Diary of a Haji: Day 17 | SoundVision.com

Diary of a Haji: Day 17

May 23, 1994 (12th Zul-Hijjah):

[At] around 2:30 p.m. we went for Rummy again. On the way I saw an old man get hit by a bus.

The driver looked at him for a couple of seconds and then kept going. The man was in pain, but he was still standing.

This time the crowd was smaller. I walked through stinky, smelly places, the worst area was the covered area leading to the Jamraat.

At Jamrat ul Oola, I was able to reach the wall this time and threw the seven pebbles at the pillar with the slogan of Allahu Akbar.

The other two Jamrats were crowded and I had to throw the pebbles from a distance. I don't think all of my pebbles hit the towers, but they were in the right direction and that is the best one can do without getting hurt.

Our drivers and other workers had really worked hard for us, despite the lack of standards.

I felt relaxed and happy that Hajj was almost over. Only Tawaf ul Wuda was left which we would do on Thursday before leaving Saudi Arabia on Friday morning (this is the farewell Tawaf performed by the pilgrim just before leaving Mecca for his next destination).

At night, Ismael Farooque took us to his restaurant for [a] farewell dinner. We sat on the carpets laid in rectangular blocks in the open air. Barbecued spicy chicken, Kurrahi ghosht, Lassi (Alsi cola) and Nan [a type of bread] were served. It was good and relaxing.

Spiritually I was so relaxed and happy, but my body was not in good shape. My nose and throat had become worse.

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