Hajj Entry No. 2

Over the next few days, I basically waited for the hajj season to start. During these days, we spent basically all the 5 prayer times in the Masjidil Haram. I enjoyed praying in all different locations, something that I cannot do in Japan :). So I tried praying close to Ka'bah from all 4 angles, praying on second floor and on the third floor as well. Just a heads up, try to come at least 40 minutes before prayer starts during Hajj, as otherwise, it would be impossible to do it inside! It's just that crowded, when you have 2 million plus of people from all over the world.

And then it started.......on the 18th, we put up our ihram dress again and went to Mina for a night. This is like a mental preparation before the main event of Hajj....Arafah. Mina had rows of tents that stretches as far as the eyes can see, and this is the place where you will do the Jumrah. We shared the tent with other Indonesians from Tokyo that came in the group. Men slept on one side and women slept on the other, separated only by a piece of cloth that we made ourselves. We were basically sleeping on a futon and pillow that was given by the organizer.

I did not really do a quick scan outside of the tent at the time, I was down with throat infection and took some heavy medication. This was a consequence of doing too much thawaf maybe, hehehehe. So besides doing the obligatory prayers and do many do'a, I was basically sleeping most of the time, to gather my strength again :)