Many non Muslims don’t know anything at all about the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage of Muslims to Mecca. And even those who do don’t think much more about it than that a lot of people go to Saudi Arabia. What I have found fascinating this year, as over 2 million Muslims are performing Hajj right now, is the complexity of managing all those people and all of the dangers involved (including the H1N1 flu). Imagine your city of 1.3 million swelling to a city of over 3.5 million for a couple of weeks.
Aziz Poonawalla links to some interesting articles from Arab News that cover the many preparations necessary for hosting that many people. Also check out this aerial view of the tent city where pilgrims live during this time (I couldn’t figure out how to embed the photo – sorry).
