remained in good spirits then and throughout the trip.

On entering Makkah Friday morning around 8am, I looked around at the other faces on our bus. All the same. All looking out the window, curious, anxious, for that glance, for any sight of the Kaaba. It’s like we couldn’t help ourselves. Before departing on this trip, shazia had mentioned something to me that stuck. These are the same streets that Rasul (S) had walked so many years ago. This city is sacred. Would it be like what we imagined it would be, like the pictures we’ve seen? I always thought it’d be all deserty- with sandy streets, safa/marwa as mounds? lol boy was I wrong. As we drove around, I could not see the Kaaba. I had to look closely just to figure out, that in the distance was the Haram in the midst of all those tall buildings and hotels galore.

We got to our little ghetto hotel room and took a few hours nap before trying to be alert enough for jummah. It’s friday. I was in Makkah. And I was going to have jummah at the Kaaba. SubhanAllah. They told us we’d have to go an hour early at least, but I didn’t realize how true that statement was. We only went a half hour early… and we didn’t even get close. Mom, dad and I found this little space on the street, that would normally fit just one person, but we three squeezed. And then soon after, more people squeezed with us. People squeeze in the most unlikely spaces. I guess that’s the barakah of the city, everyone has a spot. There’s space for everyone, and if not, you make space. It’s not just yours, its everyone’s masjid. That was the first time I had prayed next to some strange guy, and though it was odd at first, I adjusted. But otherwise, it was HOT. That was also the first time I had heard that beautiful recitation of quran in salah. And wow. I mean we listen to all these recitations at home on our mp3 players and are in awe. But hearing it in real life, and even more, during your salah?! Wow. It knocked me breathless. The tears just flowed. Is this what it’s like for people who live here, pray here everyday? They get to listen to this recitation in their salah everyday? I’m jealous.

After jummah, we debated whether to go do our tawaf right then or wait, our decision was made for us as the thousands of people walking out of the Haram pushed us along with them. We went back to the hotel to rest a little; we would do our tawaf at night.

As the sky darkened, we headed out at night for our tawaf, two young Iraqi sisters in our group asked if they could tag along. So we headed out together, all of us newbies, unsure of what to expect, but excited and almost anxious. As we walked, I noticed how even at night, this city is lit up like its day time. My mom loved that.

We got to the Haram, found the wheelchair station, arranged for this dude to push my mom in the chair and we all headed to the top floor to start our tawaf. The wheelchair dude was awesome mashAllah. As we went up, all of us first timers were little nervous. When will we be able to see the Kaaba that we always dreamed to see? Will it be there as soon as we get off the escalators? Unsure as we were, we followed the wheelchair dude carefully as he started the tawaf. We did not yet see the Kaaba.

As we did our rounds, the wheelchair dude said dua, and we said them too. More dua than I could have imagined. It was amazing. I mean, I had my ‘hajj made easy’ book hanging around my neck, all ready and what not, but this dude was awesome. After our 7 rounds, he took us closer to the railing, so that we could see that sight we’d all been waiting for. As we peered closer, I could feel my heart racing. And out of the blue, it sprang up on us. There it was. Faintly similar to the pictures, but at the same time nothing like I had imagined. Suddenly I felt light, watching that simple black cube down there in the middle, as millions of little dots circle it. It was bright, lit up, and it felt surreal. As if I was floating, something about that sight was not this-worldly. It was from somewhere else. How could something so surreal, so light, so majestic, so magnanimous be on this earth?

I don’t know what I was feeling, because I had never felt it before. And I cannot really put words to it. But I did think one thing at that moment. All day, consciously, or subconsciously, my eyes had searched here and there to see this sight, without success. So much surrounding it, all the tall buildings, the hotels, the outer perimeter, the Haram. It’s like this secret. A sacred secret. Hidden safely in the middle, not for all unready eyes to see casually as you pass by. It’s only for those eyes who are ready, who are searching, longing to see it. You have to make the effort, and you are rewarded with that sight. This hidden secret safe in the middle. Surrounded by such beautiful and intricate architecture, high arches, marble floors, chandeliers galore. Yet the hearts of those millions of people do not long to see the arches or the chandeliers. They swiftly pass by the fancy architecture. They are drawn to the center of it all. They are drawn to the secret. All the attention is focused on this simple black cube, ancient and majestic, in the midst of the intricate architecture that surrounds it. That became a profound thought in my mind throughout my trip.

Soon thereafter, moved by what I had seen, watching my mom being pushed in this wheelchair, I saw light where I had not seen it before. I’ve always been at my mom’s side for as long as I can remember. Frail as she is, with all her health problems, I’ve always been the one holding her hand. People would always see and make comments like, “You’re such a good daughter” or “Allah swt will reward you for all you do for your mother”. I never thought anything of it. I thought, hey, I’m just doing my job as a daughter, its not like I have a choice. If I don’t do it, who will? I never expected anything from it. I never expected reward. It was my duty. But that day, at that moment, all those comments flooded my mind. Allah swt will reward me. Allah swt is rewarding me. Right now, right here. Just by bringing me here, being here. SubhanAllah. My parents brought me with them, because my mom needed me to be with her. And that’s where my blessing lies. My reward IS the opportunity to come along, to this blessed city, to see the sights I was seeing, and to be awestruck by it all. That is my blessing. That was my reward. I am grateful, and I ask for nothing more. Any good I have ever done in my life, I took this as its reward. Anything more is just pure mercy from Allah swt.

As we finished, drank our zam zam, prayed our two rakah, the wheelchair dude prayed too. What a cool job that would be. How many tawaf had he done in his life? Tons, I bet. May Allah swt reward wheelchair dude. My dad got his haircut, and we walked back to the hotel, lighthearted, giddy, but definitely humbled by the events of the night.?

On our last night in Makkah before leaving for Mina, me and the two Iraqi sisters I had met, decided that we were going on a mission to try to touch the black stone and see maqam ibrahim. So around 1 am, after I put my mom to bed, we headed out. Our genius thinking behind the plan was that, since everyone was leaving for Mina, the Haram would be empty… or at least less crowded. We were quickly proven wrong the minute we walked in. I think others had the same idea we had, because it was super crowded, but we had to try. So we set out, holding on tight to each other. We got to maqam ibrahim, and we got to look inside. Prophet Ibrahim (a) had huuuge feet!!! It had to have been a size 13 at least. As we stood there, some dude nearby took out his camera to take a picture of it, and quickly a guard came and took the camera away.

Once we were done there, we merged back into the crowd circling the Kaaba, moving closer and closer with each round. Finally we got to the innermost circle, right against the hateem, and then right against Kaaba. We were almost there. I traced my fingers against the stone wall of the Kaaba to keep my spot in the first row. As soon as the corner of the black stone came, it was chaos. I quickly lost my spot. People were pushing and shoving, stomping. Somehow in the craziness of everything, I was turned around and was flowing, but backwards. The men around us were looking at us like we were weirdoes, as in, what are these young girls doing here? They’re going to get hurt. One brother signaled with his hand that we should probably head out before we did get hurt. So that’s what we did. We finished our tawaf and prayed our two rakah.

Praying at the Haram specifically on the ground floor is a captivating feeling. It puts the term “face the qiblah” at whole other level. Being able to see the Kaaba in front of you as you perform your salah is definately mind-blowing. We prayed that day on the ground floor saddened by the thought of leaving the next morning. But we still had the high of the experience we just had, sooo close to hajr al aswat. Maybe next time inshAllah.

Mina was a whole other experience. Difficult yes, but not undoable and definitely an experience worth remembering. There in those tents, I was able to bond with some great sisters, and chose not to bond with some others. I learned not to be picky about bathrooms, or showers for that matter. I slept very little, ate mostly fruits and fell in love with the laban. Of course I had to add about 6 packets of sugar in my laban to make it a lassi!

The next few days passed, eventful yes, but captured well in my pictures. Arafat was something else. And yes, anyone who asked me to make dua for them, I was able to alhumdulilah. May Allah swt accept my duas, the duas of my fellow hujjaj and all the muslimeen.

My time in Makkah, doing tawaf, the days of Mina, walking to the jamrat, carried this certain aura with it. Millions of people from all over the world, from all walks of life, from the richest to the poorest, the strong and the weak come here for this trip. And let me tell you, it’s no vacation. Hajj is no piece of cake, rewarding, but trying. And even still, the millions still flock to this sacred place, year after year, enduring in the struggle together. 4.8 million Muslims, doing the same thing, at the same time, walking to the jamrat from their tents in mina, chanting the labayk together, begging for forgiveness in the valley of Arafat, spending the night under the stars of muzdalifah. It’s no piece of cake, and yet they endure. Why? As I saw the people tawaf around the Kaaba, or the millions of muslims walk to the jamrat, I saw in them conviction. This is conviction. Conviction for The Truth. Belief like no other. There has got to be something divinely powerful about this to create such a movement. Only this deen has the ability to draw so many people to enjoin in this journey, through the hardship and ease of it all. Magnanimous. Only Allah swt can create this type of force. The One,True Lord. And I wonder, why isn’t everyone muslim?

My heart started aching the minute we left Makkah for madina… and it hasn’t stopped. My eyes flowed as I stared out the window of the bus inching out of this majestic city. When would I be back? Why did it take me so long to come here, to realize the possibility? There was so much more I had to do, so many more salawat I wanted to make, so many more tawaf awaiting my return. When would my eyes once again encounter that brilliant sight that had knocked me breathless that first night? How can I leave this blessed city of Rasulullah, and go back to… Albany? Ew. How would I ever be able to return to normal life? I don’t want normal anymore. I want to return to Allah swt. I want peace. I want serenity. I want to surrender with complete submission. I want forgiveness and humility. I want jannah. Im just waiting for my return and I’d like to think, its waiting for me.

Throughout my stay in Madina, I kept longing to go back to Makkah. So perhaps I didn’t get as much out of it as I should have. One thing was for sure, the date markets and I felt this natural immediate attraction to each other?. That was one thing I didn’t get in Makkah. Regardless I made sure to make my last night in Madina worth it. Around 10 pm, I set out for the rawdah. It’s open for sisters between 9 pm and 12 am. I waited patiently as the female guards, dressed in full black, set us in groups according to countries. After about an hour of waiting, it was our group’s turn to pray in the green carpeted area. I got my good two rakah in, and I made sure it was special. As soon as I salaamed out, I quickly got up to leave, so that the sisters behind me would have a spot to pray also. I went to the back of the masjid, found a nice empty spot behind a pillar, and prayed some more. I made dua. It was like the dua in Ramadhan on laylatul qadr, but now, here, in Masjid an Nabawi. I was leaving tomorrow back to Albany, what I once called my home. I prayed, afraid to return, begging Allah swt to forgive me, to make it easy for me, to ease the difficulties I once faced, to give me strength to endure, to guide me and always keep me guided. I prayed for the blessed opportunity to return to the blessed city, as soon as possible. I prayed what now became one of my favorite duas, for goodness in this life, goodness in the hereafter, and to be saved from the punishment of the fire.

And here I am, back in Albany, with my heart yearning to go back. I have not yet settled in, afraid to settle in, afraid to lose this feeling. But something tells me, I will never be able to be complacent here again. I will never be as comfortable as I was in Makkah al Mukarramah.

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As a person who works with a travel agency that provides a Hajj package, and has been a Hajj guide, I would like to clarify a few things.

First of all in regards to peoples complaints about why people in the office are not responsive to their clients is because until the last two weeks before travel we are still coordinating with the Saudi Government to organize our trip. Just as you are waiting for us we are waiting for Saudi Government to be responsive. We here in the US are use to one system and expect to have everything we want on time. Although that is a good quality you must understand we are dealing with people who run on their own time and since they have control over everything and they are trying to organize over 2 million Hajjies all over the world we must be PATIENT and CONSIDERATE! You know once a person decides that they are going to Hajj their Hajj journey beings at that time. You must be in Hajj mode until you complete it, and try to remain in it after Hajj.

On that note Hajj is unpredictable you must be ready physically and mentally for anything to happen. You may be in a group but don’t expect to have the same Hajj experience as the person next to you. Allah (SWT) has written out the hardships and easy for each person to go through. On this journey for Allah (SWT) nothing materialistic counts, and you are suppose to go through hardship. As a person who has experienced a very easy Hajj and a difficult one, I would prefer the hardship that way you feel like you earned your Hajj. I am in no way discrediting either or, but on my trip people in the group would complain about things that are not controllable and if things didn’t go there way I never heard the end of it.

As for the comments of Muzdalifa; what everyone needs to understand is that is just a plane place, some people stay until Fajir and some stay until 12:05pm regardless of the fact its unpredictable and you must be ready to move on the second. It’s not like Mina where you are set there for a few days. Muzdalifa is max 13 hours. As for it being freezing cold, last year 2006 it was really cold but that was the first time people experienced that, so this past Hajj 2007 everyone thought its going to be freezing and brought all there Luggage with them extra sleeping bags sweater, and it was beautiful weather and they were suffering with all there extra luggage. So everyone must keep in mind you just never know what to expect.

All in all there is always room for improvement, and we should always try to improve ourselves. May Allah (SWT) give us the strength and patient to pass through our journey for ALLAH (SWT) Please forgive me if I said something wrong or offended anyone.

Thank you
Salaaamu Aleeekoum

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The most important day of Hajj is the day of Arafah (the 9th day of thul hijjah) as the Prophet PBUH said “Hajj is Arafah”. Pilgrims are to go to Arafat and spend the day from Thuhr until Maghrib in supplication and remembrance of Allah SWT.

Alhamdulillah I was able to perform hajj during the 2006-2007 hajj year. Upon my arrival to the site where my group and I would be staying during these blessed hours, I found myself confused. Where was the mountain of Arafah? I quickly learned we were far from the mountain and would not be seeing it but that we were standing in the boundaries of Arafah and would be gaining the same reward as those standing on the mountain itself. The best advice I received before embarking on my hajj journey especially when it comes to the time spent in Arafah was:

• Be prepared both mentally and physically
• Do not waste time – time is precious as the number of hours are limited
• Face the Qiblah while making supplications and remembering Allah-not the mountain
• It is not necessary to be on the mountain of Arafah (it is best to stick with your own group)
• Eat lightly to not tire yourself
• Be prepared for heat
• Anticipate long commute times and finally
• BE PATIENT

I made dua’a for that sister, myself and the entire Muslim Ummah that Allah SWT would grant us the wisdom to realize our blessings and strength to reap the benefits of this great day. Aameeen.

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I believe it is the most helpful item I’ve brought back from Hajj. Looking back at my entries, I realize how much the journey to the House of Allah (SWT) was an opportunity to clear my mind. Life is so much more peaceful and reflective without all the gadgets, cell phones, emails, internet, TV, and mp3s. Al hamdulilah, with just my pen and journal in hand, I was able to get away, renew my faith and return to Allah (SWT).

In one of my entries, as we drove out of Mina, passed by Muzdalifa and the sign for Arafah, I wrote: SubhanAllah, it felt like only yesterday when we arrived in Makkah but it will feel like tomorrow when we leave this Holy City. SubhanAllah, I already miss the time I spent in Mina, my humbling experience in Arafah, and sleeping outdoors in Muzdalifah. SubhanAllah, Hajj is really a purification of the soul and you realize this when the dunya is no longer as big of a priority. At Hajj, you leave all those worldly worries behind and turn to increase your worship of Allah (SWT). Dad put it best, “Back home, people are chasing the world, but at Hajj, people are chasing the Hereafter.”

– Edited By: skhaliqi

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Covered in their garments,
A sense of purity,
Moving smoothly along,
In close proximity.

Bodies assembled to worship,
Moving about peacefully,
Moving in sync,
Full of activity

The House of Allah,
And amazing beauty!
An honor to be there,
Oh, what a sight to see!

A physical challenge,
A strange burst of energy,
Traveling in order,
In constant uniformity,

The voice of a child,
Reciting so beautifully,
With the Qur’an in his hands,
Looking so seriously,

The recitation of Al-Sodais,
Heard so very clearly,
Echoing through Makkah,
Reverberating through the city,

In Holy Zamzam water,
Bathing jubilantly,
Cleansing their very souls,
Letting their sins go free.

Praising Allah,
Praising constantly,
Here I am, Oh Lord,
Praising communally.

Poet/Author: Iman Mashaal

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My family started walking through the sleeping pilgrims to reach the bottom of a large hill. We laid our blankets and I pulled a rock closer to me as a pillow. I looked around for miles and all I could see were pilgrims. Some had sleeping bags, normal blankets, and pillows (which I envied), but others only had themselves and huddled together. I knew sleeping under the stars was going to take on a whole different meaning. There was absolutely nothing between me and the sky.

I can still remember how cold it was in Muzdalifa. I had to go to the bathroom the entire night, but refused because it was freezing. Plus I’m a germaphobe. There were bathrooms, twelve in total, but they had the longest lines ever and were used by countless people. I remember seeing a group of men hiking up the hill and my mom told me that the men also refused to use the bathroom stalls. Instead, they resorted to rocks.

Alhamdullilah, even though I was freezing, I was able to fall asleep. My mom sat up the entire night because she was too cold to move and my poor father had only two towels with him. Someone, somewhere, told him that he could buy blankets in Muzdalifa. Not true, or at least it wasn’t in our area.

After we prayed Fajr, buses started to pull in to take people to Mina. Our bus was late by a few hours, and the sun rose to slightly warm us up. While we waited, I gathered rocks to throw at the Jamraat. The valley is covered in pebbles, so it’s not difficult to find, but I absolutely avoided the ones that were wet!

My stay at Muzdalifa was by far the most difficult part of Hajj, but alhamdullilah for it. Even though I felt as if I had nothing, my night there was necessary and stark reminder about our origins. I was a reminder that I am from the soil of this earth and will one day lie in it. I drove out of Muzdalifa and was truly grateful to Allah for so many things; for letting me live such a comfortable life back home, for ending the night, bringing the day and taking us towards Mina, and also for making it a once in a lifetime experience.

– Frah Abdi

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