slip-sliding away…..

Previous parts: Introduction | Part 1 | Part 2| Part 3

Masjid an-Nabawi at sunset

First impressions

Mention the name ‘Madinah’, and the first descriptions many Muslims will use involve words like ‘peaceful’, ‘calm’, ‘tranquil’, etc. Our arrival there was anything but that – but such is to be expected when we had to deal with the chaos of Madinah’s airport at Hajj time: thousands of pilgrims arriving, long immigration queues, and a luggage collection area that was hectic, to say the least.

When we finally got out of there, we felt the air of the Holy Lands for the first time. It wasn’t suffocating, but was very hot – especially since it was after 9PM already.

If I didn’t yet feel the sanctity of the place yet, the wait on the bus would make it clear that this was no ordinary place. The radio was on, but this…