7 CONS of Living in Makkah | (Vlog-style)

[@hijabinomad]

Assalamualaikum and hey y'all, thank you sincerely for all the love for this video and welcome to all the new subscribers 🥲I'm over the moon to have you here! Please don't forget to like and share and if you've visited Makkah, let me know if there are any cons I may have missed! I'm in the middle of editing a few others from Ramadan but would like to know in the replies what you would most love to see first. The most liked suggestions will go to the top of my list :) See you soon on my next upload!

[@MuhammedJat]

❤❤❤ ماشاالللہ❤❤❤

[@MuhammedJat]

❤❤❤❤

[@life.in.makkah]

Transportation inside the city much improved, as Govt. started free bus service called "Makkah Bus". mostly importantly it serves umrah pilgrims to and from Masjid e Ayesha.

[@life.in.makkah]

Living and working in Makkah since April 2013, so far so good Allahamdullilah.😊

[@smoo5a933]

Heading to Makkah soon in sha Allah trynna get settled there. If you can help with a job, would be very appreciated bro..

[@aishag.]

Perfect timing too since I’ve been looking for this content 😭 I want to travel and stay in Madinah this summer but I barely know much about Saudi. Jazakillah khair thank you for sharing, this was helpful!

[@hijabinomad]

Alhamdulillah I'm very glad I could be a little bit of help! It was originally my plan to settle in Madinah for a few months but Makkah stole my heart. I've heard absolutely amazing things from those who have done a stay in Madinah and the climate will definitely be a bit better insha'Allah! May AllahSWT grant you ease and comfort in your journey and put barakah in your stay, Ameen!

[@muhammadqureshi5082]

​@@hijabinomad kzbin.info/www/bejne/iKnNZWSDYt2ql5I

[@muhammadqureshi5082]

​@@hijabinomad kzbin.info/www/bejne/iKnNZWSDYt2ql5I

[@MuhammedJat]

​@@hijabinomad❤❤❤ سبعان الللہہ❤❤

[@dannyrwagamba]

Shukran sis, very informative and helpful content.

[@munimaliuk]

I was fortunate to get the opportunity to work in Makkah for a year and all bar one of the point (about getting picked up) resonate to me. Alhamdulilah being a Makkah is a huge blessing and outweighs any cons for me personally but I agree it’s certainly not catered for long term living. What I used to do is travel to Jeddah if I wanted experience something different from Makkah.

[@hijabinomad]

Masha'Allah that's very fortunate indeed! I'm glad you found the points relatable, except for the obvious one :). And I agree, I have never stayed somewhere so long while travelling or had such a hard time with leaving than I have this blessed city! What would you say are your greatest pros for living in Makkah and what were your top places to visit in Jeddah?

[@smoo5a933]

Heading to Makkah soon in sha Allah trynna get settled there. If you can help with a job, would be very appreciated bro..

[@MuhammedJat]

​@@hijabinomad❤❤❤ ماشاالللہ❤❤❤❤❤

[@roxanayasmin85]

I agree with your all the cons - specially the last one. I just came back from Umrah just before Ramadan and though I’ve been to Makkah and Medina few times, the sudden rule change creates challenges for the foreigners AND there is no clear authority to talk to or be informed of rules. Another frustration is the ladies in charge of Rawdah in masjid Nabawi- I have no clue how ladies in charge of prophet’s rawdah could be so rude!! These ruthless ladies are in charge of the gate of the most merciful human being on earth , so astounding !!

[@hijabinomad]

Agreed on the lack of authority to refer to after rule changes, most of the time you find our while it's happening 😅 Alhamdulillah during this stay I had only positive experiences at the Rawdah but I definitely had a few rough experiences my first time. I've also seen some poor behavior from worshippers at the Rawdah though so I can understand a little why the staff might have to be overcautious and unforgiving. Alhamdulillah the scheduling of times lots through the apps helped a lot, I really do hope they keep that for the future insha'Allah!

[@nemo118]

SubhanAllah yes sis I just came from madina and I feel the ladies in charge are very rude compared to 5 years ago when I visited and surprising the women in makkah were kinder.

[@MIDNightPT4]

Oh yeah those Rawdah ladies are something else

[@Ayesha-xb2fs]

So Much nice Sharing Mashallah Keep it up.

[@noura7087]

What’s wrong with the rules and regulations? Law is law and The Haram has people who manage the gates of the Haram and the rules and regulations . Every day a million people come to the Haram. No country has a million visitors in one day. They are orders to protect the Haram and also protect the visitors from the stampede and other things.

[@hijabinomad]

Absolutely nothing wrong with rules and regulations, there needs to be order in place to control the crowds of worshippers. The problem is when rules are constantly changing day to day, they are being inconsistently applied depending on who is working and there is no communication whatsoever that something is changed just an enforcer acting as if it was always that way. Inconsistency, inefficiency and lack of open communication is the issue :)

[@alessandrobenito3586]

@@hijabinomad in Saudi Uni.(this happens in other places too) , approval of a college rector/ dean can be rejected by tea maker or cleaner there i am serious and telling truth, lived there couple of yrs for studies.

[@MuhammedJat]

​@@hijabinomad❤❤❤ ماشااللله❤❤

[@A.ChristopherJohnson]

TY so much !!!

[@Ehssan7825]

Ma shaa Allah sister ❤ Love from England ❤

[@ATIFM-xv3qb]

Plz make a video on free food in Mecca madina Sharif , awesome effort. Well-done. Assalam u alaikum

[@raghedk8530]

A great episode. I feel like I’m right there with you and brings back memories. It’s been ages since I went and I was there for Hajj with my ex husband and a group and we had so many problems with the transportation just stopping out of the blue and no one saying anything, just leaving it for us to figure out on our own and have to walk to our destinations. So I can relate to that. Also being cat called. Even though I was with people, it didn’t matter so another check lol. The traffic of course which I experienced in other Arab countries I visited as well and the honking. I can only imagine how hard it is to keep things moving smoothly with all those people coming and going at the same time. Oh and good old data plans and filling them up old fashioned ways. Makes you feel like you took a ride in a time machine. May Allah put barakah in the holy cities and bless us all with a visit very soon.

[@hijabinomad]

I'm sorry to hear you had such a challenging Hajj experience Raghed ☹, I know it's tough to have a consistent experience because the rules change so often. I've had to change my routine several times based on the changes to which gates are easier to get through, which schedule the buses are on, when they decide to cut off access to the Sahn etc. And yeah I hope they start using the apps that they had us download in covid to push out notifications for the updates that actually matter 👀 Although I'm shocked about the cat calling while with a group! I never experienced it if I was out with even one other person so I figured it was just because I was solo? But you're right, that's what I keep reminding myself as well. It is a massive feat to successfully manage hundreds of thousands of worshippers around the clock and keep an operation of this size running smoothly. There may be hiccups and communication could be better but I have immense immense respect and gratitude for the workers/soldiers/cleaners and admin that make this all possible for us for barely any cost!

[@raghedk8530]

@@hijabinomad very true. It takes a blessed land to be able to accommodate so many people at once and still function. Alhamdulillah for that blessing. Regardless of what hardships we experience we are always grateful and always want to go back for more. May Allah unite us in al haramain in the best of health and accommodations.

[@fakelakaLakafake-pv4yd]

Makkah's main attraction is the haram and religious sites indeed. In order to have fun outside of religious sites you have ro visit Taif, the souqs there and the mountains there

[@AbbyAbdullah]

mashahAllah would love to live here..visiting in december for umrah in shah Allah

[@hijabinomad]

Masha'Allah, may AllahSWT make your preparation and your journey smooth and may He accept your umrah, Ameen

[@AbbyAbdullah]

@@hijabinomad thanks make dua for me

[@alessandrobenito3586]

go for Umar or Hajj , nothing else bcs of their attitude , no system, everyone has his own rule or law, depending on his mood or ur nationality, wallahi

[@SYEDALI-nf6ih]

Good you got it out . Hang in there.

[@nemo118]

Lol I totally agree with all of them esp the last one. Another frustration is when the guards just go crazy sometimes

[@hijabinomad]

I feel that! It's more tense during really crowded periods where everyone is trying to break the rules so you'll see some lose their temper but I will say my experiences with the guards for the past few months have been overwhelmingly positive Alhamdulillah! Sometimes it's the crowd that takes it too far and they get aggressive when too many people are being uncooperative. As frustrating as I can be to be on the receiving end, I can't blame em for the stress we put them through!

[@nemo118]

@@hijabinomad yess SubhanAllah this time the guards in haram have been kind I was really shocked cuz they're not like that normally and I just told myself it's cuz of ramadan SubhanAllah how blessed this month is

[@user-ali966]

ماشاءالله تبارك الرحمن

[@hijabinomad]

Jazakallahu khair, I hope you enjoyed the video!

[@heinorway2097]

thank you so mach I love this video. I will walk

[@hijabinomad]

Alhamdulillah I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@missmjr3870]

Appreciate and respect your honesty, it would be nice to know what else you have been doing for the last few months in Saudi, and where u come from originally. I have been to Mecca a few times and absolutely terrified to go shopping on my own due to bad experience. It’s refreshing to see you surviving on your own, and gives me confidence for the future.🌸🌸🌸

[@hijabinomad]

I appreciate your kindness! Yes I wish I had starting filming a bit earlier, although Alhamdulillah most of my experience has been a consistent daily routine centered around visiting the Haram and then coming back to sleep and work :) I have had some interesting experiences which may make an appearance in a video soon! I'm very sorry to hear that you had a poor shopping experience here, I haven't had any major issues so far Alhamdulillah but I've also only stuck to a handful of stores that I like and whose staff are familiar with me now. Insha'Allah your next time is much smoother! If you come later in this year (Nov-Dec), feel free to connect and I'd love to take you around!

[@amberhasan7640]

Is it possible at some point for you to be able to do a video like this from Madinah?

[@hijabinomad]

That's a great idea Amber! Actually funny enough my initial plan was to do a longterm stay in Madinah, I had a place I was looking at through a reference but it didn't work out and I'm so grateful that Makkah was my destination! I only spent 3 weeks in Madinah so I didn't get to experience enough cons this time around. I will say the food scene was better there 😄 Insha'Allah will see if I can make something of that footage, otherwise next time! Keep the requests coming 😃

[@zainabalnaqwi9781]

why don't you upload videos now?

[@burhanulaqli9876]

Great

[@d.takayammi5310]

glad to see u sister do tell us how u decided to settle here and why from where and when

[@hijabinomad]

Thank you for your comment!! Just to clarify, I decided to do a longterm stay after umrah but not to settle 😁 I am a traveler so I move between countries and I'm shifting again soon insha'Allah! If people are interested I would happy to do a Q&A when I hit 1000 subscribers 😄!

[@optomm]

SubhanALLAH

[@abdulraufnarejo]

Masha Allah vary Nice vlog

[@dennismaeba7081]

lovely

[@Jamesseekstruth]

How are you now.. i notice this video is a year old.

[@fahmimuhammad2448]

It’s my is my future living in at 2025❤❤❤ insha Allah 😊

[@Pity93925]

What are the places in makkah where we can buy house and live to do business

[@abudhabiblogger6167]

How can we get in touch with you sister Hafsa? I'd love to know if you plan to stay in Madina anytime and if so to get your advice and recommendations for solo female travel in Madina.

[@hijabinomad]

I might create an email address for this channel if it continues to grow, if so ut will be in my description box moving forward! At the moment I would like to keep my personal socials private :) and yes, next time I would like to do a prolonged stay in Madinah insha'Allah!

[@Apoemortwo]

great channel i hope to be a hijabi nomad someday myself inshaaAllah

[@hijabinomad]

Insha'Allah! This was a dream for many years before it became a reality, may AllahSWT make your dreams a reality as well 😄, Ameen

[@MuhammedJat]

​@@hijabinomad❤❤❤❤

[@SA-90s]

Did u try My STC? It’s an application and u can top up ur account and adjust ur data plan

[@hijabinomad]

Jazakallahu khair for the suggestion. I did try the app route first but I can't recall the issue I experienced. It was either something with my cards not working or another persistent error message. I ended up not being able to top up outside of the in-person locations :/

[@abdiazizhassan1719]

MashaaAllah ..beautiful.❤ which country are you from sizter?

[@muzhganhotak1798]

asalam alekom. I would like to do my internship around 3 months in saudi Arabia in a exportation company . but I don't know that girl can live alone and have her own apartment. can you help me and give some information . tnx

[@mamamaria7027]

Is there any video about schools in Mecca? Specially with good islamic and secular education

[@hijabinomad]

Unfortunately I don't have much knowledge in this area and didn't make friends in Makkah that have children so I wouldn't be the best person to ask. There was a very family friendly culture there though! You saw lots of families picnicing and there were parks and playgrounds where I stayed in An Naseem :)

[@mamamaria7027]

@@hijabinomad Ok no problem Jazakallah kher for letting me know

[@khalidakhtar4588]

Great insight into living in Mecca, great Vlog as your capturing Mecca from a different angle. Could i ask a question please? I released a vlog Umrah 2020 journey to the centre of the world but to date only hot about 450 views, what # hashtags do you use to get more views?

[@hijabinomad]

Thank you for the kind words Khalid! To be honest I haven't quite figured out the tags just yet. I used basic ones like Makkah/Mecca, Umrah, Ramadan and words from my title. Jazakallahu khair for watching :)

[@khalidakhtar4588]

@@hijabinomad Keep up the good work, looking forward to more quality content.

[@mohammedqadarabdi4847]

Masha Allah dear sister

[@Streaming-Reality]

Best places to eat? Also any parks ? Great vlog ☪️❤️🙏

[@hijabinomad]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestions Chris! They have a big family picnic culture here but because it's a desert, they'll just picnic anywhere. On the pavement, side of the road etc because greenery is sparse in the desert. However there are a couple of man-made parks nearby that I could maybe check out! Best places to eat is also an awesome suggestion, let me see if I can squeeze in the time to film my favourites 😊

[@Streaming-Reality]

@@hijabinomad MashAllah 🤩 inshallah one day I’ll go to Mecca 🕋

[@hijabinomad]

@@Streaming-Reality may AllahSWT invite you sooner than you can imagine, Ameen!

[@arewadevelopers9018]

Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah, wabarakatuh. Hafsah, I guess you are from Canada right? Love to hear that. My name is Mahmoud, am planning to relocate to Canada, but am some kind religious. What I mean; am interested in saying my all prayers in the mosque with other Muslims. Which province/city in Canada has more Muslim communities, please? Thank you for sharing your experiences.

[@nkhalid7315]

You have been away from KZbin from last 2 years … I hope you are fine sister 🤔

[@cleartrueblue66]

Thanks for the honesty! One thing that puts me off is the language barrier. How did you communicate with people if everyone speaks Arabic there? Also, do you feel that you had less job opportunities or rights due to being a woman?

[@hijabinomad]

My absolute pleasure! The language barrier wasn't too much trouble unless I was going to a small local shop, taking an uber/taxi or sometimes when asking for directions at the Haram and even then I could get by with gestures and Google translate! Hotels and restaurants almost always had English speaking staff so that was a big plus. It was definitely definitely fear of mine initially as well so I know where you're coming from! As for job opportunities, I was still working for my employer back home so I didn't get a chance to experience that element! I might make a separate video about my experience as a woman overall to summarize it all as this response is getting a bit long 😄

[@nahidabegum6467]

You should make a video on what essentials to bring outside

[@hijabinomad]

Awesome suggestion Nahida! Do you mean essentials for Umrah, for just visiting the Haram or travel in general?

[@mdlalaa]

I love you videos sis 😍

[@hijabinomad]

Masha'Allah Tabarakallah, likewise girl!

[@missmjr3870]

Jzk I will definitely try and connect with you if I come again InshaAllah

[@AsimShakour]

Were you able to make visa runs with tourist visa? If so when was the last time? Thx

[@hijabinomad]

I made a visa run to Dubai at the end of March and didn't have issues coming back but I did later have a headache when leaving Saudi after Eid. Others have told me they were able to do so successfully but that was not my experience. I'll try to post my video about it soon!

[@AsimShakour]

@@hijabinomad I’m planning to do the same thing, so if you can give me any advice on it as soon as possible that would be great. I really appreciate it. Jazakumullahu Khairun / thanks

[@m.mustapha794]

👍

[@farid7838]

You go to Mecca to complete your Umrah or Hajj, get plenty of ajr with your prayers, and that's it. This is not a "tourist" destination or a city for career plans. There is nothing to do around. Hotel fares are atrocious, food options are very, very limited and not on the healthy side, taxis are a complete rip off, beggars are a true hassle and a gimmick too. Police and military in the Haram are rude and unhelpful. And past April, the heat gets unbearable. Madinah is a much better option overall.

[@Practicearabic]

Do they speak English good there?

[@hijabinomad]

In hotels they do and in some shops they will have employees who can translate! Otherwise, guards in the harmain may know a word or two but you can easily use Google translate to communicate in a pinch!

[@matyfall_]

@@hijabinomadHey Hijabi Nomad👋; sorry if I’m being nosy but why have you stopped uploading videos? I do hope everything is going well for you 🤍

[@Imanmohamed750]

Does she travel with a mahram?

[@hijabinomad]

No she does not :) hence the solo-traveller title. My mahram situation is unique and I have asked a few scholars over the past year to confirm that this is permissible in my circumstances. Some of the travel I have done would not be considered ideal (in terms of safety) but overall having a mahram isn't an option for me :)

[@Imanmohamed750]

@ Hijabi Nomad Sorry , I would’ve directed the question directly to you had I realized quickly enough that you do reply to comments ( or if I scrolled down lol)… it was my first time in your channel I really enjoyed the content especially because I’m trying to move there from the states and was trying to figure out what kind of visa you applied for but I’ll look at past videos inshallah I just wanted to advise you from a sister to another wallahi , with no ill intentions or hate behind it that traveling without a mahram is a sin and a disobedience to Allah, sounds like you know and working on it … I say this especially because it looks like you plan to travel more so you can inshallah keep this in mind for the future and repent for the past 🌹

[@tx41979]

Uber cancel there too like uk 🤣🤣🤣

[@alphathelifecoach]

100k per salat, there’s no Con there Subhanallah

[@hijabinomad]

That's the Pro that overrides all cons Alhamdulillah!

[@gotohell78]

i am stressed because my non-muslim friends call me half-brained and give proof of Sahih Bukhari Hadees. i dont want to leave allah. pleasehelp.

[@vivoY-fc1fo]

Love you from indonesia.

[@hijabinomad]

Love right back to Indonesia! Indonesia is on my travel list for this year, I can't wait to explore your beautiful country insha'Allah!

[@livaallolia]

@@hijabinomad love you sister from NY,

[@hijabinomad]

@@livaallolia xxx love you too! New York has some of my favourite people in the world 😍 I've loved every visit!

[@livaallolia]

@@hijabinomad please come again i would love to have you. EID MUBARAK

[@jingulu]

You look like Sarah Ali Khan :)

[@hijabinomad]

Haha, I don't see the resemblance but maybe it's the big cheeks 😅? Thank you for commenting Farzana, I hope you enjoyed the video!

[@teamsupplementstationbandr2962]

1st Con is nothing more to do in Haram. If you want to do come activate go USA, Londan. Peaople are coming for Hajj and Ummah only not like you finding social life. 1st con is not a con.

[@hijabinomad]

This is from the perspective of a longterm traveler and some parts of the video are relevant to Hajj and Umrah travellers while others are not such as that con :) If someone was like me and wondering if they could manage 'living in makkah' (as stated in the title) for a few months, that is information that would be relevant to their decision making which is why I chose to include it. I hope you enjoyed the rest of the video!

[@nurak3716]

[@livelifelikefairy]

where is your face hijab.

[@hijabinomad]

I'm going to treat this as a genuine question, if you're talking about the niqab or face veil, it's not required in Saudi although it is commonly worn here. I bought one but didn't have a single occasion to wear it nor was I ever asked to.

[@user-kl1on3nw7y]

Terrible to hear about the pick up culture in such a holy city !🧐

[@idrissufi9168]

Pick up culture? Strange and not good!

[@ZIYAUDDINq]

Will u marry me

[@tx41979]

Best way is take shoe off slap em shouldn't be allowed to do that to a Alone woman shame full act

[@samahmad8203]

What’s your ethnicity sister