Fajr adhan

Assalamu Aleikum!

I've moved to the town and have all facilities close at hand. My apartment is next door to a mosque and I was woken at 5.30am to the call to prayer. Unlike when I lived further out and it came gently over the sands this was much louder and urgent. One of my non-muslim colleagues found it quite annoying - he doesn't appreciate being woken so early!

This evening I sat on the roof of the apartment building and watched a football game between the local professional team and another team I didn't recognise. The view is amazing! I drank tea and let the warm breeze blow over me. It's a far cry from the cold winters in Wales. As I watched the game I also managed to look out over the town. Beyond the town limits are the endless dunes off into the Empty Quarter but within the town are date palm trees and lots of grass being endlessly watered. There seems to be an endless supply of water.

Long before I came to this part of the world I read most of Wilfred Thesiger's books. He was a British explorer from 1940s who travelled with the Bedouin through the Empty Quarter. It was a hard life with little to eat and even less to drink. The Bedouins I work with are descendants of those Thesiger met on his travels. Thesiger's books are well worth reading not only for their insight into desert life but also the insights he provides into Islamic society from this area.

I attach a photo of the view from my apartment.

Masalamah

Yahya