Friday, 24 January 2025
After having breakfast at the hotel, we started the day with a tour of the historical sites near the prophet’s mosque.
From our hotel that was located at the rear end of the mosque, we walk to the front side.
We passed by the Ali bin Abi Talib mosque, which is one of the sites that the prophet used to pray, and also the site where Ali led prayers for Eid in 655 CE.
Further up, we saw Abu Bakar Al-Siddiq’s house, which has also been converted into a small mosque.
Visited the Mosque of Al-Ghamamah, well known in Islamic history where the prophet performed the solat ul-Istasqa (to pray for rain).
From there, we walked to the front side of Nabawi and visited the prophet’s tomb.
It is a common misconception that pilgrims think the tomb can be seen from the holes at the gates. There are 3 layers of walls behind the holes and it’s totally dark. We are viewing it from the light green area (bottom of diagram above).
After performing Friday prayers at Nabawi, we went to explore the shops near our hotel. I spotted a Barns Coffee and took the opportunity to get a drink.
In the evening, we decided to go to the roof of Nabawi for maghrib and insya prayers. It was very cooling and spacious. There were zam-zam water provided and comfortable carpets. It was a very pleasant experience.
Related posts: Umrah part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6
Imran Jaafar 