The Saudi Experience

Landed on the 7th, took off on the 14th. The math is fuzzy. I think I was there a few days.

As noted in a previous post I have exactly one more iPod than I had before.

Finally peformed Umrah after not having enough time the last few years. Me and my mom took a flight to Jeddah, got there around 12:30am, picked up at airport, dropped off at the Grand Mosque. The time now is 2am. Did all the required walking just in time for Fajr, 4:30ish am. Stepped outside the gate of the mosque, I thought to myself, hmmm better wear my slippers before something gets stuck in my foot. Inevitably what happens? A pin finds its way into my bare feet. “Hmmmm…”, I think to myself, “There is a pin stuck in my foot”. From the portion that was sticking out I thought it was a small pin. When my mom pulled it out we realized this thing was about 2 inches.

Brilliant. I wonder what would have happened if I just wore the slippers first and then thought about something getting stuck in my foot.

I also wonder what that pin’s story was. Obviously there was a demand for this pin, someone ordered it to be made, someone made it, someone bought it, someone used it, someone dropped it, it lived for x amount of days outside the mosque and then found it’s way into my foot. My foot. I threw it in the garbage. I’m sure it lives on. Me only playing a small part in it’s life.

5am, back in the car, and at the airport by 7am. Flight at 10am. Sleep no where to be found. Back in Riyadh, something or the other am. It’s all so blurry now. But at that point I had to catch a flight to Mumbai within the next 24 hours or so.

Back in the airport the next day. Jetlag not helping my ability to recognize how this day and night process works, or how I’m supposed to work in it. The scene here is madness, the brown gene has no concept of lines. The Saudi gene has no concept of respect. These genes don’t mesh well at an airport.

Air India, flight delayed by two hours. One of those hours was spent inside the place.

This, the Saudi Experience.