abtravels

Friday Prayers

The next day was actually Friday and I was blessed and fortunate to be able to read Friday prayers at the Prophet’s mosque. I didn’t have a big breakfast again which was a shame as it was my last buffet breakfast. 

The Friday Prayers start at 1PM however after doing a bit of research with Copilot it was recommended that you go quite/very early to make sure you actually get a space within the mosque. 

This was true as I left at 10:30AM and by the time I got there, there were crowds of people and the main prayer hall was so full already that they were starting to seal off sections already. The only remaining areas were the upper floors but the only area I could settle into was the roof of the mosque. This was 2 hours before the prayers were due to start. I remember walking up the stairs with crowds of men. It was so busy already.

I sat there on the floor for about 2 hours until the Khutbah – sermon started. It was pretty much the same as Friday prayers anywhere but I became acutely aware that this may probably become one of my last acts of prayer within Masjid an-Nabawi. As such it did feel a lot more meaningful to me at that moment. 

As I had a late night flight I knew I could always come back for evening prayers, I would have sufficient time. I made this intention so I didn’t at this point say my farewell prayers. 

When the prayer was finished there were scores of people that were going down through the exit. It took about 20 minutes to exit the mosque itself. It was by this point I felt the need to go to the toilet. One slight criticism I have of the mosque toilets is one – most are squat toilets and there’s often very few sit down toilets. Two – as the Wudu area is closeby, it is normally very wet which isn’t comfortable. Because of this I thought it might be better to get back to the hotel rather than wait to use one at the mosque.

As I was walking back there were quite a few vendors selling items you wouldn’t normally find in the area on a typical day. There were all sorts of vendors selling Attar (Perfumes), sweets, prayer beads and dates. 

There was one guy who was shouting out “1 kilo Ajwa 10 riyals”. 10 riyals for 1kg worth of dates is about £2 and that is shockingly good value for money. Most souks and shops I visited were selling 1KG for about SAR 35. This vendor was right outside my hotel, and I thought well let me just go to the restroom and I’ll come back out to buy. I was only 10 minutes I think but when I came back out, the guy had gone which was a shame.

Madinah Dates Market

I decided to go back to the hotel cafe and have – you guessed it – a karak chai. Whilst drinking the chai I came up with a plan to visit Madinah Dates Market which was half an hour walk away from the hotel so walkable for me. I’d read some reviews online and generally the consensus was you can get some good deals with haggling. 

So I thought I’d give it a shot. The market was in the opposite direction of Masjid an-Nabawi from the hotel. But as becoming very typical, the last few directions on Google maps were not walkable/safe. It directed me to cross a road when there was no crossing nor pavements/sidewalk.

Fortunately I think a driver pulled up and said “Taxi?”. This was a elderly gentleman probably past 60. You’ll get these drivers across Madinah/Makkah. They’re not actual taxis as such but I think just normal drivers on the road who will offer to give you a lift in return for a fair. Generally it’s quite safe but just be mindful I think and if possible use a proper taxi – maybe they have to be licensed which gives you greater protection as a passenger.

I got in the car and it became quite obvious that he was relying on me to give him the directions of where I wanted to go. Once I sorted this, Google Maps again frustratingly, gave directions to a wholesale foods market kind of like Spitalfields in London. I’m still glad I went as it was really large with so many traders selling all sorts of fruits and veg. But no dates where I was. It reminded me of the food market in Malé in the Maldives. 

I asked a trader by showing him a picture of some dates on my phone. He then looked right to the end of the warehouse I guess and swung his arm. I took that to mean that it was outside this building. I followed that direction and walked out on to the other side. 

The whole area was a massive market with sections for different items. There is one section for fruit and veg, another for small bakeries/biscuits, and another for household goods. I assumed the dates section was somewhere to be found here.

It wasn’t easy and I did a few circular laps until I came across the Dates shops. Arguably it was the smallest section in the whole market with about 7 shops who were completely filled with just dates. 

I remember reading the reviews online and a common tip was to check out all the shops for the best price as they can slightly differ. The first one was selling 1KG for SAR 20. As I walked from shop to shop, this as it turned out was the cheapest as the others ranged from 22 to about 28 I think. One of the shops I didn’t go into because it looked as though a big commercial deal was happening with a number of men and a lot of scales and some calculators.

I went back to the first shop and I asked again for 1 kilo Ajwa dates and he said 20 again. This was my pathetic attempt at haggling. I replied “15?” but the guy just repeated what I said to him back at me as if he didn’t understand what I was saying. 

I didn’t really try to force it, I just ok and he began to weigh up the dates and wrap them up in a plastic bag. He gave me a carrier bag too to make it easier to carry. As I was flying out that night, I still had a lot of notes and change which I needed to get rid of. So I suppose I wasn’t too concerned with the haggling as well. If I don’t spend it, it’s gonna go to waste. I handed over a 10 riyal note and 2 fivers before saying Assalamu Alaikum to leave.

Ajwa dates most typically come from Madinah. Whilst these are nice, there are a wide variety of other dates. I think if I go back I will maybe get a selection or mix of others to try. Some are a bit more dry than others so do try and ask if you can have a try before you make your selection.

As it was starting to get dark instead of walking all the way back I decided to book an Uber. I was standing next to a gas pump and a drive through coffee shop which was next to the entrance to the whole market area. I made sure this time to drop the pin on the Uber app exactly where I currently was and this worked perfectly as the driver turned off of the road to find me right beside the coffee shop/counter. I headed back to the hotel and quickly had a shower and got changed into my thobe for my final prayer at Masjid an-Nabawi.

Have you been to a food market and tried to haggle prices? Let me know how you did by leaving a comment? Stay tuned for my final post on my Saudi Arabia blog and what I feel I learned on the journey! Thank you so much and I’m really hoping you’ll stay to close this chapter in 2026!