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And it is He who sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby the growth of all things. We produce from it greenery from which We produce grains arranged in layers. And from the palm trees - of its emerging fruit are clusters hanging low. And [We produce] gardens of grapevines and olives and pomegranates, similar yet varied. Look at [each of] its fruit when it yields and [at] its ripening. Indeed in that are signs for a people who believe. (Surah Al-An‘am, 99)

Was it absolutely aesthetic? Yes. Were the dates really good? Yes. Did we get really good pictures? Yes. These palm trees gave off a completely different vibe from those in California. For the short time that we were there, my head was constantly facing upwards trying to take in how enormous the trees were and then trying to imagine how people get up there to take out the dates.

And [mention] when We made the House a place of return for the people and [a place of] security. And take, [O believers], from the standing place of Abraham a place of prayer. And We charged Abraham and Ishmael, [saying], "Purify My House for those who perform Tawaf and those who are staying [there] for worship and those who bow and prostrate [in prayer]." (2:125)

Finally, we were really here. This was where Ibraheem (as) built the Kabah with his son. This is the place where the prophet threw the idols out of the Kabah. This is the place where so many Muslims and sahabah with far greater eeman performed Hajj and Umrah. This is the place where Duaas are accepted. This is the house of my creator and the creator of all those around me. This is a place where money, race, culture, and physical differences are irrelevant. The only thing that matter here is Allah (swt). We traveled across the world to see this and it was soooooo extremely worth every millisecond. I saw people with no legs doing tawaf, people who were crying to their lord and even people who were blind doing tawaf. As I write, I now realize that all of those people are my fellow brothers and sisters in Islam. I didn't know them but we shared an experience. Allah (swt) chose each of those individuals to show up at his house. I can't even begin to stress how much of a blessing that is!

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It quite literally towered over everything. It was really cool, however, because it had an enormous mall inside as well as a bunch of hotels and halal restaurants.

This mosque was gorgeous! From the detailing on the roof and the lights and arches to the moveable roof that would open up (last video). It was amazing like you could actually hear birds chirping and feel the breeze wafte in as you prayed.

Unreal. That's what I kept telling myself every single time. No camera lens can do it justice. One of the best things is walking to masjid a Fajar time and praying outside. Once you make salam you can bear witness to an amazing sunrise and the sing-song zhikir of the birds all around.

And [mention] when Abraham said, "My Lord, make this a secure city and provide its people with fruits - whoever of them believes in Allah and the Last Day."... (2:126)

We were quite literally experiencing the fruits of Ibraheem (as) duaa. There was so much food there and I made sure to take advantage of all of the halal fast food chains like five guys. Because honestly, no such things exist here in the US. I also had such incredible ice cream that I wouldn't be surprised if 50% was made from zam zam. LIke it was seriously good. However, given the plethora of food, I didn't pig out as much because I was more focused on other things. But it was still amazing to have that opportunity.

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Majority of our family on this trip loved cats so it didn't hurt that Madina was filled with them.