TRAVEL
Things to Remember When Traveling While Muslim Leaving your comfort zone behind can open up a whole new world BY K.T. LYNN
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n my ten years as a Muslim, I’ve visited 13 countries and counting. Some of my airport experiences were good — “Welcome to Toronto.” Some were bad — “You wouldn’t happen to be carrying any pig’s blood would you?” in Washington, D.C. And some of them were downright ugly — “Ma’am, I’m going to need you to come with us” — in Frankfurt, where I was strip-searched. They even combed through my hair! Even though some of my experiences have been uncomfortable, I’m even more encouraged to travel and share my experiences with others. Note the Quranic statement of “Say, [O Muhammad], ‘Travel through the land and observe how He began creation. Then God will produce the final creation…” (29:20). During my first trip abroad, I learned three things about traveling while Muslim. If you remember them, it will make any
journey of yours much easier: always be prepared, we are all connected and traveling is a great way to connect with God.
ALWAYS BE PREPARED What is the most important thing to prepare before traveling while Muslim? If you guessed suitcase, travel shatafah [portable/ foldable water container] and prayer mat, along with hotel and flight information, you would be wrong on all counts. But why? It’s extremely important to prepare your luggage and travel arrangements. And traveling without a pocket shatafah is pure madness. But in fact, the most important thing is to prepare your heart. How do you do this? By making du’a, because you never know what you’ll encounter on your journey and it’s important to be in the best state to face it. For instance, take my first trip abroad was to make umrah. And that point I had been
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Muslim for two years and had absolutely no idea of what to expect from a country like Saudi Arabia. When I landed in Jeddah, I had to use the bathroom. But, worried that I would lose my group if I did so, I figured that I would use it when we got to the hotel. Thirty minutes into the journey, one of the ladies next to me on the bus mentioned that it would take four hours to get to the hotel. I scrambled through the two-decker bus looking for the bathroom, only to discover that it was out of order. After another thirty minutes of discomfort, really torture, I swallowed my embarrassment and spoke to our tour director. After speaking to the bus driver, he revealed that there wouldn’t be anywhere to stop for another hour. Trying to help, the driver floored it. When the bumps in the road became too much to handle, I stood up. Upon reaching a mosque 45 minutes