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JEDDAH’S Oldest Mosque By Mohammed Mirza
Parts of the Shafei Mosque date back to the time of the Caliph Umar (RA), making it one of Jeddah’s oldest surviving mosques. After years of meticulous restoration works it was finally opened to the public this year. The mosque is located within the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Historic Balad in the Mazloom District. Mind you that this place is not accessible via car; one has to walk through the narrow maze-like lanes of Balad. As we walked
84 DESTINATION RIYADH JANUARY 2016
through them we gave a fleeting look to the buildings that lean at perturbing angles, but somehow continue to stand. It wasn’t our first time, so we had kind of become used to seeing them that way. We did however come across something we’ve never seen in our entire life. A group of South Asian expats were playing their own variant of volleyball. They were using a non-airy ball and instead of using their wrists, they were using their fists to hit the ball. Almost as if they were punching it. It seemed like quite a difficult sport, but they have become pros at it, with rallies continuing for long.
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Shafei Mosque reopened to the public.