abtravels

Why I’m writing this

It’s been almost a couple of weeks (at time of writing) since I completed my Umrah Pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia and I think it’ll be really good, handy and reflective for me to journal my experience as this was my first pilgrimage. For anyone that isn’t aware, in Islam we have two types of pilgrimage which is a holy journey. There is the Hajj which is a pillar of Islam so it’s mandatory for all Muslims who can afford and are able to do so safely. The second type of Pilgrimage is Umrah. This is normally a smaller pilgrimage which can be done at any point in a Muslims life. It is not mandatory but still highly regarded and most commonly done more frequently by Muslims. Umrah takes about 4-6 hours in total to complete whereas Hajj spans over multiple days. I’m writing this to log my experience, reflect on it and make sure I can remember everything for the next time. And there will 100% be a next time as the Pilgrimage was much more than I anticipated which I’ll explain why/ 

What was my intention of going and what was I hoping to get out of it? I’ll be really honest, I never considered myself much of a religious person and I initially booked the trip to Mecca and Medina (Makkah/Madinah) or the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) with the ultimate intention of any other trip I’ve taken. So sightseeing, immersing myself in the local culture and possibly meeting others. Okay yeah I did book and plan to do the Umrah but this was more because I was going to be there anyway so I might as well just do it whilst I’m there. I never really looked at it as a religious journey in the way that that was my sole intention for going. 

I have to say though, it meant a lot more spiritually to me in a way I never at any point thought about or anticipated. I experienced something which even now I can’t really describe properly. I’m not going to sit here and say it was absolutely life changing which some pilgrims often claim. And I’m not demeaning or belittling that at all, if it is life changing this is absolutely wonderful and I’m so happy for those pilgrims. 

I had planned to do the Umrah, visit some holy or sacred places and enjoy the weather mostly! In the UK this is January (at the time of writing) so it’s cold, wet and just gloomy. The weather in KSA during this time was in the mid 20’s during the day and dropping to about 12-14 degrees at night. So relatively European summer and not overly hot tropical climate. I had just thought about going there as any other trip and enjoying myself as much as possible and seeing new sites and being in a different environment. Beyond this, I never really had any expectations of what I was going to get out of it. I never at any point considered that this was going to be a spiritual journey more than what I had prepared in terms of doing the Umrah and Tawaf (will explain more later. The religious part of it, as with so many parts of my religious life at that point, it was just something else to do. I had no real spiritual connection to it in a deeper sense than just doing the act and worshipping God. So I never really had any idea what to expect as such. 

With my sister passing away a few months before my journey, the meaning of my Umrah and what I thought it would mean to me slightly changed but not I would say in a profound way. It was more praying for my father and sister and giving thanks to Allah for their life and existence. But it wasn’t overly religious if you get what I mean.

By the way, before I move further, I’m just going to give a few sort of ‘Caveats’. I’m not for one second writing this as a guide and saying that this is how things must be done. I think there’s always things I can do to further educate myself and not exclusively be a better Muslim, but a more valuable person to humanity. So whatever I write going forwards, please refrain from outright criticism. I’m happy to be corrected but I did the best I could with the knowledge, guidance and resources I had. So forgive me if I write anything that you feel is massively incorrect and no way do I intend to be offensive to anyone. I’m still learning and I can only hope I’ve helped you to learn a bit too.

London Gatwick

My departure flight was at 17:00 from London Gatwick. This was a relatively easy commute from my house and I made sure to confirm with the travel agent to book either Heathrow or Gatwick. There’s no easy commute to Stansted for me and I always avoid this airport wherever possible. 

I arrived at the airport really early, having left my house around 12:30. Because it was an international departure the advice was to get there 3 hours early which I followed. I arrived at the airport by 14:00 but by the time I had gone through security, dropped my hold luggage etc, it was about 14:30 so this was really early. 

I normally don’t drink anything a few hours before I’m meant to get on the plane just because I try to avoid needing the toilet whilst I’m on the plane. However on this occasion as my seat was right at the back next to the toilets, it wasn’t a big issue if I did need the loo at any point. 

Nevertheless I didn’t really drink anything whilst I was at the airport but as a snack I settled for a hard boiled egg that I bought at Boots. I also bought some dark chocolate from Sainsbury’s the day before which I kept with me in my cabin bag that I could snack on whenever I wanted. Dark chocolate has much less sugar and from what I hear does have health benefits. So this is my preferred snack going forward.

Wizz Air Flight

The plane to Jeddah was roughly a 6 hour flight. There is a 3 hour time zone difference between the KSA and UK. So my arrival time at Jeddah airport was going to be at 02:35 at Jeddah airport which was roughly 23:35 UK time. 

The plane did arrive quite earlier than expected, roughly around 02:00 local time. It was a Wizz Air flight which was a pretty standard flight to be honest. I did purchase a tea on board for £3.60 which is a fair price but I understand it might be on the high side generally for everyday purchases. 

On the plane, I did take some time to review my Umrah guide and where I could get some sleep. The only thing annoying/frustrating about the journey was where other passengers, male passengers, were already wearing their ihram clothes and had to use the loo. The ihram clothes are two pieces of white cloth/towels that pilgrims are meant to use to cover the body with nothing else worn. So one piece covering your lower half, and a top piece covering your torso. I wasn’t wearing this on board the flight. 

It was quite inconvenient for other passengers because if you can imagine needing the loo whilst wearing this, it means you have to completely get undressed, use the loo and try in whatever way to put the two pieces of cloth back on again. Now, wearing the clothes isn’t too difficult. There are many easy to follow videos on YouTube which give clear how to’s. This wasn’t the hard part. But I think what was hard for anyone wearing these clothes is that one – you needed a lot more space than what was available at the plane toilets and two – the required privacy for undressing/dressing. Because of this on average these pilgrims took a total of 10-15 minutes whenever they needed to use the loos. This was very inconvenient and uncomfortable for others.

Was it absolutely necessary to wear the ihram on the plane? Well no, because we would be landing in Jeddah and not Mecca. The only point where you are required to wear the ihram clothes is at the Miqat. This is a boundary point around the grand mosque where the journey for Umrah technically begins. It’s at this boundary where you are required to make your intention that you intend to perform Umrah. It’s at this point where religiously you are required to wear the clothes to be in a state of “ehram” to then proceed with the journey to complete the Umrah. So no, it wasn’t absolutely necessary to wear the ihram clothes on the plane. 

But I suspect, these pilgrims were intending to travel straight away to Mecca upon landing to perform Umrah which is perfectly fine but even then, I would have worn the ihram clothes at Jeddah airport. I’m sure there were more adequate facilities than on the plan. 

I myself was wearing normal clothing, so jeans and a warm top. My experience with flights is that it can get a bit cold so this is another reason why I wouldn’t recommend wearing the ihram on the plane, as it could get very uncomfortable with the coolness of the plane. 

There were other pilgrims who were in normal attire including the brother (I will refer to any men I come across throughout my journey who are completing the Umrah as brothers, because we were all completing this sacred duty as a community and family. So they are brothers not just other guys) next to me who is from Kent and travelling with his mother. He was very polite and very kind and I did on a handful of occasions offer my chocolate to him and his mother but they declined.