It’s early
Thursday morning and I’ve just sat down with a wonderful concoction of Arabic
Tea. A teacher at work keeps bringing it
in for us so I’ve made it myself this morning for a treat. You begin by boiling water on the stove with
fresh ginger. Once this has boiled you
add one or two tea bags and let steep.
Meanwhile heat some Rainbow Milk which is like our Anchor evaporated
milk. I got the cardamon flavoured one. This milk is thick and slightly sweet to my
taste. Add a dash of sugar if wished. You can then mix the tea and milk together or
leave separately in insulated jugs. Help
yourself as wished! Most places have a
large pot for coffee and a smaller one for tea.
Milk is always served hot. Public
places nearly always have a coffee pot and tiny cups to drink the strong, bitter
local coffee.
The reason for
this treat today (and the fact I’m home) is that it is Eid. For me that means a four day weekend! For Muslims it is an important religious
festival. If Ramadan was Christmas, then
this is New Year. Without the booze! You couldn’t buy any alcohol for two days
apparently so everyone was in stocking up.
The Indians seem to be the worst and they buy whiskey by the bottle
load.
We had hardly
any girls at school yesterday so finished an hour early. Most families are travelling to be with
family for this important celebration.
Yesterday saw
the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, the holy site for Islam. Mecca is in Saudi Arabia, our neighbour,
close to the Suez Canal. I was watching
it on TV last night as 2 million Muslims circle the Black Box or Ka’aba. The Black Box is a marble structure which
they’ve built a mosque around. This is
where all Muslims face when they pray. Millions
of people circle it together, an amazing spectacle. Mostly men, of course, and they are draped in
what appears to be two sheets. One
around their waist and the other loosely draped over their shoulders so lots of
skin is showing, an unusual sight in this part of the world. The dress represents the simple dress of the
prophet, including bare feet. Women are
still in abaya but not all have covered faces.
Toddlers are being carried on shoulders of fathers, those in wheelchairs
or pushchairs are pushed around on the two levels above. Many people are wearing face masks, a sign of
modern times. As they walk around they
chant. When our girls at school do this
at assembly they sing a beautiful, poignant song which leaves them all crying. There is so much more to it than meets the
eye.
The black covering with gold lettering is what I watch them sew into place later in the blog.
The amount of
pilgrims allowed to enter Saudi Arabia has been reduced in modern times because
as many as 20 million would come. Now
it’s limited to around 2 million, balloted from Muslims around the world. In keeping with modern times, you apply online.
Kaaba in 1907.
It’s now early
morning and the square surrounding the black box is a lot less crowded, nearly
empty by their standards. Men are on top
of it now and throw ropes down which are tied around large rolled up carpets. These are then hauled up to the top of the
box and secured with ropes. These men
sure know how to tie knots. This comes
from years of herding camels. The
carpets are then unrolled to reveal ornate inscriptions (from the Quran) in
gold. The previous plain black covering
is cut away with what appears to be a craft knife and dropped down to waiting
men who bundle it into a large cotton covering much like a wool sack. The marble base is polished with scented
oil. (All this on TV! We have a channel that you can watch the
black box on every day.) I’m seeing more here than I probably would if
I was there.
Not that I
would be there as Non-Muslims are not allowed to enter Mecca. The government of Saudi has demolished many
ancient buildings to develop the mosque around this structure and create new
hotels for the pilgrims. This upset
Turkey as they ruined some historical sites.
The Haj (pilgrimage) is the major source of income in Saudi along with
oil. The government still welcomes Muslims
from around the world even though there is tension between the Sunnai & Shi’ite
Muslims plus the current conflict in Syria which sees various Muslim countries
supporting opposing factions.
Here is an
extract from a newspaper.
(Reuters)
- Nearly 3 million Muslim pilgrims started the first phase of the annual haj on
Wednesday, travelling through packed streets from Mecca's Grand Mosque to the
enormous camp at Mina just outside the Saudi Arabian city.
In a dense sea of
humanity, all clad in the same simple white robes, the pilgrims who were unable
to get onto a new rail link were packed into 18,000 buses provided by the city
or perched on the roofs of trucks. Others walked the 5 km to Mina in late afternoon
temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius.
"I want to ask God for
paradise... I don't want anything from the world. I want to win paradise and be
among good men," said Abdul Raki al-Yamani,
a Yemeni who lives in Mecca, waiting to mount a bus.
Islam's pilgrimage is one of the faith's so-called five pillars
and is a duty for all Muslims once in their lives if they are capable of it.
The mayor of Mecca, Osama Fadl
al-Bar, said he expected the number of pilgrims this year to be close to 3
million people,
including those from inside Saudi Arabia. The Interior Ministry said 1.75 million had
arrived from abroad.
This year haj comes against a backdrop of division in the Middle
East, a historic centre of the Islamic world, as Shi'ite Muslim Iran and Sunni countries like Saudi Arabia
and Turkey back opposing sides in Syria's civil war.
Riyadh and Tehran have both
played down the prospect of politically related trouble at the haj, but Saudi
authorities have warned they will not allow disruptions.
In some previous years the haj
has been marred by disasters, including stampedes and tent fires in which
hundreds were killed. But the authorities have invested heavily in better
infrastructure and there have been no such incidents since 2006.
On Thursday the pilgrims will
travel a further 7 km to Mount Arafat, a rocky hill where they must stand in
prayer, a moment many Muslims see as the climax of the haj.
Hussein Ali, 37, a Syrian who
lives in Kuwait, decided to walk from Mecca to Arafat.
"I start marching to Arafat
after midnight where it should take about three hours," he said.
They will then spend the evening
on the plains of Muzdalifah where they must pick up pebbles used the following
day to hurl at three large walls representing Satan in Jamarat, between Mecca
and Mina.
"Arafat is the greatest
pillar of the haj and I hope the Lord will accept my prayers there. I hope I
have enough money so I can come here again so I can repent my sins," said
Mohammed Omar Emara, 33, a fisherman from Egypt.
He travelled for three days by
bus to reach Mecca after his father gave him money to make the journey.
"I am happy to be here so I
can repent my sins in this old house of God and the good deeds are doubly
rewarded here," Emara said, as he walked in Mecca's Aziziyah neighborhoods
in search of a grocery shop to stock up on bread and water for the journey.
(Reporting By Mahmoud Habboush;
Editing by Angus McDowall and Paul Casciato)
After the two
days of circling the box, pilgrims make the journey to Mount Arafat. On the way they pick up stones which they use
to pound the walls to drive out the devil.
As I watch, the circle of people diminishes as thousands continue to
pour out of the mosque and begin the journey to Mount Arafat. It is an amazing spectacle. The city of Mecca itself looks like something
out of the bible as millions wind their way through the streets while others
try to hitch a ride however they can.
Then the camera pans around and you see the ever present cranes and high
rise hotels.
Haj must be performed at least once in their lifetime by all
Muslims capable of making the expensive, difficult journey, a duty that applies
equally to Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims.
On Friday those
that can afford to kill the fatted goat or sheep or camel (based on the story
of Abraham sacrificing his son Ishmael which God stopped and sacrificed a goat
instead). Tradition has it that one
third of the meat is shared with family and friends and one third is given to
the poor, leaving one third for the family.
They’d need a big family to share a camel! Also the expense of a camel would mean that
most would be killing a goat. In Oman
there are still weekly goat markets but not sure here in the UAE.
The
similarities between Christianity and Islam are very noticeable with the
stories behind the prophet the same as those in the bible.
As I watch now
the men on top of the black box are sewing the carpet together. They are very accomplished at this task and I
imagine they have done it many times before. They use what looks like a wool sack needle and thick black rope, around 1cm at least I'm guessing. A cherry picker lifts them up to enable them to complete the task.
If you’re
interested in reading more go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaaba or search ‘ black box Saudi Arabia ‘.
It seems like
some weeks I have nothing to write about and others there seems too much. My week began with watching the All Blacks
play Australia on Saturday. Talk about a
nail biting finish! I don’t think I’ve
ever seen a game like that before. And
probably never will. What a gutsy
captain Richie Macaw is.
I’d had three
kiwi friends over for breakfast of pancakes so the new oven got a work out as
did my seldom used cooking skills. At
one stage I was ‘fired’ from the pancake cooking while the teenager took
over. I love it how they know everything
and can do it all better! Of course I
wouldn’t be writing that unless I got the job back again! Using a stainless steel frypan to cook
pancakes isn’t as easy as it looks.
Then we watched
the rugby hooked up via live streaming from the computer. The reception wasn’t the best and the sound
reminded me of old radio broadcasts we used to listen to before the advent of
TV (well not quite that old but you get the picture) but it was good enough for
lots of screaming and yelling, especially towards the end. It’s a wonder my ‘neighbour’ didn’t pop over
again to complain. Lucky it was a
daytime game.
While we had
the blinds shut to the outside world a 19 year old girl had hit the bridge
coming onto the island in her Lamborghini which exploded into flames, resulting
in her death. She attended the Paris Sorbonne
University & lived in the halls two blocks from us. Of course there was all the usual talk about
what is a girl of that age doing with a high powered car like that? Her fellow students had a night march down to
the site of her death to lay memorials.
She was American/Arab and married.
Rich parents apparently. Hence
the Lamborghini.
Then it was Mum’s
turn for a birthday and another wedding anniversary for my parents. Congratulations to you both for such a long commitment. It’s something to be celebrated in this day
and age.
Last night I
went into the Madinet Zayed Mall next to the Gold Centre. First I stopped at the Post Office to check
my mail box then walked over to the Home Centre to see if they had a sale. I’m looking for a sofa bed so my guests have
somewhere to sleep other than the couch.
They had a sale but I’m sure they put the prices up beforehand!
Then it’s run
the gauntlet through the Gold Centre to the Mall. You are constantly accosted by merchants wanting
you to buy their handbag or their Rolex.
One thing I’ve noticed this week is more Emirate men working, or
appearing to work. When I went to Al
Whada Mall on Wednesday night there were Emirate men in Kandora with hi-vis
vests overtop directing traffic outside.
That I’ve never seen. I wondered
if it’s something to do with Formula 1 arriving? Of course the traffic is a who’s who of high
performance cars. While waiting for my
taxi I watched one man inch his Jaguar out between a huge 4x4 and a BMW. The sign says ‘no parking’ but the Emirates
just park up and let out the wives and kids and nannies.
Anyway back to
the story. I’m in Lulu’s Hypermarket
buying a few groceries and getting dinner when a siren starts. Very loud and very long. ‘This
is an emergency. Please evacuate the
building.’ I’m looking around
expecting panic but of course this is the UAE.
No-one takes any notice. The
first thing I think of is a bomb!
Why? Well, it’s Eid, the busiest
Muslim festival of the year and the Mall is packed. Not with Emirates, but with every Indian not
currently in India. The siren stops then
starts again then stops. People are
still being served and I’m anxiously looking around and wondering what will
happen. Staff announcements keep being
made but no-body seems worried, except for me.
I can tell you that I was glad to get out of there and into the apparent
safety of the street, which was so busy.
Trying to get a taxi was crazy and I had to literally step in front of
one as it pulled up and turn my back on the others waiting and pretend I couldn’t
see them trying to get in. Of course, it’s
always more difficult when you have a trolley of groceries as you can’t just
jump in.
While waiting,
I talk to an elderly British couple on a stop-over while returning home from a
trip to Australia. Like me, they think they could be in India.
Our building
has filled up with heaps of new teachers.
I don’t know where they’ve put them all but the pool area and lifts are
swarming with them. A few weeks ago
there was a collapse of the car park in a building which lots of new teachers
were housed in. Luckily no-one was hurt
as it was during work time. So all the
teachers got put-up at the Viceroy Hotel on Yas Island. Very nice!
But next weekend is Formula 1 (have I mentioned that yet?) so they have
to get out. As our builders were
responsible for building it, they have had to find them all accommodation so
they’ve come here.
What am I up to
this weekend? I’m not travelling as most
do. You wouldn’t believe the good deals
to fly away for four days. They go all
out here with specials to tempt you to spend your hard earned cash. Istanbul, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Thailand, the
list goes on…
In case you
didn’t get the message, it’s Formula 1 next weekend and I have tickets to go so
will need all my money to spend there.
Tomorrow I’m
off to Dubai for a girls’ day out. Can’t
wait for that! Then Saturday my friend
is coming in and it’s off to the hairdresser and beauty treatments. Have to be looking good for those petrol
heads. So some shopping is on the agenda
for some clothes to wear. I’m not sure
what one wears to keep cool in this heat, look good, be able to climb up
grandstands, meet the local dress code and be cool enough to dance the night
away at the after party concert? Will
keep you informed on that one. But my V8
handbag will be getting another race day outing. It will feel right at home with the
Australian V8’s racing around the track.
There are no Holden’s over here so not sure how the pink shirt will go…
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