Throughout our trip, there was a build up to Saudi National Day. You could see the excitement for it in the hotels, the shops and the people. The Saudis are really proud of their culture and their Kingdom and they were waiting to celebrate it. 

Saudi National Day began with meeting some South Africans. My mom was so excited the minute she heard the SA accent because we’ve seen very few South Africans during this trip. I was so excited because one of the the girl’s knew of my little Purple Clouds Blog. We ended up going to the I heart Makkah sign with them and then went back to our hotel. 

The plan was to actually sleep before Fajr to try and regulate our schedules a bit but by the time we were in our room, it was late already. We cleared up a bit and before we knew it, it was time to go back to the Haram. 

My sister and I followed the tawaaf crowd on the ground floor looking for a spot that we liked. We settled down and got ready for what was about to be the best Fajr of our lives. 

Sheikh Maher started reading Surah Baqarah and in particular: 

رَبَّنَا وَاجْعَلْنَا مُسْلِمَيْنِ لَكَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِنَا أُمَّةً مُّسْلِمَةً لَّكَ وَأَرِنَا مَنَاسِكَنَا وَتُبْ عَلَيْنَا ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ

“Our Lord! Make us both fully submit to You and from our descendants a nation that will submit to You. Show us our rituals, and turn to us in grace. You are truly the Accepter of Repentance, Most Merciful.” (2:128)

It is the duaa that Nabi Ibraheem A.S. made after building the Ka’bah asking Allah to make his progeny Muslim and to show him the rituals of Islam. This is also the duaa a person should make when they want to go for Umrah. It felt unreal that I was hearing Sheikh Maher read Nabi Ibraheem A.S.’s duaa during my own umrah trip. Biggest Alhamdulillah. 

After fajr, we made our way back to the hotel where Saudi National Day preparations were in full swing. They had set up a green and white balloon drop which looked cool. 

We went straight to sleep and only woke up around 11am. We got ready, read zohr and then went to have lunch. We had Al Tazaj for lunch with the revamped menu which was really good. 

After this, we went to Makkah Towers to get some last minute things and then decided we were going back to the room to chill until at least 5pm. The vibes in the hotel were quite cool for Saudi National Day, the staff were dressed stunningly with sashes and were handing out flags and play swords to kids. 

While we were in the room, we heard a bang and realised that there was going to be a thunderstorm in Makkah. I immediately got ready and made my way to the Haram. It was so cool, Makkah looks so different in the rain. It started pouring as I walked to King Abdul Aziz Gate. 

It was amazing. You could see the disbelief in everyone’s faces because we were experiencing 40°C+ days and rain was not on the weather forecast. Everyone around me had their hands raised to the skies saying “Ya Rabb, Ya Rabb”. 

I walked into the Haram and they weren’t allowing anyone on the mataaf so I walked around for a bit. The scenes were amazing honestly. Just loads and loads of duaa and crying. Then my sister called me to let me know they were taking the escalator down to the mataaf. 

The mataaf was unlike anything else. Some people were making tawaaf soaking wet and some people were crying out to Allah in duaa. And the Ka’bah! It was the most stunning I’ve ever seen it. I just spent some time admiring it. 

At this point, I had no idea where my family was but it was okay. The downpour started slowing down and by Maghrib, the rain had stopped. Somehow I ended up near the Sa’i section for Maghrib. Sheikh Shamshaan read a powerful Maghrib once again and then we were back on the Mataaf. 

I joined the crowds and as the sky got darker, a new rain started. This time it was just showers of rain around us, it was lighter and coming down at an angle – it was that perfect kind of rain like when it’s a hot summer’s night and your bedroom window is open and you get that fresh smell of rain and it sounds perfect. 

Once again, everyone around me had their hands raised to the skies and all you could hear was “Ya Rabb, Ya Rabb”. There was a Turkish group calling out “Ya Hanaan, Ya Manaan, Ya Dhal Jalaali Wal Ikraam” over and over again. Every time thunder roared, there would be cries of “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar”. It was easily one of the best moments of my life. 

In the midst of all of this, my siblings were moving hotel rooms for us. Shoutout to Swissǒtel Al Maqam for upgrading us to a room with a Ka’bah view for our last night. 

By Esha athaan, the rain had stopped again. This time I was so happy to get a space on the mataaf. We followed behind Sheikh Bandar for a short Esha and then I went straight back to the hotel. 

By this time, I was really tired, really hungry and my clothes were damp so all I wanted was to shower and eat. I got ready and then we went to the food court for supper where we had Chick Mix. Easily, one of the best suppers we had this trip. 

We did the usual last minute shopping, went back to the room, packed up, weighed our bags and got ready to go to the Haram one last time this trip. 

Step count: 25 426