Two Thai pilgrims performing the Hajj for the first time expressed joy at arriving in Saudi Arabia after having been unable to do so because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
«Hajj is the opportunity of my lifetime. I could not hold back my tears when I first saw the Kaaba. If I am able to perform Hajj after this time, I intend to perform Umrah every year, if it is the will of Allah. Hajj means everything to me,» Arong Samae said in an interview with Arab News.
Samae, from Narathiwat Province in southern Thailand, is a businessman who is performing the pilgrimage this year with his wife.
«I take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude to the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for its gigantic efforts, thanks to which Muslims can again visit the city of the Prophet (Medina) and Mecca, and I pray to Almighty God to grant it more prosperity and progress," Samae said.
A native of Narathiwat Province, he flew from southern Thailand directly to Medina Airport. He arrived in Saudi Arabia on June 11 and left for Mecca on June 17.
«I have never encountered difficulties; everything is organized and easy. The Thai Hajj company provides everything from start to finish, and the Thai government also provides support and funds at all stages,» Samae said.
«The trip took about eight hours by charter flight, and I did not expect such conveniences, as I had heard that the pilgrimage route is exhausting and long, starting with transfers by car to the capital, then waiting two to three days for a flight,» he said.
Samae was surprised to see how fast and smooth the process was: «Praise be to God, everything (was) easy… Less than 12 hours… and I was in Saudi Arabia, and I thank God for that,» he said.
«I prayed to God that one day I would come to Saudi Arabia. I also thank everyone who serves the pilgrims, whether from Thailand or from Saudi Arabia,» he said.
He said he wanted to perform Hajj two years ago but could not due to COVID-19 restrictions. According to him, the pandemic «changed everything» they wanted to do.
A native of Thailand, 58-year-old Mamu Kaya, is performing Hajj this year with his wife. He is an Arabic language teacher at a secondary school from Yala, a city in the south of the country.
«I am very happy about this opportunity, and I thank God day and night for it. And I am absolutely certain that every Muslim who has come to this pure land shares this feeling with me,» Kaya said.
He told Arab News that this is his third time performing Hajj.
«We are very lucky to have a direct flight from the far south of Thailand, from Narathiwat Province, which is only one hundred kilometers from my home,» he said.
«The Thai Hajj company and the Thai Hajj mission have fulfilled their duty well; everything is organized and neat, especially thanks to the presence of electronic platforms that greatly facilitate the procedures from the first day until we boarded the plane to Medina,« he said.
Kaya completed an eight-hour direct flight from Narathiwat to Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Medina. He thanked the Kingdom and Thailand for providing these routes for pilgrims.
«I heard that organizing a chartered plane was not easy, and this can only be done thanks to the enormous efforts of the two countries, Thailand and Saudi Arabia,» he said.
Kaya and his wife arrived in Medina on June 12, left for Mecca on June 18, and will return home on July 20.
«One could say that this year's Hajj is special and completely different from my previous experience,» he said.
«For example, from the moment I got off the plane at Medina Airport until arriving at the hotel, the process took only one hour. Every step is fast and neat, starting with passport procedures, baggage collection, and the bus ride,» Kaya added.
He added that Saudi and Thai staff were available everywhere to help. «Above all, the reception from the competent Saudi authorities was very remarkable; we felt like we were among VIPs,» he said.
For him, it was an emotional experience. «Indescribable pleasure, especially for a person of my age. I always cry when I stand before the Prophet's Mosque and the Sacred Kaaba, crying from joy, of course, and all thanks to the Almighty,» he said.
«The only problem that worries me and everyone is the high prices for everything; in any case, we fully understand that this matter is not in our hands, so not only have the costs of Hajj increased, but also in everything and all over the world. Otherwise, there are no difficulties,» he said.
According to the Thai Embassy in Jeddah, Thailand has a post-pandemic quota of 5,885 pilgrims, of whom 3,738 have registered for it. Before the COVID-19 restrictions were introduced, Thailand had a quota of 13,000 people. In 2018 and 2019, 7,851 and 8,462 pilgrims performed Hajj, respectively.
As of June 20, 1,120 pilgrims had arrived in Medina on Thai Airways charter flights. Four flights arrived in the Kingdom from June 10 to 13. The remaining 2,618 pilgrims will depart from June 29 to Jeddah on eight flights, five of which are operated by Thai airlines and three by Saudi airlines.
When the first groups of pilgrims arrived in Mecca and Medina on Sunday, Basri Tatif, deputy head of the Thai Pilgrims Affairs Division, praised the Kingdom for its organization and said that his fellow citizens would be able to perform their rituals safely with all effective measures.