Umrah: Madinah [1/2]

I did not plan to blog about my umrah trip but I figured, why not. I had a great time and going through the pictures we took, I can’t help but laugh at how cute and silly we looked heh heh.

Also, because I did not plan on blogging, I realized I didn’t take a lot of relevant pictures to those who might be reading this looking for information related to umrah. Like how the hotel rooms looked like, the service, the food, the costs of stuff, etc. So to get that out of the way, let me just start with the technical stuff.

Disclaimer: I was not paid to do this review. All opinions are my own ahahaha

My parents chose the travel agent Andalusia Travel and Tours this time around and we were definitely very satisfied with the service!

1) The FOOD. In Madinah we were served breakfast, lunch, and dinner (buffet style, nak tambah berapa kali pun boleh! Tapi ingat la orang belakang lolz). In Makkah it’s the same except we have an additional evening treat as well, usually some sort of porridge. The food were excellent and very Malaysian too (nasi lemak, nasi ayam, mi goreng, curry, etc) and just all around delicious! No complaint whatsoever. Also, in Makkah they have breads, along with cold and hot drinks (Milo included yay) 24/7 on level P of the hotel (my mom dubbed it level ‘Pekena’, one time this pak cik in the lift said P stands for ‘Isi Perut’ lol omg). Also they have what I like to call ‘live entertainment’ hahaha basically there was this one ustaz who usually sing nasyid songs during meal time. It was great.

2) Mutawwif. Back in 2008, the first time we went for umrah as a family, my parents chose Utas and I can’t remember if they have a mutawwif (basically a tour leader) but having a mutawwif assigned to a group (we’re called SV22 hollaaaa the best group ever) is definitely more fun. Our mutawwif/ustaz 

• helped us in getting settled at the hotels, 
• lead the group and organized the bus (clean and airconditioned btw though with the extreme heat you’ll still be sweating) we need to go from one place to another (like from the airport, or tempat-tempat ziarah), 
• tell a few stories from zaman Rasulullah/in the Quran in the bus (my favorite), 
• bacakan doa and talbiah, 
• manage our passports and boarding passes,  
• most importantly lead the group in doing our umrah from A – Z (great for first timers!)

If you have any question, you can ask the ustaz too. Not to mention the mutawwif most likely know the place better than anyone, so you can try asking for tips on where to get the best nasi mandi, jubah, souvenirs, etc. There will be a piece of paper with your group number on it pasted at the lobby and dewan makan so that you know when to do activities with your group and mutawwif.

Our group is particularly small, only around 30 people (normally can go up to 150+) and a small group means you get to know everybody pretty well. And everybody in our group was so nice! Especially this big group of people from Kelantan who were just so hilarious. The funny thing is, we hardly know each other’s names. The first thing we asked/told each other is always where we’re from. Hence, why me and my sister have nicknames for some people that shall remain in our family in case anybody in our group stumbled upon my blog lolz. But back to the main point. Having a mutawwif is definitely helpful! Everything feels more organized. When we were with Utas, we just did our own thing whenever and luckily my parents have gone to umrah before and know the places. If not, we’d be so lost. Not to mention we hardly make friends with anyone at Utas (I know making friends is not the #1 priority in going for umrah but it’s nice getting to know other people, like your little family there :))

A picture of our mutawwif from the back lolz

3) Andalusia also organized majlis tahlil and ceramah almost every morning. You can give names of your deceased loved ones for the ustaz to read out, or just say it yourself when you're reciting the Yaasin. I attended one in Makkah and the ceramah was REALLY informative. Other travel agents might do this too so I might be biased but I don’t think Utas did, so. Another plus point is Andalusia has their own umrah/haji guide book, which honestly has every information you ever need throughout your stay, from the niat, what to do, etc. I didn't need to buy any other book. Again, I don't now if other travel agent has this.

All in all, I’d definitely choose Andalusia the next time I’m going for umrah, insya Allah, kalau ada rezeki menjadi tetamu-Nya lagi. Satisfied with almost everything lah!




Phew so okay let's start with the pictures.

We took Saudi Airlines and gotta say the food was pretty good. I had this fish meal that is honestly in my list of Top 3 Best Airplane Food I've Ever Had. Also the flight had SO MUCH TURBULENCE omg and then a girl screamed hanya Allah je lah tau perasaan time tu.

Me and my dad :)) This was at the Jeddah Airport. Waiting for the bus to take us to our hotel in Madinah. Smiling but man I was SO tired.  Barely get any sleep in the plane.

Lol our group, stalking from afar because we're still strangers to them ahaha but everybody's friends by the end of the trip!

Finally, the bus came. I have no idea who that creepy person at the back is.

First prayer at Masjid Nabawi (Subuh, since we arrived early in the morning). Everything felt the same since I left it, in a good way :) Also we didn't take many pictures inside the masjid itself because we weren't allowed to bring a camera inside, sobs. They check your bags before you enter the masjid and won't hesitate to take away your stuff or ask you to leave. Tight security, yo.

It's a war zone going in and out of the masjid.

Our hotel! Mubarak Silver. Pretty close to Masjid Nabawi. About... 150 meters? More or less.

Sadly I was too beaten up to join the group in visiting Raudhah. But here's some pics from my sister.

Forgot to mention earlier. For the ladies, there's an ustazah guiding us to enter Raudhah (which is super crowded and packed and people can get rude and rowdy) which is a huge plus. Most workers at umrah travel agents here are guys, so having someone to bring you inside is really helpful.

The dome moved! Or slide. To the side. It was cool to see.

Marilyn Monroe moment

This was the next day (...or the next 2 days) in the bus on the way for ziarah luar. The places we visited:
- Masjid Quba'
- Masjid Qiblatain
- Medan Peperangan Khandaq
- Jabal Uhud
- Pasar/ladang kurma

This picture basically sums up my parents. My mom the worrier, and my dad the ~relax la brader~ kinda guy hahah. Also my dad's the only one I know who wears a kopiah that blue, not the usual white/black.

Passed by Perkuburan Baqi'. Or at least that's what I think it is.

Masjid Quba'
To those who do not know, it's the first masjid in the world! The other masjid in our list, Masjid Qiblatain, we didn't exactly visit. Only passed by, looking from inside our bus. Our ustaz said untuk mengelakkan fitnah because the people who visit that masjid use kiblat menghadap Masjid Aqsa, not Kaabah. Qiblatain = dua kiblat. There's that info for ya.

Me taking a picture of my dad

My dad taking a picture of us

Pasar kurma

I tweeted about this but before we went to this pasar kurma (we went to 2, one for chocolates/other kurma-related stuff, another one is strictly kurma) and our ustaz kept saying "melontar dengan baik", "kat sini nak melontar tak digalakkan" or something along those lines and it took me so long to realize he's referring to melontar duit -,,- I didn't buy anything though.

I thought this sign was so hilarious because honestly, only Malaysians and Indonesians visit these pasar kurma and buy in bundle all kinds of food. Didn't see anyone from other countries! Hence why rupee was crossed off and replaced with.. rupiah.

For some reason I DID NOT

ENJOY

MYSELF. I NO LIKE SHOPPING

So did my brother.

But I likey huggy my mommy.

My mommy makes me happy.

Jabal Uhud

Is that a bird?

Is that a plane?

Lol idk I'm just taking gonna take a picture of it and put it on instagram

Tourist pictures in Madinah

My lovely parents! :)

Not the best picture of me but the cutest picture of us heheh

Masjid Nabawi

The Body Shop = Ze budi shubbe. Seeing familiar shops spelled in Arabic is just so, weird!

Bought KFC. The burger was so dry it's just horrible blegh would not recommend.

My brother in front of... the green dome that is makam Rasulullah s.a.w

Glorious doors of Masjid Nabawi

The payung-payung that helped so much with the heat

I kept hoping to see the payung being opened up or closed down but I was always too late or too early! Oh well. One time I caught it halfway down so good enough I guess haha

Leaving to Makkah

My brother having problems with his kain ihram. Also this is the best photo I could find to show our room in Madinah at Mubarak Silver Hotel lolz it's pretty small but it's alright. It's clean and the aircond works well, so we're good!

Family photo! All ready to start our umrah :) Forgot to bring my white tudung but oh well.

Last glance of Masjid Nabawi from the bus before leaving Madinah. Waved goodbye to Rasulullah s.a.w. Praying I'll get to come here again.

Miqat di Masjid Bir Ali

Pantang nampak camera posing sokmo

Our family is just all about the cheeks

Our group! :) Waiting for others to finish solat sunat. But then we went back inside the masjid to perform solat Asar. Also if you look closely wait never mind

Siblings love. Also the last picture of my brother with hair hoho spoiler alert he went bald in Makkah.

This would've been such a good picture of me and my parents WITHOUT MY BROTHER in the background ish sibuk je

That's all for pictures from Madinah! Next post would be pictures in Makkah.
Posting these pictures is making me missing the places so, so much. But one thing I would say these pictures don't do justice of how 1) beautiful Madinah really is 2) how hot it really is!! Like the temperature hits way above 42 degree celcius everyday and we're all in our jubah. I feel like if this were America people would be just walking around in their bathing suits, for real. But it's nice being in a place where everybody covers their aurat :)


Hope everybody's Ramadan is going well so far!