Brunei third Haj flight takes off

20 November 2008 (Part II)

Last Sunday, my uncle (mummy's brother-in-law) went on a religious journey to perform the pilgrimage or Hajj to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Uncle Ilham was one of the 238 pilgrims flying as a third batch from Brunei, and will spend approximately a month in the holy city and the surrounding cities of Medina, Jeddah, Mina, Arafah and Muzdalifah, all in the name of performing the fifth pillar of Islam.

Before departing, our family members gathered at uncle Ilham's house for the farewell prayers. Mummy, Safiya and I joined through the webcam, as usual. Here are some pictures that daddy sent us:

Uncle Ilham even made a debut in the local newspaper. Here's the extract:


Muhd Nurilham bin Hj Abd Hamid of Kg Tagap, Jerudong said, "My trip is for performing the fifth pillar of Islam and not for holiday. After attending a course on haj, it built my confidence. I also read a lot of books on how to perform haj.

"After saving my income for almost five years, I felt my dream has come true. I am going with nine of my brothers and sisters this year.

"My wishes are to be healthy so that I can perform the haj properly and to get Haj Mabrur.

"This is my first time going for haj pilgrimage. I feel excited and a little bit nervous as I don't have much information on the place that I am heading to."

We all hope and pray that uncle Ilham have a pleasant and safe journey, and the pilgrimage a successful one, amin!