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Shopping 1.
Most shops in
the areas near the two Mosques do not accept credit cards. Do not
arrive in The Sacred Land in the hope that you can survive with your
credit cards. About the only places where credit cards can be used
are five-star hotels and some jewellery shops. Visa and MasterCard
stickers can be seen in these places. Diners and Amex are not popular
here
2. To cash travellers cheques, you must produce your purchase
receipt of these cheques and your pilgrims identification tag.
Remember to bring along the purchase receipt.
3. Generally, expect customer 'unfriendly' service. One can
cite several reasons (big crowd, language problem, etc) but at the
end of the day it presents a bad image of the country. The Saudi
authorities should look into both structural and attitudinal
factors, and take corrective action.
4. Price haggling is the norm. Pilgrims from countries
where this is NOT the norm are clearly at a disadvantage.
5. Goods with price stickers/tags are a rare sight. This makes
shopping very difficult. The Saudi authorities should look into this
problem. In the long run, price stickers will help to increase sales.
6. Food products: 'expiry dates' are printed mostly in Arabic
numerals. Familiarize yourself with Arabic numerals so that you
don't end up buying 'expired' products.
7. Coins are never used, although Saudi currency coins exist.
If you pay SR 3 for SR 2.50 product, you'll be given one or two tiny
packets of chewing gum as "change". Of course, it works
one way only - the shops won't accept SR 2 and chewing gum from you
for a SR 2.50 purchase! The Saudi authorities should act against
this practice of not using the coins.
8. Pirated products, particularly
pirated watches, are widely sold by street vendors and others. It is
vital that Saudi authorities move quickly against the import and
sale of such products to protect the shoppers and to maintain the
image of The Holy Land as a place for honest commerce.
9. The Saudi authorities should encourage the setting up of
hypermarkets (similar to Carrefour) in Mecca and Medina so that
shoppers can buy a good part of their needs under one roof and
without price haggling.
10. Beware of pickpockets. Despite the tough
laws, the crowded environment of The Hajj provides easy
opportunities for these criminals.
11. You have to know Arabic, Urdu, Hindi or Malay to do your
shopping in The Sacred Land. Use of
English is very rare.
12. Some shops have bilingual signboards (Arabic and English). In 8
out of 10 signboards, the English words are wrongly spelt. I hope
the local authorities in The Sacred Land take appropriate measures.
13. If you wish to buy snacks, groceries, etc in a posh setting,
there are several supermarkets near The Sacred Mosques.
 
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Books
on Islam
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Nearly
all the
bookshops
near
Masjid
Al-Haram sell
mostly
various
editions
of The
Qur'an and
audio
cassettes
of Qur'an
recitations.
The number
of bookshops
carrying
books on
Islam in
English has
increased
over the
last few
years.
A
good
range is
available
at "Dawah
Corner
Bookshop"
which is
located in
the 2nd
floor of
the Makkah
Commercial
Center,
Shop Bo.
201-203
(Tel: 5311
895, Cell:
0503621453,
www.DawaShop.com).
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Make every
minute count
In 2009
Malaysian
pilgrims are
expected to
return home
with 250 to
300 tonnes
of luggage
containing
mostly dates
and
souvenirs.
Convert the
tonnes into
number of
hours spent
buying them!
Please do
not waste
your
precious
Hajj time.
Make every
minute of
your Hajj
count for
the
Hereafter
and for
strengthening
your faith
to cope with
the
temptations
of this
temporary
life.
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Smoke-free
Makkah and
Madinah
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Sale of
tobacco
is banned in
the
five-kilometer-
radiuses of
the The Two
Holy Mosques.
Don't try to
buy it from
illegal
dealers
and land
yourself
into
trouble.
The Hajj is
a great
opportunity
to quit
smoking!
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Hajj Revenue
-
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Foreigners
spend about
SAR7 billion
during the
hajj season
alone,
according to
Riyad Bank.
The hajj
season
brings in
around SAR40
billion to
the Saudi
economy, or
about 10% of
the non-oil
private
sector's
contribution
to gross
domestic
product.
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"Those who
walk in
search of
knowledge
walk in the
path of
God."
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"God said
you have to
do
the Hajj -
He didn't
say you have
to suffer
it."
[Saudi
scientist]
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