Neither in Mecca nor in Medina I could find some postcards. So I had to buy them in Dubai. I am so sorry but they don’t have postcards there.
Thank you to Monika Puntigam!
Also I want to say thank you to Gundula Feldschmid!
Special thanks also to Mrs. Elfriede Leitgeb, Baukoord DI Eigner GmbH!
And one more time a big thank you to my sister Zaussen!
On this special day I want to start with another huge THANK YOU to the Anjum Hotel Mecca for the great hospitality and all the support! And now let the last stage begin …
At 9 o’clock the Hotel chauffeur and I started in the direction of Medina.
Most of the time it was a quite unspectacular ride. But not always …
… I haven’t seen this before – baboons all along, by and on the road.
There were so many of them and it seemed as if the highway …
… was something like a road movie for them đ
We still were on our way and as I mentioned before …
… a nice view but no further onlookers.
At 2:00 p.m. we finally reached Medina and I checked in at the hotel first.
And there was this big Wow when I looked out my room window. I had this spectular view on the Prophet’s Mosque.
And on the top there was this fruit basket and a hand written welcome card for me from the Oberoi Madina Hotel. But I had to go outside to visit the Prophet’s Mosque, which is the final resting place of Muhammad.
On the place in front there were these stunning sunshades. I’ve never seen such beautiful things before.
Immediately afterwards I came to the entrance portal …
… which is richly ornamented outside and inside.
There were these imposing arcades all around …
… and a touch of gold. Really amazing!
Every minaret so different and so beautiful.
In fact, the Prophet’s Mosque is also the final resting place of the first two Rashidun caliphs Abu Bakr and Umar ibn Al-Khattab.
An overwhelming beauty!
When I came outside again the place looked a bit different. I figured out why things changed. At sunset they close the sunshades đ
But anyhow, I kept on walking around and I saw some more nice buildings.
These mosques were converted houses of the caliphs.
They were such a contrast to what I’ve seen before at the Prophet’s Mosque but when I went inside I was equally impressed …
… by all these details.
On my way back I had to cross the “sunshade place” once again and there were just many pillars left instead of the umbrellas.
As I was hungry I went into a Yemeni restaurant where these nice guys invited me for dinner for no reason. Thank you very much!
And now I enjoy the night view on the Prophet’s Mosque out of my room window.
There is one more thing I want to mention: neither in Mecca nor in Medina it was possible to get an official stamp for my pilgrims passport. The authorities just didn’t want to. I went there for several times and at the end they just said no!
Today is the day. The day of arrival. Due to the circumstance that it was not possible to wallk through Saudi Arabia, I had to change the route. Therefore my final target was Medina instead of Mecca. Today I arrived in Medina after 301 days and 8.700 kilometres of walking.
To be honest – I am a bit proud of myself đ
But now it is time to say goodbye! Thank you to all my followers and friends for supporting me with your comments and encouraging words. Thank you to all the people I met on the way for all the support, warmth, humanity and courtesy they bestowed on me. Thank you to all my embosomed new friends I made on this way. And also a big thank you to my family and friends at home, who made this “whole thing” possible.
Thank you all and goodbye! See you again on my next trip … đ
This morning I’ve had breakfast at the Anjum Hotel for the first time. It was so impressing to see this huge dining room with all the delicious things around.
There is another thing I want to mention: Yasin and his family organized a Hotel in Medina for me for tomorrow. At as an encore the Hotel Anjum chauffeur will bring me to Medina and will guide me through the city for a sight seeing tour.
I am so grateful for all the support you gave to me and for your magnanimity.
Whenever you come to Mecca you have to stay at Anjum Hotel. http://anjum.campaignworks.biz/
After breakfast I made another sight seeing tour on my own. I visited the al-Haram-Mosque one more time because it is so impressing …
… and I also found the Ali Gate.
Afterwards I went inside a shopping mall.
This mall was incredibly large …
… and I liked the perfumery most đ
Finally I also found a Saudi Arabian fast food restaurant.
When I came back to the hotel in the evening I felt a bit groggy – I think it could have been the temperature …
Midmorning I was picked up by Yasin and his mother and we drove to a mountain at the urban fringe.
So I had the chance to see a bit more of Mecca.
The scenery reminded me of my walking days …
… and then we reached the rock.
In these climes it is always good to have an umbrella with you. đ
The ascent was quite challenging because of the hot temperature.
But I discovered a tree, I always knew that it must excist somewhere – the tree where plastic grows on.
As usual when there is a cliff around I had to go there for a dare đ
It was quite a different view over Mecca up there.
After we had seen everything and visited the cave, we went back down.
Yasin dropped me at the hotel and I needed a short rest after this mountain trip. Thank you for this interesting tour!
P.S.: The Anjum Hotel is supporting people, who want to do something special in their life. They help to make wishes come true. Here is the link for futher information.
This morning I met with Yasin and his stepbrother at the lobby because they organized some more interviews for me.
Actually I still can’t believe that I am a famous person.
There were some journalists from TV and newspapers and some important personalities as well.
We also made a short excursion on the roof of the hotel.
It was an outstanding view up there, but if you see Mecca from above you realize that it is a big building site.
After all the interviews and the roof top walk we had a nice and delicious meal together.
When I was alone again I decided to go for a walk. So I strolled around and felt quite comfortable with it.
Now I am back at the hotel, sharing my night view on Mecca with you and go to bed early đ
I was at this plane, arriving at Jeddah airport at 2:30 a.m. 
There should have been this guy picking me up from the airport, but when I walked through the amazing large airport area I couldn’t find him. So I decided to walk – what else đ
While I was walking along one of the main roads leading to Mecca I tried to call him. And finally he picked up the phone and we figured out that he was waiting at the airport. I tried to explain where I was but it was a bit difficult as I didn’t know where I was exactly. Anyhow, after one hour there was nice elderly man who picked me up and he called Yasin, the guy who was searching for me, to tell him my position. A bit later I changed cars and Yasin took me to the hotel.
Meanwhile it got light and these were my first impressions of Mecca. 
My hotel from the outside …
… and from the inside đ
And there were all these goodies waiting for me. Thank you so much to Yasin and his family to host me at Anjum Hotel in Mecca for my whole stay.
I woke up in the early afternoon and Yasin picked me up for having a meal with his family. We’ve had a joyful time together and I was very pleased to got to know his mother, who is Austrian.
Afterwards I went for a walk and when I arrived at al-Haram-Mosque I’ve had the need to do my Umrah.
It really is an outstanding building with this certain kind of aura. 
So join me on my way …
This Umrah I made today was not for me. It is for all the people I met on my way, walking from Graz to Mecca, who asked me to pray for them. 
It was so overwhelming beeing part of this crowd at this place. 
I also want to take the chance to say thank you to all of you, who followed me on my way from Graz to Mecca for the last 10 months. Thank you for your support, your kind and helpful words and for me the most important thing, that I always had friends on my mind and by my side! Good night and see you tomorrow!
Dear Zaussen, I’d have to write postcards for the rest of my life, to show you how much I care about you and how very dear you are to me. Thank you so much!
Yesterday I had to pack my stuff and prepare for my flight back to Salalah.
I was very proud about the fact how valuable my shoes have been. Actually they’ve made my way for thousands of kilometres and now they are treated like trophy from Hilals family.
As I had no proper clothes for my trip to Mecca Saif gave me one of his dishdashas and Hamood gave me a cap. And because I’ve been on a journey they purified me with incense. (that’s the small pot you can see between my feet) đ
I took the chance to have a last look at my good old shoes …
… and then it was time to say goodbye to my Omani family. Thank you one more time for everything you did for me! I already miss you!
On the way to the airport we met Lakshmi and her son because she wanted to donate the clothes I would need for my final stage at Mecca. Thank you Lakshmi for your great support on my way through Oman!
Back at Salalah Airport there were all my Iraqi friends awaiting me. After a big hello …
… they invited me for dinner …
… and we had lots of fun a nice evening together.
Today I was invited by Faizal, the guy I already met in Ras Madrakah with his friends, when I was on my way, for lunch because he also wanted to grab to chance to say goodbye.
And finally after all the goodbyes my Iraqi friends brought me back to the airport again. Thank you to all of you for the good days we’ve had together at Salalah!
And here I am, sitting in an aeroplane, eye to eye with the last stage of my tremendous journey from Graz to Mecca on foot. đ
This morning was really weird. A friend knocked on my door. He was really excited and told me about the effects of yesterday’s media presence. Many people had read the stories and everybody seemed to be talking about me. But the most overwhelming story I was told, was that a woman who gave birth to a son yesterday heard about my story and decided to name her son Thair :). A wonderful story to wake up with :).
This is my signed walking equipment, which now goes to those who purchased it yesterday.
Lakshmi then accompanied me to the Oman Cancer Society.
There we had the honour to hand over the money we could get from the auction. It was a really wonderful and overwhelming moment.
We then did some more pictures with supporters and employers.
Our next stop was at the Iraq embassy, where I got a warm welcome, another stamp in my pilgrim’s passport …
… and some presents. Thank you so much!
Of course after our appointment it was time to take pictures :).
And now it’s time for a barbeque-dinner with my Oman family and friends. Let’s enjoy the evening!
Zaussen my sister, I love you! Thank you so much!
ontheway.today 