Sunday, December 17, 2006

More Makkah

We've been spending the days at the Masjid, taking advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity. We did some shopping, also..."Marhaba...Marhaba, Haji" the shop owners grapple for our attention. Makkah is very hilly, the streets are line with shops filled to the capacity with clothing, trinkets, toys, utensils, jewelry, books, CDs, food items, etc., each competing for the haji's attention. The streets are kept cleans by hundreds of workers constantly working to remove strewn garbage by the millions. It's a daunting task to say the least.

At the time of prayers, a most amazing thing happens - I guess amazing to us New Yorkers. The call to prayer is sounded and the shop owners go to the prayers without closing their shops. Some of them simply shut the lights off, indicating that the owner is absent while others simply throw a net on their merchandise and go off to prayers.

It was getting (more) crowded in the city now, as the days of Hajj are drawing closer. Some South Africans arrived in our hotel.

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