Of umrah, ziarah, baby, and hijrah.

Been meaning to share a lil bit of information on our 2nd family trip to the holiest places on Earth: Makkah & Madinah back in February 2013. Went there for over 2 weeks this time. 
Our first ziarah was wayyy back in the year 2000 during Ramadhan in which we also got to celebrate Syawal (Hari Raya) with Ayah's "godmother" Ummi Khadijah (and family) who live in Tan'eem (bout 5 miles away from Kaa'bah). Since the whole family was around including our late Bibik (maid) who has worked with us for nearly 10 years at that time, so we spent quite a while there. [She passed away due to breast cancer after undergoing chemotherapy treatment for a year++ .. Al-Fatihah Suriyati bt Pak Tir]

Now that I'm married, it was Momma's nazar that we go there again, exhilaration overload this time around having a husband & a daughter going along! There were 7 of us altogether.
I'm gona share some tips that are hopefully useful for those of you who will be performing Umrah with a baby/ an infant. We traveled by MAS (malaysia airlines) where they do prioritize those who fall into this category. So we were given the aisle seats, and Cahya got a bassinet (sort of a moses basket that latches onto the bulkhead in front of you).

Fact: She's seemingly taller than the average child of her age, (1y5m old masa tu) hence the kaki terkeluar like that. Not for long though, cuz you know babies..they wake up every now & then, nak makan, nak sing-along, and most importantly -nak buat walkabout satu flight konon cabin crew.. Poor Ayah had to escort her a few times, from one end to the other. To the extent that even when we bumped into Malaysians they'd call out her name cuz apparently they've "met" each other earlier on board.

JD and I didn't really get a good sleep throughout the journey, partly due to excitement and another was handling her. She woke up every hour no matter how replete she was, probably tried to adjust but as long as there was no crying n such, it's all good! =)

We first spent bout 4 to 5 days in Madinah. Very peaceful environment compared to the busy (yet magnificent) Makkah that we all know. Only that..since Masjid Nabawi is significantly smaller than Masjidil Haram, it's not always easy to get a room to pray in the mosque unless you're one hour early (before each waktu -including Fajr/ Subuh). They have ample space outside the mosque; a (covered) big compound for 'late-comers', cuma saf-wise tu I'm not so sure cuz dekat luar masjid everyone's cluttered -there's really no line, some were nearby the stairs, some praying next to the pillar in the middle and some clumped at the other end. During that time of the year, temperature was quite cold for babies particularly during Fajr thus hoodie sweaters/long johns really help big time to avoid em from catching a cold. Especially if you had no choice but to pray outside (on the marble floor) so yea it's obviously colder for the lil ones. Yes everyone could have extra praying mats but one second you see them sitting on it and the next...poof~! Thrown to the side. Already.

We actually brought along a lightweight stroller which was intended for traveling but... much to our surprise, didn't even get the chance to use it. Macam mana bawak pergi, macam tu la bawak balik, never opened. No lifting though since it has its own bag (reason why it's also called a caddy stroller) so yea 'twas just a matter of dragging it -during transits. Otherwise, the stroller stayed untouched in the hotel room. Thing to note is, you can't bring them inside the mosque (for hygienic reasons). Secondly, too many ppl that it's a bit difficult to expect the crowd to make space for an 'extra baggage' that you need to carry around all the time. Thirdly, getting to places means walking by the roadside alongside rushing, fast moving cars & coasters (some call it shuttles) everywhere so it's kind of riskier don't you think? Lucky that we've also prepared ourselves by buying a baby carrier -exclusively for the trip. And..phewh, the Ergo baby carrier was indeed a life-saver!! Not literally la but 'twas definitely worth the buy and fully in use the entire visit -day and night oh whenever we're on the move! Practical, both parent-and-baby friendly, and most importantly, the baby loved it too she would easily fall asleep in it (since it comes with a detachable head cover/ hood), letting her head rest comfortably against your chest whilst at the same time being protected from the sun.

Whenever I perform my Tawaf, she'd sleep from the start right till the end, regardless of how packed it was around the Kaa'bah, how ppl pushed us from all sides as well as from behind, how loud everyone was, she remained sound asleep, making things easier for me as I carried her around. JD's turn was during sai'e. Since there's more room for everyone during sai'e so sometimes we let her walk/ run along. Terima kasih Allah kerna mempermudahkan. You have no clue how anxious I was bout the whole idea of 'bringing-a-baby-along-for-umrah', at first. Worried of this, and that, and this, and that again. Cahya is of course as active as other normal infants out there (couldn't stay put for a sec), but surprisingly in the holy land she easily went to bed without whimpering, minta dukung, one hour dodoi, etc. So did we have enough rest daily? Sure we did! My dear parents of lil ones, please don't waste your mental energy (like me), always bear in mind that 'somehow' our babies tend to behave in a way that makes us feel completely 'light & easy' the moment we step into Tanah Haram. Duno how to properly put it into words, but having a baby around was neither a distraction nor inconvenient for us to perform our ibadah & Umrah. The power is indeed His.

Alright here's the most interesting part, how did we perform our prayers since one of our concerns is the baby?

We performed our solat the same way as pictured above, except that we have a baby carrier to support the baby and best of all, our hands are totally free so both of us got to pray just like everyone else, sempurna rukun fi'li, the normal practice. MashaAllah isn't it fantastic?

:')

There were times when she's wide awake & wanted to be 'set free' inside the mosque -- toe-walking and running around just like the other kids so when this happened, either myself or my younger sis or Momma would masbuk pada rakaat terakhir. At least we're well aware that she was somehow monitored. However there's a few times during Zuhur or Asar (as it was usually a short one) that we just went ahead with our prayers -thinking she'd be just fine by then. So ada sekali ni I initially sat her next to me, with her favourite books, a soft toy and her fav cereal. Apparently she got bored sooner than we thought & decided to walk away from us. My heart skipped a beat. I heard some other kids' voices and hoped that she was just behind us playing with em and not wander off elsewhere. But nope! Ostensibly someone was observant enough to chase after her, picked her up and put her beside me. Then she stood back up and took a few steps wanting to breeze off one more time but that kind lady helped again and Alhamdulillah Cahya sat still, until I finished. So again, worry not you overly-concerned parents, one thing for sure true Muslim brothers & sisters they all look after each other with mercy. Syukur.. It was certainly a heartfelt deed, bless you dear wherever you are, whoever you may be. Allah knows. :)

**********

Anyway.. simply sharing: Cahya ni allergic to certain type of foods like...oranges, eggs, dates, chocs, nuts, chicken, grapes, kaya (coconut egg jam), pumpkins, some veges, and the list goes on as we discover through trial & errors (as suggested) which usually result in appearance of red spots on her skin whenever triggered. Okay so in both Makkah & Madinah of course there's no time to be choosy eventhough you've prepared aside your baby's food but along the way either stocks run out or your baby keeps getting fed varieties of food sedekah-ed by random people as she does the walk-in-between-tables (during lunch & dinner) or even in the mosque itself hence... I waited the next day to see if anything appears on her skin or any sign of itchiness in case she starts scratching n all, but again, much to our surprise, nothing happened! I was astonished and grateful at the same time, so Momma tried giving her 'those kinda food' again and bam! --It's gone! The allergy has gone away!! So yea, makan was not an issue anymore~ she was able to enjoy all the food, double joy! I actually had a thought masa tu, "Is it just because we're here? Could this be temporary?" Hmmm. 

So... balik Malaysia I fed her with whatever she loved eating in the holy land and yeay Alhamdulillah, syukur..! God willing we don't see any red spots anymore since then. Never again. Alhamdulillah. No medicine. Miracle happens. And I believe in kun faya kun. =')

We spent more than a week in Makkah and stayed at Al-Shohada Hotel on the 8th floor, had the most pleasant stay there and the service was tip top! Approximately 7 mins walk to Masjidil Haram but they also provide coaster buses -available every 5 to 10 minutes.

Please note that if you decide to go shopping (usually in the last few days in Makkah) and then head to the mosque straight away after, you're not allowed to enter Masjidil Haram carrying those shopping bags (yes souvenirsss I know right..) as there are guards at every single door/ entrance/ exit there is. Either you pray outside at the compound, or store them at the Luggage Lockers -near the Zam-zam Tower where you need to pay by the hour. Eh that rhymes.

Okay guess I can wrap this up for now. Not sure if I've poured enough info which I thought was important for this kind of trip-with-babies but I hope it can be of any help to ease your decision-making (baby-wise) & gives you peace of mind inshaaAllah!

Selamat beribadah. :)