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Day 6 | Head Home | Video | Slideshow | On C4
Live at the Hajj


Praying
Praying in Mecca, some for the last time
The Hajj is officially over and more than 1.4 million visitors to Saudi Arabia are heading home.

Despite shedding the ihram and donning their normal clothes, hajjis are immeadiately recognisable in a crowd by their newly shorn heads.

Many stayed in Mecca today worshipping one last time at the Holy Mosque which was packed for the normal Friday prayers.

You could see people staring at the Mosque and the Ka'aba as if to fix it in their minds.

One pilgrim said it was hard to leave, as he didn't know if he would ever see the Ka'aba again.

While many of the western pilgrims made plans to leave immeadiately there are also large groups who stay on for days and weeks, having travelled so far they are not as anxious to leave.

Shopping
Shopping in Mecca
For some this may be the only trip to Mecca they can afford in their lifetime and they're in no hurry to go even if it means overstaying their Hajj visa.

The clean up has begun in Arafat and Muzdalifah and will soon move to Mina as the authorities deal with the results of accommodating 2.3 million visitors.

Saudi Arabia's Prince Naif Bin Abdul-Aziz, the Chairman of the Hajj committee has declared it the "best Hajj ever" as the clean up begins in Mina.

"We thank Allah for the security which we have achieved during this Hajj season at this critical situation in the world," he said.

The bazaars and shops in Mecca have replaced rituals as the daily activities as pilgrims buy souvenirs and trinkets for the loved ones. The most popular items are prayer beads, water from the Zam Zam well and dates from Medina.

Many hajjis will now head to Mina, the City of Light where the Prophet Mohammed spent his years in exile away from Mecca where they will pay their repects at the Holy Mosque and the Prophet's grave.

Once again the Hajj Terminal is teeming with people this time heading home. Flights leave at all times of the day and night as the hajjis return home to all four corners of the globe.

The Hajj may be over but everyone seems to agree it will never be forgotton.




Day 6 | Head Home | Video | Slideshow | On C4


 

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